Kevin's Watch

Hello to any denizen of The Land willing to throw some light on a query that has intreged me for a long time...!

Why is the pattern of crossed-lightning woven into the shoulders of Triock's tunic described as being "curious"?

There must be a good reason why Thomas Covenant noticed this small detail of clothing, and if so, what on earth can it be?

I know it is tied in with Triock's death at the Colossus of the Fall, but that's as far as I get. The only explanation I have is that the lightning bolts that kill the two Raver possessed (Lal and Wane) spring not directly from the Forestall but from the hearts of the Giant and the Bloodguard...but as to that I don't know what it can mean. I've often thought that if I could unlock this mystery then all the others would swiftly unravel.

From the curious to the learned, please help!!!

It appears no one has an answer to your question. I certainly don't. You could ask SRD in the GI, but I suspect he wouldn't have an answer for you either.

..perhaps as you have suggested,,an oblique reference to Alice's dream state and TC's dream state...both being of the Surreal.

Thank you both for your response to what I agree is a rather lateral point of view to the main storyline of Covenant's adventures in the Land.

Whenever I read the passage of the destruction of the Staff of Law, I always ask myself, what differance does it make wether the lightning bolts were in a V-shape or an X-shape?
So now I'm thinkig that maybe it was only Thomas Covenant that was able to look into the eyes of Caeriol Wildwood...without turning into a tree. (But still I'm unsure).

That's what I like most of all about the writing of Stephen Donaldson. Not only do we get such wonderful stories, but we also get such wonderful puzzles as well.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has wondered what happened to Elena's statue of Myhra. One second it was there in the center of the table, and the next it was gone. Now that's magic! Which can only be made possible by the author's deft handling of a fine art - "the trick of the pen".

- KK

Maybe the lightnings reminded Covenant of the stories he wrote before he got ill with leprosy. There were some lightnings in them.

Perhaps, krazy Kat, you have an over-analytical mind, so you are picking up on all these little details, rather than sitting back and enjoying the stories.

Have you posted anything on the 'Dissecting the Land' thread yet?

KK might be enjoying the stories at the same time, eh?

I had wondered about the crossed lightning too. My opinion is that it was a way for SRD to foreshadow the life of violence that was in store for Triock's character. Mind you, that could describe nearly every character in the Chronicles, but Triock's story in TPTP seemed especially grim.

Hi Hue of Bone,

Thanks for your comment, and yes, I do analyse sections of the stories but only when they are highlighted by the author's indicator. It was Stephen Donaldson who made me so. I do enjoy his books immensely.

Sometimes he can use his writing pen the same way a painter would use his brush. Some scenes are as vivid as dreams, and at the same time have the quality and color of Titian, Caravaggio, and van Eyck; heroic like Boris, and fantastic landscapes like Roger Dean and Rodney Matthews - and this always makes me want to take a closer look! They come alive just like a motion picture.

After all, these are stories about "magic rings" which are undoubtedly embedded within the text. Stephen Donaldson is a master-storyteller and his work can stand up under any microscope.

All I'm trying to say is that there might be other readers that would like to pursue the meaning of what makes this or that so "curious". Who knows, it may even lead to places undreamt of, and might be quite refreshing.
I think it could be fun, as long as it's not done in the same way as Drool Rockworm rooting into the earth hunting for banes - KK.

PS. hello shadowbinding shoe. That was an interesting idea. I tend to see Thomas Covenant like the James Cann character in Misery who only wrote books on popular demand. Those were shallow stories and although it made them lots of money, it also made them miserable. And both characters did find their integrity through adversity.

I thought the crossed lightning bolts were a symbol of his lineage, and came from ancestors long ago, like a last name would be for us. As far as being "curious," I would think it just was unusual, that he had never seen something like that before. There may be some light shed on it in volumes to come, although I think that story line has played out. Linden could find out if she wanted to know.......

Rocksister, you hit the nail on the head. This is why I've been obsessing about a very small detail. I would never have made that connexion in a thousand years.

Triock's lineage is integral to what happens at the Colossus. Of course it is! It was he who looked after Elena as a child in Covenant's absence. He would have become an adopted son to Trell and studied the lore of the Rhadhamaerl. I remember a story about Trell crushing a piece of the orcrest in his fist which caused a change in the weather, bringing rain. Bingo!

Gee whizz! At the time of the events at the Colossus, Trell would have been in the care of the Healers. Do you suppose we have been mislead into believing Trell was a complete basket case. He had afterall found the answer to Lord Mohram's deepest fears by enacting a form of caamora. Hells bells!

I now get the feeling as if I've been the last to know. What a fool!

Rocksister, may you have a very Merry Christmas, and a really glad New Year. And if ever we meet in Revelstone I hope you'll permit me to buy you a few gallons of diamondraught - KK.

spoiler alert! spoiler alert! spoiler alert! spoiler alert! spoiler alert!

quote:

The Great Challange - Chapter 15(Lord Foul's Bane)

He did not like horses, did not trust them; their strength was too dangerous for him. He backed away, and found that his hands were trembling.
Osondrea regarded him curiously; but before she could say anything a bustle ran through the company.

I always figured the patterns were called out because they served as a family identification, much like a tartan.

IrrationalSanity wrote:I always figured the patterns were called out because they served as a family identification, much like a tartan.

Me too.