Shadow and Bone

Leigh Bardugo

Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2012

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Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Prologue-Chapter 3

Chapters 4-7

Chapters 8-10

Chapters 11-13

Chapters 14-16

Chapters 17-19

Chapter 20-Epilogue

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

The Shadow Fold

The Shadow Fold, sometimes called the Fold or the Unsea, is a symbol of division and greed. Created by the Darkling many years ago, the Fold has plagued Ravka by cutting the mainland off from vital supplies located in West Ravka. It is a place of impossible darkness, inhabited by flying beasts called volcra that feed on humans. Volcra are descended from transformed humans born as a consequence of the Darkling’s greed. They are blind from living in darkness and are frightened away by light.

The Shadow Fold reflects the Darkling’s true nature. Symbolically, it is a manifestation of the saying “blinded by greed.” As long as the Fold exists and the Darkling tries to control it for endless power, Ravka remains both physically and morally divided, and thus weakened against its enemies.

The Stag

As the world’s most powerful amplifier, the stag is used throughout the novel to represent power, mercy, and hope. The stag is a mythical creature thought to only exist in children’s stories, where it’s said to grant wishes to those who spare it. Searching for the stag represents the resiliency of hope: They search against odds that the stag can be found, or even exists, because it is their greatest hope for destroying the Fold. Once the Darkling’s true motives are revealed, Alina and Mal join the search in hopes they’ll find the stag before the Darkling and stop his plans.

The stag also promises power. By killing the stag, the Darkling plans to use its life to control the Fold for power. However, the stag is a peaceful being representing mercy. After the Darkling kills the stag, Alina dreams of its death nightly. The stag is telling Alina her mercy grants her power to control the amplifier against the Darkling. When all hope seems lost for fighting the Darkling, Alina realizes the power of her mercy and escapes. The stag offers hope that mercy and light are stronger than greed and darkness.

Light and Darkness

Bardugo uses imagery of light and darkness as a physical representation of good and evil, through Alina as Sun Summoner and the Darkling as Shadow Summoner. The Darkling’s symbol is a sun in eclipse, foreshadowing his desire to overtake Alina’s power. The Darkling is an ancient Grisha, his years appearing behind his eyes as a “bleak and yawning chasm” (327). His shadows represent age, experience, and greed. Alina’s light represents new hope and goodness.

At first, Alina and the Darkling’s powers work together in a necessary balance of light and dark. The Darkling summons darkness so Alina’s light can best be displayed. At the height of their relationship, at the King’s winter fete, their powers combine in an impressive light show: “I grew the light wider and brighter [...] as he sent inky tendrils of darkness shooting through the light, making them dance” (217). This harmonious blending becomes a battle as Alina discovers the Darkling’s plans and tries to stop the Darkling from killing the stag. In their final standoff in the Shadow Fold, Alina retracts her light, using its absence as a weapon. With her light the only barrier between the Darkling’s entourage and the deadly volcra, Alina leaves them all to their deaths, abandoned in the darkness of the Fold.