Could the Despiser redeem himself?

[Mighara Sovmadhi]

When Infelice explained that the shadow on the heart of the Elohim was the fact of people from outside the Land's Earth influencing its affairs, this struck me as the perfect explanation for that thing. Donaldson strikes me as always coming up with basically the best possible solution to his mysteries, like he's got this authorial knack for figuring that kind of thing out.

Now this is half guesswork, but it seems to me that the best thing to happen with the Despiser in the end would be for him to somehow redeem himself. Maybe that sounds like it can't happen, but I think it could. What with Covenant and him merging or whatever, right? And him being inside all of us anyway?

[Vraith]

I'm not sure he could redeem himself, [as in just deciding "heh..screw it, I'm gonna do good good good."]
But I'm completely convinced he is redeemable., and such will happen...as in, restored to his appropriate place in the entire cosmos. [which I, and others have talked about in various prediction threads, if I recall correctly...I was gone for a while...maybe the thread about the last dark?].

[lorin]

Now this is half guesswork, but it seems to me that the best thing to happen with the Despiser in the end would be for him to somehow redeem himself. Maybe that sounds like it can't happen, but I think it could. What with Covenant and him merging or whatever, right? And him being inside all of us anyway?

That's interesting that you should bring this up. It has been where my speculative thought processes were going. It feels right to me.

The past two trilogies were all about balance, accepting the good and the bad, the power and the frailty, in each of us. Perhaps not so much a redemption as acceptance, but I could easily see Covenant and the Despiser as one.

[rdhopeca]

Now this is half guesswork, but it seems to me that the best thing to happen with the Despiser in the end would be for him to somehow redeem himself. Maybe that sounds like it can't happen, but I think it could. What with Covenant and him merging or whatever, right? And him being inside all of us anyway?

That's interesting that you should bring this up. It has been where my speculative thought processes were going. It feels right to me.

The past two trilogies were all about balance, accepting the good and the bad, the power and the frailty, in each of us. Perhaps not so much a redemption as acceptance, but I could easily see Covenant and the Despiser as one.

Perhaps Covenant will "rend" the Despiser and consume him the way Honninscrave did Sheol.

[spoonchicken]

Personally, ...I don't want to see Foul redeemed...either by another entity, or on his own. He is the best bad guy in the history of literature! SRD has already publicly stated spoilers to the effect that 1) TC & LF are "one and the same"....we just haven't reached that point in the story yet...and 2) TC destroys the universe. So.....I'm guessing/hoping that TC turns "to the Dark Side", and LA & friends have to combat him. And if the universe is destroyed, not just the Earth/Land, then the Arch must be torn asunder, and "somebody" has to put it all back together again.. .. I've said this before elsewhere in here.....LA has to wield the theurgy to fix everything, Anele is the source of Earthpower that is instrumental in the process, and Pahni & Liand are the two "Adam & Eve" of the New Land after the dust settles.

[Mighara Sovmadhi]

He is the best bad guy in the history of literature!

Granted this might be subjective, but how?

I don't only mean this critically: maybe you've noticed something about the Despiser that I've missed, something that makes him greater than I think he is (although whether I think any of the antagonists I know of in fiction are the "greatest" I'm not sure... but if I had to pick one at this exact instant, I'd choose Ozymandias or Darth Vader).

[Cagliostro]

I agree with Mighara -
He plays a good game, but whenever you are around him, he spits and prances around like the Emperor in the Star Wars movies. Shut Foul up and he'd probably be the best villian ever.

I suspect (with several others around here) that the Arch of Time will need to be broken to let Foul out, and then destroy him. Sometimes you gotta just cut the disease out.

[Ur Dead]

Foul is Darth Vader on crack.

[Orlion]

I suspect (with several others around here) that the Arch of Time will need to be broken to let Foul out, and then destroy him. Sometimes you gotta just cut the disease out.

I suspect the Arch is the main thing that keeps Foul alive

[spoonchicken]

Foul is Darth Vader on crack.

........LOLOL !!!

[spoonchicken]

I suspect the Arch is the main thing that keeps Foul alive [/quote].....................No. More than once, and in more than one version, the creation stories we've heard have both stated that Foul existed outside the Arch. It was only after he grappled with the Creator (and lost) that he was trapped inside the Arch.

[wdcebula]

the thing about Lord Foul is that he is (from what I can tell) supposed to be some sort of infinite being, meaning that he really isn't subject to change. Now, when he was put into his prison, he obviously lost a great deal of his abilities and became bound by certain conditions. However, I would suggest that his basic nature isn't subject to change in the way that mortal beings are subject to change.

[Orlion]

the thing about Lord Foul is that he is (from what I can tell) supposed to be some sort of infinite being, meaning that he really isn't subject to change. Now, when he was put into his prison, he obviously lost a great deal of his abilities and became bound by certain conditions. However, I would suggest that his basic nature isn't subject to change in the way that mortal beings are subject to change.

And of course he'd have to be uncreated and indestructable... could be that Foul is an illusion