Prisoner Theory | Elden Ring Philosophical Dissection

Edit: I've seen many people saying this. I said here 0:29, "The Prisoner Iron Mask has only its left eye." This was meant to mean "Has only it's left eye shut" as it succeds me talking about fully blind characters. I should've been clearer on this point though, so I wanted to pin this here to clarify. Also, Irina, Hyetta, and Brother Corhyn are in the video, they're just at the end. Thank you all. This is my first video on Elden Ring. Please let me know how you liked it. I know the audio might be an issue in a few places as my mic picks up literally everything I do when I'm recording, so I apologize about that. The next Elder Scrolls Lore video will be up within the next month, and the topic will be on the Thalmor. Thanks for your pateince with me!

You're probably aware of this, but the missing eye trope is borrowed from Odin from Norse mythology. In short, Odin gave his eye for divine knowledge—meaning that the missing eyes in the demigods may allude to some kind of insight or glimpse into the greater truths of the world. This makes some sense if you consider Morgott is one of the few with both eyes—and is completely brainwashed/devoted to the golden order. Both eyes being missing may imply some kind of deeper enlightenment or acceptance of deeper truths. Miquellas eyes being closed makes sense as a god, as does Marika. Malenia and Messmer's blindness seems a bit more traumatic; maybe alluding to a glimpse into the horrifying truths associated with the scarlet rot or abysmal serpent.

Oh hell yeah a one hour long Elden Ring video arguing a theory I've never actually thought about before, I'm so excited for this

Since the base game i had the theory (don't know if this is explained in the game itself) that characters who commune with gods, whichever those might be, always have at least 1 eye closed/damaged. Almost like it's a requirement for them to appreciate the message those gods are sending to them, and those with their eyes totally shut/damaged are the ones who are most in touch with their gods, it's not a coincidence that people like Malenia being totally blind can almost become a goddess of rot, short of 1 bloom. Miquella appears with both eyes closed at the end aswell, having achieved actual godhood. Messmer having 1 eye open remains the same as all the others until he crushes it at lets the Abyssal snake take hold of his body, letting what is almost a divine entity take control after both his eyes are gone. There's a reason too as to why the Finger Crones have no eyes and are the only ones capable of understanding what the Fingers say. Also Mohg being able to commune with the Formless mother and so on, i don't think he'd be capable of that if he did have both his eyes. Madness ridden people literally have no eyes yet still fire Frenzy Flames out of the sockets and so on. The prophets blindfolding themselves are just trying to get as close as possible to the real thing, not realizing they have to become literally blind for that to happen. Maybe Prisioners themselves having their helmet with one eye shut may indicate they became prisioners for adressing the "wrong" god and since they have to have at least 1 eye missing for that there's no point in the helmet having 2 eyeholes, either that or the helmet itself is a mockery of those "one eyed" believers.

Getting clotheslined by "Miquella the Tickela'" 48 minutes into a densely packed and otherwise relatively serious Elden Ring lore video after having paid attention for the entire video is a true combo LOL

Actually the note by Midra also decribes how you can defeat the frenzy monsters in the woods, they grab the player using their staff, brushing it aside is basically "parrying it" .. if you manage to do that you can actually "touch them" .. as in physically beat them and kill them using regular attacks. It's cool that the note serves both a lore and a gameplay purpose.

Miquella also had the unfortunate curse of nascency - nothing major he ever starts will finish; he never finished finding a cure for Malenia's scarlet rot, let alone finish the needle. He never finished his plan to carry out his age of compassion - becoming a god was the first step. In a sense, his curse of nascence was another prison.

On why they didn't just kill Midra Inthink its because vessels for the Frenzied flame can come back to life and of they weren't fully under the flames control before they are after they come me back. Just look at how shibri and the finger maiden are controlling dead people. Midra basically kills himself and becomes a lord of frenzy. Keeping him alive was probably a measure to ensure the problem didn't get any worse.

melina seems to say the words destined death more than anybody else in the game too. almost like they're putting it right in front of our face

I believe Nanaya was a Deathbed Companion. She was cradling the child who was once, destined as an exalted noble to become the Lord of Frenzied Flame “in an age long past and a distant land.” Midra became a Lord of Frenzy after probably centuries of suffering, becoming one not because he was touched by the Three Fingers but because he suffered for so long he was found to be a perfect vessel for the Frenzied Flame. So basically, Nanaya showed up at his house, Midra wanted to help a pregnant lady and when the Inquisitors understood that the Frenzied Flame was coming they wanted to find the source and destroy it. Midra understood that Nanaya’s child was the source and he probably wished to defend her and the child she was expecting and told the Inquisitors to go away from his land. The Inquisitors killed his servants and scholars, tortured him to death since he didn’t confess while Nanaya was hidden away, gave birth to her child as is duty for a Deathbed Companion but the child was stillborn and that’s how the torch was made: the fading or “feeble” Frenzied Flame burned the child’s body away to the bone, expect for its spine. I feel this theory just fits better with the Frenzied Flame torch.

Egon could have considered himself a noble knight of dragon lineage, such as the banished knights

"sir ansbach, who I will continue to glaze..." lmao

First, they took the left eye as in "there's nothing left here"; then they took the right eye too as in, "now as you can see, you have no right"

The concept of closed eyes has mostly been nebulous so far, and still is of course. Now being able to articulate how being a prisoner is a parallel we can draw is very valuable! Thank you for the video! Well done!

Nanaya I feel showed up to the manse playing the same role as shabriri. We never see her eyes, and Midra we know was held in high regard with the hornsent prior to the events that unfold. With the whole dlc basically being about motherhood it makes a lot of sense that she was trying to birth a lord of frenzy, and the hornsent dealt with the child and punished midra. Nanaya and midra I think were not put to death due to midra's standing or just punishment instead of fear of a lord being born of them due how the people in front of manse were dealt with. Nanaya died not near midra but near the stairs, guarded heavily, as to not escape. Her last words were the curse on midra that inevitably caused him to become a lord instead

Just a note on Blaidd. When he attacks us the tarnished, i don't think that's him giving in to the greater will. He is still protecting Ranni, the assassin's whatever their motive might be were approaching their HQ and Blaidd wanted to protect Ranni, in Ranni's rise where he'd presume she is (cause where else). But being in this sudden state where he has to endure the call the most, forcing himself into a bloodlust filled rage against the assailants, the tarnished just fall into his radar of "threat" unable to discern true friend from foe.

Igon? More like Eyegone

1:30 Messmer is technically missing both eyes, but has a sealed eye and a false eye seal made of grace. My theory for the tattooed seal is that it is a mark of an empyrean and the remaining eye is removed/replaced when an outer god takes hold (evidenced by Messmer's Abyssal serpent in phase 2 and Melania as the Goddess of Rot). With the exception of Messmer who I don't think is outright called an empyrean and assuming Melina is the Gloam-Eyed Queen, all the charecters that have that sealed left eye are empyreans.

Eyes in ER are certainly of great importance, but I can't say I'm fully convinced that this is the intended meaning of it all, the reasoning on some of the characters seems like a stretch, like at a certain point you could say that anyone with enough determination becomes a prisoner of their own ambitions, rather than simply being a person with a clear, but hard to reach goal in mind. On the other hand, Rennala, Fire Giant and several NPCs can easily be considered prisoners but have their eyes intact. Such is the nature of Miyazaki's worlds, where it's hard to distinguish between hidden meanings, unfinished ideas that got scrapped, and just unintentional coincidences. Nevertheless, the vid was well put together and all ideas clearly communicated, so I enjoyed it very much, thanks for making it!

the prisoner has his right eye open, not his left