How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
[…] Randa was clever. He could see that in time his niece might serve a practical purpose. He sent her to her chambers and kept her there for weeks as punishment [for killing her cousin], but that was all. When she emerged, they all ran to get out of her path. They'd never liked her before, for no one liked the Graced, but at least they'd tolerated her presence. Now there was no pretense of friendliness. (1.32)
Eight years old and friendless. But not just friendless—feared, avoided, treated like a freak. You'd think the Graced would have banded together and formed some kind of support group given how outcast they all are. And yet Katsa manages to reach age eighteen as a relatively stable individual, and we think there are three reasons for that:
- Ultimately, as one of many Gracelings in the kingdoms, she does belong to a group; and
- Raffin; and
- Katsa's true Grace isn't killing—it's survival. That's got to help, too.
Quote #2
Sometimes members of the court would come by to watch her practices. But if she caught their gaze, their eyes would drop and they would hurry on. (1.43)
Now that's isolation. Can you even imagine what it would be like to never have anyone look you in the eye? Think about how many times you make eye contact with people over the course of a day. What would it be like if every single one of those times, instead of meeting your eyes, the person in question looked away? Crazy-making, right? Right.
Quote #3
The girl paused. Then she leaned and held her hand out to Katsa. Something welled up inside Katsa, something she couldn't quite name. A sort of sad gladness at this little creature who wanted to touch her. (5.36)
We half expect Katsa to cry out "I am not a animal!" like the Elephant Man here, but Katsa kind of does consider herself a monster, so clearly that's not about to happen. Still, this scene makes it achingly evident how little contact Katsa has had with people over the years. Actually, scratch that. She's had plenty of contact, it's just been in the form of her fist meeting people's faces. What she hasn't had is much in the way of kind and tender contact, and that has to have taken a toll on her.