%QRi3qJ3xbLW4J/dbbf1A/a0ZN5kaGDUxHdz43xjCtvc=.sha256Stories with True Names
Seeking stories, fairy tales and parables with the "True Name" Pattern in them
What is a True Name?
In Le Guin's fictional universe, to know the true name of an object or a person is to have power over it.[7][73] Each child is given a true name when they reach puberty, a name which they share only with close friends.[80] Several of the dragons in the later Earthsea novels, like Orm Embar and Kalessin, are shown as living openly with their names, which do not give anybody power over them.[7][81] In A Wizard of Earthsea, however, Ged is shown to have power over Yevaud. Cadden writes that this is because Yevaud still has attachment to riches and material possessions, and is thus bound by the power of his name.[81] Wizards exert their influence over the equilibrium through the use of names, thus linking this theme to Le Guin's depiction of a cosmic balance. According to Cummins, this is Le Guin's way of demonstrating the power of language in shaping reality. Since language is the tool we use for communicating about the environment, she argues that it also allows humans to affect the environment, and the wizards' power to use names symbolizes this.[82] Cummins went on to draw an analogy between the a wizard's use of names to change things with the creative use of words in fictional writing.[80] Shippey wrote that Earthsea magic seems to work through what he called the "Rumpelstiltskin theory", in which names have power. He argued that this portrayal was part of Le Guin's effort to emphasize the power of words over objects, which, according to Shippey, was in contrast to the ideology of other fantasy writers, such as James Frazer in The Golden Bough.[83] Esmonde argued that each of the first three Earthsea books hinged on an act of trust. In A Wizard of Earthsea, Vetch trusts Ged with his true name when the latter is at his lowest ebb emotionally, thus giving Ged complete power over himself. Ged later offers Tenar the same gift in The Tombs of Atuan, thereby allowing her to learn trust.[84]
