Essun is the protagonist of the series and the “you” the narrator is addressing. She is independent, strong-willed, short-tempered, and, initially, short-sighted. Her worldview and her priorities have been shaped by her suffering as a subject of Systems of Oppression and Autonomy that label orogenes like her as dangerous and subhuman. As a result, it is difficult for her to form attachments or prioritize anything beyond short-term survival. This becomes the primary source of tension between Essun and Ykka, who wants to build a better, orogene-inclusive society. Essun’s inability to think long-term and her detached nature frustrate Ykka, who needs Essun to commit to her cause if Castrima is going to succeed. Further complicating things is the fact that Essun can no longer use orogeny without turning to stone due to using the Obelisk Gate at the end of the previous novel, rendering her more reliant on everyone around her.

While the previous novel, The Obelisk Gate, sees Essun having to unlearn a lot of her assumptions about the world and orogenes’ place in it, The Stone Sky completes this arc by having Essun learn The Importance of Family and Community.