#alhaitham not joining any other joint project after this adheres to his individualism and how kaveh rejecting him negatively

[iridescentmirrorsgenshin]

I find it so interesting that kaveh always knew that he and alhaitham saw the world differently, but they were still best friends. In kaveh's notebook he wrote this about alhaitham, "Our views are contradictory, but it is through contradiction that more speculation and philosophy may be born." Only when alhaitham noticing kaveh was activity harmful lifestyle for himself with his mindset and called him out. I always thought they had their first argument from different philosophy, but it stemmed from kaveh activity harming his lifestyle WITH this mindset that alhaitham got concerned and confronted him

Hiya! Thank you so much for your ask!! <333

Kaveh's old sketchbook has a very special place in my heart <3 it's as you say!! initially he believes that he and alhaitham have views which align, but then comes to the realisation that they actually hold opposing views, however, instead of viewing that a negative, this is actually a benefit to their relationship, as it can lead to new points of discussion!

it's only after their approaches in dealing with other people come to the surface do problems arise in their friendship - as brought about by their collaboration with others during their thesis. kaveh exerts himself to help others whilst alhaitham maintains the view that this is a fruitless endeavour as this a short-term solution to the marked difference between those driven by hard work and those by natural ability. by kaveh denying his own capabilities in spreading himself thin for others, alhaitham deems this as harmful, as kaveh effectively denies his 'true self'.

their problems culminate in this criticism of each other's philosophies, whereas their friendship was strongest when they perceived the positives in the differences of their respective philosophies. kaveh asserts his altruism as correct over egoism, critiquing alhaitham's aversion in helping others, whereas alhaitham highlights the detriment of kaveh's altruism. it is particularly interesting to note here that the comment that makes kaveh revoke their friendship is not solely their differences in dealing with people, as their previous arguments had been about, rather, it is the source of kaveh's altruism. this is noticeably different from their other disagreements, as this is seen to be the first time alhaitham has made such a personal comment, given how kaveh reacts to it, feeling 'seen through'. it is this personal comment which causes kaveh to end their friendship, more so than their differing philosophies

in-game, alhaitham is aware that their true issues don't merely lie with their differing philosophies, and instead focusses on kaveh's detrimental altruism stemming from his guilt of the past. this can be seen in a parade of providence, in which he researches sachin in order to gain clarity and closure around kaveh's father's disappearance into the desert not directly being tied to kaveh

as seen within their conversation, alhaitham initiates the conversation for a personal reason - to tell kaveh of his findings, in an attempt to alleviate some of his guilt; to provide closure - whereas kaveh sees this interaction as a debate of philosophies, as in a potentiality for correctness over the other. alhaitham changes the subject when kaveh discusses, and insults, alhaitham's egoism, which directly leads back to his own personal interest, being that of sachin's involvement with kaveh's father's disappearance

kaveh standing his ground in defence of his altruism prompts alhaitham to claim that their issue does not lie in correctness with the answer as to what, then, is their issue being subtextual - being provided in alhaitham seeking kaveh out for his personal interest over a scholarly debate

overall, i think it's pretty easy to simplify their relationship due to their opposing philosophies, but the fact they were best friends complicates this concept - yes, their approaches to life and dealing with other people are inherently different and acts as a point of contention between them, but in actuality i'd say that it's the concern behind this opposition of each other's way of life and the way this is miscommunicated to the other which appears to be the main issue

kaveh is a highly empathetic person and this empathy is further extorted by his own sense of guilt, therefore his altruism is excessive, detrimental even, and he denies his true capabilities by attempting to merge with the crowd - this is the issue that alhaitham has tried to express to kaveh, whereas kaveh sees this as a personal critique on his ideals and philosophy, and thus kaveh is rejected

alhaitham is a socially averted person who prioritises himself over others, actively denying himself the care and company of others due to this individualism - this is the issue kaveh has with alhaitham's egoism, whereas this comes across as asserting the correctness of collectivism as a philosophy over individualism, which denies alhaitham as an egoist, and thus alhaitham is rejected

i'd say the issue is balance - they must have achieved a harmony in the foundation of their friendship, so much so that they were best friends, they wanted to combine their 'opposing' fields of language and architecture to pursue a thesis project together. this balance was lost due to the idea of their being a correct way to live life, a correct philosophy, and this balance has yet to be retrieved.

ultimately, the two want the best for each other according to their own values, but with this comes acceptance. a level of understanding has to be realised once more before progress can be made, i think

This got super long but you raised a really intriguing point!! this has me thinking a lot about a parade of providence so i think i'll make a separate post on that!! <3333