What's in a Name? (SPOILERS)

[Mistdork]

So...I was thinking...does the name of the Returned effect the Intent of the Divine Breath, or is it, perhaps, the other way around? What comes first: the chicken or the egg? the Return's name or the Intent?

 

The above are really just rhetoric questions. Splinters can have their own Intent independent of the Shard, but in the case of a Return, this Intent is governed by a human rather than being the result of chosen Intent (Nightblood) or a more "random" Intent like spren (or Intent based on truths/ideals...some of these being harder to grasp than others and thus resulting in bigger splinters, like Honor, cryptics, godspren, or Destroy Evil). But, one of the things I've wondered about for awhile is, when a Returned is given a name, is it due to who they already are/were, or who they will become (based on the needs of the people or the possible future Endowment showed them)? How much do the names actually matter?

 

If the names are influence the Intent, is it because the Returned decided to follow what their name met (aka Warbreaker and Blushweaver) or because they were given it by others? When we consider Blushweaver or Vasher, two Returned who have changed their names or, in Vasher's case, had different names given to him at different times, one might conclude that whatever influence their names have is somewhat flexible. Blushweaver seems to be a goddess of beauty (and sexuality), but she is at times honest as well, reflecting in the long run, her original name as nature. While Vasher has been known as Strifelover, Kalad the Usurper and finally, Peacegiver; in the long run (or by the time of novels and by the end of the Manywar) he fits the ideal hinted at in his given name...

 

It seems little uncanny (and is mentioned by Vasher at the end of Warbreaker) but perhaps reflects the nature of larger Splinters. The ideals/truths that they represent are bigger, and thus, can't be pinned down as easily. On Roshar, a conscious spren forms due to the large amount of Investiture with its large Intent trying to "fit in" and intepret that truth/ideal; like Nightblood, but not forced. When a person Returns, however, the name is an unspecific descriptor that foreshadows the base Intent/reason that person Returned. A Returned's name operates in a similar fashion to the name of a spren or, probably more correctly, Nightblood's command...at least in the long run. However, it shows that a "person" bonded to a Splinter (of this size) has more flexibility, but perhaps not as much as a regular person.

My final questions for you guys:

 

1. Do you think that the Splinter and the name that the Cult of the Returned give the them have some restraining effects on the individual's will due to the level of Investiture (because that Investiture is trying to act according to its "named" Intent)?

2. Does this result in a type of "civil war" between the named Intent and the human conscious bonded to the Splinter?

3. Are names of Returned a Command given by Endowment (in a matter of speaking) that the Returned try to 'live up to'?

(etc. I'm going to sleep now)...

[Blaze1616]

If I am not mistaken, the name given to a Returned is supposed to be based on how they died. For example, Lightsong the Bold was called such due to the way he died (I'm not sure how to do the spoiler thing, so I'll be vague). This is revealed either at some point in the book, or in the annotations on Brandon's site, I honestly cannot remember which, but do distinctly remember reading it.

 

It is then possible that the intent imprinted upon the Splinter is due to the final actions performed by the individual prior to their death and the bonding. It is also possible that the method for "selecting" those eligible to be Returned is that their final act is one that truly reflects the individual's values/conscience, and so the intent of the Splinter matches the individual perfectly.

 

So to answer your posed questions, no, I do not believe that the Splinter, nor the name given to a Returned have any effect on their will. I do not recall any Returned struggling because they want to perform a specific action, but some mysterious force is holding them back (though it has been a while since I read the book). Due to the name having to do with the manner in which the individual died, though, I think that the manner of death has to do with the eligibility to bond with a splinter. That or the individual's true nature makes them eligible, and then them acting upon that true nature when they die causes the names given to reflect the intent.

 

It could also, of course, simply be a literary technique employed by Sanderson to have the Returned perform actions proving their given names true.

 

I apologize if that felt rambly, I've never contributed to serious discussion about the books before. 

[happyman]

One interesting possibility is that the names are actually prophecies.  That would make for an odd spin in the universe, I must say.  Did we ever find out where the names come from?

 

And if it's like other Cosmere prophecies, agency is never absolutely negated.  It's just a prediction of the most likely outcome given the powers in play.  With more power, the prophecies are more certain.  If it tends to fit more often than not, it just shows the amount of power involved.

[killersquirrel59]

Well, given that the names are chosen by "a small monkey who has been fed an exceedingly large amount of gin", I'd guess that they are unrelated except tangentially as interpreted by those who justify it afterwards...either that or Endowment is a drunk monkey. We cannot ever really deny that possibility.