A Wizard of Earthsea: Chapter 2 Summary & Analysis

Ged thinks that as the prentice of a great mage like Ogion, he will quickly and easily amass power, knowledge, and mastery of his skills—he imagines transforming himself into a bird or deer and running wild and free. Instead, however, his early days with Ogion are boring and nondescript. After four days under Ogion’s tutelage, Ged has not learned a single spell, name, or rune. Sheepishly, Ged asks Ogion when his apprenticeship will begin; Ogion responds that it has already begun. Ged says he hasn’t learned anything yet, but Ogion retorts that Ged simply hasn’t figured out what Ogion is teaching him. “Manhood,” Ogion warns, “is patience.”

Ogion encourages Ged to learn about everything around him. He doesn’t want Ged to simply learn about plants with magical or medicinal properties, for example—he wants Ged to learn about even ordinary plants, so that he may one day learn those plants’ true names and true beings. Ged feels like a fool and begins to resent Ogion, but he nevertheless acts obedient in the hopes that Ogion will soon begin teaching him something that will help him become more powerful. When a rainstorm comes, Ged is shocked at how Ogion allows the rain to fall on them rather than saying a spell to send the weather away. Ged wonders what the use of power is if one will not use it.

After many days of travel, Ogion and Ged arrive in the village of Re Albi, where Ogion lives. Ogion gives Ged a small sleeping alcove in the west wall of his one-room home, and, as winter arrives, Ged gets to work learning to read and write a set of ancient runes, the Six Hundred Runes of Hardic—Hardic is the tongue spoken throughout the Archipelago of Earthsea. Ged knows that though the work is hard, it will help him become a better master of charms and spells in the long run: Hardic is tied to the Old Speech, the ancient language in which all living and inanimate things are named with their true names.

Spring arrives, and Ogion begins sending Ged out each day to gather herbs. Ged takes delight in exploring nature after being cooped up with the Runebook all winter. One day, while foraging in the woods, Ged comes across a village girl whom he knows to be the daughter of the Lord of Re Albi. The girl, recognizing Ged as Ogion’s apprentice, asks him to tell her about sorcery. After Ged tells the girl about his trick that defeated the Kargish warriors, the girl asks Ged to call a falcon down from the sky. He does so, but the bird is skittish and doesn’t stay long.

The girl asks Ged if he can summon the spirits of the dead. Ged, longing to impress her, says he could if he wanted to. She asks him to perform a changing spell and transform himself into an animal. Ged, however, becomes flustered by the girl’s demands, and he makes an excuse to hurry home. Days later, Ged meets the girl in the meadow again and she continues to pressure him to perform a changing spell. When Ged hesitates, she tells him he’s too young after all—and too afraid—to perform such magic. Ged resolves to prove himself to the girl. He tells her to meet him in the meadow the next day and then heads home to peruse some of Ogion’s ancient Lore-Books.

Though Ged struggles to understand the language in the ancient books, he reads on and on. While puzzling his way through one spell in particular, a sharp horror comes over him—yet he cannot move his eyes from the page. When he looks up from the book at last, Ged finds that a darkness has spread through the house. Ged feels terror bind him to his chair. A cold air enters the room. Ged looks over his shoulder and sees a dark, “shapeless clot of shadow” crouching near the door. The shadow whispers to Ged, but Ged cannot understand what it is saying.

Ogion flings the door open and enters surrounded by a bright white light. He speaks a spell against the darkness and it quickly dissipates. Ogion approaches the terrified Ged and warns him that to work the spell he was reading would be to imperil not just his power, but his life. Ogion reminds Ged that the girl he has been meeting in the woods is the daughter of an enchantress—the girl herself is nearly a witch already. Ogion tells Ged that one can never know what powers another witch, mage, or sorcerer serves—it is clear that the girl, her mother, or both of them wish Ogion ill. “Danger,” Ogion warns, “must surround power as shadow does light.”

Ged says he was forced to turn to the books since Ogion teaches him nothing. Ogion tenderly says that if Ged wants to leave and seek knowledge somewhere else—like Roke Island, “where all high arts are taught,”—he may go at any time. Ogion says that he knows Ged will learn well whatever he attempts, as Ged’s power is great—greater, Ogion hopes, than Ged’s pride. Ged knows that though he loves Ogion and enjoys their long walks and silent time together, he cannot still his own craving for glory. Ged asks to go to Roke, and several days later, Ogion leads Ged down to the port. Ged is surprised as down at the port, common people kneel before their mage, the man who has saved their island from calamity time and time again with his skills.

Ogion seeks passage for Ged on a ship bound for Roke—a ship called the Shadow is sailing soon, and though Ogion does not like the name of the vessel, he nonetheless urges Ged to board and to use his skills in fogweaving as required by the crew. Addressing Ged affectionately as “Sparrowhawk”—the name Ged uses to disguise his true name—Ogion bids Ged farewell and hands him a note to deliver to the Warder of the School on Roke.

With that, Ged, who has never been off the isle of Gont—let alone anywhere on the island other than his own village and Re Albi—boards the Shadow, taking in the overwhelming sights and sounds of the port. When the master of the ship realizes Ged cannot summon the winds yet, he orders the boy to find a place out of the way and stay there. Ged makes himself as unobtrusive as possible, and soon, the oarsmen launch the boat from the dock. The ship is crewed by about 70 people—many of them are just a bit older than Ged, and over the course of the journey, they invite him to share their food and jokes (even though they tease him by calling him “Goatherd,” mocking his humble origins.)

The journey takes many days, and the water is very rough. Ged occasionally rows alongside the other oarsmen, especially when the weather requires the crew to split their duties between rowing and baling. The master of the ship again calls on Ged, asking if he can use his powers to point them toward Roke—when Ged says he cannot, the shipmaster admits that they have been blown off course and will likely arrive in the dangerous Hort Town. Ged will have to find his own passage to Roke. Nervous, Ged looks westward, in the direction of Roke, as the ship sails onward—as dusk approaches, Ged spots a light in the distance. He calls out to the shipmaster: they are near Roke after all. The shipmaster turns the boat toward land. As the ship arrives in the bay, the skies clear and the night stars begin to emerge in the sky.