Ever since I started reading books, the first name anyone ever recommended to me was the Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi. It has 11 books in total (6 main books and 5 novellas).
This is not a review blog because if I start writing about Aaron Warner, I will probably end up writing more pages than Tahereh herself.
Aaron Warner has always been the one character I truly resonate with. He is my favourite kind of character. Delusional, intense, and beautifully complicated. If he ever calls me delusional, I would honestly take it as a compliment because I aspire to be delusional like him.
There are many lines spoken by Warner, but the one that pulled me into Tahereh’s universe was something I saw in a reel years ago.
The line was: “Hell is empty and all the devils are here.”
I loved it instantly because it was tattooed on Aaron’s skin. At that time, I did not think deeply about it. I simply assumed Tahereh had written it.
Later, I found out it is originally from Shakespeare’s play The Tempest.
And obviously, being Aaron Warner’s girl, I felt the need to read the original source to understand the context behind the words he chose to mark on his body.
So I picked up The Tempest. Some parts made sense to me and some parts were such heavy, English that I just stared at the page without understanding a single thing.ut something did become clear to me. The meaning of the line changes completely once you know where it comes from.
The Tempest: When the Line Appears
The line appears in Act 1, Scene 2. It is spoken by Ariel, but he is actually repeating what the terrified sailors shouted during the magical storm created by Prospero.
They believed they were about to die.
So in Shakespeare’s story, the line is born from fear, panic and helplessness. It captures a moment when humans think hell has opened and released its devils into their world.
Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, is betrayed by his brother Antonio. He and his daughter Miranda are exiled to an isolated island. There, Prospero learns magic and gains the loyalty of the spirit Ariel. When the story begins, Prospero summons a violent storm to bring his enemies to the island. The play deals with betrayal, revenge, illusions, forgiveness and the darker sides of human nature.
In the middle of this chaos, the sailors scream the iconic line, believing evil forces are attacking them.
Meanwhile, in the Shatter Me series
Aaron Warner Anderson lives in a dystopian future controlled by the Reestablishment. Juliette has a deadly touch she cannot control. Warner becomes obsessed with her from the very beginning, and obsessed is honestly too soft of a word.
He gets shot by Juliette in the shoulder and still smiles because to him that one bullet means she chose to keep him alive. That moment alone explains his mind more than any analysis ever could.
Warner’s childhood shaped the darkness inside him. His father abused him psychologically, emotionally and physically. Every bit of softness inside him was punished until he was forced to build himself into something cold enough to survive.He did not choose to be a devil. The world chose it for him.
There is also the machete scene where Warner kills almost ten men while protecting Juliette. The writing becomes almost magical realistic, as if the violence happens in slow motion inside a dream. The entire series has that surreal poetic tone. It makes every moment feel bigger than reality.
Warner’s Tattoo
In Shatter Me, the line “Hell is empty and all the devils are here” does not appear in fear. It appears as identity. Warner tattoos it on himself because he knows exactly what the world thinks he is. A monster. A devil. A threat.
He is not running from the devils like the sailors in The Tempest. He has become one because he survived things that should have destroyed him.
That is what struck me the most.
In The Tempest, the line is spoken by someone who is scared of the devils.
In Shatter Me, the line belongs to the one everyone is scared of.
One side is fear.
The other side is evolution.
One voice trembles.
The other stands unshaken.
Shakespeare wrote it as a cry for help.
Warner wears it as a reminder of everything he endured.
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| LYHFM |
Fan art by @TABBIESART
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