Shan Elariel belongs to House Elariel, which is central to the politics of Luthadel, according to Kelsier’s informant, Hoid (1.316). She is in a failed engagement to Elend Venture in the beginning of the Mistborn series, and she is secretly a Mistborn allomancer.
Appearance
Shan Elariel is described as quite beautiful:
“Elend’s former betrothed was immaculate, as always. Her long auburn hair had an almost luminous sheen, and her beautiful figure only reminded Vin how scrawny she herself was” (1.381)
She is the symbol of what the aristocracy represents, its archetype. Vin describes her as “self-important in a way that could make even a confident person uncertain” and that she was “exactly what most of the aristocracy thought was the perfect woman” (1.381).
Personality
Shan is haughty, supercilious, and cruel. Whenever she gets bored, she seeks out Vin to embarrass her for sport (1.382).
She reminds Vin of Camon, her old crew leader who was abusive to her. She notes that Shan Elariel was someone “who would hit a person, fully expecting no resistance,” and that “resisting people like her would only make the beating worse” (1.303).
When Vin approaches Shan at one of the balls to tell her about some books she had found, like Shan had asked, Shan responds rather rudely.
She says “I no longer require your services…Now, be a good little twit and stop bothering me.” She then goes on to say ““I said that you are no longer needed. You think I was harsh on you before, girl? That was when you were on my good side. Try annoying me now” (1.469)
At this moment, Vin notes that she seems disgusted. Angry, even, and perhaps jealous.
“She must have figured it out…she finally realized that I’m not playing Elend. She knows that I care for him, and doesn’t trust me to keep her secrets.” (469)
Perhaps she is so cruel because she is jealous of Vin, and she’s insecure that Elend picked Vin instead of her, and this is how it’s all coming out.
Allomantic Abilities
In a plot twist at the end of Mistborn, we found out that Shan Elariel is actually Mistborn (1.508). We find out that she is quite skilled, and even fights with Atium.
However, she dies at the hands of Vin, who is more talented than her.
