broccoli Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 Hi! First time poster here! For a time I have wondered why Shallan's eyes don't glow red. We know from WoB that when radiant's glow, whether through their skin or their eyes, they do so in the color corresponds to their order (source). My understanding is that order colors are the those of their associated gemstone. So Kaladin glows blue because windrunners are associated with sapphires. Renarin should glow green, since truthwatchers are linked to emeralds. Dalinar's glow should be yellow (heliodor), Szeth's gray (smokestone), and so on. Lightweavers associated gemstone is garnet, which is red. We've seen one of Shallan's personas, Radiant, beraring a garnet colored shardplate: Quote "Radiant, in glowing garnet Shardplate, tall, with braided hair". Oathbringer, page 1149. So, why don't her eyes glow red? In 2016 there was a post on this matter (which you can read here) where @Cortez theorized that she's been unconsciously hiding the red in her eyes since it was the reason for her mother trying to kill her (I don't know how to quote a comment :c). But beyond that I haven't found much explanation. Do you have an idea about why this is? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Watchcry Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 It's possible. She can suppress stormlight from emitting from her skin. Why not suppress the eyes, too? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoyBlu Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 Ohhhh. I had not thought about this before. What a very interesting idea. I wonder if her eyes only turn red when she is using/accessing her powers — then she would always have enough Stormlight to “cover them up” even if it was unconsciously. If they permanently turned red there are too many times that she doesn’t have Stormlight access that her red eyes would have been noticed. It is also possible that she needs to progress further in her powers, or they would turn red in Shadesmar but not in the physical realm? But I don’t recall an eye color difference in OB at all. I doubt soul casting would be different from lightweaving — but it’s possible. I can’t imagine Hoid having red eyes. Do we know for sure that Shallan’s mom saw Shallan with red eyes? I just finished re-reading WoR and don’t recall that at all. But I could have missed it. What a great observation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honorless Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 (edited) The eye colours change only happens in people who are Darkeyes, Lighteyes stay the same Quote Questioner My question has to do with the color of Shallan's eyes currently, because we've noticed over the books that Kaladin's eyes, as he's continued to use his Surge, changed to lighter and lighter blue. Whereas one could argue that Shallan is farther in her Ideals than Kaladin is, yet her eyes have not changed at all. Brandon Sanderson Right, 'cause they were already light. Questioner 'Cause they were already light? So it only affects lightness or darkness in the eyes, not necessarily any other color? Brandon Sanderson It's not like it is-- It's not like it's saying "Light minus 50%". Questioner It's not like Honor is blue and-- Brandon Sanderson No. It is not. It is just kind of the way that the changes the Stormlight is making the body and certain people are already descended from people who had repeated, over time, changes by the body which stopped physically... That's not to say that all lighteyes that's where they came from. There are some that are natural mutations. Firefight Chicago signing (Feb. 20, 2015) So Kaladin's eyes glow blue, Szeth's glow pale smoky grey & Lift's glow like clear pale glass but Shallan, Dalinar & Jasnah's eye colours will remain the same. Edited July 25, 2020 by Honorless 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broccoli Posted July 25, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 12 minutes ago, Honorless said: The eye colours change only happens in people who are Darkeyes, Lighteyes stay the same So Kaladin's eyes glow blue & Lift's glow like clear pale glass but Shallan, Dalinar & Jasnah's eye colours will remain the same. Wow, nice catch! I had never seen that WoB. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broccoli Posted July 25, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 44 minutes ago, JoyBlu said: Ohhhh. I had not thought about this before. What a very interesting idea. I wonder if her eyes only turn red when she is using/accessing her powers — then she would always have enough Stormlight to “cover them up” even if it was unconsciously. If they permanently turned red there are too many times that she doesn’t have Stormlight access that her red eyes would have been noticed. It is also possible that she needs to progress further in her powers, or they would turn red in Shadesmar but not in the physical realm? But I don’t recall an eye color difference in OB at all. I doubt soul casting would be different from lightweaving — but it’s possible. I can’t imagine Hoid having red eyes. Do we know for sure that Shallan’s mom saw Shallan with red eyes? I just finished re-reading WoR and don’t recall that at all. But I could have missed it. What a great observation. We don't know for sure. That was just that user's theory. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BasementDwellingRadiant Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 Shouldn't Shallan's eyes glow an off-redish variant, because Dustbringers are associated with rubies and their color is red? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoyBlu Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 7 hours ago, BasementDwellingRadiant said: Shouldn't Shallan's eyes glow an off-redish variant, because Dustbringers are associated with rubies and their color is red? I believe that Shallan is a Lightweaver. (Not a Dustbringer). Lightweavers are Garnet (red). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pathfinder Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 1 hour ago, JoyBlu said: I believe that Shallan is a Lightweaver. (Not a Dustbringer). Lightweavers are Garnet (red). I believe what they are trying to say is since a dustbringer is ruby red, then shallan as a lightweaver should be an off red color or a different hue to denote garnet 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteelShaper Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 I posted pretty much this same question in a Q & A a while back. Answer: a lighteye's eyes won't change, or if they do, hardly at all, because of how eye color works on Roshar. The lighteyes are descended from people [radiants] whose Spiritual DNA was altered by the influx of power through the Nahel bond, and that alteration eventually became permanent (this is why, for now, Kaladin's eyes change back to brown, because he hasn't been part of the bond long enough for the change to stick). A new spren bond with one of the old radiant's descendants won't have so much of an effect on them because that change has already occurred and been passed down. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BasementDwellingRadiant Posted July 25, 2020 Report Share Posted July 25, 2020 6 hours ago, Pathfinder said: I believe what they are trying to say is since a dustbringer is ruby red, then shallan as a lightweaver should be an off red color or a different hue to denote garnet Yes, this. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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