Cinder

by

Marissa Meyer

Luna/Lunars Term Analysis

Luna is the society on the moon in the novel, and Lunars are the people who reside there. Queen Levana is their leader. Though Lunars were initially human, they have since evolved into a different species. Most Lunars possess the “gift”—the telepathic ability to control others’ thoughts and actions by manipulating their bioelectricity. Those without this gift are called shells. Because of this power to manipulate others, Earthens (citizens of Earth) often think of Lunars as greedy and power-hungry. Some Lunars, like Dr. Erland, flee Luna to escape Queen Levana’s oppressive regime.

Luna/Lunars Quotes in Cinder

The Cinder quotes below are all either spoken by Luna/Lunars or refer to Luna/Lunars. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
).
Chapter 4 Quotes

Lunars were a society that had evolved from an Earthen moon colony centuries ago, but they weren’t human anymore. People said Lunars could alter a person’s brain—make you see things you shouldn’t see, feel things you shouldn’t feel, do things you didn’t want to do. Their unnatural power had made them a greedy and violent race, and Queen Levana was the worst of all of them.

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene, Prince Kai, Queen Levana, Dr. Erland, Peony
Page Number: 43
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 12 Quotes

“No, we’re talking about her daughter. Kai, the entire bloodline, every last one of them has been greedy, violent, corrupted by their own power. It’s in their blood. Believe me when I say that Princess Selene, even if she were alive, would be no better.”

Kai realized his arms were aching from squeezing them so hard, his skin gone white around his fingertips. “She can’t very well be worse,” he said. “And who knows? If the rumors are right, and she has been on Earth all this time, maybe she would be different. Maybe she would be sympathetic to us.”

Related Characters: Prince Kai (speaker), Konn Torin (speaker), Cinder/Princess Selene, Queen Levana, Emperor Rikan
Page Number: 114
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 19 Quotes

“It is why Queen Levana is so striking to look at. Some talented Lunars, such as the queen, keep their glamour up all the time. But just as she cannot trick the netscreens, neither can she trick a mirror.”

“So they don’t like mirrors because they don’t want to see themselves?”

“Vanity is a factor but it is more a question of control. It is easier to trick others into perceiving you as beautiful if you can convince yourself you are beautiful. But mirrors have an uncanny way of telling the truth.”

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene (speaker), Dr. Erland (speaker), Prince Kai, Queen Levana, Sybil Mira
Related Symbols: Mirrors
Page Number: 172
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 23 Quotes

“It is a most useful trick,” said Sybil, sitting on the edge of the chaise lounge by the holographic fire. “Particularly when dealing with unruly citizens, which are never tolerated on Luna.”

“I’ve heard that when citizens are unruly, there’s usually a good reason for it,” said Kai. Torin flashed him a warning frown, but he ignored it. “And brainwashing doesn’t exactly seem like the proper solution.”

Sybil folded her hands politely in her lap. “Proper is such a subjective word. This solution is effective, and that can hardly be argued with.”

Related Characters: Prince Kai (speaker), Sybil Mira (speaker), Queen Levana, Konn Torin
Page Number: 207
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 25 Quotes

Squinting, she jutted a finger at the doctor. “You did use your mind control on me. When we met. You…you brainwashed me, just like the queen. You made me trust you.”

“Be fair. You were attacking me with a wrench.”

Her anger wavered.

Dr. Erland opened his palms to her, “I assure you, Miss Linh, in the twelve years that I have been on Earth, I have not abused the gift once, and I am paying the price for that decision every day. My mental stability, my psychological health, my very senses are failing me because l refuse to manipulate the thoughts and feelings of those around me. Not all Lunars can be trusted—I know that as well as anyone—but you can trust me.”

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene (speaker), Dr. Erland (speaker), Prince Kai, Queen Levana
Page Number: 241-242
Explanation and Analysis:

“Because she was a shell.” He picked his hat off the desk and analyzed it while he spoke, his fingers tracing the herringbone pattern. “I’d agreed with the laws in the past, thought the shells were dangerous. That our society would fall apart if they were allowed to live. But not my little girl.” An ironic smile twisted up his lips. “After she was born, I wanted to run away, to bring her to Earth, but my wife was even more devoted to Her Majesty than I had been. She wanted nothing to do with the child. And so my little Crescent Moon was taken away, like all the others. He stuffed the hat back onto his head and squinted up at Cinder. “She would be about your age now.”

Related Characters: Dr. Erland (speaker), Cinder/Princess Selene, Queen Levana
Page Number: 245
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 32 Quotes

Levana knew he had been searching for Princess Selene. She would kill him. She would take over the Commonwealth. She would wage war on…on the whole planet.

She grasped her head as the world spun around her.

She had to warn him. She couldn’t let him make the announcement.

She could send him a comm, but what were the chances he was checking them during the ball?

The ball.

Cinder peered down at her drab clothes. Her empty ankle. Peony’s dress. The old foot that Iko had saved. The silk gloves. Her head bobbed before she knew what she was agreeing to, and she used the shelves to pull herself to standing. “I’ll go,” she muttered, “I’ll find him.”

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene (speaker), Prince Kai, Queen Levana, Adri, Peony, Iko
Related Symbols: Cinder’s Mechanical Foot
Page Number: 323
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 36 Quotes

“Was it all an illusion?” he asked.

Pain lanced through her chest, squeezing the air out of her. “Kai?”

“Was it all in my head? A Lunar trick?”

Her stomach twisted. “No.” She shook her head, fervently. How to explain that she hadn’t had the gift before? That she couldn’t have used it against him? “I would never lie—”

The words faded. She had lied. Everything he knew about her had been a lie.

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene (speaker), Prince Kai (speaker)
Related Symbols: Cinder’s Mechanical Foot
Page Number: 367
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 38 Quotes

Releasing the new prosthesis, Cinder covered her ears and buried her face against her knee. The draft. All those cyborgs. So many people convinced that it was the right thing. That it was better them than humans. Once a science project, always a science project.

And he’d only wanted to find her.

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene, Prince Kai, Queen Levana, Dr. Erland
Page Number: 382
Explanation and Analysis:

If she didn’t try to stop Levana, what would happen to Kai? Though she tried to block out the question, it continued to plague her, echoing in her thoughts.
Maybe Dr. Erland was right. Maybe she had to run. Maybe she had to try.

She felt for the prosthetic limbs in her lap and wrapped her hands around them. Lifting her head, she looked up at the grate in the prison door. The guard had never closed it.

A tingle passed down her spine. A strange new electricity was thrumming beneath her skin, telling her she wasn’t just a cyborg anymore. She was Lunar now. She could make people see things that weren’t there. Feel things they shouldn’t feel. Do things they didn’t mean to do.

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene, Prince Kai, Queen Levana, Dr. Erland
Page Number: 386
Explanation and Analysis:

As her hands stopped shaking, she slid the stiletto knife out from the new titanium-plated finger and maneuvered the blade against her wrist. The cut was still fresh where she’d started to remove her ID chip before, so they would not be able to track her. This time, there was no hesitation.

Soon, the whole world would be searching for her—Linh Cinder.

A deformed cyborg with a missing foot.

A Lunar with a stolen identity.

A mechanic with no one to run to, nowhere to go. But they would be looking for a ghost.

Related Characters: Cinder/Princess Selene, Prince Kai, Queen Levana, Dr. Erland
Related Symbols: Cinder’s Mechanical Foot
Page Number: 387
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Cinder LitChart as a printable PDF.
Cinder PDF

Luna/Lunars Term Timeline in Cinder

The timeline below shows where the term Luna/Lunars appears in Cinder. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4
Power, Greed, and Evil Theme Icon
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
...this is absurd. Cinder looks up at the moon, where Queen Levana and the other Lunars live. Lunars aren’t human anymore: they can telepathically alter a person’s thoughts and control their... (full context)
Power, Greed, and Evil Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...fire to her nursery. Cinder doesn’t think Prince Kai could ever marry Levana, or any Lunar. (full context)
Chapter 12
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...walks to the lab with Torin, he sees Sybil Mira, the head thaumaturge to the Lunar crown. She is beautiful, but she is the last person he wants to see. Sybil... (full context)
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
...rumors that Princess Selene is still alive—if this is true, he could marry the true Lunar heir. Torin points out that that the whole bloodline is greedy and violent, so Kai... (full context)
Chapter 19
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...that the chips can be sold off illegally for people who want a new identity—like Lunars who have escaped Luna and fled to Earth. Cinder says that this makes it sound... (full context)
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
Cinder also asks Dr. Erland about the Lunars’ glamour. He explains that it’s the ability to manipulate bioelectric energy, and glamour is an... (full context)
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
Dr. Erland asks why Cinder is so interested in the Lunars, and Cinder replies that Kai said Queen Levana is visiting that day. The doctor is... (full context)
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
Cinder is horrified at these revelations: Lunars are cruel people, and she does not want to be one of them. Plus, to... (full context)
Chapter 20
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
Kai watches as Queen Levana descends from her Lunar spacecraft. She wears a long white veil and dress, and she has auburn hair, unblemished... (full context)
Chapter 21
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Resourcefulness, Kindness, and Perseverance Theme Icon
...and the prince at the ball. Cinder also doesn’t want anyone to know that she’s Lunar, and she hopes that Dr. Erland will be the only person who ever knows. (full context)
Chapter 23
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
Power, Greed, and Evil Theme Icon
...way to handle unruly citizens. When Queen Levana returns, she angrily confronts Kai for harboring Lunar fugitives—she’s just seen one in the courtyard with the protesters. Kai says that this is... (full context)
Chapter 24
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...She wonders if Dr. Erland lied to her about being a shell, or about being Lunar. Just then, an android approaches and asks her to follow it into the palace—Kai has... (full context)
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
...more than anyone else, and their talks aren’t going well. She thinks that there are Lunar fugitives on Earth, though he explains that the last thing he wants is more “power-hungry... (full context)
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...girls in the city, but Kai asks why not her. She thinks because she’s cyborg, Lunar, and a mechanic, but she simply says that he doesn’t want her. He tells her... (full context)
Chapter 25
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
...on her in the courtyard, accusing him of lying. He assures her that she is Lunar, but he then reveals that he’s been doing research on her adoptive family. Her stepfather,... (full context)
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...her identity, because otherwise she would have drawn too much attention to herself—it’s hard for Lunars to control their gift at a young age, and those who do manage to control... (full context)
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
Power, Greed, and Evil Theme Icon
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Cinder asks if Kai knows that Dr. Erland is a Lunar, and he says no. He understands the prejudices against Lunars, but not all of them... (full context)
Chapter 26
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
...gathered on a video conference. They start to discuss how the relationship between Earth and Luna has been strained for many years—they need to find a way to prevent a war.... (full context)
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
...that war is imminent if Levana cannot marry Kai. They have images of genetically engineered Lunars that are a cross between human and beast. Kai points out that Queen Levana is... (full context)
Chapter 28
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
Power, Greed, and Evil Theme Icon
...assessment—whole cultures were devastated in the war, along with countless natural resources. Levana says that Luna, having one country and one government, is a fairer arrangement. Kai points out that this... (full context)
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
Power, Greed, and Evil Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
Kai picks up the mirror, noticing that the handle is made of a sparkling material—Lunar material. Torin deduces that Queen Levana was testing Kai. Just then, Kai receives an urgent... (full context)
Chapter 30
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...though she’s just a poor mechanic—but she knows that telling him that she’s cyborg and Lunar would be too much. She fidgets with her gloves but decides against taking them off... (full context)
Chapter 31
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
...the country to its former glory. He also addresses the strained relationship between Earth and Luna, hoping that a time of true peace between them is approaching. He says that he... (full context)
Chapter 32
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...Cinder—Sybil treats her like a prisoner and a slave. Cinder realizes that the girl is Lunar. (full context)
Chapter 35
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
...if Kai is in love with someone else, but she does care that Cinder is Lunar and a shell. Levana insists that Cinder be taken into captivity. (full context)
Stereotypes and Discrimination Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
A guard grabs Cinder, but Kai protests, saying that Cinder isn’t Lunar. Warnings flash on Cinders retina display as she feels a spike of adrenaline. She tells... (full context)
Chapter 37
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
...replaying the first time that Kai visited her booth. Soon, she’ll be transported back to Luna. A guard interrupts her thoughts, bringing in Dr. Erland to visit. He insists on speaking... (full context)
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...starting a war over. He tried to tell her last week, but she’s not only Lunar, and not only not a shell—she’s Princess Selene, Queen Levana’s niece and the true heir... (full context)
Chapter 38
Bravery and Sacrifice Theme Icon
Power, Greed, and Evil Theme Icon
Secrecy and Manipulation Theme Icon
...electricity course through her as she realizes that she is finally in control of her Lunar gift. She takes the knife out of her hand compartment and removes her ID chip... (full context)