Re-Reading "The Wheel of Time": "Chapter 5: Winternight," "Chapter 6: The Westood," "Chapter 7: Out of the Woods," and "Chapter 8: A Place of Safety"
In a fascinating cluster of chapters, Jordan abruptly moves the action forward at a breakneck pace, and Rand's life is changed forever.
Hello, dear reader! Do you like what you read here at Omnivorous? Do you like reading fun but insightful takes on all things pop culture? Do you like supporting indie writers? If so, then please consider becoming a subscriber and get the newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. There are a number of paid options, but you can also sign up for free! Every little bit helps. Thanks for reading and now, on with the show!
Hello, fellow Wheel of Time fans! I know it’s been a while since I’ve published an update on my reading progress, and I’m sorry about that. It’s been a whirlwind over here, but rest assured, I’m still making my way through The Eye of the World. However, in the interest of actually getting somewhat caught up, I’m now going to do my analyses on several different chapters at once, grouping them together in some sort of narrative consistency. So, for today’s entry, I’m going to focus on “Winternight,” “The Westwood,” “Out of the Woods,” and “A Place of Safety” (Chapters 5-8).
In these chapters, we follow Rand and Tam as they return to their farmhouse, only for all hell to break loose once a group of Trollocs, led by a Fade, attack them. Tam is wounded and soon becomes feverish, while Rand struggles to get him back to Emond’s Field so that Nynaeve can help get him back to health. Once he gets there, however, she tells him nothing to be done, and it’s only when Moiraine herself intervenes that the elder al’Thor is saved from near-certain death. At the same time, it slowly begins to dawn on Rand that his life can never be the same again.
A key plot point to this entire sequence of events is the revelation that Tam isn’t Rand’s biological father. For all that Rand tries to deny that this is the truth–insisting that it was just the fever talking–one definitely gets the feeling that this is a case of a character protesting too much. He realizes, at some deep, primordial level, that the man he had always assumed was his father was instead someone who found him and adopted him, never telling him the truth. It’s a shattering moment, and while it can be a bit frustrating to read Rand’s increasingly-strident refusals to believe this, it’s also understandable. He is, after all, a very young man, and he’s just had the rug pulled out from under him. I daresay that anyone in his position would refuse to believe a truth that would demolish the most basic things they thought about themselves. It’s but the first time of many that Rand will find some fundamental piece of his identity challenged and brought into question.
These chapters also showcase Jordan’s skill at diving into the realm of the horrific. I dare anyone to read Rand’s and Tam’s encounter with the bestial Trollocs and not feel a thrill of fear and terror, and the same can be said for the moment when the Fade comes riding along the road and nearly catches them as they try to flee to safety. There’s no doubt that there are hints here (some very strong) of Jordan’s indebtedness to The Lord of the Rings in this scene and, just as Frodo and his friends manage to evade the Ringwraiths (at least for a while), so Rand and his father escape. As he would throughout the rest of the series, Jordan here immerses us in this uncertain and dangerous world, and limiting us to Rand’s point of view gives this moment an even greater and more potent emotional impact.
However, while at first it seemed that the return to Emond’s Field would solve at least one of Rand’s problems, reality soon comes crashing down. I’m sure I’m not the only one who felt the breath rush out of my body in a devastated sigh when Nynaeve revealed that there was nothing more she could do for Tam. Because we’re so thoroughly sutured into Rand’s point of view in this chapter, we feel with him as he reels with the recognition that sometimes not even one’s best and most valiant effort is enough to save someone we love. It’s a lesson that Rand will have to learn again and again throughout the series, as he contends with the tremendous emotional and moral consequences of being the Dragon Reborn (not that there is an inkling that this is the case just yet).
These moments also show us just how tightly-knit the community of Emond’s Field is. Even though they have all suffered tremendous grief and loss as a result of the Trolloc attack, people like Nynave, Egwene, and all the rest are more than willing and able to pitch in and help Rand. It’s really quite touching, and it is sure to strike a chord with anyone who has ever grown up in a small town and witnessed firsthand the extraordinary bonds that emerge between the residents of such a place. As a resident of a small town myself, this was certainly true for me as I did this re-read.
Fortunately for everyone concerned, there’s also Moiraine, whose true powers and identity as an Aes Sedai have been revealed. There’s a reason that this formidable character is one of the best ones that Jordan ever created, and it’s right here. Even though she is weary beyond measure, and even though she has given everything she had to protect Emond’s Field from the depredations of the Trollocs, she still agrees to help Tam, even though doing so will surely take more of her energy. She might be subtle and sly and a master manipulator, but I don’t think she helps Tam just because she knows that it will allow her to control Rand. This may be part of the moral and ethical calculus but, as her efforts to drive off the Trolloc attack make clear, she is genuinely determined to fight the forces of the Dark One.
Overall, I really loved these chapters. Though The Eye of the World takes some time to get going, once it does it really doesn’t let up. The slow pace of the beginning chapters make the eruption of violence all the more viscerally shocking, and it’s only once Rand reaches Emond’s Field and Tam is healed that we have a chance to really stop and take stock of what it all means. One thing is absolutely sure, though. Nothing will ever be the same for Rand or for Emond’s Field.