Eragon pt. sixteen

[kippurbird]

Chapter The witch and the Werecat

Summary

So, Eragon gets up and looks at himself in the mirror. And he finds that "There was a slight cast to his eyes that, when he looked closely, gave his face a wild, alien appearance." I think this is the mostly all meat diet talking here. He's missing the nutrients that he needs to keep his eyes healthy. Though I'm sure that's not what Paolini meant. He then goes wandering the city and eventually ends back up at the herbalist's shop.

He then meets what is essentially a were-house cat. This werecat is named Solembum.

Let us look at the name of this cat. Solembum. Solemn bum. Serious Ass.

Yes. The cat's name is Serious Ass.

Serious Ass.

Can our naming conventions get any better than this?

I don't think so.

Serious ass is a werecat, as previously mentioned. Werecats are extremely rare animals which "have magical powers, lived longer than humans and usually knew more than they told." Serious Ass' attitude reminds me a lot of Mogget's, from Garth Nix Abhorsen's trilogy. Mogget is a powerful magical cat like creature that dispenses wisdom with a sardonic dry wit.

When Sabriel asks Mogget what his name is, he replies, "I have a variety of names," replied the cat. It had a strange voice, half mew, half purr, with hissing on the vowels. "You may call me Mogget." (Sabriel, 121) Serious Ass gives a similar response to Eragon. "I go by many names. If you are looking for my proper one, you will have to look elsewhere." The eye closed. Eragon gave up and turned to leave. "However, you may call me Solembum". (Eragon, 201). Rather similar, I think.

We then learn from Angela that Solembum doesn't show himself to most customers and that Eragon shows promise. He's just that special. And that only two other people have been able to talk to him before. Lovely.

Angela then offers to read Eragon's fortune. Apparently she offered this to the two other people who Serious Ass talked to before. The one who took it was a woman named Selena.

Guess what Eragon's mother's name is? First two don't count.

Over come by emotion and angst Eragon decides to have his fortune told too.

Guess what Angela says about Eragon's fortune. It's the hardest one she's ever told. His future is unknowable.

He's just thatspecial.

If he gets any specialer I'm gonna puke.

She still makes some pretty good guesses. He's going to have a long life. Mighty lands are going to try and control his will and destiny. He's one of the few who are truly able to choose their own way. *gack* There's a doom upon him. Someone close to him is going to die. He will have to leave this land forever (ten bucks says that he sails off to the land where the elves came from never to return again. *hopes*)an epic romance is in his future with a lady of noble birth, powerful wise and beautiful beyond compare. *double gack* and he's going to be betrayed by someone from within his family.

That's actually a pretty good fortune. If that's not supposed to be clear, I wonder what her clear ones are like. "You will meet a tall dark and handsome stranger. His name is Will. He will ask you for five dollars on Sunday, at the meat market. Marry him and you will have three children named Susan, Peter and Janzi." Hah.

The bones never lie. Which means all the suspense in the story has just been tossed out the window. We know exactly what's going to happen to Eragon. We know that he's going to be betrayed by a family member. We know that someone close to him is going to die, probably Brom, because he's the only one around. He's going to fall in love with a noble woman (who's apparently a Mary Sue) and he's going to leave never to come back.

If you're going to do a prophecy in the story, don't give EVERYTHING away. Paolini just telegraphed his entire story out. There's nothing surprising going to happen now. We know what's going to happen.

If that doesn't get you going, Serious Ass gives Eragon advice to an uber magical object for when his power is insufficient and an uber magical weapon when he needs a weapon. They're in locations like the Vault of Souls. Which sounds uber neat and special and mystical. I don't think I can take any more of this.

I think the theme of this chapter is how special Eragon is. And how special he's going to be. Because that's all that happens in it. He's special. We know it.

The cat's name is Serious Ass.

Comments

[prototypical]

Please tell me the Abhorsen trilogy made more sense to you than it did to me. I read them in a row and my head was still blown half the time. Gods, I should read them again, at the pace I would use for comprehending The Silmarilion.

Back on subject - that prophecy is too literal! I point him in the direction of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix to understand the meaning of a prophecy that confuses readers!

[canadianevil.livejournal.com]

The Abhorsen trilogy is made of win.

Except for the fact that the second book is all set up and no actual action for reals I swear. What's up with that?

[shikomekidomi.livejournal.com]

Well, if you read the first one and then stop, it seems to make sense. I never got around to the others.

[madamsnape.livejournal.com]

*Giggles* Serious Ass!!!

ROFLMAO!!!!!!

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

He really, really, really, really, needs to work on his names. You shouldn't be able to do this to a name. It just becomes a mockery.

[ghostgecko.livejournal.com]

>>>I think the theme of this chapter is how special Eragon is. And how special he's going to be. Because that's all that happens in it. He's special. We know it.

Short bus special.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

*laughs* Yes. He is.

A-Anakha?

[(Anonymous)]

Wow, and I thought his other Eddings ripoffs were bad.

So how exactly does a 'Stu man without a destiny have a) such a detailed fortune and b) a place in a world where people have destinies?

Re: A-Anakha?

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Because he's just that special.

[dragonwhishes.livejournal.com]

Did I not tell you you'd meet a were-housecat? Didn't I? Huh? Huh? Huh?

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Yes. Yes you did.

[custardpringle.livejournal.com]

"You will meet a tall dark and handsome stranger. His name is Will. He will ask you for five dollars on Sunday, at the meat market. Marry him and you will have three children named Susan, Peter and Janzi."

Actually, if THAT were Eragon's fortune, I might be more motivated to read this book :9

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Seeing as how we would have strayed into the territory of slash and MPREG I can't see I blame you. Far more interesting.

[thelittlebudgie.livejournal.com]

*sniggers* Zinc is important for vision, as well as hearing and sense of smell. I wouldn't be surprised if he were about to die of a zinc deficiency on an all-meat diet. Huh. And I thought I would never need to remember that.

eventually ends back up at the herbalist's shop. Where he is hopefully going to go buy some zinc supplements. And overdose. And die a horridly painful death.

Wow. I can't believe I forgot that prophecy. Selfdefence, I suppose.

:P And the cat's name is great. I call mine a butt all the time, yet somehow I doubt she would do the same.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

The cat's name is just ... special.

The prophecy is just... stupid. Completely ruins the entire book. (Not that it needed to be ruined any more, we could already figure out what's going to happen, just from the cliches.)

[-youngblood-.livejournal.com]

The fortune-telling is possibly the most horrible plot device in the entire book. Plus, it becomes a total "no duh" experience who is Eragon's "epic love" when you get further into the book. I just have to wonder what exactly Paolini was intending to accomplish with this scene.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

To show how wonderful and special Eragon is. That was the entire point of the scene.

[karma-kalisutah.livejournal.com]

There are no words for that prophecy. None. Just how stupid is Paolini? As if we didn't have little enough reason to slog through this dreck as it is, he goes and eliminates every last particle of suspense..

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Well, we've already established that Paolini has all the writing skills of your average sea cucumber. This just proves it.

Werecats are cool but Serious Ass is a weirdo

[dove-cg.livejournal.com]

Wow, everyone has made such wonderful comments already. And truly, this chapter sucks rocks. I would love to know how we find out Serious Ass is a werecat, though. Does Angela just TELL Eragon this? How sad.

Also, Chaucer is an adorable kitty and I hope he types better across the keyboard than my kitty does. She tends to type strings of punctuation/numbers/or just one letter over and over. And when I play WoW, she opens different in-game windows by mistake (but once or twice she has tried sending people messages while I'm doing something else.) Mostly she just likes attacking the flying mounts while I'm traveling from town to town and dropping her paw over the map. XD

Re: Werecats are cool but Serious Ass is a weirdo

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Serious Ass tells Eragon that he's a werecat.

[gjohnsonkoehn.livejournal.com]

He's one of the few who are truly able to choose their own way.

I've never understood how a system that utilises prophecy and destiny can allow for any deviation by subjects. Wouldn't that wipe out the pre-destination aspects of everyone the destiny-less one comes into contact with, a sort of incarnated uncertainty principle roaming the world, spreading the infection?

I'm not speaking of Paolini in particular, of course; I doubt he's ever given it a first thought, nevermind a second one. Just, y'know, in general.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

I think it's a plot device to make it seem like the character is changing the world on his own accord and can do what he wants because he doesn't have a destiny. To try and make him a wild card.

But then again if everyone else's future is written out, I bet you could figure out what his future is. Like if someone's future would be to try and kill him, you know that the hero is going to be attacked.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Things Mogget and Serious Ass have in common

1. They're both cats that aren't cats.
2. They've had many names and use a similar phrase when they talk to the protagonist about what to be called.
3. They know more than they let on.
4. They have a human form.
5. They give the protagonist important information.
6. They are mysterious (or at least in Mogget's case he is, dunno about Serious Ass.)
7. They are witty (again Mogget is, Serious Ass is not)

[(Anonymous)]

Say what you will about this chapter, I love Angela's reaction to Brom's impending doom! It is the one thing in this book so far that I have enjoyed in the way the author intended. I think that Angela should have been the hero of this book instead of Eragon.

Because it has to be said...

[authoressarktos.livejournal.com]

Eragon: I'm going to kick serious ass!
Stupid Talking Cat Thing: Hey!
Eragon: Oh, sorry. I thought I'd be safe with a generic battlecry...I can't be too original; clowns dragon will eat me!

XD

[shikomekidomi.livejournal.com]

Actually, that mirror thing is perfectly normal, stare at your eye in the mirror long enough and it just starts looking weird. It doesn't mean anything, except that eyes are creepy.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and ask if werecats can turn into people. If yes, then that's the most obvious secret ever--which I still expect to be a 'surprise' later in the series. If no, then their naming convention stinks.
I'm agree the words "your future is unknowable" do not go with an extremely detailed fortune. This is clearly not a very good fortuneteller, because the logical solution to this paradox would be that the entire prophecy is made up to get business... if the even more logical solution wasn't that the author doesn't understand logic.
Yes, I did tell your mother's fortune,trust me and cross my palm with silver...No, no, I only told two other people their fortunes, this is a special offer, now about that silver, act now for the low, low price... Or maybe I'm just thinking of those psychic hotline people.