Morzan
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 | |
| Morzan | |
|---|---|
| Biographical information | |
| Born | 127 - 132 BBRW |
| Died | 15 - 16 BBRW |
| Physical description | |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Male |
| Height | Tall |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | One blue, one black |
| Chronological and political information | |
| Affiliation | Empire, Galbatorix, Forsworn |
| Dragon | Unnamed red dragon |
| Known teachers | Oromis, Glaedr, Galbatorix |
Morzan was a Dragon Rider, and the first of the Forsworn that served King Galbatorix. He was the wielder of Zar'roc, and the father of Murtagh whose mother was Selena. He became the greatest of all the Empire's supporters. Although he does not make a physical appearance in the books (having been killed long before they started), his legacy has a lasting impact on Eragon's quest.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] As a Rider
Before his betrayal of the Riders and his service to Galbatorix, Morzan was the idol of Brom. It was said that Morzan belittled him, ordered him around, and treated him shamefully. It took Morzan's betrayal and his killing Brom's dragon Saphira I for him to fall from Brom's favor, and truly become his enemy.
However, as Brom later said, Morzan was "strong in body, but weak in mind". The name of Morzan's dragon is unknown due to the Banishing of the Names or Du Namar Aurboda (a magic spell cast by the dragons to strip the traitorous dragons of the Forsworn of their names). Because of the red color of his sword, Zar'roc, it is safe to assume that Morzan's dragon was red. Morzan and his dragon eventually betrayed the Order to Galbatorix, becoming the first of the Forsworn.
[edit] As a Forsworn
Morzan met Galbatorix, who was at that time a fugitive, under unspecified circumstances. Galbatorix convinced him to leave the door open at Ilirea (now Urû'baen). Why Morzan would grant a request for a notorious enemy of the Riders, or even speak with him, is unknown, but it could suggest hatred, deliberate disobedience, a thirst for power which he could gain under Galbatorix, contempt for the Riders/elders/elves on Morzan's part, or a former friendship between Galbatorix and Morzan.
Once inside Ilirea, Galbatorix stole a dragon hatchling to replace the dragon he lost. Afterward, Morzan followed him to a place that Riders were loathe to go. Morzan had an obscure teaching there, learning the secrets Galbatorix had gained from a Shade. Several years later, when Galbatorix revealed himself to the world, Morzan stood faithfully by his side. They fought any Rider they met, recruited some into their service, founded the order known as the Forsworn, and destroyed the Dragon riders.
Eighty years later, Morzan met a woman named Selena, showed her a small kindness to gain her confidence, and later enlisted her as his Black Hand. After about three years, she became pregnant with his child. Because the other Forsworn might use Selena and the child against him, Morzan hid her in his castle, which he protected using powerful spells: the only other individual to know of Murtagh's existence beside his parents was Galbatorix. Morzan then became the only known one of the Thirteen Forsworn to have a child.
When the child, Murtagh, was born, Morzan kept him and Selena separated, allowing her to visit her son only occasionally. After another three years, when he was in a drunken rage, he threw his sword, hit Murtagh, and left him with a large scar on his back.
About fifteen years before the Rider War, Morzan hunted down Hefring and retrieved the stolen dragon egg from him. Shortly after, he dueled Brom and was killed. Brom then took Morzan's sword, Zar'roc, and fled.
[edit] Personal information
[edit] Physical appearance
Morzan was tall, with broad shoulders. His hair was as black as a raven's feathers, and his eyes were different colors: one blue, one black. He was handsome, but his cruelty and haughtiness were apparent even in his appearance. Morzan was also missing the tip of one of his fingers. He wore very shiny armor, as if he was deliberately showing everyone who and where he was. He preferred to fight with a one-handed sword-fighting style, which was the design of his sword, Zar'roc.
[edit] Personality
Why Morzan joined the Forsworn is unknown; it may have been out of a desire for power or revenge against a perceived wrong, or loyalty to Galbatorix/disloyalty to the Riders, or several other reasons.
As the first and last of the Forsworn, Morzan was both powerful and cruel. This was evidenced when he threw his sword Zar'roc at his three-year-old son, Murtagh, in a fit of drunken rage. This might have actually been an accident, but it shows at the very least that Morzan was cruel, careless, and irresponsible.
[edit] Powers
Since Morzan has not made a physical appearance in the books, the extent of his powers cannot be certain. It is likely that he was very skilled at swordplay, mental powers, and magic, since he was a Dragon Rider and slew many others of the order. He also learned dark magic from Galbatorix and possibly drew power from some eldunari he captured during the fall of the riders. Paolini stated that Galbatorix eventually gathered most if not all of the Forsworn's eldunari for himself, so Morzan's power probably lessened since the Riders Fall. It is confirmed he was never as powerful as Murtagh became. Though he was probably fairly intelligent and cunning, he was likely impulsive and impatient. Oromis said he would devise the most cunning of spells, but overlook a crucial detail in the process.
[edit] Children, and the Time Gap problem
As revealed in Eldest, it is possible that Eragon may be his son. Also in the synopsis of Eragon at the beginning of Eldest, it says that Eragon is fifteen and that Brom and Jeod stole the egg twenty years ago and killed Morzan in the process, making a five year gap between his death and Eragon's birth, thus it makes no sense for Morzan to be Eragon's father. However, the same could be said for Murtagh; his "last birthday" as of Eragon was his eighteenth, which would put his birth a year or two after Morzan's death if the "twenty years" number is correct. Thus, if the "twenty years" is not just an estimate or a "rounded up" number of years (like saying "last decade" to mean "seven years ago"), it is impossible for Morzan to have thrown his sword at a three-year-old Murtagh.
In actuality, though, there is no time gap problem. Orik stated clearly in Eldest that Morzan died a decade and a half ago, so he actually died fifteen or sixteen years before the Rider War, thus making it possible for Morzan to be Eragon's father. Also, Brom and Jeod did not kill Morzan when they stole the egg. After the egg was stolen, Morzan was sent to search for it. It is not known how long he was looking before he ended up fighting Brom and dying. It should be safe to assume that Morzan returned to court periodically to report to Galbatorix, possibly to renew his energy and supplies, and to check up on Selena. Therefore, the time frame does work out. However, in Brisingr, it was revealed that Morzan wasn't Eragon's father anyway; his father was Brom.
[edit] Speculation
[edit] Cause of death and thievery of Zar'roc
The actual circumstances of Morzan's death are not revealed in the books. In the movie however, Brom tells Eragon that Morzan was killed by his own sword (Zar'roc) that Brom had managed to wrest from him.
[edit] The missing finger
A prominent feature of Morzan's was that he was missing the tip of one of his fingers. The reason for this is unknown. It was most likely cut off during a battle. However, it should be noted that during medieval times, people's hands or fingers were sometimes cut off if they were caught stealing. This could possibly imply that before he became Rider at age ten, Morzan was a thief, who lost a finger for stealing. Such a rough early history would fit in with his later behavior.
[edit] Comparisons
Since Galbatorix can be compared to Palpatine from Star Wars, Morzan, as a man close to the king (at least having the right to live in the court), can be compared to Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader:
- Both were corrupted and betrayed many of their own Order (Morzan was corrupted by Galbatorix and betrayed and murdered his fellow Dragon Riders, as Anakin was corrupted by Palpatine and murdered his fellow Jedi Knights).
- Both were proposed at some point to be the father of the main hero.(Though Morzan wasn't really Eragon's father.)
- Both generated children who later turned against their side (Morzan is the father of Murtagh, who turned against the Empire at least for a few months, while Anakin was the father of Luke and Leia, who turned against the Galactic Empire).
- The only two differences are that, while Anakin, then Darth Vader, died to save his son from Palpatine, Morzan died at Brom's hands, and that Murtagh quickly returned to the Empire after only a little while of fighting alongside Eragon.
- Morzan, as a cruel wizard tyrant in the service of a greater dark power, is also similar to Darken Rahl of the Sword of Truth series.
- Both were described as tall, handsome, and strong, yet haughty and cruel behind that facade.
- Both were powerful tyrants with magic who were in the service of an even darker lord (Morzan served Galbatorix; Darken Rahl served the Keeper of the Underworld).
- Both generated children who were the half-siblings of the main hero, and would eventually turn against that hero (Morzan was the father of Murtagh, who had the same mother as Eragon and became his enemy; Darken Rahl was the father of Jennsen and Oba Rahl, both of whom had the same father as Richard Rahl and became his enemies).
[edit] See also
| Preceded By | Position | Succeeded By |
| None | Galbatorix's Right-Hand Man | Durza |
| Preceded By | Position | Succeeded By |
| Rhunön | Holder of Zar'roc | Brom |
| Preceded By | Position | Succeeded By |
| Unknown | Taught by Oromis | Brom |
