City of Glass

These introductory chapters find Clare’s cast of characters grappling with various kinds of identity crises—reckoning with who they have always believed themselves to be, who they truly are, and what that means for the way they move in the world. Following City of Ashes, Clary’s mom is still unconscious from the sleep spell she used in City of Bones, and Valentine has made his presence known, positioning him as the main antagonist of the book. Clary and Jace still believe they are siblings, and they grapple with their growing romantic feelings for one another, resulting in arguments, misunderstandings, and intentional lies that turn their character arcs into emotional rollercoasters. Simon’s character grapples with his own identity after drinking Jace’s blood and gaining the ability to walk in sunlight, which is later linked to the extra angel blood Jace carries as a result of Valentine’s experiments. Jace has cycled through last names and family affiliations throughout the series, and after thinking he is a Morgenstern for most of City of Glass, he finally learns he is truly a Herondale, which opens up his quest for information in the rest of the series.

The relationships between the teenagers in City of Glass are tangled, and many mirror one another, exemplifying several elements of a classic coming-of-age narrative—first love, loss of innocence, and learning to see one’s parents as human and flawed. Simon has loved Clary for years, though she never loved him in the same way. Clary developed feelings for Jace from the moment they met, which led to a love triangle arc that is resolved in City of Glass. When Clary and Jace learned they were siblings, both attempted to avoid each other. In City of Ashes, Clary attempted to date Simon despite her increasingly platonic love for him. City of Glass features them navigating post-breakup emotions and attempting to reclaim their friendship. Simon and Clary represent the possible damage romance can do to friendship and also the importance of friendship as a central relationship in one’s life. Clary’s relationship with Jace symbolizes the complications of first love. The two met before they believed they were siblings, and that revelation did not undo the desire they’d begun to feel. Their relationship represents the strength of love and also how facts and emotions are two separate forces.

For years, Valentine has sought the Mortal Instruments—sword, cup, and mirror—which, to him, represent omniscient control over human, Shadowhunter, and downworlder communities. At the outset of City of Glass, Clare builds dramatic tension with the cup and sword already in his possession as he seeks the mirror. The Shadowhunters’ inability to recognize Lake Lyn as the Mortal Glass demonstrates a critical aspect of Shadowhunter culture—the inability to deviate from a belief once it is accepted as truth. Hodge’s reveal that Lake Lyn is the Mortal Glass adds depth to Shadowhunter history and lore. In tales of the first Shadowhunter, the angel Raziel is pictured holding the cup and sword as he rises from Lake Lyn, which led Shadowhunters to believe the mirror was missing or destroyed rather than hidden in plain sight. Since the sword and cup were prominently featured, the Shadowhunters searched for a recognizable mirror, never thinking it could be the lake because it didn’t look how they expected. Using this misinterpretation of Raziel’s story, Clare provides a critique of the Shadowhunters’ tendency as a group to make narrow interpretations of their laws and values and dismiss as false anything that deviates from that accepted interpretation. She suggests that their inability to see past what they want to believe makes them closed-minded. Hodge, a pariah in the Shadowhunter community, is the one to reveal the truth, highlighting the ways that breaking free of cultural restraints can change one’s view of the world and allow them to see things they didn’t before.

The plot of City of Glass centers on Clare’s central characters learning to define themselves on their own terms, both in the context of and apart from their familial relationships—another key trope of a coming-of-age story. Clary and Jace struggle to learn who they are and where they came from—albeit in different ways. Clary knows she’s from the Fairchild Shadowhunter line, but having been raised among mundane humans, she doesn’t know how to connect to that heritage, either as an individual or as a part of the greater Shadowhunter community. Jace grew up believing he was a Wayland, later he is told he’s a Morgenstern, and finally he learns his true family line is Herondale. This continuous switching of names represents the identity crisis Jace experiences, as well as how an unsettled identity can destroy one’s self-confidence and create a Self-Perception defined by the Perception of Others. When Jace felt certain of his identity in City of Bones, he rarely questioned his thoughts or actions. His later confusion made him question constantly and created a deep sense of shame based on the way he believed others perceived him as Valentine’s heir. Since becoming a werewolf, Luke has lived away from Idris and been estranged from Amatis. Shadowhunter views of downworlders led Amatis to believe Luke couldn’t be the same person because of his downworlder blood. Initially, Amatis is reluctant to let Luke back into her life because Shadowhunter prejudice makes her fear what he is, but as she spends more time around Luke, Amatis gains a new perspective that strengthens her faith in her own instincts.