City of Glass

Jace is a primary and point-of-view character in the novel, as well as Clary’s main love interest. Clary thinks of him as “something to be painted in shades of black, white, and gray, with splashes of gold here and there” (8), and this description mirrors Jace’s main internal conflict. At the outset of the series, Jace lives by the letter of Shadowhunter law. Falling in love with Clary makes him start to question what he knows, and by the beginning of City of Glass, Jace is no longer so rigid. He still has a solid moral compass of right and wrong (black and white), but he is willing to bend the rules and make exceptions, adapting to the new beliefs he forms (splashes of gold).

Jace’s tragic flaw is his self-loathing. From the moment he is told Clary is his sister, Jace hates himself for loving her. His performative arrogance and bravado serve to cover his deep insecurities about his own goodness. His upbringing with Valentine skewed his self-image, and Jace is quick to believe the theory that he is Clary’s brother because he doesn’t believe he deserves happiness. Jace has always been reckless, but believing he can never have what he truly wants leads to him take bigger risks, with little regard for his own safety. Toward the end of the book, he is willing to die if it means stopping Valentine, which turns out to be irony—his death does help stop Valentine, just not in the way he expected.

Simon is Clary’s best friend and former love interest. Since Clary discovered the Shadowhunter world, her relationship with Simon has been rocky, complicated by Clary’s feelings for Jace and Simon becoming a vampire. Simon and Clary begin City of Glass in an awkward post-breakup posture, and the trials they face throughout the story allow them to reclaim their friendship so each can pursue romance with someone else. Before becoming a daylighter, Simon struggles with being a vampire. His inability to let go of his humanity meant he was uncomfortable with vampire life, specifically with only going out at night. Since drinking Jace’s blood in City of Ashes gave Simon his daylighter abilities, he’s become like a cat “always seeking out available patches of sunlight to curl up in” (294), representing his desire to be more than what his blood dictates he should be. Simon is a vampire, but rather than joining the other New York vampires and living like them, he wants to have as normal a human life as possible, insisting that one aspect of who he is doesn’t overtake everything else about him.

Sebastian is one of the main antagonists of the book, and he spends almost the entire story in disguise as he spies for Valentine. Sebastian is Clary’s brother and Valentine’s true son, and before he was born, Valentine experimented on him with demon blood, which produced a Shadowhunter purged of nearly all his humanity. Valentine trained Sebastian to pass as human, and as a result, he has a mildness that “[hides] something beneath it that belie[s] his outward tranquility” (51). Sebastian comes across as a demon playing at being human, which is exactly what he is, and once he reveals his true nature, it’s difficult to compare him to the overly bland person he was trying to be. Shadowhunters describe demons as experts in deception, and though Sebastian has demon blood, he is not as good at disguising his nature as a true demon, showing the limits of his powers. At the end of the book, Jace mortally wounds Sebastian, but his body is never found, foreshadowing his later return to the series and alluding to defenses demons in Clare’s world have that Shadowhunters don’t possess.

Valentine is the main antagonist of City of Glass and the first half of The Mortal Instruments series. Where Sebastian is either overly mild or cruel, Valentine has a polished air about him that disguises his evil. Long before the series begins, Valentine was able to gain a following within the Shadowhunter community because his charisma and attractiveness made him desirable. People wanted to follow and listen to him. As a result, they went along with his plans, not realizing the danger until it was too late. In The Mortal Instruments series, the Shadowhunters fear Valentine both for what he plans to do and for the ease with which he can convert people to his cause. Valentine’s leadership abilities are both his best and worst qualities.

Luke is a werewolf and one of the most prominent adult characters in City of Glass. Long before the series, Valentine tricked Luke into a fight with werewolves, where Luke was bitten and turned—thus forcing him to leave Shadowhunter life. Luke has spent the time since he was turned protecting Clary and her mom, and with Jocelyn in an enchanted sleep for most of the first three books in the series, the role of Clary’s parent falls to Luke. Clare uses Luke’s character to explore the question of What Makes a Monster—his werewolf nature seems monstrous to the Shadowhunters, but Luke is one of the kindest, most competent characters in the novel, showing that neither his blood nor what others think affects who he truly is.

Though she’s asleep for most of City of Glass, Clary’s mom, Jocelyn, plays a large role in Clary’s character development. Until her mom arrives at Amatis’s house toward the end of City of Glass, Clary puts most of her effort and attention into finding a way to wake her mother from her self-induced enchanted sleep. Once her mom is awake and healthy, Clary realizes the anger she’s been holding onto that Jocelyn hid the Shadowhunter world and had Magnus block Clary’s memories. Jocelyn represents the idea that people have less control over their lives than they think. If Jocelyn had made different choices, Clary’s life would have gone a completely different way, showing how our lives are irrevocably influenced by those around us.

Alec is the oldest Lightwood child, and he represents change within a society’s beliefs and culture. Since Shadowhunters came into existence, they have frowned on same-gender relationships as a group, forcing many within their ranks to hide their true selves for fear of being shunned or threatened. Alec’s generation, particularly those who grew up away from Idris, have seen the growing support and acceptance offered to members of the LGBTQ+ community in human society, and as a result, Alec has started to question the Clave’s ideas. Falling in love with Magnus gives Alec someone to fight for and makes him less afraid to reveal his true self because he knows he’ll have Magnus’s support if his family and the Clave turn their backs on him.

Magnus is a warlock and Alec’s love interest. Magnus has lived for a long time and had centuries to come to terms with who he is. As a result, he knows what he wants and isn’t shy about going after it, which causes trouble for his relationship with Alec. While Alec is attracted to Magnus, Shadowhunter judgment keeps Alec from acting on that attraction, and this hurts Magnus because he doesn’t want to waste effort on someone who isn’t going to take the relationship seriously. At the end of the book, Alec and Magnus become a couple, laying a foundation for future non-heterosexual and Shadowhunter/downworlder couples in the series.

Aline’s primary contribution to the story is as a foil for the New York Shadowhunters. Having been raised in Idris, Aline is more conservative in her views about downworlders because she grew up away from the growing tolerance and empathy of the human world and without the opportunity to interact directly with downworlders. At the beginning of the story, she is fascinated by Simon because he’s one of the first downworlders she’s met, and Simon’s annoyed reaction to this is the first hint for Aline that Shadowhunters and downworlders are more alike than different. At the end of the book, Aline finds herself attracted to a female fairy, demonstrating the growth she’s experienced from getting to know Simon, Alec, and Magnus.

Amatis is Luke’s sister. Since cutting ties with Luke after he became a werewolf, Amatis has avoided conflict because she felt lost in Idris without her brother. At the beginning of the book, Amatis isn’t interested in crossing the Clave or making waves because she’s never believed her opinions mattered before and has no reason to believe they ever will. Watching Clary stand up to the Clave and unite Shadowhunters with downworlders shifts Amatis’s perspective on what is possible, giving Amatis the strength she needs to stand in support of Luke and against Valentine.