enryu

Can someone explain to me why Szeth swears to follow Dalinar in his third Ideal? I really don't get it. As far as I understand it, the Skybreaker philosophy is that mortal men do not have a consistent notion of justice, so it is better to follow an unchanging code of law. As Nin says, doesn't swearing to follow a man completely contradict the idea of the Skybreakers? Dalinar discusses multiple times that he himself is a hypocrite, that he is a man in the process of changing, and that he has made mistakes of all kinds that he is still trying to rectify. Dalinar is trying to be honorable, but he is most definitely not consistent. More to the point, though, how does Szeth have any idea that Dalinar is worth following? As far as I remember, their only interactions occurred in WoR when Szeth tried to kill him. Why would Szeth be willing to stake the rest of his life on the idea that Dalinar is a great man, when he knows next to nothing about him? I like Szeth, I like the concept of the Skybreakers, I like Dalinar, but I can't help but feel that this was just a contrived way to put Szeth on the side of the good guys. I have a few more complaints too, actually. Szeth is basically the most famous hitman on Roshar, presumed to be dead after WoR by literally every character outside of Lift and the Skybreakers. But when he shows up to Thaylen City alive and apparently a good guy, the only acknowledgement we get is a curse from Jasnah. Also seriously Sanderson? You make Szeth swear his life to Dalinar, and then you don't even give us a SINGLE SCENE OF DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE TWO? Very disappointing.

I feel confused. My memory of Words of Radiance and Way of Kings is sort of hazy, was it indicated somewhere in those books that Alethi betrothals are commonly broken and not a big deal? I was under the impression that a betrothal is essentially the penultimate step in a relationship - that is, we are going to get married, but we just haven't gotten around to it yet. That is to say, being betrothed is as committed as two people can be to a relationship, short of actual marriage. And yes, I don't think that it is beyond the pale to suggest that it is immoral to have unfaithful thoughts when you are in a committed relationship. Certainly it happens in real life, but the appropriate response is to try to suppress unfaithful thoughts, or to break off the relationship if that can't be done. (Shallan does make a mild effort to do the former, and Adolin does make an attempt at doing the latter). The way I see it, the whole point of being in a relationship is that the people in it have made their choice, and they're willing to stick with that choice for as long as the relationship continues. And if the people in that relationship marry, then they're willing to stick with their choice for the rest of their lives. I personally cannot fathom how people can enjoy reading love triangles where two of the people are already in a committed relationship. To me, the only thing more disgusting than the love triangle in this book would be if the love triangle continues into the next book, after Shallan and Adolin marry. I find the idea of reading about that sort of marital strife to be nauseating in the extreme.

Hi, I made an account just so I could complain about this. I found this love triangle to be physically repulsive. I liked Shallan and Syl coming out of Words of Radiance, but now my opinion of them both - particularly Syl - is in the dumpster. Adolin and Shallan are betrothed, right? They're engaged. One step from marriage. How, by any moral standard, is it okay to be lusting after another dude when you are literally one step away from marriage? I get that it's Veil, and Shallan has split personalities, but that doesn't mean it's not disgusting. Syl, on the other hand. Wow. Just wow. What she did in this book? I see this as basically the equivalent of repeatedly telling one of your friends to storm your other friend's fiancee. I thought Syl is supposed to be honorable? How is this sort of thing okay? At the end of the book, when she tells Kaladin that he only lost the first round, and he should give it another go? That's some real she-devil rust. The whole thing made me really uncomfortable throughout the book.