The Questions I Still Have About Conspiracy of Kings
I want so much to proliferate appreciation and love for Sounis Sophos and the Conspiracy of Kings right now. I feel like a lot of the reason this book doesn't get talked about as much as the others in the series is it's so complex... I have read it multiple times carefully and I think I'm reasonably intelligent... And honestly I'm still not sure if i really get everything that happened. And I have a lot of questions about the implications of a lot of events that unfolded in it.
Like I'm still not sure exactly the extent of Helen's anger at Sophos in the end even though he apologizes very directly for believing that he has agency over whether he "allows" her to cede her country on whatever grounds she wants/needs to.
I'm still not sure what is meant when Sounis asks Attolis, "Were you behind the negotiations on Lerna and Hannipus?"
I'm still not clear on how deeply the theme of "Asking Your OWN questions!" goes. (His mother says it. Helen says it... I know it concerns Sophos cultivating his own relationships with the gods as opposed to relying on the others' experiences and interpretations with them.
I know it relates to the coming of age theme where Sophos learns to stand independently on his own two feet as a sovereign while simultaneously being forced into submission for the greater good by people who are otherwise his friends. (ironic contrast there)
What exactly does Helen withhold from him at the very end? How she knows the tremendous sacrifices that Attolis made for him while making him believe that he only made moderate sacrifices? It's like Attolis and Attolia were intentionally keeping Sounis from knowing how much they loved him and how much they would do for him...
They wanted to make him believe he needed them? Make him believe he wanted more from them than they were willing to give? It turns out that Attolis sent the troops he needed to win in the end... But what of the whole paragraph about how he could have won against his barons without resorting to violence? MWT straight TELLS US that he COULD HAVE. like she was speaking for the Gods and that flies in the opposite direction of how it usually is...
I have more questions than answers in the end. I feel like I can ask a question in both directions and they are both valid questions because I feel like every event somehow goes both ways in the book.
Like I'm still not sure exactly the extent of Helen's anger at Sophos in the end even though he apologizes very directly for believing that he has agency over whether he "allows" her to cede her country on whatever grounds she wants/needs to.
I'm still not sure what is meant when Sounis asks Attolis, "Were you behind the negotiations on Lerna and Hannipus?"
I'm still not clear on how deeply the theme of "Asking Your OWN questions!" goes. (His mother says it. Helen says it... I know it concerns Sophos cultivating his own relationships with the gods as opposed to relying on the others' experiences and interpretations with them.
I know it relates to the coming of age theme where Sophos learns to stand independently on his own two feet as a sovereign while simultaneously being forced into submission for the greater good by people who are otherwise his friends. (ironic contrast there)
What exactly does Helen withhold from him at the very end? How she knows the tremendous sacrifices that Attolis made for him while making him believe that he only made moderate sacrifices? It's like Attolis and Attolia were intentionally keeping Sounis from knowing how much they loved him and how much they would do for him...
They wanted to make him believe he needed them? Make him believe he wanted more from them than they were willing to give? It turns out that Attolis sent the troops he needed to win in the end... But what of the whole paragraph about how he could have won against his barons without resorting to violence? MWT straight TELLS US that he COULD HAVE. like she was speaking for the Gods and that flies in the opposite direction of how it usually is...
I have more questions than answers in the end. I feel like I can ask a question in both directions and they are both valid questions because I feel like every event somehow goes both ways in the book.