The character journey of Kaneki Ken in Tokyo Ghoul is a masterclass in psychological transformation, mapped through a series of agonizing existential crises. Few moments are as visceral and important to his development as the internal confrontation with the image of Rize Kamishiro and the subsequent act of "devouring" her. This pivotal scene is the dramatic bridge that shatters Kaneki’s state of denial and forges the path toward his violent anger and new sense of resolve.

The Climax of Denial

For the entirety of the story leading up to the torture by Jason (Yamori), Kaneki lives in a state of profound denial, represented by his original, fragile, and overly human personality ("Kon Nei"). He desperately clung to his humanity, rejecting the ghoul identity he was forced into.

This denial was not merely fear; it was a character flaw rooted in a lack of resolve. As he is tortured, Rize, in a hallucination, chastises him: his refusal to fully accept his ghoul nature and use his strength ultimately caused harm to those he cared for, likening his weakness to his mother's lack of resolve.

Kaneki learns a brutal, agonizing lesson: a lack of resolve is not kindness; it is weakness, and weakness gets people killed.

The Act of Devouring: A Symbolic Declaration

The true metamorphosis is cemented not when Kaneki accepts the ghoul in him, but when he devours the false image of Rize.

This act is purely metaphorical, but its narrative impact is immense. Rize is the source of his current existence, the one who thrust him into the ghoul world. By "eating" her, Kaneki is symbolically doing three critical things:

1. Gaining Control: He is not merely succumbing to the ghoul in him; he is subsuming the source of his power. He declares that he will not be a passive victim of Rize's transplanted organs, but the master of his own fate and his own power (the Kagune). When Rize points out he can't control his Kagune, the newly resolved Kaneki simply states, "Then I'll learn how to control it."
2. Shedding the Old Self: Devouring Rize means consuming the very thing that connects him to his past tragedy and, crucially, the weakness of his past self. It is a powerful declaration of self-identification: he chooses to be a ghoul, and a ghoul only, discarding the notion of living peacefully between two worlds.
3. Moving to Anger and Resolve: The act fuels the transition from the passive stage of denial to the active stage of anger. This anger is not aimless rage; it is channeled into a newfound resolve to protect others. His vow is clear: "I am going to eliminate those who threaten the people that I love." The polite, indecisive Kaneki is replaced by the ruthless, white-haired figure, ready to enact violence to secure the safety of his chosen family.

Scene & Character Mastery

This pivotal scene is masterful not just for the shocking visual of Kaneki consuming Rize, but because it perfectly encapsulates the shift in his character and the story's core plot. It resolves his internal conflict of identity, which then drives the entire subsequent narrative. It marks the birth of the protagonist who is willing to descend into the darkness to protect the light, setting the stage for all the complex moral and action-driven scenes that follow.