"The bitter thing was all the spirit, all the gallantry, was wasted. For even more than inferiors, they accepted and looked forward to being Capped. It was a part of becoming a knight, or of turning from a girl to lady. Thinking of this, I saw how good things could be meaningless in isolation. What value did courage have, without a free and challenging mind to direct it?" (p. 111)
Well, when this quote was mentioned in the book, Will was having, as you should already know, a luxurious life at the castle. He was experiencing and enjoying the life of a knight. Will was being specially cared for by the Comtesse herself; a very kind, goodhearted, generous, understanding, and caring queen. In addition to this, Will, was getting the attention of the Comtesse's daughter, Eloise. The two became very close and developed a strong friendship and bond. Will felt as though they were more than friends, and that Eloise really cared about him. At least, that is what Will thought. In reality, Eloise, being Capped, would always have her mindset towards the Tripods. No matter how thoughtful and compassionate she appeared, Eloise still belonged to the Tripods. She was, like every other Capped person, fully devoted and committed to the Tripods. Whatever the Tripods commanded, would be done. It was the same for her lovely mother, the Comtesse. Though the Comtesse is extremely considerate and affectionate, she is still in the hands of the Tripods. The quote relates to all this; which is in correlation to the concept of freedom. This particular quote explains how Will feels about the Comtesse and Eloise being Capped. He is basically saying that there isn't a point to their kindness, courage, and thoughts; due to the fact that they do not have a mind of their own to direct it all. They are not capable of thinking profound thoughts or lead themselves to do what they would like. They are not FREE to think, feel, or do what they want. When you are Capped, basically, you are not a FREE person anymore. This is how the quote is related to the concept of freedom. But, honestly, the whole chapter is based on freedom. For example, Chapter 6, reveals Will's struggle for FREEDOM. Will loves life at the castle. He likes the all the service and camaraderie at the castle. Will also enjoyed the care of the Comtesse, as she kind of played the role of his mother. He especially, as I said before, liked the attention and friendship provided by Eloise. But, there was the uncertainty of whether to continue the journey to the mountains, or live the life he had always dreamed about. Will wasn't sure what he wanted anymore. He wanted to stay and live at the castle, but wanted freedom as well. And Will, sadly, couldn't have both of his desires-one was to be chosen. To live at the castle, Will would have to sacrifice his freedom for a lifetime of service and forced devotion to the Tripods. Will wanted to continue life at the castle with everyone else, mostly Eloise, but in order to do this, Will would lose his freedom in the process. He will lose himself. His intelligence, courage, and kindness would be wasted. Exactly what happened to everyone else at the palace. Though, after contemplating for many hours, Will chose the path of freedom. He had come to this decision mostly because he had realized Will wouldn't get to see Eloise ever again. AS queen, she would leave forever to serve the Tripods. This snapped Will right out of his trance, and helped him understand that nothing was worth getting Capped-losing your freedom and freewill. And now, he is continuing the voyage to the White Mountains... As you can see, Chapter 6, and maybe even the whole book. revolve around freedom.
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