Mythopoeia, Alduin, and the Dragon Gods

"Why is Alduin so small?"

"Why does he call Akatosh his father?"

"Why is he raising the dragons and their dragon priests?"

"Why doesn't he just get on with it and eat the world?"

"How is it possible for you to stop him when he shouldn't be able to be stopped?"

"Is this game's story lame or what?"

Most of the questions regarding Alduin's identity and motives in the events of TES V can be understood when looking at the mythopoetic forces involved, particularly in regards to how he relates to Akatosh, Aka-tusk, Auriel, and Shor. These forces are generated by the worshipers of these gods (the Nords, the Imperials, the Alessian order, and the Dragon Cult).

First there was Aka-tusk.The Elves know Akatusk as Anui-el and the Nords knew Anui-el as Aka-tusk (before Imperialization). This Dragon God split Auriel and Alduin off of himself in the distant past, probably as soon as he came into existence and time started. Aruiel begins time and allows spirits to take shape. Alduin is the one who sleeps until it is time to eat the world. Auriel is the beginning of time and Alduin is the end of time.

The elves never seem to describe these gods as Dragons. In fact, Aruiel always shown as an elven king. This leads me to think he was some kind of Dragonborn figure, just without all the dragon aesthetics and shouting. Elves don't think of time as a dragon, perhaps because they long for the period before creation, when the spirits were unshaped. To them, Magnus had the right idea and they honor Anui-el and Auriel in their pre-fallen forms. Note the Snow Elves' solar imagery and the High Elven golden bird imagery, evoking Magnus and Auriel's ascent. (Please correct me if I say something wrong, my knowledge of High Elven religion is shaky at best.)

Dragon Cult is responsible for some of the quirks in Alduin's personality. Evolving out of Atmoran totem worship, the Dragon cult became an oppressive regime based on power. It was dragons at the top, then priesthood, and then everyone else. And at the very top was Alduin. Now, Alduin is supposed to be asleep for most of history. But he is the strongest dragon and suddenly people are worshiping him for that. So he has to respond. He becomes the tyrant-dragon king. He doesn't forsake his role as World-Eater, he's just acting out a new one. As World-Eater he is asleep, but as Tyrant he's awake. And as a tyrant, he's just a big dragon, not as much of a big deal.

What did the Dragon Cult think about the end of the world? "They built the dragon mounds, entombing the remains of dragons that fell in the war. They believed that one day the dragons would rise again and reward the faithful." Even after Alduin was sent forward in time, this belief would affect his actions upon return. He brings the dragons back from their mounds and his priests for their reward. What is that reward? If power is truth to this faith, then what could be greater then seeing your ruler at his most powerful, his world eating form? It is the privilege of seeing the end of the world. (Perhaps, also, survival into the next kalpa?)

The Nords never believed Alduin and Akatosh were the same, mainly because they had Aka-tusk and had memories of the Dragon Cult. The Imperial scholars conflated these gods at a later date because the Imperials wanted the whole "the Nine Divines are your Divines too fellow citizen" thing to be true. However, the Nords seem to gradually accept a form of Imperial religion. They keep their old myths and conceptions of the gods, but the structure of worship ends up being that of the Imperial Cult's Nine Divines. Presumably, the popularity of Talos had something to do with this. The end result of this conflation was that the Nords still believed in Alduin, but that he "ent Akatosh". They accept Akatosh as one of their gods, replacing Aka-tusk.

Who was Akatosh before he was cleansed of Elven influence? He was the Dragon God for the Ayleids and their slaves, just another view of the Dragon God Aka-tusk. And there wasn't really a problem while the elves were in charge because, presumably, their version of Aka-tusk was just as anti-Shor as Anui-el. They would have probably called him "Akatosh," but they just meant Aka-tusk- the big dragon Aedra. The Alessians split their Akatosh off from the main Akatosh aka Aka-tusk. That is why Alduin calls Aka-tosh his father, that he is first-born. He speaks of Aka-tusk, but the Nords call Aka-tusk Akatosh now, and this mythopoetically affects how Alduin talks.

When the monkeys danced on the tower, they not only created a new god, but also created a foil for Alduin (and Auriel). When you break the Dragon, you break the whole Dragon and all its parts. Since there was already a Creator of Time and a Destroyer of Time (both fragments of the time Dragon), they created a Sustainer of Time. Both Alduin and Auriel hate Shor. But Akatosh? He loves Shor and he loves man. The Imperial cult recognizes that Akatosh and Shezzar are two sides of the same coin. I think of Akatosh as the return of Aka's repressed love for his brother (who the rest of him hates). The monkeys split the dragon, but they reconciled it with the serpent. This union is powerful, especially since Shor is getting a comeback with Talos.

Now we know from the Seven Flights that Alduin's eating can't be stopped. Not even Aka-tusk can stop it. Why? Because when time was created, it was created with Alduin's role. Beginning and End. But now that there's a Middle? It has a law too and nothing can stop it either. The Sustainer must work to sustain. No need to hide pieces of the world away anymore, Shor has a dragon on his side now (the dragon of the north?) and he intends to use it.

The Dragonborn Shezzarine (including Talos) is the tool Akatosh is using to sustain mundus. They fill the natural role, the Sustainer to counter the Destroyer. Combining the forces of Akatosh and Shor, they work to sustain Mundus for as long as possible against Alduin. That's why the wheel turns upon them. Both are charged to fulfill their roles and nothing can stop them. They have to conflict. Alduin will eat the world, but first he has to fight you.

I speculate (though this is all speculation so that goes without saying) that this is one of the reasons he is smaller than his reputation, he has to fight you and you have to have a chance at winning. I also speculate he's trying to get to Shor in Sovngarde. He doesn't seem to take the LDB seriously until their first confrontation. He may think Shor/Talos is his main concern. He has to fight the Sustainer, but he doesn't really know who the Sustainer is.

So what we see in Skyrim is the grand confrontation of Aludin and the chosen of Akatosh (who is the Shezzarine). Think: Why does Alduin attack Helgen first? Because that is where the LDB makes their way into Skyrim. The two dragons enter at the same place and at the same time because they are mythopoetically required to fight. And because their mythopoeia requires them both to fulfill their duty, it's really anyone's game as to who will win (of course you win because you're awesome).

TL;DR:

"Why is Alduin so small?" (So you can fight him and so he can rule over the dragon cult. Big Alduin needs sleep and only wakes for world eating).

"Why does he call Akatosh his father?" (Because Aka-tusk is Akatosh to the Nords now, and the Nords believe in Alduin).

"Why is he raising the dragons and their dragon priests?" (It was part of the Dragon Cult religion that the priests and their followers be present for the end of the world).

"Why doesn't he just get on with it and eat the world?" (He needs to fight you and he's trying to eat Shor).

"How is it possible for you to stop him when he shouldn't be able to be stopped?" (You are Akatosh's and Shor's secret weapon).

"Is this game's story lame or what?" (Well, it does require some gap filling. So maybe the story is lame, but the lore isn't).

EDIT: For Auriel spelling