58 pages • 1-hour read
Eldest
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 60-71Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 60 Summary: “The Maw of the Ocean”
The Dragon Wing has been pursued by three of Galbatorix’s ships for the last few days. After a storm damages the ship’s mast, Roran and the villagers no longer have the speed to escape their enemies, so they decide to take the desperate measure of approaching the Boar’s Eye, a giant whirlpool. They plan to get close enough to pass through the maelstrom unharmed while their pursuers are caught in the currents: a highly dangerous maneuver.
Chapter 61 Summary: “Running the Boar’s Eye”
Roran watches as the Dragon Wing reaches the Boar’s Eye. He and the crew spend hours rowing to counteract the pull of the current. The situation appears hopeless, but they are finally able to gain some distance. They eventually escape the whirlpool and watch as the three enemy ships are trapped and crushed by the currents.
Chapter 62 Summary: “To Aberon”
Eragon and Orik fly on Saphira’s back, undergoing a journey of a few days in order to reach Surda. After crossing the desert, they finally arrive at the capital of Surda, where they are greeted by Orrin’s seneschal. He informs them that Nasuada and Orrin have left with their armies to meet Galbatorix’s forces. He directs Eragon and his companions to the site of the upcoming battle, which will take place in the Burning Plains: inhospitable lands that are covered in noxious clouds of mist.
Chapter 63 Summary: “The Burning Plains”
Eragon and Saphira meet Nasuada and Arya at the Varden camp, away from the bulk of Galbatorix’s huge army. They exchange news, and Eragon also meets Elva for the first time since the moment he ineptly “blessed” her. He apologizes for unwittingly cursing her with his errant blessing and promises to cure her after the battle. Later, Eragon suggests that he be the one to take command of the Du Vrangr Gata (the magic wielders who support the Varden) and coordinate magical defenses with them. As he leaves Nasuada’s tent, Eragon also apologizes to Arya. He then finds the witch Angela, who is preparing potions, and tells her that Orrin has brought many of his own supplies. Angela then goes to find Orrin while Eragon sets out to find the camp spellcasters.
Chapter 64 Summary: “The Clouds of War”
Eragon finally finds Trianna and the Du Vrangr Gata magicians. Trianna grows defensive when Eragon tells her that he will assume command of the group. However, Eragon assuages her fears, and together the two begin planning their magic defenses. Now that he has been taught by the Elves, Eragon realizes that most of the spellcasters’ magic is limited and incomplete.
Chapter 65 Summary: “Nar Garzhvog”
Eragon is summoned by Nasuada, who has just learned that a group of Urgals is approaching. Despite Eragon’s objections, she agrees to receive one of their emissaries, Nar Garzhvog. He explains that the Urgals have only been fighting for Galbatorix because the king has tricked and manipulated them. He now offers his people’s services to Nasuada in order to get revenge on their common enemy. Nasuada reluctantly agrees to make a deal with the Urgals, who are regarded by most as brutal monsters. Later, a messenger from Galbatorix’s camp announces that because the Varden have refused to surrender, war has officially begun.
Chapter 66 Summary: “Witch’s Brew”
That night, Eragon and the Varden wait anxiously for the battle to begin. Orik offers his and the Dwarves’ services as Eragon and Saphira’s protectors. Nasuada also urges Eragon to accept Nar Garzhvog’s offer of Urgal guards to watch over him. Eragon is reluctant at first, but he relents after he searches Nar Garzhvog’s mind and realizes that the Urgals are now true allies. In the middle of the night, Eragon and Orik also intercept Angela as she is sneaking out of the camp to make secret preparations before the battle. As dawn approaches and they begin hearing cries from the enemy camp, Angela tells them that she has poisoned Galbatorix’s soldiers.
Chapter 67 Summary: “The Storm Breaks”
The battle begins at dawn. Led by Nasuada, the Varden meet Galbatorix’s army while Eragon deflects the enemy’s magical attacks. After a while, he joins the fray and kills many of the soldiers, but the fighting seems endless. Finally, reinforcements arrive as King Hrothgar and the Dwarves’ army storm the battlefield. Messengers also report a ship approaching nearby, and Eragon and Saphira go to investigate the threat.
Chapter 68 Summary: “Convergence”
After finally reaching Surda, Roran convinces the villagers to come to the Varden’s aid and lead the Dragon Wing to the Burning Plains. When Eragon and Saphira fly towards the ship, Roran is shocked to see them, and he is unsure whether to be happy or angry. Eragon tells Roran to stay away from the battle, but Roran and the men of Carvahall join the fight.
Chapter 69 Summary: “Eldest”
The battle rages on. Hours later, a red dragon allied with Galbatorix unexpectedly appears and kills King Hrothgar. Eragon and Saphira quickly engage the unknown dragon and his Rider in combat until they are forced to land on a nearby plateau. As Eragon fights with the Rider, he suddenly recognizes a particular move and realizes that the Rider is Murtagh.
Chapter 70 Summary: “Inheritance”
Murtagh tells Eragon that he was betrayed by the Twins, who conspired with the Urgals to kill Ajihad and kidnap Murtagh. He was then kept prisoner by Galbatorix until one of the king’s last dragon eggs hatched. The king then magically bound Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn, to his service. Eragon is shocked and pleads with his friend but is unable to convince Murtagh to turn against Galbatorix. Murtagh also reveals that he and Eragon are brothers; they share the same mother, Selena, and the same father, Morzan (the Rider who betrayed his friends to Galbatorix years ago). Shaken by these revelations, Eragon fails to defeat Murtagh. However, Murtagh shows mercy to him and Saphira and leaves. Meanwhile, Roran kills the Twins on the battlefield.
Chapter 71 Summary: “Reunion”
Eragon and Saphira return to Nasuada’s tent as the Varden prevail and the fighting subsides. He reunites with Roran and brings his cousin to the tent as well. There, Eragon tells Nasuada, Arya, and Roran about Murtagh’s revelations. They agree to keep these facts secret, given that such knowledge would sow discord and turmoil among the Varden. Eragon then reunites with the villagers of Carvahall, and he and Roran finally have a conversation alone. They recount their adventures, then make amends to one another and decide to join forces in order to rescue Katrina and defeat Galbatorix.
Chapters 60-71 Analysis
As the novel’s action intensifies in advance of the climactic scenes, Paolini uses distinctively cinematic language to relate the events of Roran’s incidental adventures, focusing intensely upon the visual elements of his bout with the treacherous whirlpool. With Galbatorix’s ships in hot pursuit, the descriptions of the scene from Roran’s passive point of view forces him to watch his own ship’s progress as if he is an audience member watching a show. As the narrative states, “Roran watched with horrified fascination the play that unfolded around him. The essential plot element, the crux upon which the outcome depended, was time. […] [W]as the Dragon Wing […] fast enough to traverse the Eye?” (566). By framing Roran as a passive spectator and utilizing a breathlessly worded rhetorical question, the narrative conveys an immediate sense of Roran’s powerlessness and dread.
However, Paolini engages in deeper, philosophical explorations when Nasuada negotiates an uneasy alliance with the Urgals, for in order to fully accept this development, Eragon must more fully embrace The Importance of Empathy. Although he is initially prejudiced against the Urgals due to his past experiences, he eventually learns to reconsider his assumptions and appreciate the full nuances of their current motivations to join forces with him and his allies. His subsequent conversation with Saphira illustrates the narrative’s message about empathy, for when Saphira observes, “It takes courage to admit you were wrong,” Eragon immediately replies, “Only if you are afraid of looking foolish, and I would have looked far more foolish if I persisted with an erroneous belief” (620). His candid admission reflects his considerable inner growth, for rather than succumbing to his own biases, he gains a new level of perspective and accepts the presence of a controversial but highly advantageous ally. Additionally, the Varden’s new alliance with the Urgals symbolizes their commitment to achieving unity and peace: a goal that contrasts sharply with Galbatorix’s ongoing efforts to divide and conquer the world for his own individual benefit.
In the lead-up to the final climactic battle, Paolini once again employs cinematic descriptions as all of the protagonists converge on a single location and join forces in an action-packed, multi-faceted battle. Thus, the perspectives of Eragon, Roran, and Nasuada merge into a single, third-person point of view as Eragon reunites with his cousin and the Varden leader, and the final chapters of the novel are told from his perspective alone, reinforcing his status as the primary protagonist in the series as a whole. However, as he and his allies interact, the battle demonstrates the full extent of their growth and development. For example, Eragon’s sharpened physical abilities and fighting skills combine with Saphira’s flying prowess as the two achieve new feats on the battlefield. Likewise, Nasuada, who initially faced challenges to her authority due to her youth and perceived inexperience, now cements her position as a leader and a warrior. Finally, Roran, who has become a hero among the villagers of Carvahall, demonstrates his newfound strength by killing the Twins, thereby single-handedly overcoming two notable antagonists and establishing his own status as a major player in the series.
However, although these moments of action are significant, the true crux of the climax lies in Eragon’s confrontation with Murtagh, which resolves several major plot points and reveals a deeply problematic twist that foreshadows additional conflicts to come in the next installment of the series. Most importantly, this moment also explains the symbolism of Eragon’s earlier enigmatic vision, for as he recognizes the mysterious figure from his vision as Murtagh, he realizes that “[p]ast and future had converged” and that his “doom would be decided” (646). In this way, the wording of the passage frames this meeting as a manifestation of a divinely ordered, ineluctable fate. Finally, the revelations about Eragon and Murtagh’s common parentage introduce new emotional stakes for Eragon, raising fundamental questions about identity and legacy that hint at his future character development. This issue is further emphasized when Murtagh points out the symbolic parallels between his journey and Eragon’s, declaring, “You and I, we are the same, Eragon. Mirror images of one another” (652). This duality introduces new thematic elements for the subsequent novels, especially when Eragon rejects his bond with Murtagh in favor of his relationship with Roran. As Eragon and Roran later set out to rescue Katrina, this new goal can only be resolved in the events featured in Brisingr, the third novel in Paolini’s Inheritance Cycle.
Unlock all 58 pages of this Study Guide
Get in-depth, chapter-by-chapter summaries and analysis from our literary experts.
- Grasp challenging concepts with clear, comprehensive explanations
- Revisit key plot points and ideas without rereading the book
- Share impressive insights in classes and book clubs