Cause and Effect..... in Our Books!!!

For the past week or so, my ELA group and I have been searching for examples in our books of characters being inspired by other characters' actions and what, specifically, motivated them to do these things. So far, I have found many examples of this inquiry in the books, Eragon, Eldest, and Brisingr, all book in the series titled the Inheritance Cycle, by Christopher Paolini, and I am excited to share them with you.

 My first observation was in Brisingr. I noticed that, near the beginning of the book, the author shows the reader the thoughts of Arya, one of Eragon's acquaintances throughout the series, who intends to go after Eragon as he is trapped in the Empire, and her reasons for doing this, most of which include paying off the debt of Eragon saving her life while she was captured by a shade. This brief look provides great insight, though, on how she thinks compared to humans, because she is an elf. This snipit was enough for me to understand just how logical elves are and how feeling don't have an effect on their actions for the most part. This look at Arya's mind also allows the reader to understand the extant of her affection for Eragon, which she cannot express verbally. Based on this event you can infer how much Arya's long time spent with humans has affected her mind.

 My second observation took place in Brisingr as well. In the beginning of the book, Nasuada, leader of the Varden, is challenged to the the trial of the long knives by a tribe leader, this trial is used to determine which of the two leaders is more willing to make sacrifices for their people. It includes each participant making incisions in their forearms, six on each, until one surrenders and can no longer do it. By participating in this trial and setting a record for most incisions ever made in the trial of the long knives, Nasuada proves her willingness to sacrifice all that she has for her people, even if that means her own blood. By doing this, one can predict that a different character in the book will be inspired to do something miraculous to save Nasuada's, or someone else's, life in the future.

 As you can see, characters are often inspired to do things they otherwise wouldn't by actions performed by others. These types of things happen in real life too. If you pay attention you might be able to find some good examples.

The article "My 'Reprehensible' Take on Teen Literature", by Meghan Cox Gurdon, a writer for the Wall Street Journal, is written as a response to her previous article, "Darkness too Visible", which criticizes YA literature. She starts out by trying to explain why her criticism was justified. She continues by stating that the reactions of most people were over the top and that she was not the first one to write an article like this. Then, she recalls an excerpt from her previous piece, though changing the language in it so that it is less insulting to some readers. She closes her article by telling her readers that she was wrong and that these books can teach important lessons to teens. Meghan Cox Gurdon uses a lot of craft to write her piece. She uses a lot of words and ideas multiple times throughout the article, making it annoyingly redundant. She also uses a many loaded words to explain her points to the reader. Because she admits that she was wrong, it fills the reader with a sense of satisfaction which makes the reader want to know what she is going to say next. She clearly lets her bias fly, which weakens her apologie. She quotes librarians and teachers to support her point.

Eragon: A Story of Loss and Recovery

Meet Eragon, a 15 year old boy living in the land of Alagaesia, a make believe continent created by Christopher Paolini in the book, Eragon, riddled with war and death caused by the evil King of the empire Galbatorix. Eragon is just an ordinary farmer boy until he comes across a dragon egg in the mountain range the Spine and his whole life changes. He spends the next three years trekking around the nation with his mentor of magic and sword fighting, Brom. One of the themes I found in this book was that you should cherish what you have, because one day, it might all be gone. Eragon’s losses throughout the story shape what Eragon does. First of all, in the beginning of the book, when Eragon first finds the dragon egg, his uncle, Garrow, gets killed by servants of the empire called the Ra’zac. This causes a lust for revenge which sends Eragon on a journey from his small town in Palancar Valley to places so big he could never had imagined the size previously. The journey he goes on brings him to the Varden, the fighting force rebelling against Galbatorix and the Empire. Second of all, when Brom dies, killed by the Ra’zac, Eragon mourns him for much time throughout the book. With Brom by his side, Eragon would have made much better choices, probably preventing his arrest in Gil’ead which ended up good, but made Eragon a fugitive throughout Alagaesia, which was something Brom was strongly against. Also, Paolini brings Broms death up in the story many times afterwards, giving it a higher importance. Third of all, when Murtagh, a person that accompanied Eragon in the middle to the end of the book, who becomes a dear friend to Eragon as the story progresses, dies, Eragon becomes distraught that the last important person left in his life is gone and he has no one left to turn to for friendly advice on a good conversation, which Eragon had been lacking in the previous year. Murtagh had become an important character, like one that is so important that they technically can’t die, just like Brom. Without Murtagh’s death, though Eragon probably would not have stayed with the Varden. In my life, I have had to deal with loss. The first death was in 2009. My uncle Mark had a heart attack in June of that year. Over the next eight or so months, my uncle lay in a coma on a hospital bed, suffering, until he died. The second and third were my aunt and grandfather on January 18th and 19th of 2011, one day apart from each other. When these types of things happen, you have to find the adult that you have in yourself. This was especially hard for my sister and I, after all, we were only 10 years old at the time. I believe that this was the kind of predicament Eragon was going through, though he was 15. It gives us a chance to show that you can recover from anything, and this is what Eragon did.

Eragon: Dragons and Other Awesome Stuff

In the book Eragon, by Chistopher Paolini, the main character, named Eragon, is a teenager that is portrayed in many different ways. When he finds a dragon egg in the mountains, his whole life changes forever. With his life and other's lives always on the line, Eragon is forced into a situation he doesn't want to be in. One way Paolini portrays Eragon is as ignorant. When Saphira, Eragon's dragon, time and time again scolds Eragon for how he has acted, he does the same thing, despite Saphira's warnings and verbal punishments. Because of this trait, Eragon often gets in trouble, sometimes putting his and other people's lives in danger. At one point, Eragon made a foolish decision to venture into the cathedral that housed people that would cut off his limbs, and because he did, Brom died. Another way Paolini portrays Eragon is as mature. Though he is in such a dangerous situation, he never cries about how bad he has it or any other things. Instead, he uses his anger to power his hatred for the Empire that killed his Uncle Garrow. Though Brom never aknowoledges Eragon's maturity, you can tell it exists, even at the worst of times. This is how Christopher Paolini portrays teenagers, specifically Eragon, in the book Eragon.