Difference between revisions of "Kaladin"

| Kaladin to [[Sylphrena]]{{book ref|sa1|14}}

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Kaladin has known adversity and loss throughout his life. He has suffered repeated oppression and betrayal by the [[lighteyes|lighteyed nobility]], including being driven from his home by the [[Roshone|citylord]] of his hometown as a teenager and being sold into slavery by the [[Meridas Amaram|commander]] of his army. Kaladin has also been unable to save numerous patients, comrades, subordinates, and even his brother [[Tien]] from death.

 

 

He has bonded with the [[honorspren]] [[Sylphrena]], more commonly known as Syl. This bond allows him to discover his powers as a [[Surgebinder]] and destiny as a member of the Knights Radiant, an order which has been defunct ever since the [[Day of Recreance]]. Kaladin, along with [[Shallan Davar]], is one of the first new members of the Knights Radiant in centuries. Their public revelation during the [[Battle of Narak]] serves as the catalyst for the re-founding of the Knights Radiant.

 

== Appearance and Personality ==

Kaladin is a fairly tall man. He is muscular and has multiple scars on his body.{{book ref|sa1|6}} He has tan skin{{book ref|sa1|prologue}} and shoulder-length wavy black hair typical of an Alethi. He is born with dark brown eyes,{{book ref|sa1|1}} though after swearing the [[Immortal Words|Third Ideal]] of the [[Windrunner]]s, his eyes turn very pale blue that glow while holding Stormlight.{{book ref|sa2|87}} Like most Rosharans, Kaladin's eyes have an [[Wikipedia:Epicanthic fold|epicanthic fold]]{{wob ref|4079}} that appear faintly colored amber when he is holding [[Stormlight]].{{book ref|sa1|38}} His face is square and firm with strong lines and a proud chin. He prefers to be clean-shaven but during his time as a slave, he grows a long, scraggly beard.{{book ref|sa1|46}} He is branded on his forehead with a ''sas nahn'' [[glyphpair]] indicating his slavery and a ''shash'' [[glyph]] meaning "dangerous".{{book ref|sa1|2}}

 

Kaladin is a natural leader who inspires belief and confidence in his men. His squad members in [[Amaram]]'s army call him lucky and believe that being in his squad grants them supernatural protection.{{book ref|sa1|1}} Kaladin also transforms Bridge Four from a dejected and despondent group with the worst reputation into a highly-motivated and effective fighting force. [[Dalinar Kholin]] remarks that his men are remarkably loyal and think very highly of him.{{book ref|sa1|73}}{{book ref|sa2|75}}

 

 

Kaladin shows a deep sense of loss when those under his protection die and has a tendency toward depression in various forms. By the time he joins Bridge Four, he has lost so many people that he has fallen into a deep depression. He thinks himself cursed because he always survives when others do not.{{book ref|sa1|2}} At his lowest point, Kaladin falls into apathetic despair and becomes suicidal.{{book ref|sa1|11}} He is also prone to seasonal depression, feeling a sense of heavy melancholy during the weeks of the [[Weeping]].{{book ref|sa1|43}}

Kaladin is deeply conflicted about killing, finding it philosophically hard to justify and the notion that one must kill in order to protect ironic and paradoxical. Although he is a soldier, he has been trained as a surgeon, whose highest calling is to save all lives. Additionally, as a member of the [[Order of Windrunners]], he lives by the [[Immortal Words|Ideals]] of his order, to which protecting life is central. It is further irony that Kaladin's powers of killing appear to be at their strongest when he is actively protecting something or someone. This paradox has plagued Kaladin and [[Syl]], who have both been unable to explain why killing is justified if the protection of life matters.

 

 

Kaladin draws a black and white distinction between lighteyes and darkeyes, harboring a deep resentment and distrust for virtually all [[lighteyes]], fueled by the betrayals of people like [[Roshone]], [[Amaram]], and [[Katarotam]]. Ironically, Kaladin himself is noted to have many lighteyed qualities. Many characters remark that Kaladin has the bearing of a lighteyes—meaning a leader or noble, since the term "lighteyes" encompasses these qualities in the Alethi language—and others have noted that "Kaladin" sounds like a lighteyed name, rather than a darkeyed name. Further, when Kaladin comes into his true power as a Knight Radiant, he becomes lighteyed. Kaladin despises these qualities in himself, because they make him more similar to lighteyes.{{book ref|sa2|87}}

 

 

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