Elantris: Difference between revisions

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Eternity, as the introduction puts it, [[After the End|ended ten years ago]]. In a cataclysmic event that tore open the land, the magic suddenly failed, turning the Elantrians into grotesque [[Our Zombies Are Different|zombie-like]] creatures stripped of their magic and their glory. The transformation still strikes at random, but now as a curse, condemned by all the religions of the world.

And then [[It Gets Worse|everything starts going wrong]] all at once. The kingdom of Arelon is unstable due to inept leadership, the most beloved man in the kingdom (who could have held things together) is "dead," and [[Warrior Monk|a high priest]] of [[Church Militant|the militaristic Dereth religion]] has just arrived in the capital city. [[Mission From God|He has three months to convert the people of Arelon]], or they will all be wiped out by the Derethites in a holy war. And that's just the first couple of chapters. To say anything more would be to spoil things.

 

 

Not to be confused with the Hyundai Elantra.

* [[Disproportionate Retribution]]: So the Elantrians were benevolent semi-divine beings who ruled over a genuine utopia... and then they were all made into hideous zombie-like creatures because they earned the wrath of God (according to Shu-Dereth). Seems more than a little unfair.

** Not to mention what {{spoiler|Dilaf}} had planned for the Elantrians over {{spoiler|the (accidental!) cursing and death of his wife.}}

* [[Dramatic Unmask]]: {{spoiler|Raoden, in the home of his conspirator friend, to the usurper King Telrii.}} He was even [[Crazy Prepared]] about it, making it ''look'' like his disguise was mundane when it was really the product of {{spoiler|[[The Magic Comes Back]].}}

* [[Earn Your Happy Ending]]

** Elantris itself is also this for the Arelenes after the Reod.

* [[The Empire]]: Fjordell.

* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]

** Making them [[Royals Who Actually Do Something]].

* [[Fantasy Counterpart Culture]]: The Derethi/Fjordell empire is a combination of the Romans and the Norse, per [[Word of God]]. Jindo is loosely based on China, and Teod is remniscent of Britain in that it's a tiny island that is nonetheless a world power due to its incredibly formidable navy.

* [[Ironic Echo]]: At the beginning of the novel, Hrathen is convinced that eventually, the people of the city will see him as their savior. {{spoiler|Well...yeah, but not exactly the way he intended.}}

* [[Karma Houdini]]: [[Evil Overlord|Wyrn]] gets away untouched, with just his recent plotting thwarted. Sanderson hopes to write a sequel someday and intended to preserve Wyrn as [[Big Bad]] of the setting.

* [[King Incognito]]: Raoden, sort of, several times. {{spoiler|When he's first sent to Elantris, he doesn't give his real name. People unusually smart and/or close to him figure out who he is in the end, but most people come to follow him simply because he's leading by example and getting things done. When Sarene accidentally subverts his efforts to help Elantrians by giving them handouts, he doesn't admit to being in charge and lets her think the former gang leaders are still running things. And later, he leaves the city disguised as a [[Jive Turkey]], because he's still trying to figure out how to fix the magic.}}

* [[Knight Templar]]: Hrathen, {{spoiler|1=though a combination of [[Character Development]] and sympathetic POV soon make it clear he is far less fanatical than he seems,}} and {{spoiler|Dilaf.}}

* [[Love Before First Sight]]: Both Raoden and Sarene began to fall in love with one another when they could only speak over Seon and via letters, but hadn't met face to face.

* [[Madness Mantra]]: Each Hoed, an Elantrian who has been driven into a catatonic state by the injury, has their own.

* [[Mayfly-December Romance]]: It's not really addressed in the book, but it's implied that Raoden will far outlive Sarene.

* [[Meaningful Echo]]: {{spoiler|When Saolin goes Hoed, his [[Madness Mantra]] is "I have failed my Lord Spirit." When Raoden does, his is "Failed my love."}}

* [[Noble Demon]]: Hrathen again (ironic, considering that he's a priest).

* [[Non-Human Sidekick]]: The Seons.

* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: Sarene's very good at this. {{spoiler|So is Dilaf.}}

* [[Only Sane Man]]: Raoden only meets one person who's managed to retain both his wits and his humanity after becoming an Elantrian. {{spoiler|At first.}}

* [[Planet of Hats]]: Subverted with the Dulas. They're supposed to be an entire culture of optimistic, lazy, rather silly airheads, but the main Dula character, Galladon, is a pessimistic, cynical [[Deadpan Snarker]] who has the most common sense of anyone in Elantris. This is frequently remarked on by other characters, to his annoyance, and we don't ever really see a "typical" Dula in the book.

** Then [[Exaggerated Trope|played with]] further when, {{spoiler|1=through AonDor and costuming, Raoden}} impersonates a Dula, playing every stereotype of them he knows to the hilt. The Arelene nobility don't know the difference between the impersonator and a genuine Dula, while the difference is perfectly clear (and also very annoying) to Galladon. Sarene becomes suspicious when she realizes just how much of a stereotype he is.

* [[Power Glows]]: All magic glows, the more the better. Elantrians and their very city all possessed a constant glow of power before the disaster struck.

** Interestingly the glowing was responsible for one of the problems that occurred after the Reod. {{spoiler|The light attracted a fungus which fed on it. This was not a problem while the fungus was alive but once the magic went away so did the glow, the fungus died and rotted coating the surfaces of Elantris in a thick oily slime.}}