'Echoes of the displaced' and 'humming to the rhythm of the terrors' : reflections of reality in Brandon Sanderson's 'The way of kings'

Abstract

This thesis examines how Brandon Sanderson’s The Way of Kings engages with primary world concerns through heterocosmic worldbuilding. By analysing Sanderson’s immersive world of Roshar, I argue that the novel subverts traditional fantasy tropes and challenges hegemonic power structures through its deconstruction of class and race hierarchies. Far from being escapist literature too removed from the real world to be useful vehicles for critical analysis, I argue that heterocosms are ideologically charged spaces which provide a lens through which to examine and reimagine contemporary anxieties, such as post-9/11 geopolitical discourses. Through a close textual analysis of The Way of Kings, with reference to the two non-canonical early drafts of The Way of Kings Prime and Dragonsteel Prime, this thesis highlights the evolution of Sanderson’s ideological heterocosm and demonstrates how epic fantasy can be a site of both subversion and an avenue of intellectual engagement with political and historical realities. In my novel, Echoes of the Displaced, I have constructed a heterocosm inspired by issues prevalent in my own reality, namely Apartheid and post-Apartheid discourses. Through this world I examine similar issues to those found in The Way of Kings, namely power binaries, arbitrary caste systems, issues of displacement, treatment of marginalised communities and magic as an exploitable and tangible resource. The Way of Kings has not received substantial critical attention, making this study an original contribution to the field of studies of the fantastic. It establishes the novel as a subversive work of true fantasy, inviting further engagement with the text and with Sanderson’s wider oeuvre. By focussing on heterocosms as ideologically charged spaces that reflect primary world anxieties, this study affirms the critical value of fantasy literature—even when written by authors more associated with popular culture than the traditional literary canon.