thegatorgirl00 she/her Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 In the epilogue of WoR, Hoid tells Jasnah that he once spent most of a year being digested in a large stomach. At first glance this just seems like another ridiculous Hoid comment. However, it raises some questions on further thought. Hoid can Worldhop anywhere and he got into the Well of Ascenbsion; he could have easily left the sromach. So why didn't he? I was recently reading a theory how Hoid uses Feruchemically stored luck to always be at the right place at the right time, and the answer came to me. Hoid was using his time inside the stomach to store the Feruchemical atributes needed to be at the right place at the right time. Bsed on the laws of Furuchemy, Hoid would have needed to spend an equal amount of time in the wrong place at the wrong time as he does in the wright place at the right time. Presumably nothing cosmically important was happening in a large stomach. What are the implications of this? Since we know so little about the incident itself, I'd say it doesn't tell us much. if we had the full story, however, it could give us more insight into what power or combination of powers he uses to find out where he needs to be. I've included the WoB about him using Feruchemy to get where he needs to go below. Mike CockrumHoid is regularly around when important events take place. How does he know where to go?Brandon SandersonHe uses Feruchemy. Part of it that will show up in later books. 3
Charononus Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 In the epilogue of WoR, Hoid tells Jasnah that he once spent most of a year being digested in a large stomach. At first glance this just seems like another ridiculous Hoid comment. However, it raises some questions on further thought. Hoid can Worldhop anywhere and he got into the Well of Ascenbsion; he could have easily left the sromach. So why didn't he? I was recently reading a theory how Hoid uses Feruchemically stored luck to always be at the right place at the right time, and the answer came to me. Hoid was using his time inside the stomach to store the Feruchemical atributes needed to be at the right place at the right time. Bsed on the laws of Furuchemy, Hoid would have needed to spend an equal amount of time in the wrong place at the wrong time as he does in the wright place at the right time. Presumably nothing cosmically important was happening in a large stomach. What are the implications of this? Since we know so little about the incident itself, I'd say it doesn't tell us much. if we had the full story, however, it could give us more insight into what power or combination of powers he uses to find out where he needs to be. I've included the WoB about him using Feruchemy to get where he needs to go below. We also know that the 17th shard is looking for him. Perhaps there was nothing going on so he decided to hide there. After all, I doubt many people would think to look there. 1
DSC01 he/him Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 Have you read the Jasnah scene that may or not end up in Oathbringer? http://www.tor.com/2014/08/06/stormlight-archive-scene-after-words-of-radiance/ If Hoid's worldhopping works similarly, then maybe he really didn't have any way out. This is not to say that the luck thing isn't also true. Getting stuck in a giant creatures stomach in a place that you cannot hop out of is very unlucky, indeed. And, man, that is really unlucky for Hoid. He would get digested, heal up, then start to get digested again. Over and over and over.
Stormgate he/him Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 (edited) I once had identical troubles. Turns out, you can hide posts. I don't remember how to do it, but play around with it. Edit: There's a hide button next to the edit button. Edited December 2, 2015 by Stormgate
king of nowhere Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 We also know that the 17th shard is looking for him. Perhaps there was nothing going on so he decided to hide there. After all, I doubt many people would think to look there. This made me think of the old question "where is the best place to hide an elephant", to which the proper answer is "in a herd of other elephants", the whole exchange being about the concept of hiding in plain sight. I have to admit, "in a large stomach" is an even better hiding place.
Stormgate he/him Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 What about a large stomach of a large elephant in a herd of elephants? Actually, it was probably a dragon.
DSC01 he/him Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 You know, I actually assumed, with no evidence whatsoever for it, that it was a whale. Because Jonah, of course.
Confused Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 Jonah was swallowed by a great fish, not a whale (technically). You're thinking of Pinocchio...
DSC01 he/him Posted December 2, 2015 Posted December 2, 2015 Yeah, but in a lot of retellings (kids books and the like), the "great fish" is called and/or depicted as a whale.
The Ninja Yodeler he/him Posted December 3, 2015 Posted December 3, 2015 Yeah, but in a lot of retellings (kids books and the like), the "great fish" is called and/or depicted as a whale. I always thought it was a whale. Granted only ever heard it reffered to as Jonah & the Whale.
natc Posted December 3, 2015 Posted December 3, 2015 Pretty much everyone calls it a whale because fish just aren't very big.
Confused Posted December 3, 2015 Posted December 3, 2015 There are some interesting Biblical analyses on that subject. Short answer: if God wanted a great fish to swallow Jonah, it would be trivial for Him to accomplish. If he wanted a whale to do it, the Bible (purportedly the word of God) would have said so. You're all correct, though. The Bible may say fish, but everyone talks about a whale. Even George Gershwin in the song "It Ain't Necessarily So" from his opera "Porgy and Bess" said "Now Jonah got swallowed by a whale..." Anyway, I wrote the post only to set up the Pinocchio line. He - and Geppeto - were both actually swallowed by the same whale. Thank goodness for Jiminy Cricket! "When your wish upon a star..."
king of nowhere Posted December 3, 2015 Posted December 3, 2015 if this was the wheel of time, then the parallel would be intentional, as just another myth of our time that stems from the deep past. but since the cosmere has nothing to do with the real world, i don't think there is any real parallel. As for the fish/whale thing, I assumed the answer is simply "at the time, no one knew that whales are mammalians".
DSC01 he/him Posted December 3, 2015 Posted December 3, 2015 Interesting fact that I learned in college (and a total tagent, but...): there are biblical scholars who don't think that the story of Jonah is supposed to be historical. That is, whoever wrote it intended it as religious fiction (kind of like Pilgrim's Progress). Anyway, I wouldn't rule out the possibly of the occasional parallel to real-world events/people in Cosmere books. It wouldn't have the same in-universe meaning that it would in The Wheel of Time, but it could still happen. After all, the Dalinar flashback was inspired by Genghis Khan, and someone recently pointed out that there are similarities between the war on the Shattered Plains and World War I. That said, I find it very unlikely that Sanderson is going to suddenly start layering a bunch of biblical allusions in his stories. If there ever is one, I'm sure it's not going to be all like, "Oo! Look at the rich symbolism and blah blah blah." I would think that he would approach it like he does everything else, by flipping the script on the trope and giving us a totally different take on a familiar situation.
Titan Arum Posted December 3, 2015 Posted December 3, 2015 Pretty much everyone calls it a whale because fish just aren't very big. Technically whale sharks are fish, and they're quite big with an average length of 12.65 meters. But I always imagined Hoid being in the stomach of a Santhid or Chasmfiend. Maybe a Tai-Na? If he was in a stomach on Roshar, it has to be in a Greatshell. However, it could be an animal from any planet, so why not a Dragon on Yolen?
Stormgate he/him Posted December 4, 2015 Posted December 4, 2015 I like the dragon. It also references a part in an Alcatraz book where the characters get lost and end up inside a dragon's stomach. 1
natc Posted December 5, 2015 Posted December 5, 2015 Technically whale sharks are fish, and they're quite big with an average length of 12.65 meters. But I always imagined Hoid being in the stomach of a Santhid or Chasmfiend. Maybe a Tai-Na? If he was in a stomach on Roshar, it has to be in a Greatshell. However, it could be an animal from any planet, so why not a Dragon on Yolen? I've seen a whale shark before, but I guess it was the smaller sort because that sounds huge. Guy was still pretty big but not quite that big. Still, I think it'd be easier to go pray to God for forgiveness with a bit more extra room. And to come back out, I suppose.
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