Earthsea Patterns

It is readily apparent to the reader of Ursula LeGuin's high fantasy trilogy that the "Master Patterner" is responsible for the stability, and indeed the survival, of Earthsea. It is not surprising, then, that "patterning" should also be responsible for much of the aesthetic pleasure the reader finds in Earthsea, the trilogy itself: but the extent and complexity of this patterning may not be so obvious. Invention, characterization and description are among the sources of aesthetic satisfaction in the novels: but underpinning everything is the careful balance or orchestration of structural elements that may appropriately be called "patterning."

Pattern is woven into several layers of the books: e.g. sentence-form, plot, imagery and thematic organization. Patterning works toward the integration of the three independent books into one whole, in which each retains its separate character while it becomes part of a larger work. Unlike Tolkien's trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, where a single action unfolds, in unbroken though complex sequence, across a wide canvas, LeGuin's work is comprised of three very different panels (rather like a triptych). The reappearance in all three books of the major figure, Ged (and occasional mention of a secondary character), and the continuity in setting (the created world of Earthsea) contribute to unity. But this thread of consistency would hardly be enough to counterbalance the shifts of time, locale, and focus between books. It is, rather, on other, more subtle and complex structural factors that the novels must depend for their cohesion: on narrative, stylistic and thematic patterning.

All three novels follow similar lines of plot development. In the first 2 or 3 chapters the central characters and situation are briefly introduced and there is a forecast of the main "problem" of the novel (e.g. the shadow behind the door; the prisoners in the undertomb; the weakening of magic in Earthsea). About 1/3 of the way through the novel its dilemma is posed: the identity of the shadow-beast; the threat of Ged's presence in the labyrinth; the temptation of eternal life. In the middle chapters the problem is further defined and complicated; it acquires dimension as it is seen from several perspectives, while the characters are slowly but inexorably pushed toward a point of decision. This point, the "reversal" is reached about 2/3 of the way through each book, so that the final chapters, although they offer climactic dangers and suspense, can show us the main characters in a positive light, facing and dealing with their particular challenges. Finally there are in each book a few pages devoted to a "winding down," a recovery. The motivation for the action of each novel is also essentially the same: a young person is compelled to discover and affirm his or her identity, to fulfil the potential of the as-yet unformed self, to accept responsibility for "becoming." The 3 books are thus repetitive in form, yet variable in their expression: ordered, but with an element of unpredictability characteristic of good patterning.

Another component of the pattern is the style of all three books. There is space here to mention only one important element of that style, namely a distinctive, classically balanced compound sentence form, which recurs regularly throughout the trilogy. The predicate is generally a form of "to be" and the compound may be either completely symmetrical or only partially symmetrical, with the rest of the balance implied:

The hunger of a dragon is slowto wake but hard to sate. (WE, 77)¹You were taught to be a slave, butyou have broken free. (TA, 107)Around them was the night, and underthem the sea. (TA, 145)To deny the past is to deny thefuture. (FS, 28)Then the balance of the world isswayed, and ruin weighs heavy inthe scale. (FS, 35)

Although sentences so noticeably structured as these are relatively few, their recurrence is a feature of the stylistic pattern. Their symmetry and rhythm enact the trilogy's emphasis on balance and equilibrium: the form is an obvious reminder of the patterner's hand.

Perhaps the strongest element of the...