Talk:Ken Kaneki/@comment-222.153.17.80-20151122230036/@comment-10733658-20151123105301

I've said before, but there are two pieces of evidence that discount the whole "true Kaneki is a cold and brutal dude".

Arima explicitly states that brain scans the CCG did on him show he has a unusually highly developed Right Supramarginal Gyrus. This is the portion of the frontal cortex responsible for Empathy and Social Behavior, meaning that he is literally wired to be a highly-compassionate individual. Ergo, when he acts in a cold or cruel manner, that is the mask because it goes strictly against the natural patterns of his brain.

I doubt Ishida would give us that explicit piece of information, if it weren't his true nature.

There's also the fact that he is Eto's foil in the story. While she embraced a path of destruction and hatred, he has always ultimately been aided by his ability to understand and empathize with others.

Right now, the story is focused on The Tower. It's a card of upheaval and unnecessary but painful change. It also leads to greater understanding and eventual enlightenment. What comes after the Tower is The Star, a card symbolizing renewed Faith, Hope, and Understanding.

Just because he's angry now, in this brutal life-or-death situation with two people that have tormented him repeatedly for long periods of time.....doesn't mean this is his "new self". It just means he's facing down his tormentors, and will be able to move forward after that.

Remember, Ishida uses a lot of Freudian and Jungian psychology in the series. Now that he's faced the primary and deeply-buried conflict concerning his mother, he has been able to move on. He's faced his "Shadow", and accepted the things in himself he'd long been denying. He's not turning into this monster or some evil dude, all the signs indicate he's going to come out of this better in the long run.