Stardust

by

Neil Gaiman

Stardust: Chapter 8 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
Septimus walks up the mountain pass, leading a pony. He finds a small chariot, a dead goat, and a dead boy. He then finds Primus’s corpse. Primus’s ghost, standing with his other dead brothers, watches. Septimus will now be the 82nd Lord of the Stormhold, though Quintus notes he still needs the Power of Stormhold, and Secundus notes that he must avenge Primus’s death first. Septimus, speaking like he can hear the ghosts, is annoyed Primus didn’t wait until Septimus could kill him. The ghosts sigh that Septimus will be the next Lord of Stormhold—but Quintus points out that they shouldn’t get ahead of themselves. Septimus casts his brother’s runes, and Primus curses him to choke on them if he doesn’t avenge Primus’s murder.
The implication is that Septimus finds whatever remains of the inn, which have now reverted to their original forms (the inn is a chariot again, while Brevis and Billy have turned to their original boy and goat forms). That Morwanneg discarded them again points to her own moral depravity. She shows them no respect in death, just as she showed them no respect in life. The dead brothers, meanwhile, introduce readers to a new rule: Septimus must avenge Primus’s death. Given the role magic plays in the novel, it seems very likely that bad things will actually happen—including Primus literally casting a curse on him—if he doesn’t follow it.
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Quotes
Meanwhile, Tristran and the star sit on a soft, cold cloud. Tristran pushes his hand into it, which soothes his burnt hand. He laments that he messed everything up, but the star notes that he saved her—though she still hates him. This is mostly because now, according to the stars’ laws, she’s bound to him and is responsible to him, just as he’s responsible to her.
Tristran and the star are still tied together, but metaphorically now rather than physically, as they were with the chain. They now must care for each other—notably, something that requires them both to humanize the other. This is annoying for the star now, but it hints that their relationship may shift as they build their new relationship.
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Tristran suggests they start over and introduces himself. The star insults him and refuses for a minute, but finally says her name is Yvaine. Tristran shows her his burnt hand when she asks, noting that she’d be dead now if he hadn’t burnt it. He lists all the ways things are going wrong right now and all the danger they’re in—they could fall if the cloud disappears—but then he shrugs and suggests they enjoy the view while they still can. Yvaine declines to join Tristran due to her broken leg, and she agrees not to run away. Tristran trusts her.
Yvaine, of course, can’t run away from Tristran—she’s being facetious here as she agrees not to run. Furthermore, she’s bound to Tristran by the rules guiding stars’ behavior, so it seems likely on many fronts that she genuinely has no choice but to stay put. While she embodies a moodier form of youth here, Tristran looks humorously young and optimistic.
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Morwanneg is no longer young and beautiful. Her hair is gray, her face is dull and wrinkled, and she has an ugly scar on her shoulder. She drives the black horses hard. When she reaches a particular rock formation, she stops the horses and opens the carriage door to reveal the dead unicorn. Biting her tongue until it bleeds, Morwanneg spits onto the unicorn’s tongue and tells it to move. The unicorn stumbles to a depression at the base of the rock formation and kneels. Morwanneg slices the unicorn’s throat, and when the blood doesn’t flow fast enough, she hacks its head off.
In this horrifying scene, Morwanneg corrupts something good and pure—the unicorn—for her own purposes. This continues to show her selfishness, and her willingness to do pretty much anything if it will get her closer to what she wants. The novel reinforces this by describing first how she abuses the living black horses, showing her utter lack of care for others.
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When Morwanneg has made a pool of blood, she stares through it at the other two Lilim. They scold her for wasting the last of the previous star’s heart, and Morwanneg snaps that she can’t locate the star. The other two say she’s headed for the Market at Wall—they all know that if she crosses the wall, she’ll become a rock and they’ll never get her heart. Morwanneg decides to go Diggory’s Dyke, as everyone passes through there to get to Wall. She takes the unicorn’s head with her, as the horn has magical properties she and her sisters can use.
Recall that the last star fell about 200 years ago, and Morwanneg ate the last of that star’s heart to achieve a temporarily youthful state so she could pursue Yvaine. In this passage, the Lilim also create some tension for the readers, as they make it clear that Tristran won’t be able to take Yvaine herself into Wall: she’ll cease to be a human being if he does so. This calls into question whether Tristran has any chance of success at his quest.
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Tristran sits high on the cloud, wondering why none of his “penny dreadful” heroes were ever hungry. He’s tired of this adventure, though of course it’s nice to be alive. Somehow, it seems as though his problems are all far below him. He begins to shout “Halloo,” just in case there’s anyone to hear and help. When he returns to Yvaine, he suggests that after he gives Yvaine to Victoria, they should get Yvaine back up into the sky. Yvaine insists that’s impossible, but Tristran says if she believes, maybe she could be the first. As Yvaine says it's as impossible as someone coming to rescue them, they hear a voice above, offering assistance. He’s in a small, flying ship, and he tosses down a ladder for Tristran and Yvaine to hold onto and pulls them up.
Tristran loved the “penny dreadfuls” and found them entertaining. But as he grows and has adventures of his own, he comes to realize that they truly are fiction: they entertain and leave out important parts of the human experience, such as that heroes such as himself get hungry. When Tristran returns to Yvaine, he shows that he now respects her and wants to help her (rather than just forcing her to help him) by getting her back into the sky. His optimism is, once again, humorous—and likely maddening for morose Yvaine.
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When Tristran and Yvaine are safely on the deck, the man introduces himself as Captain Johannes Alberic of the Free Ship Perdita. They’re on a lightning-hunting expedition. He calls for Meggot to attend to Tristran’s hand, and then the entire crew of seven eats together with Tristran and Yvaine. Long after Tristran’s journey is over, he thinks of his journey on the Perdita—and the rest of his trip through Faerie—as an extremely happy time. Life on the ship is exciting.
The name Perdita, interestingly, means “lost.” That Tristran so enjoys his time on the “lost” ship suggests that during this time, his real life is at such a distance that he’s able to truly live in the moment. This again reads as a representation of youth: Tristran gets to “lose” himself for a period before, the novel suggests, settling down and finishing his journey.
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Eventually, the captain informs Tristran that the ship will stop soon, and it’s time to let Tristran and the star off. They’ll still have to travel about 10 weeks to get to Wall, but the star’s leg is now nearly healed. Then, the captain admits in a conspiratorial manner that he’d been looking for Tristran; he’s part of a fellowship of sorts, and he draws and then erases a castle. Tristran realizes the small hairy man is part of it, too. They all want to see Tristran return safely to Wall. The captain also suggests to Tristran that to fool others, the star should at least pretend to eat. A week later, Meggot takes Yvaine’s splint off, and though Yvaine continues to limp, she can walk well. Two days later, they disembark with gifts from the crew. Somehow, Tristran feels like he’s losing something as he returns to the ground.
Captain Alberic and the small hairy man (and even Primus) function as Tristran’s mentors, teaching him and guiding him to safety as he comes of age over the course of their journey. They’re able to do this, and offer the advice they do, in part because their age has given them wisdom—and in contrast to Morwanneg, they see it as their responsibility to pass that wisdom on to the next generation rather than hoarding it. Tristran feels the sense of loss disembarking the Perdita because, in a way, he comes of age—leaves childhood behind—as he does so.
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Tristran and Yvaine travel west. Sometimes, Tristran works for an afternoon at farms in exchange for food, and sometimes they room at an inn. Once, Tristran recites several classic poems from memory in a tavern, which causes the townsfolk to try to detain him as their bard. Another evening, Yvaine sings. The music is almost magical, and when she’s finished, Yvaine explains that she and her sisters used to sing together. He apologizes for everything, but Yvaine says that she’s still alive—and she feels lucky that she fell in Faerie and met Tristran. Still, she continues to stare up at the skies.
Here, Tristran learns just how valuable literary works are in Faerie: they almost lead to his imprisonment, as the townsfolk want constant access to the stories. Yvaine and Tristran’s conversation after she sings suggests that Yvaine is coming around to life on Earth and to her traveling companion. This doesn’t mean she doesn’t miss her original home, but it does suggest that she’s starting to view Faerie as a place where she potentially could be happy.
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Tristran is looking for breakfast one morning when he comes across a large, brightly-colored bird in the undergrowth. It’s clearly terrified, and Tristran approaches slowly and unwinds the silver chain attached to the bird’s foot, which is stuck on a root. When it’s free, Tristran tells the bird to go home, but it won’t go. It just stares at him. As Tristran bends down to pick the bird up, something stuns him, and an old woman begins shouting threats at Tristran. Tristran explains that he merely freed the bird, and the woman allows him to go. He returns to Yvaine, who’s sore from all the walking and now cries at night. Though Tristran hopes the moon might send another unicorn, he knows it won’t.
Recall that the bird is the young woman Dunstan had sex with in the first chapter—and so, the bird is implied to be Tristran’s mother. This, presumably, is why the bird won’t leave him alone when he tries to shoo it away. Tristran’s only goal when he encounters the bird is to free it, suggesting that he’s evolved from seeing other living beings as things to own. He recognizes the bird’s autonomy and wants to help it. Similarly, he’s now focused on trying to alleviate Yvaine’s pain as they travel.
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A while later, as Tristran and Yvaine are walking along the road, the old woman and her mule-drawn caravan pass them. She calls Tristran to her, apologizes, and declaring him “honest enough,” offers to take him to Wall if he works in her flower-stall. She introduces herself as Madame Semele. Tristran and Yvaine confer, but when the two of them return to Madame Semele, the woman doesn’t seem to see or hear Yvaine. Tristran offers to pay for his and Yvaine’s transport to Wall, but he won’t work in her stall. Madame Semele begins to leave—but then, Tristran pulls out the glass snowdrop. Madame Semele wants it, but Tristran says it was a gift from his father and is very important to him. After deliberating, Madame Semele suggests they can come up with something.
Readers know that Madame Semele is both selfish and tricky—she seems to want someone to work her stall who isn’t the young woman, as that means she can keep the young woman in her bird form and control her better. Tristran doesn’t realize the significance of his snowdrop, but he does understand that it’s valuable. His caution as he negotiates with Madame Semele speaks to his growing maturity. He’s no longer quite as naive as he once was.
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The bird appears from the caravan, and Yvaine asks why Madame Semele keeps it chained. Ignoring Yvaine, Madame Semele offers to take Tristran to Wall and to neither harm him nor let anyone else harm him. Tristran agrees, though he doesn’t trust her, and he hands over the glass snowdrop. She reveals that the snowdrop is powerful, and she passes it in front of Tristran’s face. Suddenly, the world becomes huge and blurry, and Madame Semele picks up Tristran—now a dormouse—and puts him in a cage in the caravan. Yvaine follows Madame Semele inside, asking where she’s going to travel, but the woman continues to ignore her. Yvaine realizes that Madame Semele can’t see or hear her. Madame Semele tells the bird that she’ll turn both Tristran and the bird into humans at Wall—and that Tristran’s flower is even better than the one the bird gave away.
Readers should recall that Morwanneg cursed Madame Semele to be unable to perceive the star. The bird is under no such curse because Morwanneg didn’t see her as important enough to worry about. As Madame Semele turns Tristran into a mouse, she shows how she uses rules and agreements to her advantage, seeking out technicalities and loopholes. Her observation that the snowdrop is better than the one she gave away is interesting. Readers know that this is the very same snowdrop the young woman gave away, which suggests that something—perhaps the fact that it was given away out of love—has imbued it with some quality that makes it more valuable.
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Quotes
Yvaine spends her days sleeping in Madame Semele’s bed and her nights staring at the stars, sometimes with the bird. The bird ignores her when Madame Semele is awake, though. Yvaine also cares for Tristran. When they encounter other travelers, Yvaine tries to stay hidden—but she also finds that even if someone addresses her or asks about her, Madame Semele still can’t perceive her. Weeks pass as the caravan travels toward Wall.
The bird, an enslaved young woman, feels no loyalty toward Madame Semele beyond whatever her curse dictates she must. As such, it seems likely that this causes her to favor Yvaine and work to keep the star safe—and it’s no doubt satisfying to see Madame Semele thwarted by Morwanneg’s curse.
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