Conflict In Ys

 

The King Of Ys tetralogy by Poul and Karen Anderson is a tragedy - although I am not sure that it is that in the Classical sense? We can see the hero's doom, though not his death, bearing down upon him but is it brought about by any weakness or flaw in his character?

In any case, the Irish King Niall curses Ys on page 287 in terms that are quite specific and that will be fulfilled later. Dahilis is pregnant and that is also highly relevant to the fate of Ys.

Conflicts:

Gratillonius refuses to wear the crown;
he persuades Ysans, against their better judgement, to defend the Empire;
forgetting that burials are forbidden, he promises to bury his second in command, then insists that he must keep his promise;
unwittingly, he initiates a Mithraist in running water sacred to the Goddess;
later, he will refuse to consummate his marriage with one of the Nine.

There are probably other conflicts that I will re-find on rereading.