Shadows of Self

Content Warning: This section of the guide refers to stereotypes and harmful depictions of underserved communities and neighborhoods, including the use of the word “slums,” which feature in the novel. This section of the guide also discusses classism, misogyny, and sexism, which the novel depicts.

Shadows of Self illustrates the tensions that simmer when the rich take advantage of the poor and shows the danger of such tensions when fanned into a flame by worsening living conditions, disasters, and social conflict. The world of the Mistborn series was supposed to become more equal in the aftermath of the horrors and oppression of the Lord Ruler’s long reign. When Vin, Elend, Sazed, and their friends saved the world in the original trilogy, the survivors, headed by Lestibournes (or Spook), aimed to end the social stratification that they had lived under. Marasi reminds Wax and Wayne of this intention as they enter the “slums” early in the novel: “The Lord Mistborn didn’t want there to be slums in the city, you know […] He tried hard to prevent them from growing up. Built nice buildings for the poor, tried to make them last…” (52). Despite his best intentions, social divides lingered, as is ubiquitous in human societies.