The Wizard of Earthsea Trait Essay

John Smith

Ms. Tracey

December 21, 2005

Honors English 1st

The Wizard of Earthsea Trait Essay

Ged's pride, constantly taking advantage of Ged, prevents him from ever fully maturing into adulthood. As a wizard, Ged was entitled to some pride, yet Ged took advantage of this right by biting off more than he could chew. First, he roots through Ogion's spell books to find a spirit-summoning spell to impress a girl he meets in the forest. Then, he leaves Ogion for Roke because he believes that what Ogion is teaching him is too little too slow. Finally, he, to impress an enemy, performs a summoning spell, but in doing so, releases a deadly shadow upon Earthsea.

Ged roots through Ogion's spell books to find a spirit-summoning spell to impress a girl he met in the forest. He barely knew her, yet he felt as if he had to prove himself to her. This stunted his maturity because his pride clouded his judgment and ability to assess the situation. While reading through the spell books, he saw the shadow creature in the corner, a hallucination, a foreshadowing, no pun intended. This was a way of warning Ged about this particular trait. It is showing him that if he doesn't swallow his pride, the shadow is his future.

Ged leaves Ogion for Roke because he believes that what Ogion is teaching him is too little too slow. Ged finally complains about the content and pace of his teachings and is then given a choice; either stay with him or go to a wizard school at Roke. Ged's pride again clouds his perception and prevents his maturity. If he were clear-headed, he would have seen that Ogion wasn't there, so much, to teach him spells but to teach him life. This pride in himself inhibits his ability to learn about life and therefore inhibits his ability to mature. To quote Ogion: " Manhood is patience. Mastery is nine time patience." All Ged needed to do was wait, but his pride wouldn't allow that.

Ged, to impress an enemy, performs a summoning spell, but in doing so, releases a deadly shadow upon Earthsea. His rival, Jasper, questioned Ged's knowledge of spirit summoning spells. Ged's pride once again clouded his judgment and kept him from seeing not only the consequences involved, but also the possible dangers. Ged