User:Gherald/wotreferences

References and similarities

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. 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. This is an oft-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). Finally, perhaps most tellingly, the protagonist's sword is very similar to a katana.

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).

To other literature

Jordan includes several references to J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, such as an inn named "The Nine Rings" (chapter 21, TGH) and "The Nine Horse Hitch" (chapter 11, TFoH), hinting at the rings that enslaved the Nine Riders who sought the One Ring at the Prancing Pony inn. A minor character, Karldin Manfor, uses the pseudonym "Underhill" (prologue, CoT) which is Frodo's traveling name in The Fellowship of the Ring. Perrin's name can be seen as an amalgam of the names of Merry and Pippin, two of Frodo's hobbit companions.

The Aes Sedai have some similarities with the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood of the Dune series; both are orders of women with special powers, both seek to influence politics and powerful individuals, and both are sometimes referred to by other characters as "witches". The Dragon Reborn, like the Kwisatz Haderach, is a male with powers normally reserved for the women of those organizations. Men could and still channel, though because of the taint on the saidin, they are often "gentled" before the talent blooms and they begin to go mad.

To myth and legend

The series also borrows from various myths and legends, most notably Arthurian legend, Irish mythology, Hindu and Norse mythic cycles, and even Christian imagery (the Dragon Reborn, principal hero of the piece, has over the course of the story received woundings similar to stigmata). Noticeably, many of the names are borrowed nearly the same as Arthurian legend:

Sa'angreal is clearly borrowed from Sangreal, the Holy Grail, etc.

Certain individual characters may have other influences on them as well. Mat Cauthon, for example, seems to be quite Odin-like. He is a general; one of Odin's domains is war. Odin hung for days with a spear in his side to gain the knowledge of death; Mat was hanged from a spear propped across two tree branches, as part of a payment for a gift of knowledge. Mat has been prophesied to "give up half the light of the world to save the world", and has been seen in Egwene's dreams placing his eye on a balance scale; Odin gave up his eye for knowledge. Mat uses a spear; Odin used a lance. And both are associated with ravens.

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]

To our world

A number of references occur in The Eye of the World, Chapter 4:

Queen Elizabeth: "Alsbet, queen of all" (changed to Elsbet in later editions)
Ann Landers "The Thousand Tales of Anla, the Wise Counselor"
Mother Theresa "Materese the Healer"
John Glenn, The Eagle, Sally Ride or Salyut: "Tell us about Lenn," Egwene called. "How he flew to the moon in the belly of an eagle made of fire. Tell about his daughter Salya walking among the stars."

And several more in The Shadow Rising:

Mercedes Benz hood ornament: "A silvery thing in another cabinet, like a three-pointed star inside a circle, was made of no substance she knew; it was softer than metal, scratched and gouged, yet even older than any of the ancient bones. From ten paces she could sense pride and vanity." (Chapter 11, What lies hidden, p. 147)
Moscow, America, ICBMs, superpowers: "Did Mosk and Merk really fight with spears of fire, and were they even giants?" (Chapter 20, Winds Rising)
Gautama Buddha: "Ghoetam under the tree of life" (Chapter 24, Rhuidean, p. 277)

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.

A list of more real-world inspirations is The Wheel of Time FAQ, section 3.