Dragon metamorphosis and regeneration (spoilers for Liveship and Rain Wilds books)

[Nuytsia]

.. I always felt that this was the largest flaw the dragons have; they are so absorbed in their ancestor's memories, that they have great difficulty dealing with new situations. This while the biggest strenght of humans seems to lie in their adaptability, and their ability to carve out a life for themselves wherever they are (this is even pointed out in the books at one point). The dragons seem sluggish in their thinking by comparison, unable to wrap their heads around things they haven't encountered before.

This reminds me of something..... and I think it is a comparison made between Elves and Humans in Lord of the Rings ????? Not sure if it was explicit in the books or something I read as a comment on them. Elves are more static due to their long lifespans etc and humans are more flexible/adaptable.

I think that the above points demonstrate the strength of the dragon-elderling-human symbiosis. Dragons have long memories and are able to think long-term but tend to be rigid and inflexible. Humans are adaptable and innovative but incline to short-term thinking. Elderlings represent a mid-point, combining and integrating these perspectives.

With regard to Tintaglia's abandonment of the hatchlings, I wonder whether this was as much due to their lack of ancestral memories as to their physical malformation. Even the other hatchlings did not regard Spit and Sedric's bronze (her name escapes me) as "dragons" until they were able to communicate and showed some evidence of memory/sentience.

Hmm I never thought of it that way. Yes, that does ring true, she maybe sees those without ancestral memories as less intelligent, even as non-sentient beings .... she may be treating them more like 'we' would treat 'animals' than as fellow members of her species.

I think it was 'Relpda' (Sedric's bronze)