Daughter of the Forest

Fate verses Free Will

Okay, so if you've had Ms. Williams you know the argument. She claims that divine being or some kind of high power determine and influence human lives, and if you somehow manage to stray from this set path, "the gods will punish you". You, as the student, try the whole semester to prove her wrong, that humans choose their own destiny. In the end, the student always fails, and Ms. Williams comes out the victor. The same goes for Daughter of the Forest.

Continually, the reader fights to understand the battle between fate and free will. Although the reader knows the Fair Folk have a hand in the way things go, you never know to what extent. Several times when the Fair Folk intervene the reader believes that the Fair Folk are lending a hand to point Sorcha towards the right path. But, after they are gone, the reader switches back over to believe Sorcha makes her own way in life. Being such a stubborn girl, one just assumes she is making her own choices. But once Sorcha meets Red, Sorcha herself voices her questions to the reader. She, in fact, thinks the Fair Folk have placed a curse on Red to make him stay and protect her. Now that the heroine falters in her understanding of the world, the reader too questions the validity of free will.

In the end, the Fair Folk visit Sorcha one last time and say, "Your work for us is nearly finished. You have been strong. Almost too strong." Clearly, Sorcha was part of some greater plan, but by being "almost to strong", the Fair Folk imply that she had the power to choose her path. Once again the conflict of destiny arises. The author seems to be under the impression that the beginning and end are planned out but the middle remains open to debate.