Arren is the son of the Prince of Enlad, of the lineage of Morred. He journeys with Archmage Sparrowhawk (Ged) to the Dry Land in the third book of Earthsea, The Farthest Shore. He is later crowned King Lebannen. Arren was sent to Roke Island by his father to deliver news to Ged, and later learned of the threat that had happened in Earthsea. He becomes the first king of Havnor since the death of Maharion.
History[]
Prince Arren first came to Roke as a messenger for his father when magic was being drained from the world. The Archmage Ged took him on a journey south and west of Earthsea in search of the answers to the mystery. At Hort Town, Arren was kidnapped to be sold as a slave, but rescued by Ged. They eventually discovered that the necromancer Cob was the reason behind it, and followed him into the Dry Land where they defeated him. Ged and Arren were borne back to Roke by a dragon, where Ged bowed to Arren as the new king of Earthsea.
As the king, he then went only by his true-name, Lebannen (Rowan tree). For his crowning, he hoped Ged would be the one to crown him, as Archmage. But Ged had lost his magic and retreated to Gont, his home island. Ged refused to see Lebannen, though while searching for him, Lebannen met Tenar and Therru. King Lebannen worked to end the slave trade. When dragons began to burn the livelihoods of peoples of Earthsea, Lebannen summoned Tehanu (Therru) and Ged to help solve the problem. Ged refused to come, but Tenar accompanied Therru.
Film Adaptation[]
Arren, as portrayed in the 2006 film.
In the 2006 Studio Ghibli film adaptation he is a main character, and destroys Cob himself, reducing him into a soulless shadow of his once great power. This omits the final battle between Sparrowhawk (Ged) and Cob. It adds a new side to this otherwise supporting character. Prince Arren has a strong sense of right and wrong, although this is dimmed in the event of implanted rage stealing his heart. Whenever he is prone to this rage, his face shivers and wrinkles, almost as if he is scared of what is about to happen. Being an excellent swordsman, he is a deadly warrior, but is vulnerable when ambushed, as proven when he is captured briefly by Hare and reinforcements while asleep.
He is shown in the film to have a slightly tanned skin and bold, brown eyes, with the classic untidy hair. He is said to have been a lethal swordsman, having obliterated any threat in his path with his sword. It is unclear whether this is due to the magical power of this sword, or the hidden rage inside him that Cob instilled in him. He is shown to have romantic feelings for Tehanu after rescuing her from Hare and his slavers in Hort Town. However, his guilt and Tehanu's initial disrespect for him culminates in them only being good friends at the end of the film. There is still, however, a deep bond between them of affection, and it is not confirmed whether he meets her again after in the incidents in The Farthest Shore.
In the film adaptation, he is shown to have murdered his father due to a sudden and strange impulse, stealing his powerful magic-fused sword. He will come to disarm Sparrowhawk under a spell with this, and later will destroy Cob himself.