The how and what for of the individual powers of Rand, Perrin,Mat

[Hyronimus]

Why do the three main characters have the powers they do, aside from being Ta’veren?

 

Starting my re-read through (and going slowly) I enjoy reading how the three Ta’veren are experiencing the beginnings of their individual powers.

 

From the time the group is split up crossing the river, we see Rand and his post-early-channelling highs and sickness. Perrin’s fortuities meeting with the wolves (as well as other major foreshadowings), and Mat under the thrall of the SL dagger.

 

I am struck by how these powers are reflected in their dreams. All three shared the same dreams of Ba’alzamon trying to determine which of the three is The Dragon, and once Morainne’s protection is lost, all three have growing powers to protect themselves. As a channeller, it seems Rand has the greatest control, able to effect the dream world and maintaining a greater sense of awareness;

 

“Suddenly Rand knew a way to escape.....” (interesting the foreshadowing of misty memories)

“A dream!” Rand shouted. “This is a dream!” Ba’alzamon’s eyes began to widen, in surprise or anger or both then the air shimmered, and his features blurred and faded.” (p 351)

 

For Perrin he is only aware that there are wolves in his dreams, and in a confrontation (p409) it is the wolves that Ba’alzamon focuses on defeating (interesting that he says he has faced ‘this’ before)

 

Then there is Mat. Looking back, it seems clever writing that we never know the POV that Mat himself forgets (the whole trip is one of the holes in his memory or blurred) but I remember being a bit annoyed and Mat coming across as a fairly minor character. However we know he too had the dreams, and it seems had protection in the form of the powers from SL with the taint from the dagger.

I believe if we had his POV it would be a lot like another person under the influence of Mordeth, Fain. It has been noted (here and in the book) that Fain is lucky. I’ve read here that RJ is quoted as saying he ‘side stepped the pattern’.

 

All three powers reveal some deeper connection to the pattern (again I say aside from being Ta’veren). Rand welds some of the power that fuels the threads of the pattern, Perrin walks where the timeless eternity of the pattern can be felt and Mat as of ToM seems to have the ability to ride the pattern as best it suits him. The pattern, seen as a great self correcting machine, allows for deviations about the main threads. For example, when gambling the opportunity for chance is high because the pattern can allow for any of the players to win. But Mat always wins. His power takes advantage of this loop hole in fate. It sounds a bit like side stepping to me.

 

it's possible that Mat has a ‘clean’ version of Mordeth’s powers. We don’t really know where Mordeth got his powers before their corruption and the AS put a lot of effort in removing taint when treating Mat.

Funnily enough, both Rand and Perrin feared their power as evil, and tainted, while we know Mat’s was evil and tainted. We know taints can be removed.

 

These could even be the three that must be one. But that thought is rather unfinished so I’ll leave it there.

By the way, I know a lot have been said touching on this topic, if you can suggest a better thread to post this let me know, however I am interested in discussion about all three of the boy’s powers and why they have them.

[Randommer]

Don't know why no one responded to this. Anyway, I agree with your interpretations of the superboys' powers, and that they all seem to have more going on than being ta'veren. As to the why, it's very hard to know. Rand's role is somewhat clearer than the other two, I think, and I have a whole bunch of theories on that that I've started threads for before, but basically I think he's some sort of energy source in the pattern, like a metaphor for a star or a black hole, depending on his state of mind. Perrin, I really have no ideas on. I'm guessing his main role will be something to do with TAR. Something to do with knowing the true nature of things or 'how things are put together' as he often puts it. No clue what part this might actually play, though.

 

Mat's powers are very intriguing, imo. The whole luck thing has never really been explained. The other ta'veren are lucky only in so far as it helps the Pattern; they don't have the same sort of self-serving luck as Mat at all. As for whatever connection this may have to Shadar Logoth, there's some very interesting RJ and BS quotes about that place. They basically say that Mordeth went searching the world for some way to fight the Shadow, and found this really old...thing, got infected with it, and contaminated Aridhol. Something that's not the DO, but is definitely old and evil. Considering RJ's love of duality, it's not all that surprising that the DO has some sort of evil counterpart. But as of ToM, the exact nature of this counterpart and the role it may play in the finale or Mat's powers is completely unclear.

[Suttree]

We know RJ had this to say about Mat's luck...

 

 

 

Interview: Sep 3rd, 2005

 

DragonCon Report - Emma (Verbatim)

Question

 

In The Dragon Reborn, Lanfear visits Mat as he is recuperating from his One Power surgery over the dagger. At one point she stretches out her hand towards him and he feels a tingle going over him, somebody interrupts them, and she turns her head and sobs, at about the same time a member of Black Ajah stole angreal and ter'angreal out of the Tower cache, one of which was a ter'angreal that was known to have some effect on chance. So it was about this time that Mat's really really really weird luck and the dice rolling in his head began, is this a connection or coincidence?

Robert Jordan

 

That is a coincidence. When they say that Mat has the Dark One's own luck, he can get as mad as he wants to, but in a way it is true. It wasn't a gift from Lanfear, though.

[Hyronimus]

Thanks for the reply;

 

"I think he's some sort of energy source in the pattern, like a metaphor for a star or a black hole, depending on his state of mind"

 

Can't say i've ever heard this one before, interesting! Have you posted more on this that I could read?

 

Though I would imagine a lot of what we have seen in ToM is due to Rand being a super powerful Ta'veren, it does often manifest through channalling. Channellers are described (by Morainne in EotW) having protection from the DO. They feel the presence of shadow spawn for example.

 

Ranting on

 

The power to touch the source allows Rand to embody forces that naturally act as the anti-thisis of the DO, I suspect his brain-shield-of-light is still some aspect of the source. There have been some interesting theories floating around like it being an effect of the EotW.

 

I guess my point is, Rand needs to be a channeller but channelling/the true source needs help from those other expressions of the pattern's energy.

 

My vague idea is that Perrin will be Rand's anchor to the older, pre-channelling powers that resulted in the portal stones, all the old connections must be made, Rand must act on levels beyond the average channeller. At the other end of the spectrum is Mat. His powers don't take him out of himself, they exsentuate(sp) himself.

 

His powers are an extension of how people in general interact with the pattern (IMHO).

 

In another tangent, their powers are complemented by different versions of memory recall, Perrin through the wolves version, Rand throught his taint induced(via tainted source) weakened past-lives barriers. and Mat 's memories of great men's experiences.

 

I think Mat's powers may be evidence of a greater connection to the dead (where ever they are).

 

Of course now i'm just going on the vib, I'll try and come back with something more coherant.