I slutet av tv-serien Jonathan Strange & Herr Norrell ,
the two magicians are attempting to summon the Raven King but accidentally summon Stephen Black instead. However, just before Stephen appears, a man in a black feather dress appears who resembles a mosaic of the Raven King shown earlier, says nothing, and casts some strong spells on Strange and Norrell. He immediately vanishes, and appears near Childermass as he is investigating Vinculus's corpse, casting more powerful spells and reanimating Vinculus.
Allt pekar på att detta är den legendariska Raven King. Däremot misslyckades inte den samtalande stavningen eftersom Strange och Norrell inte visste sitt sanna namn och använde istället ett namn som identifierade Stephen? Är inte hela poängen att de trodde att Nameless Slave är RK, men det visar sig att det verkligen är Stephen? Hur kom då RK fram trots allt? Om stavningen var tänkt att kalla RK, varför fortsatte det och fortsatte sedan Stephen efter att RK hade kallats? Om stavningen skulle överföra Englands magi till Nameless Slave , varför var det inte överfört till RK istället för Stephen?
Vem annars kunde han eventuellt vara? En trollkarl med stor makt - tillräckligt för att återuppliva de döda utan fehjälp - som klär sig i svart och, som noterat i frågan, ser ut som bilder av Raven King sett tidigare. Glöm inte också att han ändrade skrivandet på Vinculus kropp. Vinculus var personifieringen av Raven Kings bok; skrivandet på honom var den rakas kungas profetia - vem men Raven King kan ändra den för att visa något nytt och annorlunda?
Hans beskrivning i boken gör hans identitet allt tydligare:
The man wore black boots and a black travelling coat. He was half-stooping, half-kneeling on the snowy ground beside Vinculus. For a brief moment Childermass thought it was Strange –but this man was not quite so tall and was somewhat slighter in figure. His dark clothes were clearly expensive and looked fashionable. Yet his straight, dark hair was longer than any fashionable gentleman would have worn it; it gave him something of the look of a Methodist preacher or a Romantic poet. "I know him," thought Childermass. "He is a magician. I know him well. Why can I not think what his name is?"
Out loud he said, "The body is mine, sir! Leave it be!"
The man looked up. "Yours, John Childermass?" he said with a mildly ironic air, "I thought it was mine."
It was a curious thing but despite his clothes and his air of cool authority, his speech sounded uncouth –even to Childermass's ears. His accent was northern –of that there was no doubt –but Childermass did not recognize it. It might have been Northumbrian, but it was tinged with something else -the speech of the cold countries that lie over the North Sea and –which seemed more extraordinary still –there was more than a hint of French in his pronunciation.
[...]
"Does the land hereabouts belong to you, sir?" [Childermass] asked.
"Yes."
"And where is your horse? Where is your carriage? Where are your servants?"
"I have no horse, John Childermass. I have no carriage. And only one of my servants is here."
"Where?"
Without troubling to look up, the man raised his arm and pointed a thin, pale finger.
Childermass looked behind him in confusion. There was no one there. Just the wind blowing across the snowy tussocks. What did he mean? Was it the wind or the snow? He had heard of mediaeval magicians who claimed these and other natural forces as servants. Then comprehension dawned on him. "What? No, sir, you are mistaken! I am not your servant!"
"You boasted of it, not three days ago," said the man.
-- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Chapter 67 (emphasis mine)
En mystisk figur med stor magisk kraft och en märklig accent, som hävdar att man äger både Vinculus kropp och det omgivande landet, och som Childermass har pratat om att tjäna - kom igen, det finns bara en man som det här kan vara.
Du har rätt att Strange och Norrell försök att kalla Raven King till dem misslyckades, och de kallade istället Stephen Black, den nya "Nameless Slave". Men när man tänker på att de är de som drar strängarna, att de ens hade förmågan att påverka Raven King, gör du samma misstag som Childermass gjorde i boken:
"So?" said Childermass, stung. "That is not so very trifling, is it? Norrell is a clever man - and Strange another. They have their faults, as other men do, but their achievements are still remarkable. Make no mistake; I am John Uskglass's man. Or would be, if he were here. But you must admit that the restoration of English magic is their work, not his."
"Their work!" scoffed Vinculus. "Theirs? Do you still not understand? They are the spell John Uskglass is doing. That is all they have ever been. And he is doing it now!"
-- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Chapter 67
(John Uskglass == The Raven King, förstås - Jag kan inte komma ihåg om det namnet någonsin nämndes i TV-serien)
Det är Raven King som drar strängarna och har varit från början. Det var han, genom hans profetia och hans agent Vinculus, som för första gången tog Strange och Norrell tillsammans. Han visade upp att återuppliva Vinculus och skriva om profetian eftersom han ville, inte för att de försökte kalla honom.
I böckerna vet Strange och Norrell faktiskt att han var i England, trots att de aldrig fick se honom personligen. Liksom dig gjorde de misstaget att tro att deras samtalspell hade något att göra med hans närvaro där:
Norrell did the magic, naming John Uskglass as the person they sought. He divided the surface of the water into quarters with lines of glittering light. He gave each quarter a name: Heaven, Hell, Earth and Faerie. Instantly a speck of bluish light shone in the quarter that represented Earth.
[...]
In a tone of wonder, Norrell said, "I think we may have succeeded after all! It says he is here. In Yorkshire!"
-- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Chapter 66
Och när han återvänder till sitt eget rike reflekterar han på varför han inte kom till dem trots att de kallade charm, orsaken till att han var för stolt:
In the silver dish of water the speck of light flickered and disappeared.
[...] "He is gone," he said. [...] "It is very odd," continued Norrell, in a tone of wonder. "What do you suppose he was doing in Yorkshire?"
"Oh!" cried Strange. "I dare say he came here on purpose to make me mad!" With a cry of mingled rage and self-pity he demanded, "Why will he not attend to me? After everything I have done, why does he not care enough to look at me? To speak to me?"
"He is an old magician and an old king," answered Norrell briefly. "Two things that are not easily impressed."
-- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Chapter 68
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