KKC Theory Wiki

Kvothe's Sleeping Mind Is a Self-Interested Monster He Locked Away

plausible identity · popularity 65 · 1 source thread

Kvothe's waking self is kind while his sleeping mind is a self-interested monster, sealed away via a Name change.

About: Kvothe, Naming

Also involves: Bast, Vashet, Shehyn, The Lethani, Iax

The theory§

Building on Vashet's unease that something evil hides within Kvothe — and her inability to tell which Kvothe is the real one — this theory holds that he has two selves: a waking mind that is decent and caring, and a sleeping mind that is a wholly self-interested monster. The self-sacrificing side of Kvothe is imagined to have sealed that darker self away by changing his Name, which would explain Bast's longing to get his 'Reshi' back: Bast, dangerous in his own asides, may want the monster returned. Elodin's teaching that everyone has a waking mind that reasons and a sleeping mind that 'sees deeply to the heart of things' grounds the split, and his alarm when Kvothe asks about 'a person who keeps changing their name' suggests changing one's Name twice could lock part of the self away. Shehyn's remark that Kvothe carries something deeper than the Lethani, and his best feats arising when he stops using his waking mind, reinforce the idea that what Kote has lost is the powerful, perceiving sleeping mind itself.

Evidence§

  • It seems like Kvothe is a kind, decent person on the surface, but she mentions catching glimpses of something evil hiding within him. This is played of as Kvothe being a puzzle and Vashet not knowing which one is the real Kvothe.
    OP's starting observation: Vashet senses evil hidden in an otherwise decent Kvothe. — u/4IamTheTodd
  • What if they’re both him. Waking mind = decent, caring person. Sleeping mind = completely self-interested monster.
    Core claim: Kvothe has two selves split between waking decency and sleeping monstrousness. — u/4IamTheTodd
  • This seems to go along with Bast just “wanting his reshi back.” If bast is as evil as he seems in all of the asides, I could definitely see him wanting back the monster that is Kvothe’s sleeping mind. Locking that away with a change of his Name is also something that I could see the good, self-sacrificing side of Kvothe doing.
    Ties Bast's longing and the Name change to the locking-away mechanism. — u/4IamTheTodd
  • Shehyn says something similar, that Kvothe has the Lethani, but he has something in him that's deeper than the Lethani and she doesn't know what to make of that.
    Comment corroborates the hidden deeper self via Shehyn's observation. — u/elihu
  • I keep coming back to their scene where Kvothe and I think Sim are talking about some doctor who did horrible stuff but advanced medical understanding a ton. Kvothe is kinda ok with it and Sim is horrified by the doctor
    Adds evidence of Kvothe's amoral, self-interested reasoning supporting the monster claim. — u/CoreyTheGeek
  • My personal opinion is that you have it backwards. Kvothe answers lethani questions the best when he's not using his waking mind to answer them. … Most of his best actions are carried out when he stops using his waking mind quite so much and just acts - saving Fela … naming Felurian, the lightning at the bandit camp.
    CounterCounter: the sleeping mind is the source of his best feats, not a monster. — u/Jandy777
  • I don't think Kvothe thinks in good and evil patterns. More like will do and won't do. … I would say the sleeping mind is just Kvothes third eye, not his shadow self.
    CounterCounter: rejects the good/evil framing; sleeping mind is perception, not a shadow self. — u/Imaterd005
  • Question is - is it possible to have "good Kvothe" without having "ambicious, egotistical, boastful, powerful Kvothe", or you just get Kote as the result.
    Refines the theory: removing the monster may leave only the diminished Kote. — u/BlueVCoin

Book refs: WMF

Tier reasoning§

distinct theory; Vashet/Shehyn observations give it textual footing, plausible holds

Contributors§

Source threads§