Wired vibe between Polgara and Garion in Malloreon

[LittleGreenMan]

So guys don't beat messenger, I m big fan of Edings, read over all 10 books, but in Malloreon I got some strange vibe between lines. Garion is always stunt with Polgara beauty, she give him advice to be more "imaginative" in his marriage.
Did any one else capture his eyes on this?
I

[Menion]

I don't understand what you mean?

Garion is always stunt with Polgara beauty

?

she give him advice to be more "imaginative" in his marriage.

Wasn't that to make Ce'nedra like him again and stop being all catty and angry at him?

Did any one else capture his eyes on this?

Wait...what?

[pyan]

Um - I suspect that LGM is not a native English-speaker. I'd read the post as:

So, guys, don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of Eddings, read all 10 books several times, but in Malloreon, reading between the lines, I got some strange vibes .
Garion is stunned with Polgara's beauty, but she only gives him advice to be more "imaginative" in his marriage.
What does this mean? And did any one else notice this?

[Clansman]

Well, Garion is a king, and with both his parents being killed, Polgara being his mother (more or less), and then being suddenly transformed from farmboy to ridiculously powerful sorcerer-king, with a totally bitchy (not bitchin') wife...

I would be surprised if there was not something just a little tiny bit oedipal about his psyche.

I did see a little of this, in hindsight, but make nothing of it.

And the phrase "capture his eyes" is obviously an expression in another language, the nature of which I would love to learn.

[LittleGreenMan]

Yes, you all are right English is not my native language, but I was referring to a book "Demon Lord of Karanda" where Garion is overwhelm with Polgara beauty, and also she is asking him how is his physical relation with his wife. She is his aunt why she care about that. As for Polgara beauty, Garion should be used to of the way she looks.
When I was reading that it occurred to me, maybe there is a subtext( and not nice one).

[Clansman]

I don't think there is a subtext. Polgara is a meddler in the extreme, and the tension in Garion's marriage is obvious. She is merely trying to fix it.

As for Garion being overwhelmed by auntie's beauty, well, she really is not his aunt, is she? She is, what, 4000 years older than he is? And there have been countless generations of Rivan kings since the death of Beldaran, Garion's ultimate great-grandmother and Polgara's sister.
There is so much DNA between Garion and Polgara that there certainly is no such thing as "prohibited degrees of consanguinity" between them. However, I think that Garion was just noting on an objective standard that Polgara was beautiful in a magestic kind of way.

'course, I could be wrong, and Garion might have some really nasty urges going on. eew.

[nixie]

Lets not go down that road, doesn't bear thinking about

Garion, is in awe of Polgara. As Clansman says she is a meddler in the extreme.

[Menion]

I rather think after 2000 years (was it?) they would want to make sure that Garion get's the mojo and produces an heir before he goes on one mad dangerous adventure to many.

[x'oraya]

Very right. Cannot think about Aunt Pol that way.

Meddler-majestic connection is really what Eddings meant, I think.

x

[ghost8772]

Originally Posted by x'oraya

Very right. Cannot think about Aunt Pol that way.

Meddler-majestic connection is really what Eddings meant, I think.

x

Thats because Eddings only spent about half a page anytime Garion looked at his aunt, to throw in how perfect, beautiful, and regal Polgara looked. Garion never had anything resembling an Oedipus Complex regarding her, and even Pol questioning him about, and tossing suggestions about his sex life with Ce'Nedra shocked and embarrassed him. not the response of someone..... with a romantic notion...... I think says it maturely enough.

[Polly_Nightwings]

I know it's rude, but this thread nearly made me burst from holding my laughter in (I'm in school now). I could literally envision your looks of discomfort while reading this.

David Eddings was probably just emphasizing how perfect Polgara looked - possibly to endear her to readers, seeing as how bossy she can be at times - through Garion. Garion's characterised as an objective and observant boy, so he serves as our seeing eye guide through his adventures in the Belgariad and the Mallorean. I highly doubt there's anything to his admiration of Polgara's beauty. Even her father remarks about her beauty quite frequently in his book and the two series...no...no, don't even think about it.

I remember telling my brother several days ago how Zandramas was designed to be the anti-thesis of Polgara by David and Leigh Eddings. He then calmly replied that that suggests a parallel in the relationship between her and Geran, and Polgara and Garion. Obviously, Zandramas, the caretaker of baby Geran, chose to regard the latter as her husband. Polgara on the other hand, the caretaker of baby Garion, chose to be the latter's guardian and mother. My brother then concluded that in a twisted way, it might have been hinted that Polgara's and Garion's relationship could have turned out quite differently. This is probably going to gross a lot of you out, but Garion did propose to Polgara when he was just a little boy. You may argue and say that he was just a little boy spouting rubbish, and I would completely agree with you, but it still happened...and that's open to interpretation.

I was apalled by this, but it does make sense...in a twisted sort of way. Still, I'm going to just forget it and pretend that it never happened. Ha ha.

[jastius]

Garion grew up with a mixed bag of adults who would advise him and teach him how to get along. Durnik acted basically as his father figure, but Durnik was both a bachelor and a Sendar... as such Durnik would have been too prudish to tutor Garion in the dynamics of an adult interpersonal relationship. And having Durnik for a role model, Garion turns out to be extremely prudish...he would probally be a great deal worse if it wasn't for Relg's example of how not to go on...
But Garion has needed to be cozened out of his prudish behavior at times when it becomes a necessity. Ce'Nedra usually has this wrapped up but remember, she was just getting over another funk. Polgara knew that it was Garion who would have the clearest bead upon Ce'Nedra's normal pattern of behavior at that point; but Garion with his tendency to be overly nice and proper at times could actually create such a distance between himself and his wife that he wouldn't realize something was affecting her, until disaster struck. Garion at that point was making Ce'Nedra feel undesirable physically by his neglect and squeamishness... this is actually very usuall a pattern that young married couples experience after the birth of a child... the husband no longer sees his wife in the role of romantic partner but instead as an untouchable mother figure. Usually a primary care physician would have a little chat with the couple either separately or together and encourage them to be together.
As Polgara was Garion and Ce'Nedra's ersatz primary medical care adviser, it was indeed her role to both inquire and advise.
I really thought this was another of David Eddings little life lessons that he has sprinkled through-out the series.

as for the ideaof there being another path available to Garion and Polgara... we'll never know now...