Spoiler alert: This post is part of an in-depth discussion of Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny, which will inevitably reveal key plot points. If you don't want me ruining the experience for you, put this post down and go read Nine Princes in Amber now. I promise I won't be offended.
Our protagonist wakes up in a hospital after a car accident. He has amnesia, but he learns that he was admitted under the name Carl Corey, and that his sister, Evelyn Flaumel, has been paying to keep him there, under sedation. In Chapter 2 of Nine Princes in Amber, Corey has escaped the hospital and takes a bus to New York to meet with his sister. En route, he contemplates that the car accident that put him there was likely not accidental.
At Evelyn's mansion, Corey is admitted to the library, where he meets his sister face-to-face. As they talk, Corey does his best to fish for information while not letting on that he has lost his memory. Parts of his memory begin to resurface. His real name is Corwin, not Corey, and Evelyn's is Florimel. She wants to know where Corwin stands on some unspecified issue. Still in the dark, Corwin affects a neutral position and agrees to stay with Florimel, where she can keep an eye on him.
Between Corwin's fishing expedition and his partial recovery of his memories, the mystery is starting to become clearer.
Corey's real name is Corwin. I believe this given name is of Welsh origin. It may also be related to the Latin genus Corvus, that family of birds that includes crows, jackdaws, and ravens. Crows in folklore are often bad omens: consider, for example, the crows the orcs use as spies in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, or the raven of Edgar Allan Poe's eponymous poem. They're also a heraldic symbol. In fact a Polish family, Korwin, has a raven in its coat of arms. Is this a coincidence?
Corwin has a flashback in which he and his sister are together at some sort of party. She is in green, while he is wearing what he calls "my colors," black and silver. Are these heraldic colours, perhaps? It seems obvious that Corwin is one of the titular princes. (And aren't black and silver crow colours?)
Florimel is the name of the heroine in John Dryden's 1667 play The Maiden Queen. I don't know this work, so I can't tell whether her name has any symbolic meaning, or if Zelazny just chose a cool name from early English literature. She is indeed Corwin's sister; that wasn't a lie. Corwin seems to have a hostile relationship with the rest of his family. Indeed, even this meeting has an undertone of hostility and confrontation. On the other hand, there seems to be a détente of sorts between Corwin and Florimel. She even calls him her favourite brother.
Corwin remembers his brother Eric, whom he hates, and suspects had something to do with his accident. Eric is a Norse name meaning "one ruler." Is this name significant? Two other brothers are also mentioned by name, Julian and Caine. His relationship with them is also hostile, though perhaps less than between him and Eric. Another figure, Bleys, is mentioned, although his relationship to Corwin is as yet unknown.
In chapter 2, we get our first mention of Amber:
"You're right," she said, sipping her drink. "I almost feel in Amber with you around," and I almost dropped my drink.
Amber! The word had sent a bolt of lightning down my spine!
Then she began to cry, and I rose and put my arm around her shoulders to comfort her.
"Don't cry, little girl. Please don't. It makes me unhappy, too." Amber! There was something there, something electrical and potent! "There will be good days once again," I said, softly.
By contrast, Florimel calls this world "Shadow." Is the contrast between shadow and reality? Is our world a pale imitation of Amber in some way? Or is it a contrast between light and darkness, good and evil, in which compared to our world, Amber is a paradise? We shall soon see, I'm sure.
Like Corwin, we still don't know exactly what's going on. If I were to take a guess, I'd say that there is a rivalry between Corvin and his brothers (or at least Corwin and Eric) for the throne in Amber. (Who is on that throne currently?) Eric orchestrated Corwin's "accident." It's unclear to the others where Corwin stands, and possibly they wanted him kept out of the way so he wouldn't go York to their Lancaster.
There's plenty of book left, though, so we'll see. Chapter 3 of the Nine Princes in Amber readthrough will be posted next Thursday.
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