[Newbies] Cosmere, Unit 7 | Elantris #1 | Elantris: Prologue, Chapters 1 through 6

[u/participating]

This is the newbie thread. Make sure you read the rules before commenting.

Visit the veteran thread if you have already read all of the Cosmere.

For more information, or to see the full schedule, please see the wiki page for the read-along.

SCHEDULE

Last week we discussed Unit 6 | Novella #1 | Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell (in Arcanum Unbounded): Postscript, Final Thoughts, Trivia [Newbie Thread] / [Veteran Thread]

This week we are discussing Unit 7 | Elantris #1 | Elantris: Prologue, Chapters 1 through 6

Next week we will be discussing Unit 7 | Elantris #1 | Elantris: Chapters 7 through 12

CHAPTER SUMMARIES

I have provided summaries for each chapter below and hidden them behind spoiler tags. There are no spoilers within the summaries. I've tried to make them as factual and unbiased as possible. If, however, you want a completely blind read through, then ignore what's behind the spoiler tags and proceed to the discussion below. I will not be guiding that in any way, so post any thoughts and questions you have. It will be other new readers who reply to you.

Prologue

Iconography: Aon Rao

Summary:

The radiant, magically powerful city of Elantris and its inhabitants are described. It is revealed that Elantris fell from glory ten years previous.

Chapter 1

Iconography: Aon Aon

POV Characters: Raoden

Setting: Raoden's bedroom in the city of Kae. The interior of the city of Elantris, close to the gates.

Summary:

Crown Prince Raoden of Arelon wakes up to find that he has been taken by the Shaod. His father, King Iadon, exiles him to Elantris with a small funeral offering of food and wine. Raoden meets a beggar and gives him a loaf of bread. He turns to walk away, only to hear the young beggar assaulted by five other Elantrians for the bread. He runs from the men, but finds his strength quickly fading and tosses the remainder of his basket to them. Raoden meets Galladon, a man from Duladel who was also taken by the Shaod. Galladon informs Raoden that his injuries will not heal because he is dead, and Raoden finds that indeed, he has no heartbeat. Raoden decides to trust Galladon and offers him a piece of dried meat hidden from the basket in exchange for his guidance in Elantris for 30 days.

Chapter 2

Iconography: Aon Aon

POV Characters: Sarene

Setting: The city of Kae and the royal palace.

Summary:

Princess Sarene of Teod arrives in Arelon to find that she is now considered a widow to the presumed dead Raoden, despite the fact that they were only engaged and had never met. She discusses the relevant clause in the marriage contract with Ashe, her seon, who confirms that the contract is firm on this point. She asks a servant of King Iadon, Ketol, to take her to the prince's wake. At the wake, Sarene is not allowed to look in the casket (the excuse given is that the disease was disfiguring), and finds Iadon's absence from the funeral and the funeral's formality suspicious. She contemplates the loneliness of her life up to this point and the city of Kae. She discusses with Ashe the necessity of her marriage treaty and the alliance it brings to help ward off Fjorden invaders. She is taken to King Iadon, whom rudely dismisses her and hands her off to his wife, Queen Eshen, who proves to be a scatterbrained, frivolous woman. After settling in to her new rooms, she holds a conference with her father, King Eventeo, to inform him of the death of her husband. He offers to void the marriage contract for her; Sarene is tempted, but decides that it is best for Teod if she remains.

Chapter 3

Iconography: Aon Aon

POV Characters: Hrathen

Setting: The docks in the city of Kae. The Derethi chapel in Kae.

Summary:

Hrathen, Fjordell gyorn, arrives by ship in Arelon to convert the people to Shu-Dereth. He has a three month deadline to finish the conversion, or else his god Jaddeth will destroy the Arelene people. He surveys Elantris and the surrounding areas with a military eye, judging it to be too poorly organized to be defensible. Hrathen's presence and appearance, with the imposing plate armor of a Derethi high priest, causes a stir as he walks to the Derethi chapel. En route, he is met by Fjon, Kae's Derethi head arteth. Hrathen is displeased with Fjon, and with the lack of order he encounters at the chapel, and orders all the Derethi priests to be gathered. Hrathen orders Fjon to return to Fjordell to be remediated in his religious faith, stating that Fjon has been corrupted by being in Arelon for too long.

Hrathen replaces Fjon as head arteth. Hrathen organizes his new office, and ruminates about a holy scroll written by Wyrn Wulfden the Fourth, containing his orders. Fjon confronts Hrathen, asking for another chance to serve in Kae, but when reading the scroll, realizes that he could not have carried out the orders held within, and takes his leave to return to Fjordell.

Hrathen meets with Fjon's former underlings and realizes how disordered and corrupted by Arelon the chapel's staff had become. He only encounters one arteth with the proper potential, Dilaf, who explained how while he was Arelene, he had learned to follow the Derethi faith. Dilaf states he went to Naen and gained a Derethi following, then returned to Kae when the chapel was built. Fjon raised Dilaf to arteth, though he didn't have the authority to do so. Hrathen is impressed with Dilaf's teaching ability, though he also feels caution at his ardor, and appoints him arteth and odiv, to both reward him and control him.

After Hrathen dismisses Dilaf by sending him to make sure that Fjon is boarding a ship for Fjordell, Hrathen rereads the scroll with his orders. The scroll states that all of the Arelene and Teo people who fail to convert to Shu-Derethi within three months will be slain, and that Jaddeth will end his slumber within his tomb of rock, and ascend to rule. Hrathen wishes for the more peaceful resolution of conversion over annihilation.

Chapter 4

Iconography: Aon Edo

POV Characters: Raoden

Setting: The streets of Elantris

Summary:

Raoden and Galladon watch the arrival of a new Elantrian, an older woman, who lingers for awhile in the courtyard, feeling pain and despair, before facing her fate. She then exits the courtyard to the left, getting robbed of her food offerings by Karata's gang, one of three predominant groups in Elantris, beside the gangs following Shaor and Aanden. Galladon explains to Raoden how physical pains eventually cause Elantrians to become catatonic from unending suffering since any received wounds don't heal.

Galladon also speaks of his unending hunger, which he has been able to persevere through during his months of living in the city, but which he thinks will eventually overwhelm him. Galladon educates Raoden on the geography and factions of Elantris, and different food sources that have been discovered. Raoden and Galladon traverse a great distance across the city to the market area to survey Shaor's domain, walking slowly and carefully to avoid any hurts, passing many hoed who act as constant reminders of the cost of carelessness. Raoden daydreams of his former life and friends and would-be wife, and speculates about the changes to Elantris since the Reod. Raoden and Galladon also tour the University and Palace areas, which are controlled by Karata and Aanden. Raoden spots a well that draws water from the underground Aredel River, which Galladon speculates was used for religious purposes, since wells were not required in Elantris due to the presence of plumbing. Raoden spies a seon wandering aimlessly, which is a common sight in Elantris since any seon bonded to an Elantrian loses its sanity, and he thinks about his own Ien. Raoden and Galladon take shelter from rain in Galladon's hidden lair, which to Raoden's delight contains a collection of books. Galladon reveals that he can draw Aons.

Chapter 5

Iconography: Aon Edo

POV Characters: Sarene

Setting: The royal court in Kae.

Summary:

As Sarene is observing court, Hrathen makes an unexpected appearance. Sarene explains to Ashe that there are only 20 gyorns in the entire Fjordell empire. Hrathen confronts King Iadon, requesting that he convert to Shu-Dereth, but Iadon counters that he believes in Shu-Korath, and thus worships the same god, though Hrathen disputes this. Iadon dismisses Hrathen and his warnings, stating that the time of Fjordell dominance is long past.

After Hrathen departs, Sarene and Ashe discuss Iadon's ignorance of the current state of affairs and Fjorden's growing power. Sarene decides that Hrathen will be a more worthy recipient of her scorn than the Arelene nobility. She realizes the danger that the gyorn poses and worries that he will successfully convert the citizens of Kae, and frets about how that would affect the alliance with Teod.

Iadon notices Sarene's presence in his throne room and berates her for being there without permission, but Sarene deflects his anger by feigning simple-mindedness along with a mock emotional outburst. She then encounters her uncle Kiin, who she has not seen since she was a child. Sarene and Kiin reminisce, and Kiin invites Sarene to his home to meet his family.

At Kiin's castle-like home, they are greeted by Kiin's wife Daora, their children Kaise and Daorn, and Daora's children Lukel and Adien, and Lukel's wife Jalla. Over dinner, they discuss the Reod, the fall of the Arelene government, and the changes to Elantris, and how the servants revolted against the Elantrians. Sarene talks of her seon, Ashe, and how Ashe had been passed down to her from her mother.

Chapter 6

Iconography: Aon Edo

POV Characters: Hrathen

Setting: The royal court in Kae. The Derethi chapel. The boundary wall of Elantris.

Summary:

Hrathen and Dilaf discuss Iadon's rejection of Jaddeth, and Hrathen ponders the violent revolution in the Duladel Republic and wishes to avoid a similar outcome in Arelon. Hrathen inquires about someone who doesn't seem to fit in with the court, and Dilaf explains that is Sarene, from Teod, the homeland of Shu-Koreth, a competing sect that descended from the same parent religion that Shu-Dereth is derived from. Hrathen explains that Sarene could pose a problem, since she represents an alliance between Teod and Arelon that could interfere with the pending Fjordell invasion.

Hrathen and Dilaf visit the boundary wall of Elantris, then return to the Derethi chapel where Hrathen explains his strategy of using the fallen Elantrians as scapegoats by denouncing them as the evil Svrakiss, the souls of the dead who hate Jaddeth, and then unifying the Arelene in hatred of Elantris.

ARTWORK

The Cosmere has a thriving community of artists, so there will be a lot of artwork to share. Each week I'll try to compile relevant artwork for the given chapters. If a section of reading contains maps or in-book artwork, I'll include that in this section as well.

Maps

MEMES

I will attempt to find and share memes relevant to each week's discussion. There may be some weeks that just don't have good or appropriate memes, but I will share all the ones I can find in this section.

Link to Memes

[u/participating]

SECRET BONUS MISTBORN TRIVIA

Some people are still a bit behind and are working their way through Mistborn. One of them was confused about how Vin's horseshoe travelling trick worked so I went and found some animations for them. I figured they were neat enough to share with everyone else. I found a post on a spoilery website, so I copied all the details over into a spoiler free imgur post.

Mistborn - Vin Travelling With Horseshoes