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[The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant 10] • The Last Dark
Chapter 23: Part Two — 10. All Lost Women
by R., Donaldson, StephenLinden Avery, the protagonist, consciously chooses to deviate from the Despiser’s manipulations, asserting her free will despite the potential consequences. She vows to remember her agency, refusing to blame others like Lord Foul or Thomas Covenant for her actions. However, upon entering a transcendent realm, she is immediately overwhelmed by enchantment, forgetting her purpose and identity. The world around her becomes a mesmerizing paradise of beauty and tranquility, where she is consumed by awe and delight, losing herself in the splendor of her surroundings.
The setting is described as a magnificent palace-like space, filled with luxurious rugs, golden braziers, and crystalline structures that exude purity and wonder. Linden is captivated by the ethereal beauty, particularly a diamond-like fountain that seems frozen in time, symbolizing eternal perfection. The sensory overload renders her passive, as she becomes entirely absorbed in the realm’s majesty. Stave, her companion, stands before her, but she barely registers his presence, her attention fixated on the enchanting environment.
Stave attempts to break through Linden’s trance, reminding her of their location—the Lost Deep—a place they had visited before. He explains that her previous resistance to enchantment was aided by Earthpower and the Staff of Law, but now she must rely on her own strength to reclaim her sense of self. He reveals his role in guiding her there, driven by his fear of the rising bane, She Who Must Not Be Named, whose wrath could threaten Thomas Covenant and their world. Stave’s urgency contrasts sharply with Linden’s detachment.
Despite Stave’s desperate pleas, Linden remains unresponsive, her mind ensnared by the realm’s allure. He warns of the bane’s imminent threat, fearing it will destroy Covenant if not intercepted. Stave hopes Linden will use wild magic to draw the bane to them, but his words fade into insignificance as Linden’s wonder deepens. The chapter ends with her near-total dissociation, highlighting the tension between her transcendent escape and the dire stakes of their mission.
FAQs
1. How does Linden’s initial reaction to the enchanted realm reflect her psychological state and the chapter’s themes of agency and responsibility?
Answer:
Linden’s immediate forgetfulness upon entering the enchanted realm symbolizes how overwhelming experiences can eclipse personal accountability. Despite her earlier vow to remember her choices (“she had promised herself that she would remember”), the realm’s “scend of enchantment” washes away her resolve, reducing her to passive wonder. This contrasts sharply with the chapter’s emphasis on agency (“Her choice. Her doing”), highlighting the tension between free will and external manipulation. The scene critiques how transcendent experiences—whether magical or psychological—can temporarily erase hard-won self-awareness, a recurring theme in Covenant’s universe where characters grapple with autonomy amid cosmic forces.2. Analyze the symbolic significance of the enchanted ballroom’s descriptions (e.g., the fountain, mosaics, rugs). How do they reinforce the realm’s deceptive allure?
Answer:
The ballroom’s imagery—a “fountain… flawless and faceted as a single diamond,” “mosaics [that] sang like choirs,” and rugs depicting “sanctification”—creates a tableau of false perfection. The fountain’s “clinquant bead[s] hung in abeyance” symbolize stasis, a frozen ideal that denies growth or change, mirroring how enchantment suspends Linden’s agency. The “transparent” yet “solid” rugs suggest duality: beauty masking emptiness. These descriptions echo the realm’s function as a trap, where “delight” distracts from purpose. The lavish details (“chandeliers as bright as the splendor of worlds”) amplify its seductive danger, illustrating how sublime aesthetics can obscure truth—a metaphor for escapism’s perils.3. What role does Stave play in this chapter, and how does his Haruchai nature influence his interactions with Linden?
Answer:
Stave acts as both guide and foil to Linden’s enchantment. His Haruchai discipline (“I have learned to set aside its power”) lets him resist the realm’s allure, embodying his race’s stoic clarity. His physical actions (“His hands gripped her shoulders”) and urgent dialogue (“Linden, hear me”) contrast with Linden’s passivity, underscoring his role as her tether to reality. His confession of fear (“I tremble”) is pivotal—Haruchai traditionally reject emotion, making his vulnerability a testament to the crisis’s magnitude. His explanation of their journey (“translations by wild magic are directed by clarity of intent”) also provides crucial exposition, linking the chapter’s events to broader narrative stakes.4. How does the chapter frame the conflict between enchantment and duty through Linden’s sensory experiences?
Answer:
Linden’s sensory overload (“rapture on all sides,” “incense and purity”) exemplifies how enchantment overwhelms duty. The text meticulously catalogues her immersion: feet on “distilled solace” rugs, eyes tracing “effloresced” beauties, ears attuned to “hymnody.” This sensual bombardment erases her mission (“forgetting life and love and peril”), reducing her to a vessel of “ecstasy.” Yet Stave’s interruptions (“Will you not hear me?”) create dissonance, juxtaposing her euphoria with his stark warnings about the rising bane. The tension mirrors real-world struggles where immediate gratification (enchantment) conflicts with long-term responsibility (duty), emphasizing how sensory seduction can derail purpose.5. Evaluate Stave’s strategic reasoning for bringing Linden to the Lost Deep. What risks and potential benefits does his plan entail?
Answer:
Stave’s plan—to lure She Who Must Not Be Named away from Kiril Threndor—is tactically sound but ethically fraught. He argues the bane’s rising (“vexed” by floodwaters) threatens the Timewarden, and Linden’s wild magic could redirect her (“draw Her to us”). The benefit is averting apocalyptic confrontation; however, the risk is twofold: Linden’s enchantment may prevent action, and summoning the bane could backfire if uncontrolled. His admission of fear (“I am afraid”) underscores the gamble’s gravity. The plan also tests Linden’s autonomy, as he “guided [her] hither” without her consent—a recurring ethical dilemma in the series about sacrificing agency for greater good.
Quotes
1. “Her choice. Her doing, for good or ill.”
This opening declaration establishes Linden’s agency and responsibility in her current situation, setting the thematic tone for the chapter. It underscores the moral weight of her decisions despite the overwhelming circumstances.
2. “She had entered a realm of transubstantiation where delight was the only possible response. Here she found contentment in awe and tranquility, the ineffable mansuetude of the redeemed.”
This vivid description captures the transformative, almost religious experience of Linden’s enchantment. The poetic language conveys both the beauty and danger of her passive surrender to this magical realm.
3. “Static and lovely as ice, the fountain displayed its own splendor: an icon of transcended time, sealed against change as though its perfection had been made eternal—and eternally numinous.”
The frozen fountain serves as a powerful symbol of the seductive but perilous nature of this realm - beautiful yet static, perfect yet unchanging. This imagery represents the temptation to abandon struggle for passive bliss.
4. “All of life tilts on the edge of a blade, and I am afraid.”
Stave’s uncharacteristic admission of fear highlights the existential stakes of their situation. This moment of vulnerability from the typically stoic Haruchai emphasizes the gravity of the threat posed by the rising bane.
5. “She had forgotten him. She had almost forgotten that lang…”
The truncated final line poignantly shows Linden’s complete surrender to enchantment, leaving the reader with a sense of impending danger as she loses herself in this beautiful but treacherous realm.