v. 2.1 Comprehensive & Abridged Edition

I’ve been having a lot of trouble getting back to my WoT Magnum Opus. Part of it is that the circumstances have changed since I re-undertook the project. I had intended to use it as a structure to guide my re-read in preparation for aMoL, but then hurricanes and holidays and medical stuff got in the way, and then suddenly I was reading aMoL, and a comprehensive re-read seemed kind of pointless. Then, on the occasions when I set fingers to keys to try a new entry cold, I ran into a problem by having set myself up in a difficult format. Coming up with that structure I started was just too much to overcome, especially when I left off on a part of the series where Egwene is rather inactive, just going along with the group. Not easy to hype up.

So I am beginning again, only this time my goal is a short(ish) list of her misdeeds, with brief commentary. For simplicity sake I am also using a system of codes to indicate the category, or categories, of wrongdoing to which each item belongs. I was going to just base it on the Seven Deadly Sins, but some of those are kind of irrelevant to WoT and Egwene (it’s not like there are many opportunities to display lust, sloth or gluttony). So instead, I went with a WoT concept, namely the Thirteen Sins (mentioned in the reception room décor of the Kin in Ebou Dar), adapted for the sort of misdeeds Egwene gets up to.

Guide to the Thirteen Sins of Egwene

Arrogance or Pride

Selfish or Inconsiderate behavior

Tyranny / Abuse of power

Out of Touch mentality

Judgmental Attitude

Lust for Status / Envy

Lust for Power

Sycophantic behavior

Betrayal of a personal nature

Dishonesty

Protagonist Syndrome {behavior that is absolutely contraindicated unless the character knows she is a main character in a fantasy novel and thus critical to the resolution of the crisis, or bound for greatness against all in-story expectations}

Hypocrisy

Foolhardiness / Reckless endangerment of herself or others

And some that are venial level sins, or not explicitly bad or evil:

Flat out incompetence or incorrect conclusions or assessments

Stupid or Clueless behavior

Sociopathic mentality or desire toward violence or to victimize others (as opposed to actual action)

Petty, nasty or spiteful words and attitude / General rudeness

Uncooperative, resisting doing her part.

Hopefully using these codes will curtail my own tendency to

Onward!

Part iRavens
1. Egwene is determined to do a good job hauling water so she can get a better job next year.

2. She wants to be the youngest girl ever allowed to braid her hair
[because she doesn’t; Nynaeve got to at 16, Egwene had to wait to 17]
3. Completely unsympathetic & uncharitable regarding her sister’s grieving for a child and husband, while showing no grief whatsoever for the loss of a brother-in-law and nephew.

4. She butts into a discussion, embarrassing her sister in front of others by comparing her to the town slut.

5. Resents being called a child, despite repeatedly demonstrating such childlike attributes as ignorance of sexual matters.

6. Constantly attributing bad intentions or motivations to others.

7. Despite her disdain for being called “baby sister” or “child” when she proves ignorant of adult matters, she ridicules Perrin’s sister in the same terms for an innocent comment.

8. Despite railing against the rules and categorizations that hold her back, she applies them freely to people who incur her displeasure.

9. When someone does not immediately swallow her lie, she contemplates kicking him, refraining only because it will not work.

10. Despite her determination to perform her assigned task, when she decides to pursue frivolous curiosity, she blatantly neglects her job to pretend she is busy at a more convenient location.

Part 1Eye of the World

1: Egwene, at the time the story opens, is presumed to be Rand’s future wife. Future revelations will expose this was initiated by her, and that the village’s assumptions curtail Rand’s behavior and choices, such as minimizing his contact with alternative mates. Yet in her first conversation with Rand, she reveals that having stripped Rand of a significant life choice, she is now considering alternative choices herself, such as moving away to pursue a career as Wisdom. She cannot be expected to stay in a town where Nynaeve is likely to hold the post for another fifty years, of course. All she could do in that situation is help her neighbors, friends and family when they get sick or need weather advice. She would never get to actually be the most powerful woman in town!

2: The very first appearance of Egwene is her hovering around Nynaeve, imitating her over-the-top authoritarian behavior that absolutely everyone else in the town thinks is excessive. While her tirade is directed at Egwene’s friends & peers no less!

3: When Mat & Perrin tell Egwene about the Myrdraal all three boys, among others, saw, Rand, the closest of the three to her does not bother, anticipating her reaction perfectly. Nonetheless, he too receives a share of her ridicule. After all, a chance to score points off your boyfriend is not to be passed by.

4: When Thom puts in an appearance, he commits the cardinal sin of criticizing Egwene’s mentor, and pokes a little harmless fun at the boys. Egwene’s disapproval of a male having fun is quickly dissipated by Thom’s over-the-top flattery, asking her to be his assistant, as he always picks the prettiest girl . To Mat & Perrin, it is plain as day how he is coopting a potential hostile audience member, but Egwene is highly indignant that anyone could take his description of her as anything other than complete sincerity.

5: After the Trolloc attack, when Moiraine makes them leave their homes and families for their own protection and that of their loved ones and hometown, Egwene insists on joining them. When Moiraine & Lan become concerned about the state of their security if this nincompoop caught them out, she sneers that the hicks are more concerned with dead or injured kinfolk and disaster recovery than keeping the boys under surveillance to make sure they are not being offered opportunities without including Egwene. Oh, and despite Moiraine and Lan not gainsaying Rand’s claim of being the Shadowspawns’ target, she scoffs at his “nonsensical tales”. It’s obviously a plot to have an adventure without her, and that will not stand!

6: Despite their obvious wariness of Moiraine, the universal distrust in which Aes Sedai are held and little details like her sinking the ferry (the equivalent of burning down a man’s store), Egwene is overjoyed at the news she can join an elitist clique that she knows nothing about, except POWER, and expects her friends to share her delight.

7: When her companions express homesickness, being less than perfectly thrilled about being hunted through strange lands, living in the wilderness without seeing other people for days, Egwene sneers at them for wanting to go home from their adventure. She also ditches the braid she has been striving to be allowed to wear for literally at least half her conscious life, because what is a mere sentimental connection, when you have a chance at something much more important than farm village woman. Clearly all her yearning for the braid was solely about the status, since she doesn't even like the hairstyle.

8: During a conversation with Moiraine about the Power, Egwene is very invested in the notion that men were solely responsible for the Breaking and freeing the Dark One, that there is no way she can be even remotely associated with such embarrassments, even 3,000 years removed. It is also very important to Egwene that a long-extinct demographic of channelers not have been more powerful than her own, in that far-gone Age. Egwene must always be in the best group, even in comparison with long gone and dead groups.

9: During her travels with Perrin after Shadar Logoth, Egwene abuses male-to-female deference and Perrin’s own naturally retiring nature to be “in charge” when it is just the two of them. However, whenever they encounter people who never lived in fear of the Women’s Circle, she goes mute, and dumps the responsibility of leadership on Perrin’s shoulders, regardless of how she disparages his diplomatic abilities in private.

10: She also insists on using the Power, and when Perrin expresses caution regarding using the force that Broke the World to cook a rabbit when there are mundane means readily available to them, she pitches a tantrum. Much later in the books, his caution is revealed to have been correct. One could say Egwene had no way of knowing this about the Power, but then, how did Perrin know? Quite simply, it is a basic moral principle regarding the use of power, which Perrin understands, and Egwene does not, choosing instead to shriek “I won’t do it!”, ironically comparing refraining from using a dangerous Power she does not understand or have any training in, to giving up his axe, which she considers equally impossible. So much for familiarity and friendship.

11: When Elyas not only demonstrates how clueless and ill-equipped Perrin & Egwene are to survive on their own, as well as his ability to detect deceit and hostility toward the Shadow, Egwene attempts to refuse his offer of protection and guidance, because there is a chance he might delay their journey to Tar Valon, where she is to become Aes Sedai. If she had not been so dismissive of Rand’s claim that the Shadow is hunting them, she might have picked up on Moiraine’s assertion that protecting the boys from the Dark One (as Elyas is offering to do) is the priority. She was, after all, ready to take the boys without even saying goodbye to her prize recruit. But, no. Egwene does not even want to share Elyas’s fire for one night, because he proposed something other than the path that will take Egwene to shawl as soon as possible.

12: Upon encountering the Tinkers, Egwene the sophisticated world traveler, who has grown beyond petty village attitudes, immediately starts spouting off every ignorant stereotype about them, even as Perrin is eager to learn from them. Pretty much the only display of bigotry by any of the main characters in the entire series.

13: But once a cute boy starts flattering her and hitting on her, and Ila fussing over her, Egwene leaps to their defense when Perrin points out the immediate and obvious criticism of the Way of the Leaf, saying “it is interesting to meet someone who doesn’t believe his muscles can solve every problem.” Is there ANYONE who deserves that description LESS than Perrin? Not to mention flipping the very difference of opinion they had back in point 10.

14: In spite of a tendency later displayed of the Two Rivers folk to have one another’s back, even when they are the two who least like one another and are natural enemies (Mat & Nynaeve, the troublemaker & disciplinarian) or at a nadir of paranoia and suspicion (Rand trusting Nynaeve up to the very extreme of his hardness), Egwene not only takes a stranger’s part in an argument with Perrin, she spends all her time with him , neglecting Perrin and even her hosts, who would have loved the chance to eat with their grandson for a change.

15: The one time she can be bothered to speak with Perrin, she blows off his worries with a blithe fatalism, admonishing him to have some fun and just get it out of his mind that the Dark One is hunting him personally, and that people who shelter him tend to get attacked by the Shadow.

16: Even when they leave the Tinkers, and it is time to put away her Tinker Heart and resuming her Quest for Power Heart, Egwene is still wearing Aram’s gifts and fingering them fondly. Never mind her relationship with Rand. He was not around to distract her from real danger with laughter and dancing. It’s not like merely talking to an attractive member of the opposite sex who is very interested in you counts as something a relationship partner should be upset about…unless that’s how she’s going to judge him regarding Min or Else or Elayne…

17: Once they are in the Whitecloaks’ hands, Perrin is reluctant to talk, but Egwene tells him “Don’t be silly” and proceeds to condemn them to their captors by citing a Warder as an authority, and proving their previous experience of Trollocs. She is also about to use their false story that had already proven unconvincing against Elyas, much less a man who outright tells them he has experience in the Borderlands.

18: Once reunited with the rest of the group in Caemlyn, and depth of the Shadow’s interest in the boys and the extent of their tribulations becomes clear, we see Egwene crying and being comforted by Nynaeve. She herself shows little or no concern or empathy for her friends, leading to the obvious conclusion that she deliberately overreacted to divert sympathy and comfort to herself. Throughout the entire discussion, the only things she has to say to Rand that are not answers to direct questions, are prying questions about this Elayne person who has come up once, incidentally, in his account. And of course, angry disbelief of his truthful answer, accusing him of joking or teasing (behavior we absolutely never see from Rand, but that does not stop Egwene from repeatedly accusing him of it throughout this book).

19: Later on she actually has the temerity to demand Rand give her a pass on Aram. “You wouldn’t hold it against me, dancing with somebody I will never see again (you lucky bastard, Aram), would you?” But that is exactly what she does with Rand, regarding women he has not even danced with, whom he is no more likely to meet again. Egwene has been caught out, and obviously in the eyes of the whole group, so she has to make Rand tell her it’s okay. Notice there is no apology or admission of error – merely a demand that he acknowledge the innocence of her action.

20: On an amusing note, when they reach the Blight, Egwene calls it “the best weather we've seen all year”. She knows her natural environment all right.

21: Later, when the Forsaken attack at the Eye of the World, Egwene ignores Moiraine’s order to run, and the prior example of the futility of attacking them, plus Moiraine’s prior remonstrance of her shortcomings as a channeler, and tries to channel at Aginor, forcing Rand to stop to shake some sense into her. As a result, Aginor’s attention is diverted to Rand. Had he been anyone but the Dragon Reborn, Egwene’s hubris would have gotten him killed.

Part 2The Great Hunt

1: Egwene’s first action in tGH is to assault Rand for having the temerity to not want to be around her. She tackles him, sits on him, gloats about his inability to reciprocate, and then, while bragging about her superior ability with the One Power, accidentally sets off a torch. When Rand extricates himself and remonstrates with her for her actions, she accuses him of resorting to violence because he is losing the argument.

2: Then, she goes in one sentence from saying that Rand shouldn’t have to worry about hurting anyone if he doesn’t do anything wrong (apparently all those men who went mad should have had stronger moral character), to saying there is no reason to believe that the Amyrlin & co know he channel. She assumes Moiraine will not rat him out, but decides that Lan is less trustworthy, and begins contemplating hiding places!

3: She then suggests hiding him in the dungeon, casually revealing that she’s hanging out with Padan Fain. He’s a self-confessed darkfriend, overtly and obviously insane and guilty by his own admission of bringing Shadowspawn to destroy their hometown, and guiding them in their pursuit of Rand, his friends & Egwene. Rand points all this out and Egwene’s response is that he amuses her. She also contends that since he is getting better at acting in a reassuring manner (i.e. getting the hang of manipulating Egwene), obviously he is close to redemption. When Rand asks if Moiraine thinks it’s safe, she denies needing Moiraine’s permission. That not only fails to answer his question, but is an astounding claim from someone who will later be dismayed any time he does not receive said permission. She herself describes to Rand how the regularly posted guards and the petty criminals in neighboring cells have also shown signs of deteriorating personalities in merely the short time since she started visiting.

4: After deciding that Padan Fain might not be a cool guy after all, she continues on her quest to hide Rand. It is worth noting that hiding him in the dungeons would have been a singularly dumb idea, since they had to pass guards, who notice Rand and would probably have noticed her coming out alone. And when a search started, the guards would not only know exactly where Rand is, they would have him trapped in the dungeons.

5: Now, setting aside the levels of idiocy involved in hiding anyone in a dungeon or befriending Padan Fain at this juncture, let’s look at the very act of hiding Rand. Egwene does not know he is a figure of prophecy or that saidin will be cleansed in a couple years. She knows he is a ticking time bomb, regardless of his good intentions (Moiraine even told her back in EotW that male channelers are not evil and cannot help their destructive acts), and that the Aes Sedai are the only people who can prevent that, so why is she hiding him? And in the women’s quarters of all places! She is hiding an uncontrollable weapon of mass destruction, that might blow at any time, among the women and children, without bothering to ask them how they feel about being human shields.

6: And her ruse only succeeds because Moiraine lets her. She is caught before she barely has him in her hiding spot.

7: After securing Rand under the eye of someone competent (Nynaeve), Egwene then decides, with a feast coming on, and the women acting all sneaky and searching, and Aes Sedai infesting the keep, where suspicious behavior is the last thing you want to be caught in, to go back and visit the evil raving lunatic. The only rationale imaginable for this decision is that the secret of her visits is sure to come out and she wants to spread the blame by involving as many of the Two Rivers folk as she can, given Moiraine’s past history of dumping harder on the boys than her. So she waltzes down to the dungeons with Mat, causing his dagger to be lost, and bringing him to the verge of death before he is able to be Healed, instead of cured of the bond that very night.

8: Later while traveling in to the ship to Tar Valon, Egwene assumes that Verin’s visit to their tent presages a summons to the Amyrlin. What else could be of interest to the Amyrlin when she has so exalted a personage as Egwene in her party? It is also worth noting that Verin absolutely confirms Perrin’s attitude towards her premature channeling efforts.
and in hindsight:

9: When Rand is traveling with Lanfear, he is quite obviously being influenced to be attracted to her. For his own reasons, he is fighting the attraction and attempting to use his relationship with Egwene as a psychological obstacle to help, so he is desperately trying to come up with positive thoughts about his near-fiancee to diminish the sinister appeal of his companion. What is the best he can do, this man who knows her better than anyone else, and who often accurately predicts her actions or responses? “Egwene wouldn’t have said I was wise. Egwene would have called me a woolhead.” The certain knowledge that Egwene would have had no qualms about dancing with Selene’s male equivalent in his shoes probably didn’t help either.

10: On Egwene’s first day as a novice, she decides she does not like an Accepted named Pedra, because Pedra told her not to be late to her next assignment. The future exemplar (and draconian enforcer) of novice propriety sticks her tongue out behind the poor woman’s back. She is then struck with jealousy when her new friend asks if Rand is well. No compliments, no expression of interest, just a pro forma inquiry about the mutual acquaintance they have. She is actually indignant that multiple occasions of dancing with another boy upset Rand, because he committed the much greater sin of not actively avoiding encounters with young women, and allowing them to be attracted to him. She actually saysthat. When Min issues the lurid and insinuating line “Is Rand well?” Egwene mentally compares him to Shadowspawn. I have been accused of overreacting to Egwene and blowing things out of proportion. Even if this is true, who deserves it more?

11: She meets Galad. Galad-encountering chick behavior ensues, literally minutes after she is furious with Rand for giving his name to strange women who are nicer than she.

12: She also meets her future husband, and speaks all the words to him that she will speak prior to the incident where she claims she loves him and will he do her a huge, treasonous, defying Aes Sedai favor for her, please? Then she replies to his dialogue by ignoring him and talking only to Min and Elayne.

13: When Liandrin summons Egwene & Nynaeve to Toman Head as part of the elaborate Rand-related trap, for which succumbing to they will later be called foolish, and punished for their error in judgment, it is noteworthy that Nynaeve is highly skeptical, questioning Liandrin on each detail, while Egwene keeps saying “Okay, sure, we’re in” and undermining her friend's efforts to poke holes in Liandrin’s story. Nynaeve goes along, of course, because that’s what Two Rivers people do when you tell them a friend is in trouble, but Egwene spoils any possibility of bluffing and holding out for more information.

14: Upon their arrival on Tomon Head, of the three channelers, Egwene is the only one to be captured by the Seanchan. Before Egwene could even form a thought about what was going Nynaeve channeled to escape despite her handicap (meaning she had to recognize what was going, become angry at it, and then channel, despite her poorly-trained abilities & wilder-imposed shortcomings). Even the spoiled princess who was in danger for the first time in her life reacted with more alacrity, and despite a more extreme reputation for foolhardiness, was faster in beating an appropriate retreat. Also, she is remarkably dense regarding the fairly obvious identity of Liandrian’s & Suroth’s master. She might be forgiven for overlooking their conversation due to her own troubles of the moment, but it’s still on her mind much later, even after her spanking, with her still wondering about his identity, and refusing to even entertain the notion of Ba’alzamon because it’s unpleasant.

15: It is later in Falme that Egwene performs the first of her definitively Pattern-directed services to Rand’s cause, providing the excuse for him to return to the town and for the sounding of the Horn of Valere and his confrontation with Ba’alzamon, leading to his acceptance of his destiny. I mention this because even the Wheel of Time and the Pattern can only fit Egwene’s obstructionist and uncooperative soul into their design by having her shackled and tethered as bait.

16: After being freed, despite Nynaeve’s reassurances, as both the one who A. did not get caught, and B. infiltrated the Seanchan occupation capital and freed Egwene, Egwene blows their cover by randomly blasting soldiers. You know, exactly like someone always accusing Rand and Perrin of being too quick to resort to violence or being in love with their muscles or weapons? Nynave, of course, is the one who has to dodge the first three shots we witness.

17: When she encounters Min doing the first of her human blanket routines with Rand’s comatose body, Egwene suddenly has a revelation that eluded her when she was stashing a male channeler among helpless civilians: “Min, you known what he is, don’t you, now?...you do know that he…isn’t…safe…” When the life of every person she knows outside the Two Rivers is at stake from the danger that once destroyed the world, Egwene doesn’t care, she’s going to indulge her anti-authority impulses to her heart’s delight. When it is obvious that a friend is truly in love with him, probably forcing her to confront the shallowness of her own feelings, he’s “dangerous” and she is all about warning people off of him. Then she lays a guilt trip on the woman who was her sole comfort in captivity with her martyred exit.

This went pretty quick, from deciding on the format through composition. It was also a lot of fun, going back over the early books, and I had to refrain myself from tossing in little addenda regarding things I picked up in the course of reviewing Egwene's arc, mostly in hindsight for the whole series. I have every expectation of another Volume covering a couple more books before the week is out. So for a little while, the WoTMB will be nothing but my posts. I have won again, Egwene!