Architect Theory

This page is about The Paths. For the "Architects of Creation" who constructed the universe, see Angel.

The Architect theory is a viewpoint on The Paths which argues that they are shaped and defined by certain key figures ("Architects"), powerful beings that most Finders will encounter during their career.<ref name=":0">Hazel has inadvertently stumbled onto her own list of Architects.  The Architect theory suggests that certain prominent Others act as pillars of the Paths and may be the originators of it, but each theorist maintains their own lists and Hazel seems to do the same.  While the theory has been debunked, we do know there are certain Others who take on a certain prominence and tend to revolve around Finders.  The Wolf, the Page of Suns, Jacques, and the Queen of Ends, among others.

Hazel neatly identifies several, but seems rather certain the Child is one, and changes to start capitalizing it partway through the conversation.  It sets Hazel’s list apart from others, but it should be noted the idea of the Child’s inclusion on the list is somewhat rare, for after all, the Child is typically dead early into most Finder careers and they don’t see the Child return.  Hazel’s hypothesis came after the Architect Theory had been largely dismissed by the Finder community, and the diehard adherents of the theory have other structures they have fixated on.

Arguments can be made about the Child being counted among the key Paths fixtures.  Many of these arguments can be found in Architects.

- 100 Years Lost, excerpted in 16.4 Bonus: 100 Years Lost</ref>

Proposed Architects

• The Wolf of the Forest Ribbon Trail<ref name=":1">The text Procession into Dream suggests a system of key individuals every Finder will meet in the course of a sufficiently long career, with the dreaded Wolf being the first.  This structural theory suggests that the Dreaming Realm is itself defined by these figures and that the management and system of honors is ultimately shaped by these ‘architects’.  This is the most succinct explanation this author can put forward to address a theory that has been written on hundreds of times, with ever evolving depth.  However, despite the varied writings on the topic, the Architect theory fails one of our most vital tests.  When more information is gathered and more research done into the idea, the answers become more varied and fractured, instead of narrowing to a point.  Even the authors of Procession aren’t sure of the specifics: how many architects are there?  Why have some not met certain architects?  Why have no architects alluded to this power?  What would it serve them?  What of those who don’t begin on the Forest Ribbon Trail?  Answers to these questions by Architect theorists inevitably create more questions. - Whim and Vigor, quoted in Left in the Dust 16.2</ref> - included on most lists.<ref name=":2"> The Page of Suns.  When discussing the Architect theory of the Paths and the variations on that theory, the Page of Suns often appears.  He may appear on many Paths, separate from the rules, always male with the sun motif, and the demeanor Hazel describes here.  When so many things on the Paths are subject to the eye of the beholder, the Page of Suns almost always has the same mask.  The Page of Suns appears on as many lists of Architects as the Wolf. - 100 Years Lost, excerpted in 16.4 Bonus: 100 Years Lost</ref>
• The Page of Suns - included on most lists.<ref name=":2" />
• Jacques<ref name=":0" />
• The Queen of Ends<ref name=":0" />
• The Child - usually "dies" early in a Finder's career like on the forest ribbon trail and is not seen thereafter. Only included on a few lists.<ref name=":0" />
• The Finder - from which all path related dopplegangers and copies come from.<ref>

“It’s not a- it’s not a doppleganger, exactly. It’s the Finder. [...] She’s what some call an architect. An institution of the Paths. Either she helped make them what they are and took on this identity and role- [...] The strongest Finder on a-[...] given Path. She’s either the originator, or she- there’s enough mirror-doubles of people as puzzle elements that they all interconnected and became a singular identity with a bigger-” - Excerpt from In Absentia 21.4</ref>

History

The theory predates the switch to modern Finder terminology. Hundreds of texts were written on the subject, including Procession into Dream. In 1953, the book Whim and Vigour was highly critical of the concept.<ref name=":1" /> By the time Hazel returned from her century-long journey and revolutionized Finding, the theory had largely been dismissed by the community.<ref name=":0" />

In the modern day, the theory is considered entirely niche and debunked, but it remains a useful shorthand for the very real fact that certain Lost seem to hold a special prominence.<ref>We will also avoid wasting page space on niche philosophy and considerations, such as the Dreamer Traditionalist, Absurdist, Giant Head, and Disintegrating Reality notions.  Some small mention is made of the Architect theory but this is largely due to the fact that it forms a tidy shorthand for referencing those key figures so many Finders encounter in their travels. - 100 Years Lost, excerpted in 16.4 Bonus: 100 Years Lost</ref><ref name=":0" />

References

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