Arya's last pov chapter AFFC

[AryaUnderfoot]

Dont know for sure if her blindness is permanent.

I was responding to Hot Pie's comment that he did not think that GRRM would temporarily cripple a character. Meaning that he thinks Arya's blind for good. But I don't see how such an action would serve the Faceless Men in any way... ?

 

[genisis2]

I was responding to Hot Pie's comment that he did not think that GRRM would temporarily cripple a character. Meaning that he thinks Arya's blind for good. But I don't see how such an action would serve the Faceless Men in any way... ?

OOPS...LOL thats what I get for reading last post first. Sorry misunderstood.

 

[Kendack]

perhaps arya has indirect control over nymeria and this blindness is in place to improve her skills as a warg? who knows.... all this speculation is killing me!

 

[TK-421]

perhaps arya has indirect control over nymeria and this blindness is in place to improve her skills as a warg? who knows.... all this speculation is killing me!

Yes, yes. That makes sense (although I think somebody else had a similar theory). And with Bran finding the Three-eyed crow, they could communicate somehow and know each other is still alive.

 

[Boaz]

I just had a thought regarding Arya becoming a Faceless Man.

Eddard told Arya that she strongly resembled Lyanna in both appearance and manner. Which characters still have strong memories of Lyanna? I daresay all of the northern lords and ladies remember and that a number of the powerful southern lords and ladies also. If Arya were to reappear in her late teens but not claiming to be a Stark, I wonder how many would still put two and two together. It could be said that becoming a Faceless Man is completely necessary for Arya's survival. What would a new Lyanna do to Westeros? Would someone decide to try and father a son on her to produce TPTWP?

Many characters have noted Sansa's strong physical resemblence to Catelyn. Sansa will never be able to change her appearance like Arya. She'll have to rely upon her abilities when she reappears to the kingdom. She'll never be able to disappear again. She'll have the burden of carrying the Stark name and the Tully looks.

 

[Young stormlord]

Maybe "Jaqen H'gar" isn't his real name. Maybe he chose the name of a loved one to be his, just as Arya chose "Cat" as her name for a time. If she asked for him to kill a person of that name and it was someone he truly cared for, I could understand him being upset, regardless of how he felt about death.

I dont think he has chosen name of the loved one to be his fake name. In AFFC prologue we find out that when Faceless Man takes someone elses body he takes his identity also. What is the point of taking over body if u can't use his identity?

Also if he was afraid of dying because he had task to do could it be that task was to kill Baelon Greyjoy? Very posible.

About Arya's blindness, I think that is lesson she has to learn. She is not master of life and death, she is servant. I guess that blind kid made same mistake. He, like Arya killed som1 who in eyes of Faceless Man did not need to die. I think they have like some rules for killing people. I can think of 3 rules.

1. Kill only people who u have orders to kill.
2. If u need to kill some people in process do it.
3. If som1 save ur life (steals your life from Gods of death) pay him back with free kill.

 

[AandKsavetheDAY]

Since Arya is and will remain my fave character, I've spent a while thinking about this. I always thought that she was blinded because she proved that she was unable to throw away the Stark part of her (killing Dareon=staying Stark) which she must do to become what she's training to become. I think the old man was trying to limit her, because to him she was not doing what she should have. I think that she will overcome her blindness, but whether or not she regains her sense of sight is a different matter. If she becomes a faceless...person, and can take on the visage of anyone, it won't matter if she's blind or not, she'll be able to see with another's eyes.

On the topic of Jaquen, I think everyone is overlooking something: He hesitated when she hinted at his name, but would have consented. Anyone would hesitate (at the very least) when told by someone they owed that they should kill themself. Yet, he would have done it if she had insisted. I'm sure he was not a faceless man in training, he was legit. (haha)
Question, though: I know some people said that maybe Jaquen got the coin from his trainig, or some such thing. Why, then, would any Braavosi accept it? I think that coin was more important than that, but it could also have just been something minor that won't come up again.

 

[Young stormlord]

Question, though: I know some people said that maybe Jaquen got the coin from his trainig, or some such thing. Why, then, would any Braavosi accept it? I think that coin was more important than that, but it could also have just been something minor that won't come up again.

I think that everyone in Braavos know about Faceless Man. And the way to know that som1 is faceless man is that person has iron coin without face. What I don't understand is why people were saying their names to Arya and giving her things. It could be that they think she will spare them if she sees them again. Or perhaps they are thinking about free service from Faceless Man?
Just some thoughts.

 

[Robbedo]

Alright guys, this is the first time I'm posting. I think that what a lot of people have forgotten (Even I forgot until I re-read it) but when Arya chooses to throw all her things away, the priest warns her that to become a Faceless Man she must give up everything he says something like (I don't have the book in front of me but you should get the jist) "It will take your eyes, your ears, your heart everything, are you sure this is what you want?"

I have a theory that as the Faceless Men are servants of death is there not a possibility that they themselves are dead? It might explain some of there abilities? And to prove themselves worthy they give up every part of there life and all the things that they take for granted (Posessions, sight, hearing, and probably movement and then life).

I agree with the other people who say it is part of her training. If she is not worthy she would give up the training because she is blind.

Likewise (Not backing up my theory but just speculating) the waif who is Aryas companion was brought to the Faceless men having been poisoned. Her father made sacrifices to the Faceless God (I think he killed his new wife - and we all know only life can pay for death).

Lot to think about can't wait till the new book comes out.

Laters

 

[Young stormlord]

wow, faceless man dead? I can't believe this. Then why would Jaquen be afraid to die then?

 

[Boaz]

Robbedo, Welcome!

Undead assassins is an interesting theory. I've seen sillier, I've posted sillier.

I'm going to use the terms undead, resurrected, reanimated, etc. but what I mean is people who were dead and are now walking around. Thoros might have said of Catelyn, "she's not only merely dead, she's really most sincerely dead." I don't mean people like Davos, Aeron, or Patchface who could have swallowed water, become unconscious and been revived. I do mean people who are morally, ethically, spiritually, physically, positively, absolutely, undeniably, and reliably dead!

We've only seen a few of the Faceless Men... the old man and Jaqen, I'm not including Arya's little friend since she seems to not have graduated the Faceless school yet. But two things leap out at me. First, Young Stormlord hit the nail on the head... if Jaqen was already dead then why would Jaquen be afraid to die? Second, we've seen undead before... Beric, Catelyn, Ser Waymar, Small Paul. Undead beings seem to carry their appearances in death back with them in life/unlife and I see how a Faceless Man could overcome this, but the mindsets of Beric and Catelyn, notably, at the time of their deaths became their only mindset when they were reanimated. Waymar and Small Paul were just blind killing machines when they were resurrected. But Jaqen and the old man seem to have total control over a wide range of emotions for undead.

And I think the quote is not "Only life and can pay for death", rather I think it's "Only death can pay for life." There's more than a subtle difference here.

It may be that the Faceless Men ceremonially "kill" their acolytes. They may do something like the Ironborn do or it may be even less severe. Thus the Faceless Man is now dead to the world.

If you've lurked around the forums or if you've read a fair bit of posts, then you'll know I'm not the end all, be all of knowledge on ASOIAF. I post like it, but I'm not. My posts are only my opinions of the moment. If you or someone posts an opposing view, I might just change my opinion... I've done it before.

Again... Welcome!

 

[Aegon the Unworthy]

Wait....Boaz isnt the final word in these forums? Quelle suprise.....

So anyhow now that my sarcasm quota for a given post has been met....

I think we're forgetting that magic is only recently returned to this world. So any ceremony that involved killing the trainees then reanimating them would have had to be shelved for the last decade or two just out of simple expediency.

After some point, like I dont know the second dozen of trainees to be ceremoniously killed and the reanimation botched, some bright mind would have to consider not killing the potential operatives.

Remember the pyromancers of Kings Landing that continued utilizing their mystic rituals even though they didnt seem to do anything, then all of sudden BAM!, they have useful rituals again.

 

[Young stormlord]

Is it posible that Faceless Man have magic that is not connected to other magic in the world? My idea is this : Faceless Man were killing and changing faces (looks, call it whatever u want) even when dragons were dead. But in my mind that is not the highest level of magic. To me ability to change face (read take anothers persons face) is the same type of ability like waking fire from dragon glass (connection with Danny in Quarthe). U do not create anything new, u are just using(taking) what is already in there. Necromancy is in my eyes greater level magic, because u need to put life in dead body. (create something that is not there anymore)

So my point is this: Is it posible that Faceless Man had some greater abillities(which we haven't seen yet) which they lossed when last dragon dyed (which calls for a question how did that happened) but some smaller skills have survived?

 

[Robb the Lord]

The blindness is part of Arya's training and is not permanent.

Jaqen H'gar is not his real name.

The Faceless Men are not undead.

 

[MOUNTAIN THAT READS]

The blindness is part of Arya's training and is not permanent.

Jaqen H'gar is not his real name.

The Faceless Men are not undead.

LOL!!! Ya what he said!!!!
welcome Robb

 

[Boaz]

So anyhow now that my sarcasm quota for a given post has been met....

Sarcasm quota. Funny stuff. Who writes your material? I need better writers.

YS, I don't know the mechanics or the Laws of Magic in ASOIAF. I don't know that GRRM has worked these out himself. We could all project the Laws of Magic from Tolkien, Rowling, LeGuin, Moorcock, Eddings, Feist, or D&D, but these mechanics may not be what Martin has in mind.

It seems that the geographic proximities of the Seven Kingdoms and the Free Cities to doomed Valyria disallow magic while dragons are absent. The Dothraki Sea is a long way from Valyria and thus the maegi is able to perform the magic ceremony to help Drogo. Following this idea, Pyat Pree or Quaithe said that magic never faded in the East... presumably because of the great distance from the cataclysm that befell Valyria.

The Sorrowful Men are the competing assassin's guild with the Faceless Men, if I'm not mistaken. The Sorrowful Men started with a slave in the Valyrian mines who put other slaves out of their misery. Ultimately these Sorrowful Men caused the catastrophe that destroyed Valyria, iirc. (Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.) Does anyone know if the Faceless Men preceded the Sorrowful Men, if they were founded by a Sorrowful Man, or if they are completely independent?

If the Faceless Men are just a branch of the Sorrowful Men, would they somehow still be attempting to cause harm to the Valyrians and their dragons? Why did the Targaryen dragons die out? Some say battle, some say they were chained and not set free to grow, some say poisoned... mayber all three are correct. Assassins could have been working at giving bad counsel to the Targaryens (as Varys did to Robert) in order to kill the dragons and weaken the Targaryens without being seen as overt assassins. If the Targaryens had known the Faceless Men were seeking to do them harm, I think the Targaryens would have flown a couple dragons over and napalmed the Faceless Mens guild house.

All that to say, will Arya be sent to destroy the last of the Targaryens? Her possible assassination of Jon has been mentioned before.

p.s. Welcome Robb!

 

[Robbedo]

Alright thanks for the welcome mate, good to see your so open minded.

Alright maybe not the dead risen, but perhaps immortal???

As for the magic thing someone else wrote and the connection to the dragons, death has always been a part of the world, and the faceless men are servants of death.

Anyway I'm not trying to rumourfy someone elses idea, and I'm not going to call it silly. No offence this is science fiction so whatever George R R Martin wants to happen, will!

Nuff said

Laters hubertz

 

[Young stormlord]

Alright thanks for the welcome mate, good to see your so open minded.

Alright maybe not the dead risen, but perhaps immortal???

As for the magic thing someone else wrote and the connection to the dragons, death has always been a part of the world, and the faceless men are servants of death.

Anyway I'm not trying to rumourfy someone elses idea, and I'm not going to call it silly. No offence this is science fiction so whatever George R R Martin wants to happen, will!

Nuff said

Laters hubertz

Let me try beating your teory. The same reason why they are not undead is the reason why they are not immortal. Why would you fear of the death if you are immortal? Or to citate Faceless Man himself : "Many have served here. " If they are immortal they wouldn't need many people, they would need only one (immortal). Welcome to the forums by the way.

To Boaz: I don't think that they are branch of Sorrowfull Man. I guess that every city has it's killers.

 

[the smiling weirwood]

The Faceless Men are the ones who started with the slave mercy killings in Valyrian mines. This would fit because the Free Cities were once controlled by Valyria.

The Sorrowful Men are so called because they apologize before their targets die. I don't believe the two groups have any connections.

 

[AandKsavetheDAY]

Immortal? Undead? What (lol)?
Its pretty certain that the faceless men have some sort of power that enables them to change their appearances, but I don't think its immortality or anything of that sort. Mayhaps they get their power from the Many-faced God???
I wonder if to be faceless, they have to sacrifice their actual appearance, so they can never become themselves again, but must always be impersonating someone else.
I thought I'd throw a crazy idea out there just for kicks and giggles.