eragon

Eragon is a novel written by Christopher Paolini, and is the first book of the Inheritance trilogy. Eragon's sequel is Eldest, the title of the third book has been unconfirmed.

Publication history

Christopher Paolini began writing Eragon, around 1998, aged 15. The book was first published in 2002 by the author's parents through their small publishing company, Paolini International, LLC. The book was discovered by Alfred A. Knopf, and was published under Knopf in 2003. With Knopf as the publisher, Eragon became a success and a New York Times Bestseller.

Plot summary

Eragon takes place in a land called Alagaësia, which is ruled by the evil king, Galbatorix, who was once a dragon rider but is now corrupted by madness after losing his dragon and being denied another one. Dragons are a species which were once the peacekeeping species in a partnership with a rider of an elite group. Galbatorix in his madness, crippled the order of the Riders and now dragons are thought to be extinct.

The main character is Eragon (EHR-uh-gahn), a 15 year old boy who lives in a small village called Carvahall. He finds a mysterious blue stone in The Spine, a local range of mountains. After being unable to sell or trade his find, Eragon witnesses a baby dragon hatch from inside the "stone." He raises the dragon in secret until two evil Ra'zac come to town looking for his mysterious blue stone. Eragon and his dragon, Saphira, manage to escape danger by hiding in the forest, but Eragon's Uncle Garrow is killed and his house razed.

Eragon takes it upon himself to become a Dragon Rider, one of the ancient warriors who were slaughtered by the crazed Galbatorix in his rise to power, and seeks to hunt down the Ra'zac. On his journey, Eragon learns the ways of the Dragon Riders, swordfighting and magic mentored by his companion Brom, a mysterious old storyteller from his village.

They travel through several cities and reveal the evilness of urgals and the crookedness of Galbatorix and the Empire. Finally, after days of hunting and much research in the town of Teirm, sources lead Brom to the conclusion that the Ra'zac reside in Dras-Leona. Eragon, Saphira, and Brom are lured into a Ra'zac's ambush there although they are rescued by a mysterious stranger, Murtagh. Unfortunately, Brom is gravely injured, and he soon dies— but not before revealing that he was once a Dragon Rider with a dragon which was the namesake of Eragon's.

The new company of three (Eragon, Murtagh and Saphira) travel in search of the hidden Varden, a strong rebel faction which Brom had mentioned on their journey. On the way Eragon has many dreams about an elf, all of which feature her suffering great pain. When Eragon is captured and imprisoned in the same prison where the elf is being held captive Murtagh and Saphira stage a daring rescue and Eragon escapes with the elf. During the escape Eragon and Murtagh have a face-off with a Shade, one of the most powerful creatures in the land. The fact that a Shade is walking freely in the land lends Eragon to believe that some monstrous plan is afoot and that Galbatorix has allied himself with the foulest creatures of the land.

The new Dragon Rider faces danger on his way to the Varden from an army of Urgals at their heels but once inside the Varden's fortress, hidden deep within the Beor Mountains, Eragon learns of the pact between the dwarves, the elves and the Varden and how it was that Saphira's egg was magically teleported to the Spine. The group is at last able to rest although an invasion by the army of Urgals is imminent. In the battle that follows, a seemingly endless army of Urgals are poised to take the fortress, before Eragon destroys the Shade, Durza, that he had recently encountered, but at a price: a terrible wound on his back that leaves him disfigured. The Urgals seem to be lifted from a spell, giving the Varden a chance to rout them. As the story ends at the close of the battle, we learn that Eragon will soon be sent under the tutelage of the elves in the sequel where he will meet the man who saved him from the dreadful shade, Oromis.

Characters

Main article: List of characters in the Inheritance Trilogy

Women characters do not feature very prominently in Eragon unless you count Saphira. The only female characters of any substance are Angela the witch, who is modelled after Paolini's sister, Nasuada, the daughter of Ajihad, and Arya, the love interest. Otherwise, Eragon the protagonist is surrounded almost completely by a cast of male characters.

Appearing Characters

By order of appearance (beginning after the prologue):

• Eragon: Main character. Eragon is a smart and resourceful fifteen year old. He is named after the first dragon Rider. Along his quest he becomes an official member of the Varden (rebels), an adopted dwarf, slayer of Durza, and a Dragon Rider.
• Sloan: Butcher of Carvahall who hates Eragon's family. He despises the Spine because his wife died there. He is Katrina's father.
• Katrina: Daughter of Sloan and Roran's beloved.
• Horst: Horst is the father of Baldor and Alberich, and is a father figure to Eragon and Roran when Garrow dies. He is a blacksmith.
• Roran: Eragon's cousin and Garrow's son. His relationship with Eragon borders on brotherhood. He is Katrina's beloved.
• Garrow: Farmer of Carvahall, Eragon's uncle, and Roran's father.
• Merlock: A trader that helps Eragon discover properties of the blueish 'stone'.
• Saphira: Eragon's Dragon and best friend. Saphira granted on Eragon the Gedwey Ignasia—or "shining palm" in the ancient language—the mark that all Riders possess given at first touch between Rider and Dragon. It is the mental link that allows Eragon and Saphira to talk to each other. She is the first dragon to hatch since Galbatorix's rule began.
• Brom: Carvahall's supposedly humble storyteller. He accompanies Eragon on Eragon's journey. He has extensive knowledge about dragons and their riders. Right before he dies of a knife wound from a Ra'zac, he reveals that he was previously a Dragon Rider. He killed Morzan to get the egg containing Saphira.
• Angela: A powerful witch who supports the Varden; she tells Eragon his future; part of her prophecy including that Eragon would have an epic romance with someone of royal blood.
• Jeod: A merchant of Teirm, Jeod is Brom's old friend, and also member of the Varden.
• Solembum: The werecat who lives with Angela; he gives Eragon a prophecy and much advice. He takes the form of a shaggy haired boy with a black dagger when he helps Eragon in Farthen Dur.
• Murtagh: Son of Morzan, who was a Forsworn (betrayer of the Dragon Riders); he becomes good friends with Eragon and travels with him to the Varden's hideout.
• Arya: The guardian elf of Saphira's egg. She is saved by Eragon from the clutches of King Galbatorix and Durza. Eragon has feelings for her. She is also the daughter of the elven Queen.
• Durza: a powerful Shade that ravages the land and controls the Urgal army before being killed by Eragon. He is recognized by the long, thin scratch on his blade.
• Orik: A dwarf and the nephew of Hrothgar; he befriends Eragon after saving his life, and is his guide through Tronjheim and Farthen Dûr.
• The Twins: Twin magicians with strong magical abilities, The Twins are powerful men within the Varden.
• Ajihad: Master swordsman and brilliant tactician, Ajihad is the leader of the Varden and enemy to Galbatorix.
• Hrothgar: King of the Dwarves who befriends Eragon and adopts him into his clan.
• Nasuada: Daughter of Ajihad. She is very loyal to her father Ajihad and helps him whenever she can.

Unseen Characters

• Morzan: The first and the last Forsworn, he is also the father of Murtagh and supposedly Eragon. Galbatorix, with the help of Morzan and the Thirteen Forsworn, conquered the Riders to become king of Alagaësia. Morzan was killed by Brom.

The Ancient Language

• Main article Ancient Language (Inheritance)

The Ancient Language, also referred to as the 'Language of Power', is the Elven language in the book that enables certain people to use magic. Because of the nature of the language, it is impossible to lie, but one can mislead, as the Elves show in abundance. Eragon uses it many times in the books. The Ancient Language is based on Old Norse and Icelandic. But the speech has characteristics of Latin.

Reviews

Reviews of Eragon were mixed, although they were decidedly more positive than those of the book's sequel, Eldest.

Anne McCaffrey is quoted as saying: "Full praise to Eragon, and I want more"^[1].

The New York Times Book Review stated that the novel was, "for all its flaws... an authentic work of great talent."^[2]

VOYA remarked that "overwritten action sequences and occasionally forced dialogue do not detract too much from the interesting and entertaining tale. Now and then losing its direction and sometimes a bit immature in style, Paolini's debut novel will make readers long for the second volume in hopes of finding both Eragon and the writing a bit more polished."

School Library Journal, while noting correctly that the book would garner many fans, added that it "does not approach the depth, uniqueness, or mastery of J. R. R. Tolkien's works, and sometimes the magic solutions are just too convenient for getting out of difficult situations."

Commonsensemedia, a family-friendly review site, was particularly scathing, stating that, "That this is a great achievement for one so young is undeniable, and many children will love it. It certainly ranks right up there with other derivative, overblown fantasies written by adults, such as Terry Brooks's Sword of Shannara series."^[3]

Eragon in other media

Movie

Main article: Eragon (film)

Fox 2000, a division of 20th Century Fox, has purchased the rights to Eragon and is in the process of adapting the book to film. The movie stars John Malkovich, Edward Speleers, Jeremy Irons and Sienna Guillory and has a budget of $125 million. It will be directed by first-time filmmaker Stefen Fangmeier, who previously oversaw the visual effects for Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004). The film is slated for a 15th of December, 2006 release.

X-large trailer (66MB): http://pdl.stream.aol.com/aol/us/moviefone/movies/2006/eragon_022358/eragon_trlr_01_324joidfj3_dl.mov

Video game

Main article: Eragon (video game)

A video game based on the film adaptation is also in development and will be released on the PS2, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, PSP, GBA, and Xbox platforms. The game will be made by Vivendi Games [3] and will be released roughly a month before the film.

References

• ISBN 0-375-82668-8 (hardcover, August 2003)
• ISBN 0-8072-1962-2 (audio cassette, August 2003)
• ISBN 1-4000-9068-7 (compact disc, February 2004)
• ISBN 0-9666213-3-6 February 2003

Notes

See also

• Eldest
• Book 3 (Inheritance trilogy)
• Ancient Language (Inheritance)
• Eragon (film)
• Magic (Inheritance)

External links

Official

• Official website, which includes autobiographical comments from Paolini
• Eragon summary, from Random House
• Eragon movie site

Fansites

• Shur'tugal.com, the largest Inheritance Trilogy website
• Shadeslayer.com Inheritance Trilogy Fan Site
• Jierda Forums A Forum fan site.
• SaphiraForums.com One of the biggest places for onheritance discutions
• http://eragonlive.com The first and only free online Interactive RPG game (non-forum based)
• Eragon Fan Site
• The Spine Eragon Fanlisting and Shrine
• Eragon-Shurtugal Fan Site about Eragon
• Dragon Riders of Alagaesia An Eragon based roleplay site

Other

• Inheritance Trilogy Wiki
• Anti-Shurtugal A collection of critical essays of the Inheritance Series