8. The Persistence And Resistance Of Memory
The people of Akhaten use potent memories as a form of currency. They trade in objects that have such significance to an individual that they are saturated with emotion and remembrance. As the Doctor points out, memories are much more valuable than pieces of paper; they are definitive parts of our identities. Without them we become empty shells. When we deny them we are haunted by the knowledge that something is missing, we feel broken - less than whole. At the beginning of the episode the Doctor goes walkabout through Claras past, observing her memories, reliving her story. He wants to know who she is but he is only absorbing her exterior experiences. We are, after all, all bigger on the inside. So is the Doctor looking for insight in all the wrong places? Claras physical existence in whatever timeline she appears in may not be as important as what she holds in her head. When The Doctor offers up his memories to the soul eating big bad he believes they are too potent for any other creature to hold. Yet the monster is not consumed by them. It is Claras offering of a memory which can never be finished, which exists with infinite, unfulfilled potential that destroys the monster. This suggests that the Doctor does have limits, that he is not endless. We are left to wonder whether his memories were actually taken. Does he still retain them? Did the Doctor on some level want to give these memories up? It is understandable to seek to avoid painful memories; it can even be a survival mechanism. But continued denial of these memories causes us to react in ways that do not necessarily coincide with present reality. By seeking to avoid pain and loss, is the Doctor embarking on a dark path? Is he in danger of become the soul eating monster himself?