Power And Control In Sarah J. Maas Throne Of Glass

“There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires”-Nelson Mandela. Power and control, as well as stereotyping are used throughout Throne of Glass, by Sarah J. Maas, to help the characters achieve their goals involving freedom. In this novel Celaena Sardothien, an assassin, is taken by Dorian Havilliard, who is the prince, to compete against other killers and thieves to be the king’s champion and win their freedom. Power and control is used by people such as the king of Adarlan, Dorian, and Cain, another competitor, to achieve what they want. Some individuals, for instance Celaena and Nehemia, utilise the way

The king of Adarlan uses his power over his kingdom to take away the freedom of others. The king uses his authority over the kingdom to host a competition between multiple people with different abilities. When talking to Dorian about his champion, he states, “We are at war with Wendlyn. I have enemies all around. Who better to do my work than someone utterly grateful for being granted not only a second chance, but the wealth and power of my name”(48). Whoever wins the competition, he will use to destroy his enemies from other territories; consequently, he will take control of the region, and the occupants will lose their freedom. In addition, one of Celaena’s competitors, Cain, uses his power and control over the Wyrdmarks and demonic creature to win the competition. He summons the beast with the power over the Wyrdmarks and uses it to kill off the other competitors. After discovering Cain, Celaena thinks, “Fangs that had ripped out and eater Verin and Xavier’s internal organs; fangs that had feasted on their brains. Its vaguely human body sank onto its haunches, and it slid its long front arms across the stone floor. The stones whined under the claws. Cain raised his head and stood slowly as the creature kneeled before him and lowered its dark eyes. Submission”(313). Having such influence over the beast allows Cain to kill of his competition, thus resulting in his triumph. By becoming the king’s Champion, Cain is able to achieve his freedom. Moreover, Dorian Havilliard uses his power as the prince to win Nehemia’s freedom. While Duke Perrington tries to convince the king to hold Nehemia as a hostage to stop the rebellions, Dorian is extremely averse to the idea. When talking to his father, Dorian vocalizes, “If you’re worried about losing soldiers and supplies, then you’ll lose far more if Perrington’s plan ignites a full-on rebellion in