# XXX: Farewell to Freydis explained — Figures of Earth

> Chapter companion for Figures of Earth by James Branch Cabell.

## What happens

Queen Freydis, having baptized Manuel and Niafer's newborn daughter Melicent, confronts Dom Manuel about his past and the creation of Sesphra. She reveals that Sesphra is her husband and that she was tempted to destroy Manuel and his family but ultimately cannot. Freydis departs to seek Sesphra and her pardon, leaving Manuel to face his fate as Miramon Lluagor's ship arrives to end his exile.

## Themes in this chapter

### The Geas of Obligation

Manuel reflects on the inescapable obligations that drive his life, stating 'at no time in a man's life... is there lacking some obligation or another.'

### The Artist and the Creation

Manuel confronts the consequences of creating Sesphra, a being he cannot control, lamenting 'I have loosed among mankind a blighting misery.'

### Love and Disillusionment

Freydis's love for Manuel has soured into disillusionment, as she calls him a 'gray traitor' and a 'cold and hard and colorless... pebble.'

### The Inevitability of Misery

Freydis notes that Melicent's life will contain 'far less of joy than of sorrow, for that is the way it is with the life of everybody.'

## Character check-ins

### Dom Manuel

Gray and staid, Manuel is confronted by Freydis about his past and his creation of Sesphra. He shows remorse and self-loathing but maintains composure.

### Freydis

Resplendent in flame-colored silk, Freydis baptizes Melicent, reveals her love for Sesphra, and ultimately spares Manuel despite temptation to destroy him.

### Niafer

Lies in a charmed sleep on the golden bed, unaware of the events unfolding around her.

### Melicent

Newborn daughter of Manuel and Niafer, baptized by Freydis as a Christian.

### Sesphra of the Dreams

The lame creature created by Manuel, now Freydis's husband. He flees through the fire after the baptism.

## Key lines

> For all passes in this world save one thing only: and though the young Manuel whom I loved in a summer that is gone, be nowadays as perished as that summer's gay leaves, it is certain a woman's folly does not ever perish.

Everything in the world fades except a woman's enduring foolishness, which outlasts even the memory of the young Manuel she once loved.

_Freydis reflects on the permanence of her folly compared to the transience of her love for Manuel._

> I have loosed among mankind a blighting misery which I cannot control at all.

I have unleashed a destructive force upon humanity that I am utterly powerless to manage.

_Manuel laments his creation of Sesphra and the harm it will cause._

> At no time in a man's life, I find, is there lacking some obligation or another: and we must meet each as we best can, not hoping to succeed, just aiming not to fall short too far.

A man is never free from obligations; he must face each one as best he can, striving not for success but to avoid complete failure.

_Manuel philosophizes about the burdens of duty that define his life._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/figures_of_earth_se/chapters/xxx-farewell-to-freydis
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/figures_of_earth_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/figures_of_earth_se/chapters