I was re-reading Emperor Mage, and it occured to me that Daine's pillaging of Ozorne's palace was completely pointless. She accomplished absolutley nothing by tearing down the palace walls except the venting of her own frustrations. It would have been simple enough just to seek Ozorne out without permenantly ruining the palace. Not only was it pointless, it was wasteful too. She destroyed food on page 254 that could have gone to feed the poor people of Carthak, not to mention the actual building itself, which probably held and was made of millions of dollars worth of jewels and gold. All of this money could have gone to aid Kaddar in his missions to rebuild Carthak after his uncle's reign. And, to top it all off, the worst she gets for all of this is a polite ban from the country. Kaddar himself is even willing to grant her anything she wishes!
My point in all this is that it seems really out of character for Daine. I know she was upset about Numair supposidly being dead, but she has always thought of others before herself, and just doesnt strike me as the kind of person to go on a blind revenge trip.
But then again, she did when her ma died too.
Can anyone offer insight? Is she just emotionally unstable?
#54975, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 0
I really doubt she is unstable, I mean someone she loved had been "killed", but i think it was more than that. The graveyard hag had been messing with her life and was trying to get her really upset and teach the carthaki government a lesson they won't forget, so I think it was more of the godess acting through her than Daine herself.
#54980, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 1
I think she had too.... I mean she had to get the guy to leave somhow... And I think it was in her, she can be kinda quick tempered. In her shoes I would have done the same thing. It wasn't ment to be well thought out. It was ment to be the realthing she would have done. I think that was one of Tammys best books and the includes the first and last Alanna books!
#54989, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 0
On the other hand, destroying the palace would force them to concentrate their efforts on the rebuilding of the palace, instead of on plotting revenge on Tortall or killing all the slaves because they didn't stop this from happening. Lack of a palace would sort of complicate efforts to send troops to war, don't you think?
"Improvisation is the touchstone of wit." --Moliére
#54991, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 0
Didn't the Goddess want to punish Ozorne?
Also, throughoutm the book we are told about the extravagence of the palace, most of which was unneccesary. If she had left the food and stores, there was no evidence to suggest that it would have been used to help the famine. Ozorne was feeding his armies with it. Any counciller who was elected if she just killed him might continue to do the same with it.
#54998, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 0
Everything they said, and... The book's gotta be exciting right? Besides, it was due time they caught Ozorne, wrecking his hidey-hole is just a good way to do it. And, if they put Carthak in debt, they can't spend money on weapons and soldiers. If Ozorne continued with his rule, Carthak's situation in the famine department would have worsened anyways. ~*Tara of Queenscove*~ Teggo's quiz says I'm like Neal, right?
#55004, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 5
>Everything they said, and... The book's gotta be exciting right?
Haha...
NUMAIR: You sneaked out of the palace? Were you careful? You didn't break anything, did you? :O DAINE: **sheepishly** I accidently knocked over a vase. I promise I'll replace it. OZORNE: That's good, my daddy gave me that when I was fifteen. Now, since you seem to like your adorable little country, I'll just dismiss the army for you, okay?
#55008, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 0
Hm. I'm trying to think of ways that "object lesson" won't sound like hubris, coming from a 15-year-old girl.
By viewing her through the lens of emotional instability, something of our time, we overlook something: Daine is not a girl of our time. Technically, she's not entirely even a girl--she's a demi-god. It's like saying Hercules was emotionally unstable.
The Carthakis needed a lesson that would stick, not that Daine was thinking of that at the time. They had destroyed, either through participation or allowing it to go forward, thousands of lives in the Eastern lands as Ozorne and his agents and his mages freed the immortals and sent them to do their worst. They had done nothing while his navies ravaged the coasts of his neighbors, and turned a blind eye while he sold their stolen property in his markets. He had made his palace a showplace with the loot of his victims. It was a symbol of the wealth and power of Carthak, a power that its nobles thought could be wielded without punishment from anyone. Daine was simply the instrument of the gods, and she acted with a god's rage. Her scope was made greater by the Graveyard Hag, but she wouldn't have gotten very far if the other gods hadn't agreed. And she was able to do all that damage because she was part god in the first place.
Gods aren't very discriminating in their wrath. They're clubs, not lasers. And a palace is the symbol of a nation's power. Daine smashing it was like the gods saying to the entire empire, "There are powers greater than you, and this is a sampling of what they will put on you if you don't start behaving yourselves."
Of course they let her go with a slap on the wrist. They were afraid of what she might do if they kept her. This was the person who reminded them why it was bad to mess with the gods in the first place.
Maybe gods are emotionally unstable by human lights. I just wouldn't want to be the one to try and put a god on medication and maybe hospitalize one for six weeks or so.
Tammy
“No person is your friend who demands your silence.” Alice Walker
#55967, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 7
Maybe gods are emotionally unstable by human lights. I just wouldn't want to be the one to try and put a god on medication and maybe hospitalize one for six weeks or so.
Sounds like that would make a great short story, Tammy...
#80853, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 13
Haha... Mithros: "Chaos, I think you need to go to a psychologist." Chaos: "Grrr...." Godess: "We are going to need to put you on some medicine, sister." Kyprioth: "We should just kill her, she's not worth the money"
#55845, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 0 Sat May-07-05 06:10 PM by Alanna the Lioness
She was mad. She had lost all the ones she loved who were human. She wanted revenge and she didn't think of Kaddars later reign she wanted to kill Ozorne and I bet just then the whole country. She might then have been a bit emotionally unstable, yes. But she was really, really unhappy. And she wanted to teach them not to mess with Tortall. If she had killed Ozorne it probly wouldn't have been that big (leaders get assasinated right?) But they'll remember the destroying of a stone palace and the bones of dinosaurs walking around.
#80849, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 0 Fri Jan-25-08 06:31 PM by 1415CW
She was angry. She was out for blood. Plain and simple. It's like going in your room breaking something when you're angry. They were just stupid enough to deal her a personal insult while she was in a palace with records and money and food and lots of other fun things to tear apart.I think perhaps if she didn't have the Graveyard Hag's power she would have done something different but she took what she had and rolled with it. And steam rolled a palace and nailed a permanent message onto Carthaki soil. She was mad, she didn't care much about logic, she wanted them to pay dearly, she wanted revenge, and she got it. Big time. "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." Much less one with divine back up =P
#80850, "RE: Was it really necessary?" In response to Reply # 14
Hi,
First of all, welcome to Sheroes! Just a little heads-up - this thread is three years old, which you may or may not have noticed. Usually, once a thread has gone approximately a month without having been posted in, it's considered "old" or "dead" or whatever and it's not really recommended to revive them. Make sure you have the forums set to view by "Last updated date" - the links are near the top of the page - so that you're just seeing the most recent topics. Your post was very well thought-out, though, and would be a great addition were the thread from the past few weeks. Hope you enjoy your time here!
Just Finished:Vacations From Hell by Libba Bray, etc. Currently Reading:The Singing by Alison Croggon
Printer-friendly copy 
Email this topic to a friend
Entertainment and Pop Culture 
