Elantris

Raoden is one of the three protagonists and point-of-view characters in the novel. He has been the crown prince of the country of Arelon for 10 years, ever since his father, Iadon, seized power in the confusion and unrest that followed the collapse of Elantris known as the Reod. Before that, Iadon was a merchant. Radon’s mother died more than 10 years ago. He respected and misses her, and Sarene reminds him of his mother in some ways. Raoden has less respect for his father and opposes the king’s policies. Instead, Raoden has grown up guided and aided by Duke Roial, who, like Raoden, is a man of principle and kindness.

Raoden is described by his friends as brilliant, gentle, and optimistic. He is a moral person who wants the best for those around him and believes the same ethics should apply to all. When he was a child, he attempted to free his seon, Ien, because he was afraid that Ien was being forced to serve him. Instead of fighting when he first enters Elantris, Raoden seeks an alliance with Galloden, preferring friendship over survival of the fittest rivalry or using his rank as prince to take command. Raoden appreciates equality and community, which he builds in the New Elantris that he builds inside the broken city. However, he is also a natural leader and comfortable with taking charge when others turn to him for help. Raoden has personal courage, which he demonstrates when confronting rival gang leaders inside Elantris and in his attempts to withstand his own pain. “The worse things got,” he decides when he first enters the city, “the more determined he was to face it without complaint” (167).

Because his ideas spur its rebirth, Raoden feels personally responsible for the citizens of Elantris. He feels sorrow when Saolin and Roial are killed, and when Dilaf captures and wounds him during the final confrontation, Raoden at first collapses into a mindless state of pain, feeling that he failed those who depended on him. His determination and cleverness help him finally piece together the secret of the Aons, and his relentless effort to learn AonDor helps him defend Sarene from the warrior monks. As king, Raoden is interested in setting up a system of government that is just and that allows personal freedoms and prosperity. He finds romantic fulfillment as well as a partnership in his marriage to Sarene, whom he comes to love during the course of the novel.

Sarene is a second protagonist and point-of-view character in Elantris. She is a princess of Teod, a country that lies to the north of Arelon. She is blonde and very tall, which makes her feel awkward around more delicate women. She is clever, determined, and quick-witted, but she can also be headstrong and stubborn. Her outspokenness and air of authority—which can sometimes veer into arrogance—have made her less than desirable as a marriage partner in her home country, and to avoid embarrassment she has spent years traveling to other countries, learning their languages and customs. Sarene enjoys politics and plotting, as demonstrated by the various tactics she uses against Iadon and to win over the conspirators who are working to improve his government. She is curious, but tends to be suspicious of other peoples’ motives, and it takes her a while to trust.

Sarene likes to win, as demonstrated in her fencing matches with Eondel and Raoden. She also likes to learn: When allowed access to the library in Elantris, she chooses a volume on the political history of Fjorden to understand its threat to the two countries she now considers home. Sarene can only respect those she feels are her equal in intellect or skill, which is why she values Hrathen and Raoden, but she feels superior to the sheltered ladies of Arelon, who concern themselves with dress, appearance, and suitors.

Despite her accomplishments, Sarene feels lonely. When she sees other couples demonstrate affection, like Lukel and his wife, she feels the stirrings of envy. She suggested the betrothal with Raoden for practical and political purposes, because Arelon and Teod would benefit from an alliance as the empire of Fjorden gained in power. But when she exchanged letters with Raoden and communicated via seon after their engagement, she felt enough of a connection to hope that affection might grow between them. This longing shows a more tender side that Sarene doesn’t share with many people.

Though she naturally assumes authority, Sarene is not selfish or self-aggrandizing. She believes in the Korathi teachings of love, tolerance, and acceptance. She is loyal to family and enjoys getting to know her uncle and his family after she arrives in Kae. While she loves her parents, she is also troubled by the fact that her father was a younger son who usurped the throne from the real heir, his elder brother Kiin. Sarene is a moral person who believes in justice, which makes her a good match for Raoden and a promising queen of Arelon.

Hrathen is the third protagonist and point-of-view character in the novel. He has achieved the status of gyorn, or high priest. In the rigidly hierarchical Derethi religion, that means he reports directly to, and takes his orders from, Emperor Wyrn, the representative of Jaddeth. Hrathen is tall, dark-haired, and in excellent physical condition, partly because he wears his heavy battle armor every day. The armor is bloodred, the mark of a Derethi priest, and thus makes Hrathen stand out.

Hrathen is “a calculating man. He was organized, careful, and attentive to detail” (159). He is drawn to the religion of Shu-Dereth because of its orderly principles. His worldview is “one of control and predictability, his religion a logical exercise” (280). Since he “had been given a logical intellect,” Hrathen feels, he “would never be content with simple-minded devotion” (381). He scorns people who do not think for themselves, which explains why he wants to convert Arelon by reason rather than force. Hrathen admires other strong-minded people, as Sarene battles him for control of Arelon, he values the rivalry.

Hrathen’s crisis of faith is a key part of his character arc in the novel. He arrives in Kae fresh from an effort to convert the republic of Duladel to Shu-Dereth—an effort that resulted in a bloody revolution and slaughter. While he wishes to see his religion triumph and Wyrn’s plans succeed, Hrathen wants to convert Arelon by logical means, through compromise and bargains, not arms. As a boy, Hrathen was sent to the monastery of Dakhor, training to a monk via terrifying torturous ordeals. His forearms bear the misshapen bones that the monks of Dakhor grow during their training. When Hrathen realized he was not meant to be a bloodless assassin, he elected to attend a different monastery where he was trained to fight and also taught to respect the order and logic of Shu-Dereth.

Hrathen reveres principle and authority, but lacks the cruelty and hatred that mark Dilaf. In the end, he protects Sarene not only because he has come to care for her, but also because in thinking about his faith, he has realized that spiritual truth does not rest on cruelty, oppression, or degradation. Hrathen’s sacrifice shows an essential nobility of character that connects him to Raoden.

Dilaf at first appears to be a young priest of the Derethi chapel in Kae. He claims he was born in Arelon and converted to Shu-Dereth. In reality, Dilaf is 70 years old, and is the gradget, or leader, of Dakhor, the monastery where Hrathen was tortured as a youth. Dilaf keeps his real designs from Hrathen.

Dilaf exhibits a fierce hatred of Elantris and the people within it. His ungoverned passions are described as “a boiling pot of water poured on Hrathen’s ice” (280). While Hrathen gives logical, planned sermons, Dilaf takes the podium and preaches with emotion that rouses the crowd to fear, anger, and righteousness. Roial observes of Dilaf, “I’ve noticed that those who turn away from a faith are often more hateful toward it than any outsider could be” (364).

When instructed by Wyrn, Dilaf reveals the monks he has brought into the city, eager to slaughter followers of other religions to ensure the triumph of Shu-Dereth. Dilaf’s hatred of Elantris, and possibly his conversion to Shu-Dereth, stem from his grief over losing his wife, whom a resident of Elantris failed to properly heal when Dilaf came to them for help. Instead, his wife was afflicted with pain and torment, and he had to end her life. This loss has filled Dilaf with hatred and made him lose his sense of right or sanity. In this he parallels Shaor’s men in Elantris, who have been reduced to bestial fighting due to their constant bodily suffering.