Progress Update

Part 1: Interesting. Part 2: A little slow. Part 3 (just started): Okay... this isn't so bad after all.

That said, there was one moment in Chapter 29 that completely hooked me.

One of the things I love about Brandon Sanderson is how effortlessly he weaves political, religious, and social commentary into his stories. He presents these conversations so naturally that you don't realize how profound they are until you stop and think, Wow.

This exchange between Jasnah and King Taravangian was one of those moments:

"Atheism is not a disease, Your Majesty," Jasnah said dryly. "It's not as if I've caught a foot rash."

"Of course not, of course not. But... isn't it difficult, having nothing in which to believe?"

"I wouldn't say that I have nothing to believe in, Your Majesty. Actually, I have much to believe in. My brother and my uncle, my own abilities. The things I was taught by my parents."

"But... what is right and wrong? You've discarded that."

"Just because I do not accept the teachings of the devotaries does not mean I've discarded a belief in right and wrong."

"But the Almighty determines what is right!"

"Must someone—some unseen thing—declare what is right for it to be right? I believe that my own morality, which answers only to my heart, is more sure and true than the morality of those who do right only because they fear retribution."

"If there is no punishment, there can be only chaos."

"If there were no law, some men would do as they wish, yes. But isn't it remarkable that, given the chance for personal gain at the cost of others, so many people choose what is right?"

"Because they fear the Almighty."

"No. I think something innate in us understands that seeking the good of society is usually best for the individual as well. Humankind is noble, when we give it the chance to be. That nobility is something that exists independent of any god's decree."

"If you add one and one, that makes two, does it not?"

"Well, yes."

"No god needs declare it so for it to be true. So could we not say that mathematics exists outside the Almighty, independent of him?"

"Perhaps."

"Well, I simply claim that morality and human will are independent of him too."

"If you say that, then you've removed all purpose for the Almighty's existence!"

"Indeed."

I absolutely loved this discussion. Whether you agree with Jasnah or not, it's one of those conversations that makes you stop reading for a minute just to think about what was said. Moments like this are exactly why I enjoy Sanderson's writing so much.

"Hannah, you really need to think of Bailey here." "That's all I'm thinking of, Jake." "Not yet, it's not. Otherwise, you wouldn't be trying to find the one person who, in my opinion, is the last person you should have around her."

Jake is being brutally honest here, and I absolutely love him for it. Hannah still isn't ready to face reality, and it's so frustrating watching her refuse to see what's right in front of her. At this point, I just want to reach into the book and shake some sense into her.