Words of Radiance: Chapter 59

Progression of the Chapter:
Kaladin complains about his too-nice prison cell; he hears a lot of unintelligible shouting down the hall; he considers trying to draw Stormlight from the lamp outside his cell; he also considers the possibility of breaking out; he argues with Syl about Dalinar, Elhokar, and Syl’s statement that it would be different this time; Wit makes snarky remarks from a bench outside the cell; Kaladin is surly about it; Wit begins playing his strange musical instrument, asking Kaladin what he sees; Kaladin finally responds, and Wit builds the story of Fleet around Kaladin’s responses; the interpretation is unclear; Wit leaves.
Quote of the Chapter:
It's impossible, now, not to see the beginnings of the broken bond in this argument.
Kaladin keeps blaming everyone else - especially Syl - for the results of his impetuous behavior. Sure, Elhokar did something stupid. But Kaladin did something stupid first, setting up the situation. It's time he admits his own culpability.
Why doesn’t Syl point this out to him? Does she not see it? Or is she not allowed?
Commentary:
Here sits Kaladin, sulking in his cell, convinced that everything is someone else’s fault - the lighteyes, the king, the spren, anyone but himself. He’s a bitter man, and that bitterness is already beginning to work its way out in all manner of downward-spiraling ways. It’s not only making him miserable, it’s making Syl miserable, and it’s eating away at their bond. He’s letting it interfere with the truths he knows about Dalinar, and blocking his ability to see new truth as it is presented. It's surprising that Wit manages to get through to him at all, in this state.
Wit goads Kaladin into making suggestions about the story: he plays his stringed instrument and waits for Kaladin to tell him what the music provokes in his imagination. Each time Kaladin makes a statement, Wit turns it into a versified chant, expanding on it and explaining the background for the suggestion, never actually going beyond what Kaladin said. Then he waits until Kaladin moves the story forward again. So in large part, it’s a story about Kaladin, or at least about Kaladin’s frame of mind.
Essentially, it’s a story about a legendary runner named Fleet, who could outrun anything, even the Herald Chanarach. Eventually, with no one left to challenge, he challenged the highstorm itself, running before the storm across the entire continent. It almost caught him in the central mountains, but then he reached the divide and gained ground. Again, it almost caught him in the mountains guarding Shinovar, but he managed to stay ahead of it, if only just. His strength finally failed and he collapsed ... but the storm was spent as well, and could not pass the point where he fell.
Even though it was (in one sense) his own bad-tempered statement that ended the story there, Kaladin is shocked that Wit agrees with him, that Fleet died. But ... the story isn’t over.
Kaladin (and perhaps the reader) is left wondering what it means, because stories have meaning. But when he asks Wit, the answer is merely that since it’s Kaladin’s story, he must decide what it meant.
It’s an amazing story for a developing Windrunner, one who can indeed race the wind and win (as long as he doesn’t run out of Stormlight). Sadly, Kaladin is too lost in his own personal frustrations to see the connection, and there's no evidence he actually spent any time thinking further about it.
Stormwatch:
This chapter takes place on Kaladin’s third day in prison - the first being the day of the duel - so there are now 26 days left in the countdown.
Sprenspotting:
Watching Syl droop in this chapter is painful, especially now that it's known where this attitude of Kaladin’s is leading.
There are a couple of other interesting notes, though. Part of Kaladin’s complaint about his cell was the lack of exposure; he missed the wind. The solitude wasn’t an issue, the lack of wind was. Is this significant of his connection to windspren or through his honorspren? Or is it just a general lack-of-fresh-air problem?
Another was this one:
Highspren have been confirmed as the Skybreaker-spren; this highlights a major difference between honorspren highspren ... and therefore, between Windrunners and Skybreakers. There is sometimes a distinction between what is legal and what is moral; there is even, sometimes, a case where moral conduct requires opposition to an unjust law. Roshar seems to have plenty of these cases, from Alethkar to Shinovar.
In the old days, was there frequent conflict between Skybreakers who judged guilt or innocence solely according to law, and Windrunners who judged action according to moral values rather than legal? Where did the other Orders fit along this spectrum, or did they care?
Haven’t We Met Somewhere Before?
Lightweaving, Hoid/Wit, or just personal insight and clever stoytelling?
Hoid holds at least 200 Breaths. It's possible there are other ways he could have acquired perfect pitch, but this is the sort of thing Brandon throws in for the obsessive, overly detail-oriented, very thorough readers.
Heraldic Symbolism:
Nalan, Judge, Herald of Justice and patron of the Skybreakers. Because Kaladin deserves to be in prison? Because he doesn’t? Because Syl mentions the highspren? The Joker, wild card, jester, Wit. Because of Wit.
- Paraphrased from Alice Arneson