[Village Idiot]

Originally Posted by tragicsmile

Spoiler:

Well, judging from the incantation for UBW, I would say it's reflective of the life of endless battles he will have to endure if he becomes the hero of justice?

Spoiler:

Ya, to me it symbolizes the choice he had made in his life, that he will sacrifice his feelings, his entire life to protect everyone and the pursue of justice. It's interesting how similar Shirou is to Saber.

The gears that are seen in Archer's UBW would symbolize that he has become nothing more than a machine, constantly being summoned again and again for something that he no longer believes in, but has no choice but to repeat the cycle over and over.