who is the hooded man in winterfell?

[Lost Melnibonean]

Ok, I'm sinking the Chayle boat, Lost Melnibonean's words make sooooo much more sense! And I might be taking a weathervane for my sigil as well.

At one point I thought it was Hal Mollen - HM, but he wasn't wearing the hood.

[Dorian Martell]

Theon Durden seems to be where it's at. He would recognize anyone else of importance

[Chamanx]

I am loving the idea of Lord Beric.

It would be a great surprise, just like the one GRRM doesn't like to give us, anyway it's really possible for him to be alive a this point somehow (he always come back) even if he lost Rhllor Life flame, He's the only one in BWB badass(and crazy) enough to go and kill some Freys and Boltons

[bemused]

I'm sticking with Benjen ( for many reasons I've expounded on at length elsewhere )..And just when we thought all the swords were accounted for..

in the theon gift chapter, theon thinks there were four ,or maybe five

..:D

[Buckthorn]

Probably Ramsay.

[Ser Greg of House House]

I believe it could Benjen, though it would be kind of lame.

If it was Beric it would be awesome, even though it's unlikely. I mean... The BwB was such an awesome idea until Lady Stoneheart appeared.

Anyway, I still think it was Theon imagination. It makes the most sense and the better story.

[Little Balerion]

I believe the Hallis Mollen theory.

[KingOfTheRats]

yes. Arthur is supposed to be dead, but there's a theory he's alive and watches over Jon. I don't know wherebi stand on this one other than it would he awesome to have him somehow be alive (I have no textual evidence, so 95% not true :( )

Blackfish, Dagmar or Benjen could be hiding their face from him, I don't think he gets a clear look at the face. Blackfish and Benjen have a vested interest in the events at WF.

Howland Reed seems the most likely option IMO. He's a true Stark loyalists, and not for his own gain (cough, Manderly, cough). Plus, his kids were last seen there, so depending on if he's a greenseer or not (I'd wager high probility he is) he might think his kids are dead (if he's not a greenseer) or he knows Theon faked their deaths, hence his sparing Theon's life.

Arthur Dayne turned into Hodor after Howland wacked him in the head to save the Ned

[Sweet-N-SourRobin]

In Theon Durden We Trust.

Well, not really, but it's the most fun/awesome theory out there, so it's dear to me anyway.

I am heartened to see people talking Dagmer Cleftjaw, but it's impossible because not only is he known to Theon, he was the one Ironborn who was actually genuinely happy to have Theon back and as such I can't see him mindfucking Theon like the Hooded Man does.

So yeah, in answer to the original question, as you can see we're nowhere near consensus on this one yet.

NEW FAVORITE CRACKPOT THEORY: if it really is the ghost of one of the old King Starks, it is specifically the ghost of Theon's conspicuous namesake, Theon Stark. For no reason other than I find the idea that there is a historical Theon Stark to be hilariously awesome and I want it to be important. :)

[WakeTheDragon]

Anyone considered the possibility that it was Theon himself in some Jeckyll and Hyde type deal

Edit: never mind I think that's in line with the Theon Durden theory?

[Tolquius]

Can't it be just a... random guard?

I still do not understand why this passage is so... famous.

[MadScience]

The identity will never be revealed unless GRRM does so in an SSM. The Hooded Man, who wasn't actually wearing a hood was the ghost of Reek's former self.

It is known.

First, the chapter is titled A Ghost in Winterfell. If the ghost is not Theon, this is the only chapter, other than untitled prologues and epilogues, not titled for the POV character.

Second, reread the first Theon chapter in Clash. Consider the vibe about Theon at the beginning of that chapter and the vibe about the Hooded Man. By the end of that chapter his father had taken him down a peg and set him on the path of betrayal.

From A Ghost in Winterfell, Dance:

Farther on, he came upon a man striding in the opposite direction, a hooded cloak flapping behind him. When they found themselves face-to-face their eyes met briefly. The man put a hand on his dagger.

"Theon Turncloak. Theon Kinslayer."

"I'm not. I never I was ironborn."

"False is all you were. How is it you still breathe?"

"The gods are not done with me," Theon answered, wondering if this could be the killer, the night walker who had stuffed Yellow Dick's cock into his mouth and pushed Roger Ryswell's groom off the battlements. Oddly, he was not afraid. He pulled the glove from his left hand. "Lord Ramsay is not done with me."

The man looked, and laughed. "I leave you to him, then."

Would a recognizable Glover, Mollen, or other Stark loyalist be striding around with his hood down if he were striking folks down from the shadows? No this is a brave and haughty man confronting Reek face-to-face. He was wearing a hooded cloak just like Theon was at the beginning of Theon I in Clash.

Third, Mance's spearwives tacitly admitted to the killings except for Little Walder so there is no Stark loyalist sneaking around and killing Boltons and Freys.

Fourth, the Hooded Man is walking in the opposite direction. This is the ghost of Theon's former self. Reek's character is completely opposite to Theon's.

Fifth, Theon had sworn his allegiance to Robb and thought of Robb as a brother making Robb's brothers his own. He dreamed of wedding Sansa becoming their brother and Ned's son in truth. Of course he betrayed Robb and held out that he had murdered his brothers. (False is all he ever was.) Accordingly his former self named him Turncloak and Kinslayer. Theon who had been chastised by his father for naming Robb a brother meekly denied the kinslaying title not because he didn't actually kill the Stark boys but because he was not actually a Stark. But the ghost of his former self knew better.

Sixth, Reek's lack of fear was odd because he had been afraid of everyone ever since he had become Reek.

Seventh, he always took care to conceal his maimed hands but to the ghost of his former self he displayed the proof that he was no longer whom he had been.

Finally, consider Theon's ark and the progression of the titles of his POV chapters from Clash and through Dance. He was Theon and became Reek, until something awakened in The Prince of Winterfell. Then he was the Turncloak just as his former self accused him in the next chapter, A Ghost in Winterfell. And then he was Theon again.

I never really bought into this theory, until this post. Pretty convincing. I like the idea, and think it works. Him being oddly unafraid always stood out to me, gives a full sense of familiarity, and his familiarity with his former self had been creeping back for the last several chapters. He'd been fighting it off as much as he could, but after this chapter (and really, after this passage,) it really seemed to take hold.

Though I really want it to be Howland.

[Mithras]

I have a crackpot theory that Hooded Man may be Robb's ghost.

The stable collapsed, everyone gathered in the Great Hall, the dead horses were cooked and they had a feast with music and women. Then Theon got outside. The very name of the POV is A Ghost in Winterfell.

“Theon Turncloak. Theon Kinslayer.”

“I’m not. I never … I was ironborn.”

“False is all you were. How is it you still breathe?”

“The gods are not done with me,” Theon answered, wondering if this could be the killer, the night walker who had stuffed Yellow Dick’s cock into his mouth and pushed Roger Ryswell’s groom off the battlements. Oddly, he was not afraid. He pulled the glove from his left hand. “Lord Ramsay is not done with me.”

The man looked, and laughed. “I leave you to him, then.”

Way back when Theon captured Winterfell, he dreamed that famous dream of his: The Feast of the Dead. All the people known to him as dead were at the feast as the cold winds were rising outside.

That night he [Theon] dreamed of the feast Ned Stark had thrown when King Robert came to Winterfell. The hall rang with music and laughter, though the cold winds were rising outside.

…

And then the tall doors opened with a crash, and a freezing gale blew down the hall, and Robb came walking out of the night. Grey Wind stalked beside, eyes burning, and man and wolf alike bled from half a hundred savage wounds.

In this dream, Robb’s ghost appeared as a night walker. Robb headed to the Great Hall just like the Hooded Man was heading to the feast as it seems. I think there is a strong connection with Theon’s dream and the Hooded Man case.

There are some cases where people saw ghosts in their dreams (like Stark boys seeing their father's ghost in the crypts). I think Theon's mind was so shattered during his Reek state that his connection to the reality was sometimes lost and he should be able perceive the supernatural world while awake. During his last times as Reek, we have this:

The night was windless, the snow drifting straight down out of a cold black sky, yet the leaves of the heart tree were rustling his name. “Theon,” they seemed to whisper, “Theon.”

The old gods, he thought. They know me. They know my name. I was Theon of House Greyjoy. I was a ward of Eddard Stark, a friend and brother to his children. “Please.” He fell to his knees. “A sword, that’s all I ask. Let me die as Theon, not as Reek.” Tears trickled down his cheeks, impossibly warm. “I was ironborn. A son … a son of Pyke, of the islands.”

A leaf drifted down from above, brushed his brow, and landed in the pool. It floated on the water, red, five-fingered, like a bloody hand. “… Bran,” the tree murmured.

They know. The gods know. They saw what I did. And for one strange moment it seemed as if it were Bran’s face carved into the pale trunk of the weirwood, staring down at him with eyes red and wise and sad. Bran’s ghost, he thought, but that was madness. Why should Bran want to haunt him? He had been fond of the boy, had never done him any harm. It was not Bran we killed. It was not Rickon. They were only miller’s sons, from the mill by the Acorn Water. “I had to have two heads, else they would have mocked me … laughed at me … they …”

A voice said, “Who are you talking to?”

Theon spun, terrified that Ramsay had found him, but it was just the washerwomen—Holly, Rowan, and one whose name he did not know. “The ghosts,” he blurted. “They whisper to me. They … they know my name.”

There are several ghosts according to Theon, one of which is Bran. There are two interesting points about this quote:

1) Theon is surprised that Bran's ghost is haunting him because he did not do any harm to him. This means a victim's ghost can normally haunt the murderer according to him. So, Robb haunting Roose comes into the picture.

2) Theon speaks of multiple ghosts including Bran. Then one of them could be Bran's brother Robb because Theon did him a great harm by betraying him. Therefore, he must be thinking Robb has the right to haunt him. That may explain why he was not shy or scared of the Hooded Man.

Another crackpot comes to my mind. Ned reacted to Bran's call in his weirwood vision just like Theon did several times. I think when Bran tried to speak with Ned, Ned's spirit in the present reacted to him, not the past Ned.

We know from Varamyr's POV that the spirit of a person has slowly dissolves into the nature and weirwoods have no sense of past and present. Hence, while Bran was looking to the past, Ned's ghost in the present heard his voice and responded. That is why Leaf warned Bran not to seek the dead because their spirits in the present can respond to him in his visions. Remember BR has his own ghosts too.

“He heard a whisper on the wind, a rustling amongst the leaves. You cannot speak to him, try as you might. I know. I have my own ghosts, Bran. A brother that I loved, a brother that I hated, a woman I desired. Through the trees, I see them still, but no word of mine has ever reached them. The past remains the past. We can learn from it, but we cannot change it.”

[Lord Kevan]

Hallis Mollen would have said something like "it's snowing" :D

I think it's Reek who's hallucinating about how the former Theon would despise him as he is now...

[Lost Melnibonean]

Hallis Mollen would have said something like "it's snowing" :D

Nice!

[alienarea]

There is a thread in the ADwD subforum which is currently at its fourth iteration.

Robett Glover and Theon Durden are the most popular theories at the moment, but I keep insisting it is Davos Seaworth.

Still Davos. Also solves the POV in Winterfell dilemma.

[Red Warg]

Been a while since my re-read, where is Harwin currently? If Tom o' Sevens has infiltrated Riverrun then Harwin would be a natural choice to infiltrate WF for the BwB, also, growing up alongside Theon he would definitely consider him a kinslayer for the supposed murder of Bran & Rickon.

Course if Harwin is still with the BwB this blows the theory out of the water as i said it's been a while since my last re-read :).

[Lord Kevan]

Harwin is with the Stoneheart's faction. He translate the words of his former lady ;)

[Northernmonkey]

Harwin is with the Stoneheart's faction. He translate the words of his former lady ;)

We don't know that that's Harwin - all we know is that it's a Northerner. And even if it is Harwin, it's still possible that he could leave after that and reach Winterfell - we know that he's a strong rider.

I think it's very likely that Harwin's the hooded man.

[Northernmonkey]

There are a few popular choices that I think we should discount from being the hooded man

Robett Glover - would be recognised by a lot of people inside Winterfell (certainly by Roose) so there's no way he could sneak around incognito.

Davos - There's no logical reason why Davos would enter Winterfell. If he had found Rickon then he would send a message to Manderly, and if he hadn't found Rickon he would go straight to Stannis. And he wouldn't have recognised Theon.

Benjen - There's endless reasons why it's not him, but most of all because he wouldn't desert the Nights Watch.

Theon Durden - It just doesn't suit GRRM's writing style at all. And there's not really any way he could explain it in the book.

The only realistic options left that I can think of are Harwin, Torren Liddell and Hallis Mollen.