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| Art: Michael Whelan |
IntroductionI, while the gods laugh, the world’s vortex am;
Maelstrom of passions in that hidden sea
Whose waves of all-time lap the coasts of me,
And in small compass the dark waters cram.
- Mervyn Peake, “Shapes and Sounds”, 1941
After Elric's first appearance in Science Fantasy magazine (No.47, June 1961, "The Dreaming City") proved to be a hit, editor John Carnell naturally asked Moorcock for a sequel. Originally intended to be a one-time affair, the story had found an audience despite (or possibly because of) its subversive take on the established conventions of heroic fantasy. However, "The Dreaming City" was essentially paced as if it were the climactic final act to a much longer novel. Therefore, it seems logical (in its own backwards way) that "The Dreaming City" was followed by that other classic story type, the "quest", with the irony being that the "quest for growth" sequence typically precedes the climactic "return of the king" act. In any case, Moorcock also took this opportunity to further elaborate on the allegorical questions implied in the first Elric story and to also unveil a deeper cosmology he had only been hinting at in earlier (but still unpublished) works.
The story in brief: The nationless wanderer Elric and the mysterious red-haired Shaarilla embark on a quest to seek out the fabled Dead Gods' Book, an ancient source of forbidden knowledge. On the way they are attacked by various unnatural creatures who seem to have been sent at the behest of an unknown agency. Along the way, the free-spirited wanderer Moonglum joins their quest. After sailing across a forbidding underground sea, they finally reach their prize, only to find that the passage of time has caused the Dead Gods' Book to become too fragile to read without destroying it.
"I wish to know one of two things..."
"While the Gods Laugh" is perhaps less broadly subversive of heroic fantasy conventions than "The Dreaming City" from a narrative point of view. Instead, its uniqueness comes from the psychological depth of its main character. When Shaarilla asks Elric to explain his reasons for seeking out the Dead Gods' Book, the usually-terse albino reveals feelings of inescapable existential guilt balanced against wry self-pity. On the one hand, he wishes to know if there is a "supreme being" hovering behind the chaos. If so, he will be relieved knowing that there is some sort of benign purpose behind everything.
“The Lords of Law and Chaos now govern our lives. But is there some being greater than them?...Despairingly, sometimes, I seek the comfort of a benign god, Shaarilla. My mind goes out, lying awake at night, searching through black barrenness for something—anything—which will take me to it, warm me, protect me, tell me that there is order in the chaotic tumble of the universe; that it is consistent, this precision of the planets, not simply a brief, bright spark of sanity in an eternity of malevolent anarchy.On the other hand, if there is no such supreme being, then he will simply be comforted to know that he can revel in guiltless anarchy without fear of being judged, and therefore damned.
“...Without some confirmation of the order of things, my only comfort is to accept anarchy. This way, I can revel in chaos and know, without fear, that we are all doomed from the start—that our brief existence is both meaningless and damned. I can accept, then, that we are more than forsaken, because there was never anything there to forsake us. I have weighed the proof, Shaarilla, and must believe that anarchy prevails, in spite of all the laws which seemingly govern our actions, our sorcery, our logic. I see only chaos in the world. If the book we seek tells me otherwise, then I shall gladly believe it. Until then, I will put my trust only in my sword and myself.”
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| Art: James Cawthorn, 1974, This fanzine reprints the Elric Moorcock article from Niekas 8, 1963 |
alle...gory
It occurs that these confessions would seem more at home in a Sartre book, rather than one following in the footsteps of Howard or Tolkien. Moorcock reports that, aside from the influence of the French Existentialists, writing from this period also drew from his own youthful yearnings.
"The landscapes of my stories are metaphysical, not physical. As a faltering atheist with a deep irradicable religious sense (I was brought up on an offbeat brand of Christian mysticism) I tended, particularly in early stories like “While the Gods Laugh,” to work out my own problems through Elric’s adventures. Needless to say, I never reached any conclusions, merely brought these problems closer to the surface. I was writing not particularly well, but from the “soul.” I wasn’t just telling a story, I was telling my story."This kind of depth was in direct contrast to the simple sword and sorcery offerings typical of that time, and probably added to its resonance with readers of the 1960s. In the same fanzine article (a response to a letter printed in a previous issue) Moorcock further describes the intended symbolism behind some of the phantasmagorical landscapes and forbidden objects Elric and Shaarilla were seeking.
- Moorcock, "Elric", Niekas 8 (1963)
"The hill, castle, etc.—all the bits and pieces in this episode—are all underground. There was the intention here to give the whole episode the aspect of taking place within a womb. The Book is a similar symbol to the Sword in this story."In a later article (written around the time that he was intending to kill off the character), Moorcock explains a defining aspect of Elric's character, one which has driven his appearances to the present day.
- Moorcock, "Elric", Niekas 8 (1963)
"(Elric) cannot be sure of the truth of anything, not even of his own emotions or ambitions. This is made much clearer in a story containing even more direct allegory, the second in the series, “While the Gods Laugh"...The Dead Gods’ Book and the Golden Barge are one and the same. They have no real existence, save in the wishful imagination of mankind."So here the Dead Gods' Book becomes, like Jephraim Tallow's Golden Barge, an unattainable object. This motif would be actualized in later stories as the Holy Grail itself (see The War Hound and the World's Pain, 1981), essentially leaving no room for doubt. In more recent years, Moorcock has also added that the subtext behind "While the Gods Laugh" has to do with "the worthlessness of knowledge not gained from experience."
- Moorcock, "The Secret Life Of Elric Of Melniboné" (1964)
Lords of Law and Dukes of Chaos
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| Art: Robert Gould |
"Know you not that two forces govern the world—fighting an eternal battle? Law and Chaos. The upholders of Chaos state that in such a world as they rule, all things are possible. Opponents of Chaos—those who ally themselves with the forces of Law—say that without Law nothing material is possible. Some stand apart, believing that a balance between the two is the proper state of things, but we cannot. We have become embroiled in a dispute between the two forces."Moorcock's earlier quote ("I was brought up on an offbeat brand of Christian mysticism...") references his school education at Michael Hall, which utilizes the principles of Rudolf Steiner. Steiner's ideas - as well as those absorbed from the mythology of the Norse, Celts, and Hindu - helped to influence the conception of the higher forces at work in Elric's world. In the same 1963 Niekas letter quoted above, he specifically mentions Zoroastrianism and Poul Anderson's Three Hearts and Three Lions as original inspirations for his Elric "Law and Chaos" cosmology. Below is a passage laying out the "Law and Chaos" parties in Anderson's book:
"Holger got the idea that a perpetual struggle went on between the primeval forces of Law and Chaos. No, not forces exactly. Modes of existence? A terrestrial reflection of the spiritual conflict between heaven and hell? In any case, humans were the chief agents on earth of Law, though most of them were so only unconsciously and some, witches and warlocks and evildoers, had sold out to Chaos."
Anderson's characterization of Law and Chaos more or less aligns with conventional moral conceptions of good and evil, but Moorcock's version of this dichotomy is applied to more abstract and inscrutable entities, ones who more closely embody their names. This more objective ideological division allows Moorcock to blur the simple definition of Elric and other characters as being either good or evil (in fact Elric's people the Melnibonéans are traditionally pledged to Chaos).- Poul Anderson, Three Hearts and Three Lions (1953)
"...by and large we are both devils and angels and it is how we balance those elements in ourselves which helps determine the quality of our lives...It’s the ambiguity of human character which fascinates me."This ambiguity allows for deeper, more realistic characterizations, and gives his characters room to grow as they question their true loyalties (an arc practically welded to Moorcock's Eternal Champion archetype). In other words, characters pledged to Chaos (like Elric) can actually be very progressive and "good" - note that the Hindu god Shiva destroys reality in order to precipitate its rebirth. Decades later, the stagnant, conservative forces of Law would be grotesquely-characterized as the "bad guys" in the "2nd Ether" series.
- Moorcock, "Elric is Me", The Dreamthief's Daughter
A closer examination of the differing natures of Law and Chaos appears in later stories, but in "While the Gods Laugh" it's sufficient to just establish that the people of Elric's world often align their allegiances with one side or the other. The struggle for the "Balance between Law and Chaos" essentially stays in the background here and in the next few stories. However, this war amongst the Higher Lords subtly grows in importance until it leads to an operatic climax in the "first wave" of Elric stories, found in Stormbringer (a "Götterdämmerung" if there ever was one!). There, this struggle becomes the entire crux of the matter, as Elric finally finds a cause worth fighting for, a reason for "existing".
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| Citadel figurine of Moonglum |
"Moonglum is, apart from everything else, to some extent a close, valued friend of mine who has been a lot of help in various ways over the last few years. If Elric is my fantasy self, then Moonglum is this friend’s fantasy self (as I see him at any rate). I am not particularly gloomy by nature. I put Moonglum in to make remarks about Elric when he gets too self-absorbed or too absorbed in self-pity, etc."In his debut story, Elric had no real sidekick (unless you count the hapless Count Smiorgan). However now, after the destruction of Imrryr, Elric had a tendency towards either withdrawn silence or melodramatic soliloquy. For this reason, it seems wise that Moorcock had decided to add in a lighthearted foil such as Moonglum, later revealed to be modeled on Moorcock's friend Barrington J. Bayley. This kind of character would later be known as the archetypal "Companion" to heroes, a recurring role in different spheres of the multiverse (Eternal Champion book series) with a fate similar to that of the Eternal Champion.
- Moorcock, "Elric", Niekas 8
"In most folk stories there is a companion. His function for me is to take the piss out of the hero; bring him down to earth, see the whole picture and make the hero stop taking things so seriously. He's really the ironic counterpoint."Like the Champion, the Companion sometimes vaguely remembers his previous incarnations, but usually does not (aside from the universally-appealing Companion Jhary-a-Conel in Corum's sequence). Since Moorcock used Barry Bayley as a model for both Moonglum and The Golden Barge's Jephraim Tallow, it's also possible to think of Tallow as the "first" Companion, although he does not have such a role in that book at all. (Elric of course would also later be identified as an incarnation of the Eternal Champion, but was not initially conceived as one.)
- Imagine Magazine #22, January 1985
While the Gods Laugh: Detailed Synopsis
Chapter One
In the Filkharian city of Raschil, Shaarilla of the Dancing Mist, a red-haired woman of Myrrhn (wingless since birth and hence, an outcast), approaches Elric at an inn. She leads him to the quay and asks him to help her find the legendary Dead Gods’ Book. Later, after their ship arrives at Shazaar, they ride westwards towards the Silent Land, bordered by the Marshes of the Mist. On the way, Elric tells Shaarilla that he hopes the Dead Gods’ Book will tell him if there is an ultimate god and if his life has any meaning. He also hopes these answers may alleviate some of his latent guilt after the destruction of the Dreaming City and the slaying of his lover Cymoril.
Chapter Two
While crossing the marsh, they encounter a Mist Giant (possibly the legendary Bellbane). With Stormbringer having limited effect, Elric is almost defeated, but Arioch’s eventual aid weakens the cloudy white creature (although Arioch himself makes no physical appearance). After Shaarilla pulls him out of the bog, Elric realizes that someone is purposefully putting obstacles in their way towards the Dead Gods’ Book. Days later in the Silent Lands, they encounter the hunting dogs of the Dharzi (monstrous beaked dogs) pursuing a traveler named Moonglum of Elwher. They help Moonglum destroy the dogs and he joins them in their quest.
(Note: In Stormbringer, Sepiriz claims that it was not Arioch that had aided him, but Stormbringer's brother swords. However later, in "The Singing Citadel", Arioch expresses displeasure at the "mist giant matter".)
Chapter Three
Nearing a black mountain range, Shaarilla admits to Elric that she was told that some guardian of the Dead Gods’ Book would oppose their quest. Soon they encounter more Dharzi devil dogs along with their long-extinct zombie masters, the Lords of Dharzi. Elric uses a spell to cause their attackers to be swallowed up into the earth. They hear the earth elemental King Grome laughing. Days later they reach a cave and enter a long tunnel. They find themselves high above a glowing underground beach, and a silent sea littered with strange shipwrecks.
Chapter Four
After descending to the beach, they scavenge a sea-worthy boat and head out on the unnatural sea stretching out through the "Caverns of Chaos". Winged, fanged apes (Clakars) soon attack. Shaarilla explains that Clakars are her ancient ancestors. They fend off the creatures but Elric finds that the silent sea is negating Stormbringer’s usually-invigorating power (apparently due to the sea's association with Chaos). When they reach land, Stormbringer’s power gradually returns. They eventually find the ruins of a black stone castle, standing next to stairs leading towards the surface. The castle has the 8-arrowed sign of Chaos (emblem of the Lords of Entropy) above its entrance. In the castle courtyard they encounter Orunlu the Keeper, a scaly, laughing giant, wreathed in scarlet fire. Orunlu congratulates Elric on his tenacity and lets them pass. When they reach the 3000-year-old Dead Gods’ Book, it falls apart into dust when Elric opens its cover. Later, on the surface, Moonglum departs with an embittered Elric, but Shaarilla turns back towards the cavern entrance.
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| Art: Gerard Quinn, "Queen of the Wheel" |
Bellbanes and Whistles
Aside from the Law and Chaos cosmology already described, Moorcock also takes this opportunity to enrich the supernatural aspect of Elric's world by giving his elemental spirits names and personalities. The "mist elemental" here is identified as possibly being the legendary "Bellbane", and the earth king "Grome" is heard to be laughing deep underground (Grome would have a much greater speaking part down the line). Other new creatures include the "zombie" Dharzi lords and their taloned hunting dogs, as well as the ape-bat hybrids known as Clakars, described as an offshoot of Shaarilla's winged race. The Chaos guardian of the Dead Gods' Book, Orunlu the Keeper, does not reappear in Elric's other stories, but similar beings of imposing stature pop up from time to time in both Elric's and Corum's series, possibly implying that these figures are all part of a common lineage. The radiating eight-arrowed "sign of Chaos" is also first described here, and this emblem would go on to be used in various other media (with or without attribution to its origin).
Who were the titular Dead Gods? I don't think they've ever been authoritatively identified, but they apparently preceded the deities aligned with Law and Chaos. Based on Orunlu's guardianship role, one can assume that it was the forces of Chaos who had intercepted the Book before its intended incineration by these Dead Gods. Corum's later book sequence is also predicated on a struggle between Law and Chaos, and there two ancient gods coming from before the Struggle for Balance are identified as Rhynn and Kwll. It's fun to propose that these two are the Dead Gods referred to here, or at least an incarnation of them. Who knows, one of the gems encrusted on the Book's cover may be even be the lost Eye of Kwll...
While the Gods Laugh Multiverse Entry
Next Chapter: Elric: The Stealer of Souls
(Previous Chapter: Elric: The Dreaming City)
