A few feet behind me was a woman with a very different question, “Can you tell me why the place of most of the female power in the realm resides in a ‘big, white tower’? (Paraphrased because I can’t remember her exact quote, but obviously making a phallic reference.)
Laughter reigned for a time, but RJ, as always, was waiting for her. He proceeded to tell how he needed a literary device to show the strength of the women who would inhabit the tower; something that when seen from far off on the horizon would inspire awe. He thought about making the home of the Aes Sedai a large, black hole in the ground, but since that is something you would almost fall into as you walked up to it, it just did not have the same power as a tower.
Then he rhetorically asked her if she had actually read any of his books and seen the women in them. She explained that yes, she had and she used the term she did, since she was quoting from the prologue of Knife of Dreams . He said he knew the quote, he did write it after all, but again, had she actually read the books to see what power the women in the books did wield? Much laughter ensued at the good-natured banter between him and the audience.
This question was also asked by Kevin Dean and Jarrod , and the latter report seems to make it clear that RJ was referencing the map of Tar Valon .
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