The above quote is from Kirkbride's Reddit AMA. I settled for it because I couldn't seem to find one that I swear I've read before in which MK directs us to "Think about the Thalmor's mindset and why they do what they do." Anyhow, back to the story

I was doing some skimming of c0da, specifically around the spot where Jubul Lun-Sul is addressing Numidium. When he references the words of the Dwemer the dunmer simply says "No, No, No, No, No". He states that it's hardly a philosophy, the words of a crying teenager and further states that that drive has lead to the entirety of the Dwemer's actions as well as everything done by Numidium. Pure negation.

I don't know why entirely, but at that point in the reading I remembered that this philosophy is a direct result of their logic. The Dwemer are all about logic, that's no secret, however what's logical about negating your own existence just because you aren't, technically, real? Here's the reasoning: It isn't Dwemeri logic, it's Anu's.

The Dwemer are a projection of the part of Anu which still thinks logically. It's saying, "Hey this is a dream. This isn't real. It's time for me to wake up." In doing so it's trying to negate the world, the dream, which would give Anu nothing to run to and therefore force him into reality.

Then, I remembered the aforementioned quote which I couldn't seem to find and applied this to the Thalmor. If the Dwemer are the logic of Planu, what are the Thalmor? Well, their thought process is one of longing for the past. The Thalmor are Nostalgia. The part of Anu's mind which registers Nostalgia misses his life with Nir. It's all like, "Hey! I need to wake up. My lady is waiting!" The problem with nostalgia is that it neglects to remember the bad things, that Nir's dead, or in the mundane Thalmor's view; that they wouldn't exist at all if the gods had never made Mundus. Anyhow, to deal with the first quote: The Thalmor are pure nostalgia, there is no sane person who literally hates everything around them and wishes for the past so bad that they'd kill themselves. They cannot be understood. They will however win in the end, each one happy in a state like whatever they'd wish once they Amaranth.

So, anyone else think I'm on to something here or did I miss something or another?

Let me preface this by saying I'm not big on MK's extraneous stuff but this is interesting.

I like your theory but I'd add that nostalgia never wins in the end. It's a fleeting feeling trying to recreate something that simply doesn't exist anymore. I'm not trying to flat out dismiss what you're saying but I think there's a piece missing.

MEMORY left before the end. I don't think Nostalgia got to Amaranth. But I do love the idea of Thalmor being Nostalgia. This post reminds me of Sermon 11.

I'd like to add:

1. "And they're going to win in the end." In what end? Or whose end? And it's only "a winning ending", not necessarily "a happy ending".

2. If they are Nostalgia, who then are the Amnesia (different from Oblivion but akin)? The Shezarrines? At least I think Pelinal suits well.