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Is Adolin going bad?(spoiler)


lopenscousin

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I have to say that Adolin's actions did bug me, but I tend to be rather Lawful Good, and there was nothing Lawful about what Adolin did.  I'm not so sure about the good/evil of the whole thing.

 

I think it does make the character rather darker, although I actually take some heart with his reactions after it happened.  It wasn't a strictly good way to respond to having just murdered somebody, but he definitely shows signs of going through shock and feeling guilt.  Had he been feeling normal, I feel that he would have found a better way to hide what happened.  It will have consequences for him down the road, though.

 

In fact, I would say that his reaction to what he did will determine where he goes more than the action itself.  Will he tell his father?  Renarin?  Anybody?  How will he deal with the inevitable repercussions?  That's where we will really see what he is made of.

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The "rage" has a clear point of origin, though. Adolin is only human and this has been built up over two books now.

And unhonorably? Technically, MAYBE. But Sadeas isn't the most honorable person and it's not as if Adolin killed a random nobody lighteyes.

 

Yeah, I just said that his rage could be viewed as bad. 

 

As for the honor thing this is what Adolin thought about killing him before. So it will be interesting to see what happens. Maybe he will tell and get exiled and go on some adventures. 

Page 583 in WoR. "A small part of him wished for Sadeas to provoke him, push away his inhibitions, drive him to do something stupid. Killing the man right here, right now, would likely earn Adolin an execution- or at least an exile. It might be worth either punishment." 

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If Adolin was in a process of becoming bad, then we should have to see which good sides of him he forsakes, which good inhibitions he lets go, which bad sides get worse, what initial state gets worse. I sincerely don’t see such progress into darkness.

 

What he did to Sadeas was murder and I’m not going to vindicate. This murder is not so terrible, it’s even good plotwise, it’s not without honor, but it’s not good. But did Adolin made anything worse from what he routinely did before? I believe it can be demonstrated,  that the answer is No. Adolin just manifested things that were inside him for long time now. And he manifested it in a way that gives him a very good chance to think about it honestly and eventually to work on it.

 

- Adolin was unable to control himself and fell an easy victim to Sadeas’ provocation. Yes, we know he was always impulsive and intemperate and has allay difficulties in controlling himself. As was pointed early in this thread. Nothing new here. Adolin doesn’t feel his “irrevocable anger” being “rightful” too, meaning he doesn’t try to whitewash himself about this loss of control. After the deed he is shocked by his own action, but he doesn’t make a fuss either. He doesn’t plunge into any guilt- or frustration-fueled panic or complexes-runts. He just tries to regain control. Right reaction for him. And giving him a frame for dealing with it in the future. I mean, if somebody else provokes him, he can compare it with Sadeas’ super-grade provocation, and if the new provocation is also so terrible, he can proceed to regain control without excesses. Yes, Adolin managed to lose control very economically, without excesses, without allowing himself a drop of frenzy more, then was needed to shut down the provocation itself. He could still lose the fight against his lack of self-control if he doesn’t pay attention, but he has now very good chances and motivation to make progress in this direction. Ultimately this murder is more for good in regard of this weakness of his.

 

Additionally, I’m not sure he ha much better alternatives in his condition at the moment. Actually he had reason to be troubled by Sadeas’ plans of future hostilities (especially as Sadeas was most likely influenced by Odium) and if Adolin just let Sadeas go, this trouble combined with Adolin’s current insecurity and Sadeas’ further pushing would likely lead to some other less than wise reaction from Adolin’s part. Now however, if not the best solution came in place, but at least the hate situation seems to be over.

 

- Adolin let himself be driven by his hatred. Yes, it’s especially dangerous because of the nature of the Dark One of Roshar. But is it something new for Adolin? No. He is intensely hating Sadeas beginning with the first time we saw him in WoK. He was often motivated by his loathing to Sadeas in many occasions until now. It could become too deep, consuming hatred. Actually I was afraid for Adolin about how he could do if he actually had the chance to fight Sadeas in a duel or in a regular battle, i.e. in occasions he could feel himself a righteous punisher. In that cases his hatred could survive Sadeas, transformed into the grim satisfaction of somebody who could for instance drink from a fallen enemy’s skull. The way how Adolin killed Sadeas however simply removed the hatred from him. No trace of a triumph, not even a little satisfaction of ending a problem that was consuming him for so long. Excellent chance to throw the hatred away, because of the troubling nature of the incident.

 

- Adolin covered his murder, what leaves impression of callousness. But any less callous, and I would find Adolin unrealistic. I mean, he used to be a weapon of mass destruction incarnate on many a bloody battlefield - how could he be shaken by moral qualms for a single slaughter of a bitter foe? Actually his dazedness, and him saying to Sadeas, that he unfortunately isn’t so good a man as his father believed, looks rather as a process of increasing his moral concerns about manslaughter. Relative to his previous beliefs, it’s a slight progress to the good side - he begins to be troubled by killing even of a bitter and dangerous enemy.

 

- Adolin’s murder might cause problems with honor in the future - if Adolin or Kholins in general are accused in the murder, so that Adolin comes to the choice to lie or something else. Or even worse, if somebody else is accused in murdering Sadeas (imagine e.g. some bridgeman finding Oathbringer, taking it and been seen with it). It would put Adolin and his family in a difficult situation, but it will be a chance to act honorably. As he is now, he is quite capable of it, as his actions in the case of Kaladin’s imprisonment prove. For example Adolin could develop something like the Aiel stance of doing what must be done but not flinching to pay the price.

Right now I don’t see problems with the honorability of his deed. Sadeas was essentially in a undeclared war against Kholins, he was quite a danger and there are no reasonable way to view him as a victim.

 

- Adolin’s murder could cause an open war between Sadeas princedom and Kholins. But Sadeas was resolute to make as much trouble as possible, and he would stop himself before open war only if he would view something else as more profitable for the moment. If Sadeas was left alive, most likely he would have the war nevertheless, after the other avenues would fail, but with him alive it would be more under Odium’s control and more dangerous.

 

- Adolin’s action is in contradiction to his father’s policy of how law should be enforced. But as obedient and loyal son Adolin was, he never was really feeling the spirit of his father morality. Until now his way of understanding his father went through the stony path of errors. Why should be this time different?

 

This case even comes someway in line with Dalinar’s positions, that the Highprinces are not still men to be left to understand reason, but raw recruits to be disciplined. Sadeas definitely is an extreme case of these less then honor-capable subjects.

 

- There is after all an inhibition that Adolin forsakes when he snaps. And I believe that it’s exactly what causes Sadeas’ utter shock. This snapping however, it’s actually rather … for good  for Adolin.

 

Why is Sadeas so shocked? He is strongly provoking a young men known for his impulsivity and anger and fighting prowess. And Sadeas definitely knows very well what to be expected from a provocation, Sadeas was long ago a grand master of provocation, after all he was the mastermind in the demise of Highprince Yenev. Why was Sadeas so surprised? Because a lighteye may well backstab and betray and deploy assassins and everything, but the lighteyes just do not make the dirty work themselves. Adolin thinks about how useless would be Shardblade in so close confines, and Sadeas definitely knows so. Even more, we see that the brawling Adolin gets in, doesn’t give him any advantage - not only Sadeas but Adolin too is panicked during the fight. I.e. from Adolin’s part is too suboptimal, risky course of action, not something Sadeas would expect from an experienced fighter. I’m sure Sadeas had something in mind in case Adolin tried to summon his blade. But most importantly, Adolin attacks Sadeas as some darkeye in a tavern brawl would attack. High-ranked lighteyes just don’t do so. It’s beneath them. What a scandal, how unseemly! After all the frowning upon because how Adolin dueled Salinor, and how everybody was disgusted about the “pitfight” style of it, i.e. everybody was scandalized that Adolin chose to fight like a darkeye.

Or as happened to Adolin as far as a little before Shallan’s arrival,

 

“I’ll have your throat in my hands, Sadeas,” Adolin hissed. “I’ll squeeze and squeeze, then I’ll sink my dagger into your gut and twist. A quick death is too good for you.”

 

“Tsk,” Sadeas said, smiling. “Careful. It’s a full room. What if someone heard you threatening a highprince?”

 

The Alethi way. You could abandon an ally on the battlefield, and everyone could know it—but an offense in person, well, that just wouldn’t do. Society would frown on that. Nalan’s hand! His father was right about them all.

 

 

So, what Adolin finally throws away - it’s the social convention of how a lighteye shouldn’t behave toward a Highprince, of what is beneath the status of a lighteye. And are most of the most frustrating weaknesses of Adolin exactly in how accustomed he is for everybody to bow to him because of the social status he’s born into? Isn’t his misfortune in his countless courtships because of the way he expected that the ship would go just because he is the prince charming? Isn’t it due time for his to finally deign to move his nicely armored backside and do some real work in making himself worth of the friendship of others! An weakness that is especially frustrating because Adolin actually has the natural inclination to act inherently and honestly friendly without any airs, and because he is very capable to work hard, as he does with his swordsmanship. Isn’t his frustrating problem in his rejection of Kaladin in the beginning, because of inherent status problems? Aren’t his problems with the recent turntables in his status comparison to Shallan because of still unresolved prejudice about the form of social status? And this while Adolin is so healthy instinctively ready to act to the honest spirit of human relationship, and not to the form.

 

And now he acts against Sadeas completely disregarding any social form. Finally, good man! And he’s completely aware of it too. He wouldn’t be able to hide behind his previous social inhibitions after that precedent.

 

I believe Adolin is to develop the virtue of humility. In sense the ability to act in a spirit of honor even if the outer socially accepted form of it would be marked as “dishonor”. The ability to act on the background for the sake of those he cares for, without claiming any glory. The ability to be not harmed by humiliations or insults. The ability to raise his already present inclination for selflessness and magnanimity to a higher level. After this murder, I believe Adolin has a tremendous potential for splendid character growth.

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