Analysis / The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

The Imprisoning War or: How to retell a tale

Introduction:

In the discipline of folkloristics and narratology, a motif is the smallest element of storytelling, units that, when arranged into a certain sequence, create a cohesive tale. As such, in these disciplines, the six-volume Motif-Index of Folk-Literature, by American folklorist Stith Thompson, lists alphabetically every possible recurring motif that appears in stories and folklore around the world.

The Tale:

In the Backstory to A Link to the Past, it is described in the manual/instruction booklet that an evil thief king named Ganon seized the Golden Goddesses's treasure, the Triforce, in the Golden Land. With his dark desires, Ganon reshapes the Golden Land into the tenebrous Dark World, then sets his sights on the Light counterpart where Hyrule is located.

The Hyrule Kingdom, leading its knights, and helped by the Seven Sages, take the fight againt Ganon and push him back into the Dark World, where he remains sealed due to the seal of the Seven Sages. Imprisoned in the Dark World, there Ganon remains, until the events of A Link to the Past.

This is called "The Imprisoning War".

The Devil is in the Details

Now, A Link to the Past was released in 1991/1992. The next major release for the Zelda franchise is Ocarina of Time, in 1998, who offers a version of the events described in the above paragraph.

The Imprisoning War in Ocarina of Time

Ocarina of Time: Journey to the Past

Ocarina of Time divides its storyline in two segments: "Child Link" and "Adult Link".

Ocarina of Time: Childhood's End

During the "Child Link" segment, our hero Link is awakened to adventure (and his grand destiny) by the wise Great Deku Tree. After venturing inside the tree, the boy learns of an upcoming danger to all of Hyrule: Ganondorf, who is aiming to find the three stones of the three main peoples, the Kokiri Emerald, the Goron Ruby and the Zora Sapphire.

Link then journeys to Hyrule Castle where he meets with young princess Zelda. Zelda reveals to Link that a man named Ganondorf, from the desert, has come to the castle to pledge (feigned) allegiance to her father, the King of Hyrule. Together, the kids hatch a plan to find the remaining stones from the Gorons and the Zoras and access the Sacred Realm before Ganondorf does.

Eventually, Link helps the Gorons and the Zoras, obtains the three Spiritual Stones, and goes to the Temple of Time in Hyrule Town to open the secret room and withdraw the Master Sword from its pedestal. Unfortunately, Link and Zelda played right into Ganondorf's plans, and the evil Gerudo king reshapes Hyrule to his liking.

Ocarina of Time: Adult Link

Seven years pass. Link, now a youth, meets a Sage named Rauru (pointy-eared and Hylian-like/Ancient Hylian?) in the Chamber of Sages. Rauru explains Link was kept in stasis for 7 years until he was the right age to wield the Master Sword, and sets the hero on another heroic quest to waken up the Sages of Hyrule inside their respective temples. As proof of his mission, Rauru gifts him the Light Medallion.

Continuing on his quest, Link traverses the five temples of Hyrule, awakening each of the remaining Sages: Saria from the Kokiri (Forest), Darunia of the Gorons (Fire), Ruto of the [Rivers] Zoras (Water), Impa of the Sheikah (Shadow) and Nabooru of the Gerudo (Spirit). After gaining the six medallions, Link returns to the Temple of Time and meets with his mysterious helper, a Sheikah named Sheik - who is no one other than Princess Zelda herself (modern Hylian), also the Seventh Sage.

At the end of the game, Zelda and the six other Sages combine their powers to banish Ganondorf to another realm, and Zelda sends Link back in time to his childhood, seven years ago.

The Imprisoning War in Tears of the Kingdom — (UNMARKED SPOILERS)

Tears of the Kingdom. WARNING: from this point on, there will be spoilers. ! Spoilers Off. You Have Been Warned.

Tears of the Kingdom: Prologue

Zelda and Link investigate some Zonai ruins underneath the debris of Hyrule Castle, and discover a series of murals depicting "a great war" between "allied tribes" against the Demon King. After a first glance of the images, Zelda giddily exclaims that the panels depict the "Imprisoning War".

Further on, Zelda and Link discover Ganondorf's desiccated corpse, sealed away with a creatures's decayed arm in an extended position on Ganon's chest. Ganon regains consciousness as the ground falls apart under their feet. Zelda falls deep into the darkness, the decayed hand saves Link.

Tears of the Kingdom: The Zonai Tutorial Area

Guided by a mysterious voice, Link wakes up in the Garden of Time, overlooking the Temple of Time. He notices that his right hand has been replaced with the previously decayed arm, who belonged to a tall rabbit-like creature named Rauru, one of the Zonai.

After an extended tutorial, Link manages to open the Temple of Time and sends the fragment of the Master Sword to Zelda via the Recall ability (imbued in his replacement arm). After that, Rauru says his goodbyes, and Link is ready for another adventure...

Tears of the Kingdom: Awakening the Sages

Link jumps from the Zonai Floating Continent (or pieces of it) to the compound housing the Hylian populace and convenes with the Sheikah allies (Purah, Robbie and Josha) about the status of Hyrule after the Upheaval: Zelda is missing, a miasma-like substance called Gloom poisons the land, and chasms have been popping up all around Hyrule. Link then goes to meet with his former allies in the Hyrule tribes, beginning with the Rito.

The avian Rito are dealing with a strange blizzard storm, and new Rito elder's fledgling, Tulin, joins forces with Link to ride to the eye of the storm and brave the the Wind Temple, after which Tulin inherits his ancestor's role as Wind Sage.

Next, Link goes to Death Mountain to meet with Yunobo, now an entrepreneur and CEO of YunoboCo., a mining operation. The Gorons, however, seem to be addicted to a new type of roast rock sirloin excavated from the Gloomy depths of the Mountain. With Link's help, Yunobo digs deep into the matter, finds the Fire Temple and awakens as the Gorons' Fire Sage.

The third point in Link's quest is Zora's Domain, which is plagued by a current of sludge that has poisoned its water sources. With King's Dorephan's help, Link and Sidon march to the sky high Water Temple to face the originator of the sludge and purify the waters of the Zoras.

The fourth leg of the quest involves Link going to the Gerudo city in the desert, this time suffering a strange sandstorm that covered the city. With the help of the queen of the Gerudo, Riju, they track its origin to the Lightning Temple in the middle of desert.

After gathering the Sages from the tribes of Hyrule, Sheikah scholar Purah deduces they have a still missing sage: Mineru, Rauru's sister. With this new goal in mind, Link traverses the gloomy depths and finds the ruins of the Spirit Temple, and a quick detour to the lighting-struck sky islands, our hero takes an ancient Zonai mask holding Mineru's spirit to a makeshift body: a Zonai construct.

Finally clearing the Spirit Temple, and discovering the Zelda they have been seeing all around Hyrule was a Phantom Ganon, Link and the Sages make their way to the imprisoning chamber underneath Hyrule's Castle, for the final battle.

Zelda's Journey: Tale as Old as Time (Travel)

During the game, Link/the player can obtain flashback sequences that show Zelda's whereabouts, by approaching puddles of water in geoglyphs spread throughout Hyrule.

As shown in the flashbacks, Zelda is cast backwards in time to the period of the foundation of Hyrule (in the BotW-canon), and meets her ancestors: Sonia, the first Queen of Hyrule (Ancient Hylian?), and Rauru, the first King (a Zonai). The monarchs welcome Zelda as their own, and introduce her to Mineru, Rauru's sister, to see if the girl can find some way to return to her own time.

In the meantime, Zelda mingles with the ancient Hyruleans and tries to learn more about her powers. Eventually, she helps Rauru and Sonia against a first attempt by Ganondorf and the Gerudo Tribe. This event triggers the Gerudo King's curiosity in getting a "secret stone", like Sonia's, Mineru's and Rauru's.

The next time we see Ganondorf, he goes to Rauru's court and pledges (feigned) allegiance to Hyrule, in hopes of getting closer to one secret stone. However, Rauru anticipated his plans, and hopes that, by placing Ganondorf closer, they can keep eyes on him.

However, the best laid plans of the Zonai and Hyruleans go awry, as Ganondorf kills Sonia and steals her secret stone, augmenting his power immensely. Zelda and Rauru reunite with members of the other Hyrulean tribes and lends each of them a secret stone, making them sages to counterbalance Ganondorf's powers.

The Sages, Zelda and Rauru all gather to confront Ganon, now as a Demon King, but his powers far surpass theirs. As a last resort, Rauru launches a desperate attack and seals Ganon with his powers of Light for thousands of years, at the cost of his own life.

After Ganondorf is sealed, Zelda (whom the tribe sages refer as "Sage of Time") approaches each of the unnamed tribal sages (a Rito, a Gerudo, a Zora and a Goron) and convinces them to swear the next sages of their respective tribes will aid the hero in the (distant) future to defeat Ganondorf when he returns.

After talking to Mineru, another survivor of the Imprisoning War, Zelda decides to use the draconification process as a desperate measure to have the Master Sword reach Link thousands of years in the future, all the while recharging it with her powers of Light.

A Twice Told Tale, or A Tale of Two Games:

Based on comparison between both stories, we can extract common elements (motifs) shared between both narratives:

• Characters: a hero named Link (L or H), a princess named Zelda (Z), a villain named Ganon(dorf) (G), the King of Hyrule (K), Rauru (R), the Seven Sages (7S).
• Actions/Functions:

1. Link and Zelda work together in some capacity;
2. The Seven Sages are linked to an attribute or element;
3. Zelda is associated with Time;
4. The Sages may be selected from the peoples/races of Hyrule and/or may represent each one;
5. The Sages need to be (re)awakened;
6. Rauru is the Sage of Light;
7. Zelda is described as the Seventh Sage (or the last Sage);
8. Rauru is the oldest of the sages, or belongs to an older generation of them;
9. Link is incapacitated at the beginning of his quest for the sages (in temporal stasis in OoT; placed in a healing chamber in TotK);
10. Rauru sets Link on the quest for the Seven Sages;
11. Time travel is involved;
12. In order to awaken the Sages, Link must brave a "Temple" related to the Sage's attribute;
13. Zelda is (goes) missing at the start of (or before) the quest for the Sages;
14. Ganondorf was once an ambitious man before using a powerful relic to transform into the Demon King who threatens Hyrule for centuries to come.^note The Goddesses' Triforce in OoT, Sonia's secret stone in TotK.
15. Ganon(dorf) takes over Hyrule Castle;
16. Ganon(dorf) reshapes Hyrule Castle as an inaccessible floating fortress of evil;
17. The Temple of Time is Link's first stop at the start of the quest for the Sages;
18. A member of the Zoras is selected as a Sage;
19. A member of the Gorons is selected as a Sage;
20. A member of the Gerudo is selected as a Sage;
21. Ganon(dorf) betrays a king of Hyrule;^note In OoT, young Zelda says Ganondorf feigns allegiance to her father and betrays him offscreen. In TotK, he does it on-screen, but Rauru, the king in that game, allowed the Gerudo King to be closer to him as part of his plan.
22. The Master Sword is the object on which time travel is applied;^note In OoT, it is the means that allows Link to time travel; in TotK, it travels back to the past due to the Recall command.
23. A Phantom Ganon (a facsimile of the real one) appears in some capacity.^note In OoT, as a singular boss, in the Forest Temple. In TotK, both as a boss (almost late game) and as a suprise enemy that appears after the player defeats the Gloom Hands in certain areas.
24. Princess Zelda is Hidden in Plain Sight during the storyline, and is secretly helping Link.^note In OoT, she is diguised as a Sheikah named Sheik and teaches Link the teleport songs. In TotK, she is the Light Dragon that roams around Hyrule's skies, and has convinced the ancient sages to help Link and their successors.
25. Link obtains with Zelda the means to defeat/destroy Ganon(dorf).^note In OoT, as is custom, Zelda gifts him the Light Arrows/Arrows of Light. In TotK, Link has to jump on the Light Dragon's head, which is Zelda in draconic form, to pull out the Master Sword from her hair.
26. An incarnation of the Great Deku Tree is suffering with an internal parasite, and Link must venture inside it to liberate it.^note A Queen Gohma in OoT, Gloom Hands/Phantom Ganon in TotK. Alternatively, destroying a Phantom Ganon restores a forest.^note In OoT, liberating the Forest Temple allows for the Deku Tree Sprout to grow, while in this game it reverts Kokiri Forest and its inhabitants (the Deku Tree and the Kokiri) to normal.
27. The means to destroy Ganon is made of/imbued with light.^note In OoT, as is custom, Zelda gifts him the Light Arrows/Arrows of Light. In TotK, the Light Dragon's head, which is Zelda in draconic form, has strengthened the Master Sword with her/its powers of Light.

The Narrative:

Uniting the motifs indicated above, it is possible to extract the scheme of the "Imprisoning War" story:

• Princess Zelda disappears; Ganon(dorf) takes over Hyrule Castle and reshapes it to his image, while Link is incapacitated in some shape or form. However, Link wakes up and meets Rauru, a Sage of the old generation that sets him on the quest for other Sages. Thus, Link begins a journey to find the Sages around Hyrule, who will be selected from the many species that dwell in Hyrule (especially from the Zora, the Gorons and the Gerudo).

• Starting at the Temple of Time, Link ventures into the "Temples" related to an attribute of the Sage and awakens them, each representing an attribute or element of nature. Unbeknownst to Link, Zelda is helping/has helped him in his quest. During his journey, Link ventures into a forest of Hyrule, to liberate the Great Deku Tree from an internal menace, thus restoring equilibrium to the place. Also, he fights an pseudo-incarnation of Ganon (a phantom).

• At the end of his journey, Link meets with the last Sage, Zelda, who herself possesses time powers. From her he obtains the means to fight Ganon, in whatever form he appears. The weapon Link receives is Light-attribute, to oppose Ganon.

Ending remarks:

Common motifs aside, some ending remarks on the variables:

1. Some attributes are recurring: Water, Fire, Time, Light and Spirit, the former three related, respectively, to the Zoras, the Gorons, and Zelda.
   1. Light may overlap with Time as Zelda's attribute in other games, while Water and Fire seem to be firmly entrenched with Zoras and Gorons, regardless of the game.
   2. Barring these ones, the developers may choose other elements to fill the 6/7 quota.
2. The Gerudo both give the franchise's major antagonist and a valuable ally in the form of a Sage.
   1. If a Gerudo appears as a Sage, they may not repeat an attribute.