Urgal
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Urgals are a fictional race in Christopher Paolini's Inheritance Trilogy. They serve as one of the primary antagonistic forces, and, at the time of Eragon, are allied with Galbatorix's Empire.
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[edit] Description
[edit] Appearance
Urgals resemble men with bowed legs and thick, brutish arms made for crushing. They have yellow, piggish eyes, twisted horns protruding above the ears, and greyish skin. Kull, a particularly strong race of Urgals, are easily a match for any non-magical being of Alagaësia. They stand over eight feet tall on average, and their legs are thick as tree trunks, making them veritable giants.
By most humans, Urgals are considered monsters, as they fight humans for food and land in order to help and protect their families.
[edit] Society and Customs
Usually, Urgals are split into small clans which fight with each other for food, land, and power; they never seem to be in large groups. An Urgal's rank in society is determined through its combat skills, regardless of whether it is male or female. Those with the most kills are the ones with greatest authority.
Male Urgals, or rams, bellow when greeting a war chief. If an Urgal raises its head, it is a sign of friendship; if it lowers its horns, it is meant as a threat. Urgals will not turn on an ally if they share a common enemy. Each Urgal/Kull belongs to a clan and has different beliefs, but all serve their clan willingly.
[edit] History
Urgals are not native to the land of Alagaësia; they followed the Elves across the seas. With the Fall of the Riders, they were allowed to expand their territory, which led to overpopulation, and consequently food shortages. Having no allies, they turned to Galbatorix, the new king of Alagäesia, and made a pact: in exchange for serving Galbatorix, the Urgals would receive more food and territory.
Following the creation of this treaty, the Urgals then began moving southwards to Ithro Zhada, marshalling their armies. Not long after, however, the different clans were linked by a Shade named Durza, and were made to fight alongside the Kull against their will. In Eragon, Durza led this Urgal army from Ithrŏ Zhâda to attack the Varden at Farthen Dûr. At first, the battle went in the Urgals' favor, but when Durza was slain by Eragon, the enslaving link was lifted, and the clans turned on each other, annihilating their own forces, and thereby giving the Varden the victory.
In Eldest, a group of Kull, angered with Galbatorix for enslaving them to Durza, joined the Varden and opposed the Empire. They acted as a bodyguard to Eragon during the Battle of the Burning Plains.
[edit] Comparisons
It must be noted that the word "Urgal" resembles J.R.R. Tolkien's "uruk", related to "orc". Their descriptions are also very similar. Both Urgals and orcs are naturally violent and barbaric, and both constitute a large part of the antagonist forces in their respective series. The Uruk-hai of The Lord of the Rings (larger and stronger than other orcs, able to run long distances at great speed) are paralleled by the Kull in Eragon.
[edit] Portrayal in film
In the film adaptation of Eragon, the Urgals do not have horns. They merely look like brutish, dark-skinned human barbarians, with little similarity to the horned monsters of the book.
[edit] Notable Urgals
Garzhvog is the leader of the Urgals who fight with Eragon and the Varden against the armies of Galbatorix in the book Eldest, the second book in the Inheritance trilogy written by Christopher Paolini. Upon entering his consciousness, Eragon discovers that Urgals like Garzhvog are not completely evil monsters, but rather organisms which strive to survive and live just like others. Note that he comes to the same conclusion as Helasant the Monk in that Urgals have many things in common with Humans. The scene in the book where Eragon realizes this (The "Witch's Brew chapter on page 612 of the hardcover edition) is a morally transcendent moment similar to that experienced by Huck when he is on the river with Jim, in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.
| Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance Trilogy | |
|---|---|
| Books | Eragon | Eldest | Book 3 |
| Films | Eragon |
| Games | Eragon |
| Main Characters | Eragon | Brom | Arya | Galbatorix | Murtagh | Roran | Durza | Ajihad | Nasuada | Angela | Saphira | Oromis | more... |
| Places | Alagaësia | Beor Mountains | Ellesméra | Farthen Dûr | Teirm | Inheritance Trilogy locations | more... |
| Events | Battle of the Burning Plains | Battle for Carvahall | Battle under Farthen Dûr | Dagshelgr Invocation | The Fall |
