In this series, I’ll be working my way through Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea works and analyzing her prose chapter by chapter. Spoilers follow.
Chapter 14: Tehanu
Length: 8 pages, 85 paragraphs
Setting: Re Albi
To tell you the truth, I don’t like this final chapter. I think it tries to do too much too fast. It feels rushed, abrupt. Maybe this is intentional. Tenar has not been on the hero’s journey. She’s been living with the normal episodes of life running into each other, and perhaps it makes sense that the conclusion of the page-worthy bits of her story should come to a close without warning.
I love this chapter, too. I love the glimpse into Therru’s thinking, her view of people and magic and dragons.
I love that Aspen dies suddenly to the talons and flames of a dragon he refused to see coming.
Le Guin is one of those authors who seems to have more to say every time I come back to her work, as if she knows I’ve grown in some capacity and am ready to see a little farther into the depths. I am still not sure I am ready for Tehanu. I still think I have more to learn before I’m really ready to converse with this book.
Still, on we go. We’ll dig into Tales from Earthsea next.
Until next time.
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