53 pages • 1 hour read
Stacia StarkA Court This Cruel and Lovely
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2023A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Prisca’s Power
Prisca’s ability to freeze time is an intrinsic part of her character and introduces The Implications of Identity and Heritage. This magical power has been passed down through her family, and her possession of it means that she is the heir to the lost hybrid kingdom, as only those with time magic can inherit the throne. Her magical talents are therefore a manifestation of her birthright, history, and legacy. As a result, she finds herself positioned as a crucial element to improve the fate of her people. However, this legacy also serves as a burden. Prisca is often pushed to the brink when using her power, bleeding from her nose and feeling as though her body is falling apart under the strain. Her time-stopping ability is therefore representative of the sacrifices she must make to save her people.
However, Prisca’s ability to stop time also symbolizes her desire to exert control upon a chaotic world that shifts treacherously around her and is filled with danger, betrayal, and uncertainty. In this way, her power is also tied to The Struggle Against Oppression. Throughout the novel, she is often at the mercy of forces beyond her control: the rule of King Sabium, her complicated relationship with Lorian, and the ever-present threat of death for those she cares about. The ability to stop time literally allows her to carve out a space in which she is temporarily freed from the oppressive power structures around her. In moments when she feels powerless, she can reclaim that power by forcing the world to bend to her will, even if only for a moment.
Family
In A Court This Cruel and Lovely, family becomes a motif that highlights The Implications of Identity and Heritage and is the central motivator for many of the characters, including Prisca. Her bond with her brother, Tibris, is a driving force behind her actions despite the revelation that they are not related by blood, for brother and sister rely on each other for emotional and physical survival. Later in the story, she also bonds with her biological brother, Demos. Her willingness to make sacrifices to ensure his safety indicates the depths of this bond, and she is just as willing to make crucial sacrifices for the good of her people. These dynamics reinforce the idea that “family” extends to those who share common struggles.
Similarly, most of the rebels are bonded by the shared losses that they experienced at the king’s hands. Most have lost a sibling, child, or significant other to this crusade. As a result, the concept of “family” also represents betrayal and loss. As the secrets about Prisca’s past unravel, it is revealed that she was stolen from her birth family, and her adoptive parents then altered her memory and that of Tibris. This long-ago betrayal complicates her memories of her adoptive mother, who also sacrificed herself to save Prisca from the king’s guards. Prisca’s inner turmoil on this point reflects the darker aspects of familial love, for familial protection sometimes comes at the cost of truth. As with many concepts in the book, family represents a duality; it is a source of love and protection but also of profound pain. Prisca’s journey is in part a quest to reconcile these contradictions.
The Taking and Gifting Ceremonies
The Taking and Gifting ceremonies symbolize The Corruptive Influence of Power, given that King Sabium uses these rituals to keep the people in check by taking their magic. Each ceremony is presided over by one of the king’s assessors and the local priestess, and every resident in the village or town in question is forced to attend. Every child is subjected to a Taking ceremony and stripped of any magic, which is then stored in an oceartus stone. Prisca notes, “The priestesses insisted that the Taking was painless. But no one who had ever seen a newborn lose their magic could ever believe that lie” (171). The reason for subjecting children to this painful process is ostensibly to return their magic to the gods in exchange for continued protection against the fae.
The Gifting ceremony occurs when a person reaches 25 years of age and is “gifted” their full magical abilities by the gods. Both ceremonies are heavily tied to the kingdom’s religion and culture as a whole. It is noted that, traditionally, “The baby wouldn’t be named until after the Taking ceremony” (167), and a Gifting is a rite of passage into adulthood and full citizenship in the kingdom.
However, the entire basis of these ceremonies is a lie. They are not conducted for the good of the people; instead, they are examples of how the kingdom seeks to control identity by stripping individuals of their innate abilities in order to assimilate them into a rigid social structure. The king gives extra power to those he favors while leaving the people in the villages with nothing. The Gifting ceremonies are also a consistent way to weed out hybrids, who are referred to as “the corrupt.” Assessors check every person undergoing the ritual, and any who show signs of magic are taken away to be burned. Avoiding this ceremony is also difficult, as those who are “clean” are separated by the presence of the blue mark. The two ceremonies use religion and fear to control the population and eliminate any threats to the crown.
