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Chapter 9
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Cruel Prince, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Power and Control
Cycles of Violence
Identity and Coming of Age
The Nature of Love
Summary
Analysis
While Jude watches the rest of the Summer Tournament, she thinks about Cardan’s words. She knows Cardan cannot lie, meaning he was telling the truth about Taryn being romantically involved with someone—or at least he thinks he told the truth. At home, Gnarbone, one of Madoc’s servants, tells Jude a prince has come to visit her. Jude takes a platter Gnarbone was about to the deliver to the prince and enters Madoc’s study where the prince is waiting. Without looking, Jude rudely slams the platter down because she assumes the prince is Cardan. However, once her anger subsides, she sees that it is Dain, who is set to become the next High King.
It bothers Jude that Cardan would know more about Taryn than she does. She always thought that she and Taryn were close enough to tell each other everything. However, now, it seems Taryn has been keeping secrets. Additionally, Jude’s anger at Cardan sees her make a bad first impression in front of Dain, the member of the court she is most eager to impress. Dain not only leads the Circle of Falcons but is also set to become the most powerful person in the realm.
Active
Themes
Amused, Dain asks Jude to stay and speak with him. Then, he questions Jude about why she was so mad. Jude lies, which Dain picks up on immediately. He tells her it is fascinating to watch humans lie and asks her to do it again. In response, Jude makes a number of statements in a row, which may or may not be true. Then, she tells Dain that the beauty of lying is that it is difficult to tell when someone is doing it.
Throughout the novel, faeries often fail to recognize when humans lie because they are not used to dealing with lying. The fact that Dain picks up on Jude’s lies right away suggests that he is more cunning than many of his peers. Luckily for Jude, her lying pleases Dain instead of angering him.
Active
Themes
Dain tells Jude he has an opportunity for her; he wants Jude to be a spy because he could use someone who can lie at will. Although Jude would prefer to be a knight, she finds his offer intriguing. In return for her services, Dain promises to place a “geas” on her, which is a type of spell. A geas can do a great number of things, though it always comes with a price. Jude knows this but considers the offer anyway. She asks Dain if he can place a geas on her that would prevent others from enchanting her. Dain tells her that he can, so she accepts his offer. Then, Dain places the geas on her, which offers her protection from everyone’s enchantments except his own. After, Jude gets down on her knees and swears to serve Dain.
