Amara Cortas

Ok so oh my god I had to speak about Amara Cortas from the series Falling Kingdoms. I dislike it when people constantly show their disdain for her, sure she wasn't the kindest, most loyal character but she was definitely not an evil one, worthy of eternal sadness. If we see her life from a broader perspective, rather than only from the view of the protagonists, then we will come to the realisation that she was actually a victim.

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Amara was the victim of the patriarchal structure that prevailed in society at that time. Her mother was almost beaten to death for having birthed her. After her birth, her father tried to kill her but failed because of the resurrection potion. Imagine living a life where you know that your father and brothers (except Ashur) would rather have you dead, you are treated badly and left out just because of your gender. I quite frankly don’t blame her for her lust for power, she just wanted to feel significant and wanted to prove to people that she  was worth something. She wanted to show her worth after always being pulled down and being made feel worthless. The only person who she trusted to help her in her journey to become an empress , turned out to be a huge manipulator. From the starting, only her grandmother and mother made  her feel like a worthwhile humanbeing, unfortunately, her mother died because of her sacrifice for Amara and her grandmother just turned out to be a cunning old woman who just wanted power for herself. Amara was blinded by her love for her grandmother, and could not see the grandmother's true colours. She could not see that her grandmother was only using her  due to the  fact that she was deprived of the feeling of people believing in her ,caring for her, and loving her. She believed that her grandmother was her well-wisher and the only one who saw her true potential. I agree that some things done by Amara in order to gain the throne were unjustifiable, but her grandmother is the real culprit of Amara's shortcomings, she was the one who made Amara feel like there was no other option, she was the one who gave her so many ideas. Amara’s grandmother exploited her, took advantage of all the negative events in Amara's life. Amara was brainwashed by her grandmother. I realise that the grandmother might have also gone through many hardships but that doesn't mean that she had the right to misuse the love and admiration Amara had for her. No one was there to manipulate the grandmother but she was always there to manipulate Amara. After reading this bit about why Amara deserved better if anyone still feels that Amara was not the victim of circumstances, then let me explain this situation by taking Lucia's actions into account (sure her situation was a little bit different but she was also manipulated by someone [by Kyan]). Lucia almost helped Kyan take over the entire world, this happened because she was being manipulated by him. He was using her grief against her and playing with her emotions. He made her believe that he was on her side and wanted the best for her when his attentions were the opposite. Many people died because of this, but she soon realised that what she was getting into was wrong and hence refused to help Kyan. This is similarly seen when Amara sees her grandmother for what she is and helps save Micah and lyssa. Lucia was not named evil after this situation so why should Amara be. in the end I would like to end with the quote by Victoria Aveyard, from the book Glass Sword 

“No one is born evil, just like no one is born alone. They become that way, through choice and circumstance. The latter you cannot control, but the former...”

When Amara came out of the trance, she chose redemption

not evil…