Spoiler warning! This will include content from many books in the series, including Towers of Midnight, and speculation about A Memory of Light. Please read at your own risk.
Also, this WILL NOT contain spoilers from A Memory of Light's Prologue, Chapter 1, or Chapter 11. Please refrain from posting any spoilers from A Memory of Light in the comments section. The A Memory of Light spoiler discussion board can be found here.
The ending of The Great Hunt begins, in my opinion, at chapter 47, "The Grave is no Bar to My Call." To refresh your memory, Rand, Mat, Perrin, and Hurin just left Falme; Ingtar stayed behind to try to cleanse himself of the evil he had done. As they leave the town, the Seanchan army advances from behind them, and a Whitecloak army advances from ahead. They are stuck in the middle with nowhere to go.
The interesting thing during this scene is that Rand knows he has to "go back" to Falme. This is one of the first examples of the Pattern forcing the characters to do its will. And later, Hawkwing confirms that this moment was destined by the Pattern.
We discussed this a bit when we talked about Perrin possibly going against the Pattern, but I'm going to point it out again. Hawkwing, who has been summoned by the Horn of Valere, who has more knowledge than any living man, says the Heroes will only follow the Dragon. This is the complete opposite of Moiraine's insistence that the Horn could be sounded by Darkfriends and used for the Shadow's side. Robert Jordan had this to say on the matter:
First off, this confirms, I think, that Moiraine was incorrect about the Horn being used by the Shadow, at least in this instance. Since Ingtar wanted to change sides, if he had blown it, the results would have been the same (likewise for Verin). However, if another Darkfriend had sounded it, a rift in the Pattern would have formed. No Darkfriend, with the intent to use it for the Shadow, could have sounded it at this precise moment. The Pattern wouldn't have accepted it.
Also, in regards to Hawkwing, one thing I've always wondered is why the Seanchan don't notice Hawkwing is fighting against them? Surely they have historical books, or even paintings, to know what he looked like. Albeit, not many were able to get a good look at their attackers, but Min was able to see Birgitte, so some Seanchan should have. And, as fond as the Seanchan are of omens, their ancestor kicking their butts should have made them sail back home as quickly as possible.
Another thing of interest is Birgitte's reaction to Rand when he says he needs to save Egwene.
Obviously, as Heroes bound to the Horn, they have all of eternity in Tel'aran'rhiod. This is such an interesting concept. Think of how well they all know each other. It gives a new meaning to the term "life-long friends."
But, when Birgitte is ripped from Tel'aran'rhiod, she has a completely different view of Rand.
Why would her fondness and feelings of friendship disappear? She still has most of her memories, so she should still remember him as Lews Therin, like in The Great Hunt. This is something that's never made sense to me. Perhaps when she speaks to him again, since his epiphany on Dragonmount, she'll like him once more.
A popular theory right now is that the Horn actually pulls the area around it into Tel'aran'rhiod. Many people speculate that this is how Rand will die and live again (a la Neo in The Matrix). There are a few things in The Great Hunt that point to this conclusion.
One is that time actually stops once the Horn is used. Rand thinks that "no time at all had passed since the Horn was first blown, as though time had paused while the heroes answered the call and now resumed counting." We know time in Tel'aran'rhiod is different from normal life, so this could be an indication that they are in the World of Dreams. Another is that Min sees Birgitte shoot arrows at the Seanchan, and the arrows catch things on fire. This special ability could also be seen as proof that they are in Tel'aran'rhiod. Birgitte says later that "My bow is the ordinary sort, today" (The Path of Daggers, Chapter 6, "Threads"), so it is special while in Falme. Also, Rand and Ishamael fight in the clouds. I don't think there's any way this could happen in the real world.
Going into that a bit more, why does their fight go into the air? And why is it broadcast all over the world? Moiraine says Rand's battle was seen by everyone in the area (The Great Hunt, Chapter 49, "What Was Meant to Be"), and Taim confirms that he saw Rand in the sky as well (Lord of Chaos, Chapter 2, "A New Arrival").
Robert Jordan says that this mirage of their battle was done by the Wheel, not the Creator or the Pattern:
That only slightly answers the question. Why would the Wheel want the battle to be seen by everyone? Maybe the only point was to thwart the False Dragons? Maybe it was so the world could prepare for Rand's coming? Maybe it was when Rand actually became the Dragon? I think it more likely that happened when he took the Eye of the World, though.
This is also an isolated incident. There are more important events that happen through the series, but they don't receive this kind of attention from the Wheel. And it was after this that Rand lets himself be named the Dragon Reborn, not during. In fact, it was five days after the battle that Rand finally "made his decision." So the argument that happened because he was announcing himself doesn't hold up.
So, what's the point? Brandon Sanderson said in an interview that this was a "Pattern Level Event," so there must be some reason why the Pattern, or the Wheel, wanted it shown.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and say the Wheel did it to show off. It's as simple as that. The Wheel is saying, "Look at this miraculous thing I created. Here is my hard work, come to fruition." All the events after the Breaking, the Aiel fleeing, being chased and hurt, finally settling in the Waste; all the events after that, making peace with the Cairhien, the Jenn dwindling, the start of Rhuidean; all the events after the clans were formed, agreeing to see their secret past, the war against the Oathbreakers, Maidens heading for Tar Valon. ALL of this had to happen for Rand to be where he was. Look at all the work, all the planning, the Wheel had to do to get things in motion, to get the outcome it wanted.
Why did it pick this scene to show? I've got the answer to that too. What better way is there to bolster the good guys and send fear into the hearts of the bad guys than broadcasting the Shadow's defeat around the world?
That's all for this week. Next time, we'll take a closer look to see whether Birgitte will survive the Last Battle.
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