The Wheel of Time

This article is about The Wheel of Time, a fantasy series by Robert Jordan. For the philosophical and religious concept, see wheel of time.

The Wheel of Time (abbreviated tWoT or more commonly, WoT) is a bestselling fantasy book series written by Robert Jordan. It is known for the extreme density of its plot, the intricate detail of its imaginary world, and the lifelike complexity of relationships and interactions between characters, both individually and collectively. There are 11 books in the series so far. Books 8, 9, and 10 of the series each reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list, and many of the books have been on the list at one time or another. The series has spawned various game adaptations, including a video game, released by Atari for the personal computer and a tabletop role-playing game, released by Wizards of the Coast and based on d20 rules. Another popular game came in the form of a MUD or Multi-User Dungeon. WoTMUD has been around since the early 1990's.

Robert Jordan has indicated that the main sequence will conclude with the yet-to-be-named twelfth book. This was confirmed most recently at the Comic-Con convention in July 2005. However, Jordan plans to write two other prequel novels in addition to New Spring.

The premise

In the beginning, the Creator made the Wheel of Time, which spins the Pattern of the Ages using the lives of men as its threads. The Wheel has seven spokes, each representing an age, and it is rotated by the One Power or the True Source, a source of magic. The One Power is divided into male and female halves, saidin and saidar, which work in opposition and in unison to drive the Wheel; those who can use this power are known as channelers.

The Creator imprisoned the Dark One (known as Shai'tan), a powerful, evil being, at the moment of creation, sealing him away from the Wheel. At some point, however, the Dark One was given purchase in the world through the machinations of well-meaning people and began his efforts to conquer the world, creation, even the Wheel itself. To counter this threat, the Wheel caused the Dragon, the champion of the Light and a channeler of immense power, to be born.

Due to the cyclical nature of the Wheel of Time, there can be no definitive victory for the forces of the Light; the war has been fought innumerable times since the dawn of Creation. The Dragon would defeat Shai'tan and seal him from the Wheel, only to have his work undone millenia later, necessitating his occasional rebirth to counter the continuing threat.

Robert Jordan's novels concern themselves with one incarnation of the Dragon in particular. Three thousand years have passed since the last war between Shai'tan and the Light, which the Dragon (known as Lews Therin Telamon in that life) ended by patching the hole in the Dark One's prison with the help of a group of other male channelers known as the Hundred Companions. Unfortunately, the Dark One managed to taint saidin, the male half of the One Power, with a counterstroke which brought madness and a wasting sickness to any man who channeled it. The taint quickly overcame Lews Therin and his companions and eventually drove every male channeler to insanity, with catastrophic results that changed the face of the world.

The rebirth of the Dragon, then, is viewed with hope and fear. On the one hand, the Dragon Reborn will be a channeler of saidin, vulnerable to the taint which 'broke the world' once before, and the prophecies promise that his rebirth will bring similar upheavals. On the other hand, he is the only one capable of defeating Shai'tan, who is once again reaching beyond his prison.

References and similarities to other literature, myth and legend

When creating names in the series, Jordan used names and words of foreign languages, religions, mythologies, and even English, such as with Shai'tan (the prime evil force of the series, also known as the Dark One), and especially visible in names of Trolloc clans (Dha'vol, Kho'bol, etc).

The series also borrows from various myths and legends, most notably Arturian legend, Irish mythology, the Hindu and Norse mythic cycles, and even Christian imagery(the Dragon Reborn, the hero of the piece, has over the course of the story received woundings similar to stigmata).

The intended impression is that the world in which the series is set might be our own world at some different point on the Wheel of Time. Perhaps the most obvious borrowing is the Aes Sedai symbol, which is a modified Yin-Yang solid white on one side, black on the other. The name Aes Sedai is suggestive of the Irish Aes Sidhe; Sa'angreal is clearly borrowed from Sangreal, the Holy Grail, etc. Robert Jordan himself once said, "The characters in the books are the source of many of our myths and legends, and we are the source of many of theirs. You can look two ways along a wheel." [America Online chat, June 28, 1996]

Jordan even includes several potential references to J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, such as an inn named "The Nine Rings" (see: Chapter 21 of The Great Hunt) hinting at the nine rings belonging to the Nazgûl. Another character, Karldin Manfor, makes use of the pseudonym "Mr. Underhill" (see: Prologue of Crossroads of Twilight) much like Frodo does in The Fellowship of the Ring. Further, the character Perrin's name can be seen as an amalgam of Merry and Pippin, two of Frodo Baggins's hobbit companions in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The Aes Sedai have some similarities with the Bene Gesserit of the Dune series; both are orders of women with special powers, both seek to influence politics and powerful individuals, and both are referred to by other characters as "witches". The Dragon Reborn, like the Kwisatz Haderach, is a male with powers normally held by females.

Other references of similar effect include the game of stones played by several of the characters. This is clearly the ancient oriental game of Go. Another is the saying of the borderlands Death is lighter than a feather, but Duty is heavier than a mountain. (quoted in The Great Hunt.) This is a commonly quoted part of the code of the Samurai.

There are also similarities to various martial arts, especially with respect to sword fighting techniques. In the books, the swordmasters practice and use specific moves that are representative of the behavior of animals and natural phenomena. Each of the moves has a stylized name which is very similar to many East Asian combat styles and traditions (for example: kung fu and samurai.

A good source for more real-world inspirations for Wheel is the Wheel of Time FAQ, section 3.

Fan opinion

While the series has generally gained popularity over time, the consensus among fans of the series is that while earlier installments (books 1 to 6, possibly 7) are exemplary examples of epic fantasy, the later ones have degenerated into pulp. The plot has ground to a near-standstill in recent installments, becoming mired in details, minor politics and the activities of background characters. The tenth book, Crossroads of Twilight, in particular, has been widely criticized for adding almost nothing to the overall story, and moving the plot forward less than a single chapter might have in earlier books. Nevertheless, Jordan never misses an opportunity to say that he has complete control over the story and that it's progressing exactly the way he wants and intends it to.

About his upcoming book, Knife of Dreams, he had said that it "will have enough incident to satisfy anyone". He has also stated, "You'll be sweating by the time you reach the end of it."

Books in the series

1. The Eye of the World (15 January 1990)
2. The Great Hunt (15 November 1990)
3. The Dragon Reborn (15 October 1991)
4. The Shadow Rising (15 September 1992)
5. The Fires of Heaven (15 October 1993)
6. Lord of Chaos (15 October 1994)
7. A Crown of Swords (15 May 1996)
8. The Path of Daggers (20 October 1998)
   • Snow: The Prologue to Winter's Heart (September 2000, ebook)
9. Winter's Heart (7 November 2000)
   • Glimmers: The Prologue to Crossroads of Twilight (July 17, 2002, ebook)
10. Crossroads of Twilight (7 January 2003)
    • Embers Falling on Dry Grass: The Prologue to Knife of Dreams (July 22, 2005, ebook)
11. Knife of Dreams (11 October 2005 expected US publication date)

There is also a prequel novella, "New Spring" in the Legends anthology edited by Robert Silverberg. The novella was expanded into a standalone novel-length version, New Spring, that was published in January 2004.

In 2002 the first book, The Eye of the World, has been repackaged as two volumes with new illustrations for younger readers: From the Two Rivers, including an extra chapter before the existing prologue, and To the Blight with an expanded glossary. In 2004 the same was done with The Great Hunt, with the two parts being the Hunt Begins and New Threads in the Pattern.

There is a short story available on the web, "The Strike at Shayol Ghul", which predates the main series by several thousand years. That story is also found in The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time (ISBN 0-312-86219-9), an official hardcover guide to the Wheel of Time published in November 1998.

External links

• Chapter summaries
• Silklantern.com
• Dragonmount
• wotmania
• The White Tower - TarValon.net
• The Black Tower - Character List and Forums
• Wheel of Time FAQ
• WoT Livejournal Group
• Age of Wisdom - Nynaeve Shrine
• 900 NE: Before the Fall
• Shadar Logoth (WoT Message Board)
• Interviews with the Author (Robert Jordan)
• Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time programming track at Dragon*Con
• Encyclopaedia WoT
• The Wheel of Time RP
• Tor
• WoT now?
• WoTMUD. A Telnet based multi-player Wheel of Time text game
• Search the complete text of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time
• Tellings of the Wheel: The Chronology of The Wheel of Time