Sade om ens själ, det användes som ett uttalande av ånger och skam; Tanken är att du övervakas av dina förfäder och aldrig göra någonting för att skämma bort dem - ha glömt ansiktet på din far skulle kunna sägas vara kort för att glömma att han någonsin tittar på dig. Sagt om någon annan, det indikerade att de skulle känna sådan skam.
Robin Furth (som var en forskningsassistent till kungen och skrev Dark Tower Concordance - ett utmärkt arbete om du är ett fan av Dark Tower, eller kungen i allmänhet) sa följande i Concordance:
To a man who belonged to the tet of the gun, losing his life was preferable to losing his honor, since loss of honor reflected not just on himself but on all of his male ancestors. Among gunslingers, the saying “I have forgotten the face of my father” was the ultimate statement of remorse.
och senare
I HAVE FORGOTTEN THE FACE OF MY FATHER: This is a term often used by Roland. It is a phrase of shame. When one has forgotten the face of one’s father, it means that one has behaved dishonorably. Mid-World is patriarchal, a cultural structure that is older than either the aristocracy of gunslingers (the Barons of Mid-World), or the kingship of Arthur Eld. When Eddie and Susannah visit the Cradle of Lud, they see the sculpted visages of “stern men with the harsh faces of executioners who are happy in their work” (III:343). We do not know whether these men were judges, justices, politicians, or legendary forefathers, but their sculpted faces, somehow reminiscent of busts of Roman senators, tell us something about both the pride and the unrelenting harshness of the Great Old Ones. Like the Romans, or our own culture, they were guilty of hubris. I:97
Detta korrelerar då med en senare post:
I SWEAR ON THE FACE OF MY FATHER: I swear upon all I hold sacred. VI:188
Och kanske den mest stämningsfulla bilden:
REMEMBER THE FACE OF YOR FATHER. HE WATCHES YOU FROM THE CLEARING: Remain honorable because your ancestors are watching you. W:285