Right, and that would make it dead for one generation, as he and his entire generation was around while it was still active, with the others having no reason to pass that knowledge on to their children. So only Amberlee's generation would have a legitimate reason to believe it be non-existent.
Again, though, they don't believe it
never existed, just that it died out in the wars. It would be like, say, someone claiming today that Hitler was still alive. We know he
was alive in the past, but the notion that he could still be alive now would be dismissed as ridiculous.
And it was still blatantly active anyway, as the Ellcrys demonstrates when it chooses whether to accept someone or not after each competition (and how it appeared to reject Amberlee at first, or at least should have appeared that way to everyone gathered for the ceremony).
But that could've been seen as just a ritual, a metaphor. I got the sense that Amberle was the only one who experienced any kind of vision when she touched the tree, though I could be misremembering. If it only reacts if it rejects you, then the lack of reaction could be taken ritually as acceptance, and could be seen as just a part of the old ritual that has no literal meaning.
Which is also ridiculous. What possible reason would he have to do so? And even if he did, how is there no one else around who bore witness to it?
Again: They know magic
used to exist. They just believe it died out in the wars. The king said as much to Allanon. He believed that the druids and demons had all died out and that magic had died out with them.
You say that like it's not equally as ridiculous.
No, I'm saying that if people are willing to suspend disbelief for that story, they can do the same for this one. Not everything in a story actually has to be convincing; you just have to choose to play along. Or not, as you see fit.
With the exception of the Oscar (which people don't actively compete for, I dunno where you got that idea), all of those have the same motivation: Wealth.
Wealth is just a form of social approval. Look at the way the rich behave and tell me that they don't consider themselves a chosen elite.
