Eugenides and Lyopidus

[shelver506.livejournal.com]

I had to stop my re-read of The Thief to catch up on my reviews for my blog, but when I picked it back up again this week, I caught something I hadn't before. Remember the story Gen tells about Eugenides and his brother Lyopidus and the fire?

  For a time, Eugenides evaded his request [to do something awesome], but Lyopidus built up his arrogance, telling him over     and over how clever he had been to defeat the Sky God, how much more clever he could be if he just put his mind to it. For instance, he could steal the thunderbolts again, just for a lark, and then return them to Hephestia. (p. 118 of my edition)

I read this and thought, gosh, this sounds familiar. In QoA, Gen is his own Lyopidus. He stole the Gift; therefore, he's a master thief. He keeps telling himself he'll never be caught, never be outmaneuvered. He toys with Sounis, with Attolia, "just for a lark."

In the legend, Lyopidus' pushing sets the world on fire and he dies. In QoA, Gen's bravado and Attolia's subsequent actions set the countries on fire with the flames of war. Gen's cousins die, leaving him as bereft as Eugenides over Lyopidus. And the gods have their hands in both stories.

Clearly, it's not a perfect analogy (no god was "out to get" Gen like the Sky was after Eugenides, etc.), but it did give me a pause.

Comments

[brandy-painter.livejournal.com]

Nice catch! It's not a perfect analogy no, but it is certainly a strong one.

[ayvara.livejournal.com]

That is an interesting theory; the stories in the other books are fairly straightforward analogies but the ones in The Thief always seemed more ambiguous to me. This is one of the best explanations I've heard.

[agh-4.livejournal.com]

Ooh, yes! Before, I had sorta just connected it to Gen's basic pride and habits, but I really like you point about the consequences. It's especially cool to notice since mwt hadn't really planned on writing a sequel at the time of The Thief.

And although no god was out to get Gen, Attolia certainly was, and Moira was helping her.

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

Hmm, yes. Gen's pride and "just for a lark" attitude led to so many deaths. It's no wonder he felt so terrible about the war, and blamed himself for it. Starting a war for righteous reasons--genocide, human rights, annexation of land, etc, is one thing. But a war that started because a boy was showing off (and, granted, gathering info for his queen) is another. Poor Gen. And, poor Helen, who had to decide whether to avenge her cousin or not.

[shelver506.livejournal.com]

Technically, he was there because Helen sent him. She confesses as much. But he was caught because he was showing off.

[booksrgood4u.livejournal.com]

That's an interesting theory....I never really caught the signifigance of the stories of the gods before - Thanks for sharing!