Power in Holly Black's The Cruel Prince
The Cruel Prince is a book by Holly Black that follows a teenage girl named Jude in a fantasy-like world. Jude's parents were killed when she was young and she was taken to the land of the Faeries. In this new world, she is at the bottom of the food chain, being human, and the story is one about her rise to power. Jude is the weakest among her peers, and longs to best them. Power is a prevalent theme in this book and its is often implied that power comes with a price, demonstrated most clearly in the characters.
The first instance in which Jude discovers what it means to have power is when she is given the ability through a geass. She directly states that geasses are powerful blessings that come with a twist. The person who gives this power to her says, "Jude Duarte, daughter of clay, from this day forward no Faerie glamour will addle your mind. No enchantment will move your body against your will. None save for that of the maker of this geas." This speech directly referencing that power comes with a price, as Jude will be invulnerable to the words of the fey, but can still be controlled by the speaker. Later on in the book, the price of this power is negated because the speaker eventually dies, yet the speech serves as a warning. As a part of the story, Jude's first instance of gaining power is a clear lesson that pursing power will come at a heavy price.
Unlike Jude, Prince Cardan has a lot of power, but as a result he was constantly emotionally injured as a consequence. Cardan is a character introduced as one of the most influential people in the kingdom due to his status and more powerful fey abilities. Because he is a prince, Cardan was ignored and manipulated by his family as shown by his words to Jude when they were alone together: "I hate you because your father loves you even though you’re a human brat born to his unfaithful wife, while mine never cared for me, though I am a prince of Faerie. I hate you because you don't have a brother who beats you." On the outside, Cardan is a powerful figure that has authority over many others and may one day become king, but because he grew up in the royal court, he was subject to much abuse. While Cardan never actively pursued power as Jude did, he was punished throughout his childhood for the power he was born with.
When Jude finally acquires the power she has been seeking, she finds out that there were many consequences as a result. At the end of the book, Jude basically becomes Queen of the Faerie, making King Cardan her puppet. In order to climb to this position, she betrays everyone one she knows including her sister, her foster father, and Cardan. Her acknowledgement of this fact is shown in her thoughts, "I think of Madoc [Jude's foster father], dozing away upstairs, all his dreams of murder." and "I think of Cardan and how he will hate me. I think of what it means to make myself the villain of the piece." At this point, Jude has gained all the power she desired and lost everyone close to her as a result. She accepts this fact, yet the price has not been entirely paid yet, as to be seen in the next book.
The Cruel Prince provides a clear example of the price of power in a fantasy setting. It is important to understand and accept the consequences of gaining power in order to deal with it appropriately. In some sense, the theme of this book can be applied to more realistic settings as it warns of the danger of obtaining power.
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