What Aes Sedai did right

[Kaznen]

This is in response to Luckers thread about AS screw ups though the history of Randland. and he got those points spot on, and I have posted several times backing up his claim. However, they did manage to do a few things correctly, even if they didn't take the momentum as far as they could have.

 

1. Establishing the White Tower-

I have always thought this was a good thing. While the WT had its sinister moments that seem to only serve them it did established a centralized authority for all AS to follow. During the breaking my theory was as the real AS in the men hunter ajahs died for whatever reason the AS conscripted girls they found with the spark or who could learn for the soul purpose of being batteries for the ajah's circles.

 

With the destruction of Paaren Dissen, and the main branch of the Hall of Servants, and the collapse of the AoL communications infra structure the ajahs were cut off. So these women couldn't get formal training aside from the AS in their ajah showing them how to embrace the source and link, the rest was what they could figure out on their own. When the last true AS in a ajah died the batteries would say, "Well, I guess we're AS now" and continue hunting mad AS men. This would have gone on for several "generations" throughout the breaking. (The AS ajah with the Aiel were not part of this BTW) and it ending up with these ajahs acting more or less independently, and if two ajahs cam in contact they may have ending up fighting each other for food and water.

 

Then the breaking ends, and Randland has these groups of AS doing what they please without the constant danger of being killed by the breaking and no insane men to hunt. In tSR one of the lives Rand see has an ancient Cairahen talking about the AS advisor his father has and how a group of AS are about to build a city.

 

The BWB talked about when the AS first gathered to talk about building the WT many representatives of the ajahs present left in protest. But a core did stay and found their new order. They then did a proganda campaign hunting down and women "who claimed to be Aes Sedai" making them the only source of AS in Randland. All AS had to be able to explain their action to the Hall.

 

We can look to the AS in Seanchan before Hawkwings armies arrived to see what the alternative would have been. They had AS independent of any authority fighting and scheming against each other for power using the general populace as pawns. Read the The Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum to get a glimpse of what Seanchan life was like. (On Amazon it is a free Kindle download)

 

2. Ajah eyes and ears-

Even though their was a central authority a AS in Safer could think TV was a long way away so they would have no way of knowing what she did. Enter the Ajah Eyes and Ears(spy networks).

 

The first one was developed by the Yellow Ajah so they could be forewarned of disease outbreaks so they could be contained and cured ASAP (of course, as Luckers pointed out, they would have been more successful in they didn't wait in the tower for these to happen) and other Ajahs followed suit and they became more then a way to monitor what their ajah's general purpose was. This way they new what happened to other realms days after they did happen, and they had the truth of the matter instead of vague distorted rumors that the common folk get.

 

This way the AS in Safer acted all wicked and in a matter the Hall wouldn't approve of could be found out and actions taken.

 

They also served as a way for one of the few AS who went out into the world on her own could communicate with the her friends in the Tower and receive word from the Tower also.

 

Soon merchants and monarchs followed suit and gain an information network that was otherwise impossible with the conditions of travel in early Randland.

 

3. The Tower Library-

 

They did collect the largest amount of writing from the AoL and 3rd age history. Of course they are tight with their library and while they did preserve the information they didn't copy what they had and redistribute it to the rest of the world, but a scholar could some study at their library.

 

4. The Red Ajah-

 

Before Rand cleansed the source men with the spark and False Dragons were a major threat to the world. The Ajah we all love to hate was the most necessary for preventing a second breaking.

 

5. They made sure the world "remembered"-

 

Mo told Rand the WT made sure people remembered the Dragon would be Reborn and their would be a Last Battle. I don't think it was coincidence they decided to build their city on the island created by LTT when he made Dragonmount. They made sure the world remembered the AoL and the Breaking. And the savior who would come again. The world at the time wanted to forget, and would have (again the Seanchan example) if not for the WT.

 

 

So, while the AS did many things wrong they could have done a lot worse. This doesn't excuse them from what they didn't do, in fact they did lay some good ground work for more. They just didn't want to follow through because they would have lost prestige if they were more accessible to the general public. They could have truly been Servants of All but they wanted to think in the grander world in general then individual cases. The problem was without the AoL knowledge in more then just the OP they couldn't much for the world at large. I personally think the Aiel Wise Ones act more like AoL AS then the women in the WT.

[Darth Krewl]

Well, this is coming from an ardent detractor of the Aes Sedai, though not gratuitously but based on what I've read in the books, since I obviously had no opinion on the Aes Sedai before that. So, bear with me for just a sec...

 

I understand that the Aes Sedai have done a great many things for the Randland at large. Not the least of which, IMO, has been their mere presence helping to keep the Shadow at bay.

 

That being said, however, history seems show us that all institutions become obsolete (and even twisted or corrupted) with time, becoming a far cry from what their original founders may have intended for them to be. IMO, this is what I see in the White Tower. I believe that they have lost vision of its founders original intentions. So, I'll address all of your points from this mindset.

 

1. Establishing the White Tower

 

Agreed. The Aes Sedai needed to reunite and pick up the pieces left behind by the collapse of the Hall. Just one thing, IIRC from the White Book, there were no Ajahs in the Hall of the Servants. This is one of the main differences between the Hall and the Tower.

 

Also, IMO, it's not the ideals of the original founders of the Tower that I've questioned. But rather how the Aes Sedai of recent times (which I understand as what Luckers was exposing) seem to have strayed away from the original precepts of their Order, as stated above.

 

2. Ajah eyes and ears-

 

I believe the E & E network is a sound idea on theory. In practice? Not so sure. Again, aside from being able to monitor the activities of on-field AS, I believe that this aspect of the Aes Sedai of recent times has been used only for the sole purpose of looking after the best interests of the Tower, to keep an eye out for their enemies and not for looking after the interests of the common folk, as the term "servants of all" would lead us to believe that they should.

 

3. The Tower Library-

 

This one, I strongly agree with. It was necessary to establish a way to archive and preserve all information that could be rescued from the AoL. My question would be, how is the Tower using said information? Are they doing it properly? Is it right for them to keep everything to themselves or, should they disclose some of that information with the general population? Knowledge is power, as they say and also, knowledge belongs to all of humankind. So, again, are the Aes Sedai using this power properly? Or, are they just using it to suit their needs?

 

4. The Red Ajah-

 

I don't question the need for getting mad channelers under control. But I do question the methods employed by the Red Ajah, not to mention the biased and prejudiced opinion of men in general that most of their members have displayed in the books. IMO, this could've been handled in a much more impersonal, unbiased manner.

 

5. They made sure the world "remembered"-

 

Great point. Again, all I would question is the manner in which they did it. I may be wrong, but I don't remember any mention in the prophecies of the Dragon about the direct involvement of the White Tower in the Last Battle as the leaders of the Light during the conflict. And it would seem clear to me that the Aes Sedai have taken that stance in rather authoritative and imposing fashion. So, again, it wouldn't be the ends that I question here, but the means.

 

EDIT: to correct format mistakes and...not all of the changes worked lol

[Kaznen]

I'm not saying they didn't go far afield (because they did) I'm saying they started out strong but didn't take what they had as far as they needed to go.

 

And about the Ajah/ajahs:

 

In the AoL (This is in the BWB) an ajah (lower case "a") was a temporary group of AS. A research group was an ajah, the groups that controlled weather were ajahs, the Hundred Companions was an ajah, and the circles of 13 sent out to hunt down and neutralize the AS men were ajahs.

 

After the breaking before the founding of the WT non solo AS grouped themselves into ajahs. In the BWB commentators from the perios of founding said the gathering was a vast sea of ajah. Then one AS was raised above the rest and had seven advisors. Those eight women were representatives of their respected ajahs, so the seven advisors' ajahs became dominant so that is were Ajah (upper case "a") came from. The BA hunters or the Sitters in the Hall would be an example of the AoL definition of ajah.

[randsc]

"Eyes and Ears" would have been a good idea for the Aes Sedai as a whole to develop. Each Ajah having its own is incredibly duplicative and wasteful. And Ajahs refusing to share the intelligence gathered with each other, or even with the Amyrlin/Hall, is downright stupid.

 

Some ajahs heard about the invasion of the Borderlands, and didn't tell Egwene!

 

All of that white stone that built the Tower should have gone into something more useful. Like paving cattle paths, or filling swamps.

[Darth Krewl]

I'm not saying they didn't go far afield (because they did) I'm saying they started out strong but didn't take what they had as far as they needed to go.

 

Well, I agree that they started out strong, but where we seem to disagree is that, instead of taking things as far as they should, they strayed away from their path, hence, losing sight of the original vision and deteriorating the principles and creed of their order in the process.

 

I have a strong feeling that Jordan meant for them to be so faulty, for lack of a better word, to help illustrate the waning days of the White Tower, which is what I feel we've been witnessing in the books, for this very reason, precisely. Similar to what Lucas showed with the Jedi in Star Wars, because their Order had grown arrogant, complacent and overconfident.

 

And about the Ajah/ajahs:

 

In the AoL (This is in the BWB) an ajah (lower case "a") was a temporary group of AS. A research group was an ajah, the groups that controlled weather were ajahs, the Hundred Companions was an ajah, and the circles of 13 sent out to hunt down and neutralize the AS men were ajahs.

 

After the breaking before the founding of the WT non solo AS grouped themselves into ajahs. In the BWB commentators from the perios of founding said the gathering was a vast sea of ajah. Then one AS was raised above the rest and had seven advisors. Those eight women were representatives of their respected ajahs, so the seven advisors' ajahs became dominant so that is were Ajah (upper case "a") came from. The BA hunters or the Sitters in the Hall would be an example of the AoL definition of ajah.

 

Yeah, now I remember. I read the BWB once about 2 yrs. ago, but I don't own it, so that's why I said that I couldn't recall. But yeah, the difference was that the Ajahs were not permanent subdivisions within the Hall (as they are within the Tower), but temporary groups. Thanks for the quote.

[Kaznen]

I'm not saying the AS didn't drop the ball on a lot of things. But at their basic core they did do some good.