Inside the Skill Pillars? (Spoilers Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies)

['thul]

what do you do when you see a child you know well (not your own) playing or practicing with something that can be dangerous is misused, say a knife and whittling on a stick. Do you scold it, take away the knife, or do you sit down beside it and instruct it in how to do it right?
'thul at least would do the latter, teaching the child how to wield it properly so as not to cause harm. The presence (for Fitz at least) first warned him to be careful, that he should not be using the stones so. Then, when he did not stop, it left him to his fate for a while, before giving him a push in the right direction. This could be likened to the child cutting itself on the knife, and you, who tried to instruct it, lets it feel the pain while the wound heals, rather than giving it painkillers, so that the child remembers the danger the knife could pose. If the child had no recollection of the pain and danger of the knife, it would quite possibly repeat the incident in the future out of carelessness. (mind you, equipping a child with a very sharp knife for this is far better than equipping it with a dull one)

do you agree on that view?


perhaps the presence simply was, and that they assigned traits to it that they wanted to fit?
That early as it was for dutiful, he had no real experience with dragons, and since the pillars' current is so different from skill dreams, even if they both knew dragons in the latter, they might not recognize it in the former. Thus it could easily have been a dragon that is known. Or something else.

[LegionOfBrad]

I didn't realise that there had been problems with the Kindle versions. That explains the lack of Ship of Magic.

I'm of the opinion that Hobb has left the explanation of what went on inside the pillars ambiguous so that she can expand on it in future ROTE books. Perhaps later on in the new Rain Wilds books.

[finella]

Very, very interesting discussion!!! I urgently have to read Tawny Man again, to keep to my opinion, that it's Tintaglia, who threw Fitz out of the Skill Pillar .

@LegionofBrad: Good decision to read LST. I'm sure you'll enjoy them. They are just great books! I may be that you have difficulties at the beginning, because Farseer 1 was so great and everything was so dear to you. (that happend to me. I layed them aside after the first chapter. for almost half a year, until I started again.) But stay with it! I'm sure, it'll get you very soon. After having finished Ship of Destiny I thought they are even better than Farseer, hard to believe.

[Farseer]

I'm of the opinion that Hobb has left the explanation of what went on inside the pillars ambiguous so that she can expand on it in future ROTE books. Perhaps later on in the new Rain Wilds books.

Indeed. And may our Tangle Leader take as many books or series as she needs to fully tell the tale!

There are so many fantastic old discussions in this RotE room...'old' only because I just cannot find the time to get back here and sink my teeth into them.

Still, there are many that would prove interesting, especially now that some of you have read CoD...eg the war with chalced thread etc

['thul]

on the concept of that war with chalced... how much of chalced do you think the southern dukes of the six duchies have gobbled up?

[Norma J.]

Remember what the Peksie said to Fitz in the skill stream. Something like 'The others wouldn't bother to save you if they even noticed you at all' and 'Humans. Such passionate little pets they were when we had them'.

[LastDancer]

I've never thought it was Tintaglia, it just doesn't fit with with what we know about dragons.

Spoiler

sorry if this doesn't need to be in here I'm new!! I've always thought the presence Fitz and Duitful feel inside the skill is related to the coteries that had carved dragons. I think when they go into the dragon they exist inside the Skill stream. The female Fitz hears talks about him not being ready and not to come back until he is. I think this works with Fitz's thoughts that carving the dragon calls to him and perhaps to all skilled ones

[minisam]

I've never thought it was Tintaglia, it just doesn't fit with with what we know about dragons.

Spoiler

sorry if this doesn't need to be in here I'm new!! I've always thought the presence Fitz and Duitful feel inside the skill is related to the coteries that had carved dragons. I think when they go into the dragon they exist inside the Skill stream. The female Fitz hears talks about him not being ready and not to come back until he is. I think this works with Fitz's thoughts that carving the dragon calls to him and perhaps to all skilled ones

Exactly. I thought the voices Fitz and Dutiful heard were past Skill users. My thoughts were that who Fitz heard was Kettle and who Dutiful heard was Verity. My reasoning was that once you put all your being and spirit into the skill dragon your spirit "rides" within the skill river.

Sorry if this is an old thread i found this site and was overjoyed to find like minded Elderling lovers.

[KekPafrany]

I don't think Tintaglia would do this. She might help when she like that is true, but she would make sure that the little Fitz-bug learn her name, or how would she be praised for her beauty and generousness properly?

I agree with LastDancer. Something with the long-lost skill users.

[solarus]

Or perhaps those who created the pillars.

Fool's Quest spoiler

In the prelude to Chapter 23 "Bonds and Ties" the creation of Skill pillars is discussed. It mentions how those who create the pillars give up "...years of health" and that it is "...dangerous and expensive to the spirits and physical health of those who do the work,"before going on to say that they will suffer a "...youthful dotage."

This sounds very much like what Verity experienced whilst carving his stone dragon, so it is possible that the "essences" of the creators exist within the pillars in the same way as Verity exists within the dragon.