Kings of the Wyld

The definition of monstrosity is much debated in the novel, most intensely through Clay’s inner debate about what rules his own nature. Arguing with Clay shortly before their wedding, Ginny asks him, “Which are you, the monster or the man?” (154). This question frames monstrosity and manhood as mutually exclusive opposites. The same opposition is played out in the conflict that structures the plot. The people within the besieged Castia see themselves as innocents who deserve to be rescued, while they view the Horde besieging them as wholly monstrous. In actuality, many events and characters in the novel question the ease of these distinctions and the assumptions on which they are predicated, suggesting that the differences are not always clear.

One depiction that troubles the distinction are the men who exhibit monstrous qualities. Ganelon is fully human, but he is a merciless warrior, and Clay admits that he finds, or used to find, something about the man’s abilities faintly monstrous. Though he knew the Sultana was going to punish his friend for killing a Narmeeri prince, and even though he could admit Ganelon had provocation, Clay was troubled enough by the slaughter that he stepped back and let his friend be taken, thinking it a kind of justice. Once Ganelon is released, Clay is more accepting of his bandmate’s fearsome strength and ability. Clay has by this time confronted his own brutal tendencies, which were enough to make Ginny reconsider whether she wanted to marry him.

When Clay’s urge toward violence resurfaces, as when he throws Kallorek off of the skyship, he fears that his own brutal nature will overtake him again. What he comes to understand through the novel, especially through Larkspur’s example, is that he isn’t alone in feeling rage. He better understands that what triggers him is cruelty, or the threat of cruelty, toward the innocent—the legacy of witnessing his father’s murder of his mother. With this understanding, he no longer fears some monster inside him that might take over at any time. Instead, he comes to terms with the trauma of his past and makes conscious choices about where to use his strength to protect and defend.

Larkspur and Lastleaf both provide examples of past trauma instilling a tendency to resort to violence. Larkspur’s multiple identities provide a metaphor for this. Sabbatha, with her curiosity and friendliness, seems to have healed or at least moved on from the traumas of her childhood, while Larkspur has turned into a creature of vengeance, lacking remorse—or so it would seem. Her appearance at the Battle of Castia, battling on the side to free the human inhabitants, suggests she has decided to align herself with the humans rather than the monsters. Like Ganelon, she is an accomplished killer, but she employs reason about who her targets are, suggesting that monstrosity and humanity are choices, not innate categories.

Lastleaf has likewise experienced the traumas of losing his mother—multiple times—and being at war with his father. When he rages about what the “innocent people of Casta” (183) have done to those they deem monstrous—including imprisoning Lastleaf himself—Lastleaf suggests that “monster” is a matter of interpretation. Vespian certainly became monstrous in his behavior, slaying druin after druin in an attempt to resurrect his wife. Lastleaf’s ambitions to blot out humankind are, to the humans, monstrous, even though he sees his efforts as vengeance, not valor. But while the Infernal with its fearsome weapons and unstoppable aggression seems truly monstrous, if not demonic, a creature like minotaur that attacks Clay out of instinct alone introduces the question of motive as a defining aspect of monstrosity.

Other characters interrogate these distinctions even further. The Ferals are seen by many as monstrous because they are cannibals, echoing a taboo used by colonial powers in the real world to dehumanize colonized peoples, whether or not they actually practiced cannibalism. Taino, a troll, is a healer, but Ganelon misinterprets him as a threat and attacks him. The ettin is the clearest proof that the label “monstrous” can too often be substituted for merely “different.” While having two heads is well out of the norm for the humans, Gregor’s kindness and Dane’s cheerful innocence make the ettin one of the most benign  characters in the book. Likewise, Kit the revenant, though described as repellent in appearance, is the most civilized, courtly, educated, and well-traveled personality among them. The definition of monstrosity, the novel suggests, has its basis in aggression and cruelty, and the ultimate difference between what is human and what is not might simply be a matter of perspective.