KKC Theory WikiKote Knows the True Name of Everything, Even the Stars
Kote shutters his windows to escape the stars' names, implying he knows the true name of literally everything.
Also involves: Waystone Inn, The Lackless Box, Felurian
The theory§
In the opening chapter of The Name of the Wind, Kote looks up at a thousand stars on a moonless night, knowing them all, their stories and their names, in a familiar way, the way he knew his own hands; he then sighs, goes inside, and shutters the wide windows as if to distance himself from the stars and all their varied names. The theory reads this as evidence that Kote knows the true name of everything, even the stars, and is overwhelmed by their names when out under the night sky. A strong counter observes that at the close of The Wise Man's Fear he cannot open his own thrice-locked box, which should be trivial if he commanded every name, and that the passage stresses knowing the stars' stories and his familiarity with them rather than power over them. A reconciling reading holds that Kvothe knows his own true name and used it to lock his powers away in that box, much as he stripped Felurian of her power by knowing hers.
Evidence§
he locked the door and shuttered the wide windows of the inn, **as is to distance himself from the stars and all their varied names.**
OP's core textual evidence: Kote distances himself from the stars' names. — u/ficfixx1234I think this indicates that he knows the real name of literally everything including the stars and that when hes outside at night he gets overwhelmed by all the names around him.
OP states the theory: he knows everything's name and is overwhelmed. — u/ficfixx1234Looking up, he saw a thousand stars glittering in the deep velvet of a night with no moon. He knew them all, their stories and their names.
Commenter cites the full book passage grounding the theory. — u/Sandal-HatI would argue he knows their stories and has a very frim understanding of them, but the key is in the reference to his hands.
CounterRefines: stresses knowing stories/familiarity rather than power over names. — u/Sandal-HatAt the end of book 2 he is unable to get his thrice locked box to open, which wouldn't be the case if he knew everything's name.
CounterTop counter: he can't open his own box, undercutting omniscient naming. — u/FamilyofBearsMy personal theory is that Kvothe, knowing his own true name, has locked away his own powers into the thrice locked box in the same way that he was able to rob Felurian of her power using her name.
Reconciling reading: he locked his own powers away via his true name. — u/FamilyofBearsI don't think it's a strict matter of knowing. I think it's more like he managed to "tame" his sleeping mind and, with it, he's able to understand something completely, just like he did with Felurian.
Refines mechanism: not memorized knowing but sleeping-mind understanding. — u/Guslapse
Book refs: NOTW ch 1, WMF
Tier reasoning§
tier correct: reasonable reading of a direct passage
Contributors§
- u/FamilyofBears — countered · 90 pts
- u/Sandal-Hat — clarified · 15 pts