Emotional Tension in The Queen of Attolia

Mar 6, 2018

There’s a lot of interesting things going on in this novel, but one I noticed was just how careful these characters have to be with their emotions, particularly the queens of Eddis and Attolia. These women must retain their composure for political and personal purposes, often hiding their emotions or deliberately acting certain ways to mislead others. Beyond their immediate emotional obligations as leaders, this careful navigation affects their entire lives. The following scene stood out to me.

After [Galen had] seen Eugenides and dosed him again with narcotics, he found Eddis waiting in the library. She was in one of the armchairs with her knees up and her feet pulled in under her skirts.

“Both of you in tears now,” he said.

Eddis sniffled. “I’m angry.”

“He’s not strong enough for you to be angry.” He looked helpless for a moment. (53)

Even here, where the scale has shrunk to two people who know each other well, Eddis is under pressure to contain her feelings due to Eugenides’s weakened state. Seeing the masks slip made the characters feel more human and it also adds a level of complexity, such as Attolia’s inner struggle when making decisions or contemplating past ones. Another instance of emotional tension is in chapter nine, where the queen of Attolia orders Relius out of the room so she can rage in isolation (148). Attolia is seen–and portrays herself as–very cold and harsh. She is surrounded by those who do not trust her, nor does she trust them, and must act accordingly to retain the careful hold on her throne. Eddis has some people she can trust, but is still left playing a dangerous game.

I like how these women battle for power in different ways. Even if there wasn’t a war raging on or Eddis and Attolia weren’t queens, this novel offers interesting commentary on how we regulate (or fail to regulate) our emotions, which can be very tricky in tandem with societal expectations and stereotypes. It’s great to see women in such influential positions and actually get to know them as characters, and I can’t help but wonder at the intricacies of power dynamics as a result.

4 responses to “Emotional Tension in The Queen of Attolia”

hwseo1004

March 7, 2018 at 1:29 pm

I agree! It’s really much interesting to see how Turner describes the emotions of her main characters – a lot of them surprise me, but sooner or later make sense. I love how Turner has a particular way of writing, which much emphasizes character development and also push the plot on. I thought her writing was really ‘dry’ at first, but now that I’m used to it, I love it! I love how the plot twists, and how the characters each have their own stories (or rationales) behind their actions and speeches. However, I do think this book suddenly turned into a romance novel at one unbelievable point, and while some people could groan, I like it. After all, emotions are produced close to the heart, and Turner stays true to it from the beginning to the end. That said, I’m buying the third book!

LikeLike

Reply
1. sarahweinberg24
  
  March 10, 2018 at 1:29 am
  
  Yeah, I think Turner is big on subtlety. I’m tempted to read it again at some point to try and catch all the foreshadowing. I’m glad we got to see some of their rationale and get Attolia’s backstory, it helped me see her character differently and made her more complex. The writing style took me a little while to get used to, but I agree–it grew on me. I wasn’t expecting the romance at all, though I did like the part where Gen gives her back her knives so nonchalantly. Still, I was really confused at first, and still kind of am. If anything, though, Megan Whalen Turner seems to be a very deliberate writer, and I’ll probably read the third book to see how it all plays out!
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply
kedam07

March 7, 2018 at 7:10 pm

I also found the way emotions were handled very interesting . What I am curious about is finding out is when do they allow themselves to be vulnerable? Eddis has people she can trust while Attolia really doesn’t, and that’s why I think she is better at not expressing her emotions/ vulnerabilities.

LikeLike

Reply
1. sarahweinberg24
  
  March 10, 2018 at 1:36 am
  
  I agree! I’m curious about how the relationships will develop between characters like Attolia and Eugenides and Attolia and Eddis. I really want Attolia and Eddis to be friends, since we’ve already seen that they actually like each other, but who knows if friendship is possible in the midst of so much political tension. (I hope so.)
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply