- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
First, let me start by warning the people who fail to go beyond simple logic and flame others for having abstract viewpoints; this thread is not for you.
Cortana's last words in the trailer are as follows, "This is the way the world ends". Hearing those words, in a sense of emphasis got me thinking and I did a little research. It turns out that a poem by T.S. Eliot contains the same phrase at the conclusion of his poem Hollow Man. For the people unfamiliar with this poem here is the link. To understand my logic, you may want to quickly read it over.
The following text is from the last stanza in Part IV...
Sightless, unless
The eyes reappear
As the perpetual star
Multifoliate rose
Of death's twilight kingdom
The hope only
Of empty men.
The eyes in this poem relate to the eyes of Cortana, flashing on and off screen as the trailer progresses. Also, as the chief is walking through the barron desert, it can be said that he is traveling through "death's twilight kingdom". MC seems to be walking without purpose, symbolizing the "empty men". In the poem, the speaker is longing for the eyes of hope, to lead him through his troubles. The same could be said about MC, as he is looking for the guidance of Cortana.
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The following is the last stanza of the poem...
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.
The line "This is the way the world ends" is repeated three times, suggesting emphasis. Cortana left it at that, leaving us guessing. The poem finishes the statement by proclaiming the world ends "not with a bang but a whimper", which is a shadow of spiritual death, doubt and despair.
I believe that MC will die not in a valiant fight, but instead of a internal battle depending on Cortana's actions. It very well may be this is a mere coincidence, but to anyone who is familiar with this poem the theroy introduces a whole new aspect the the Halo 3 plot.