The 5 Enduring Lessons of GoT
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD
We're only a few weeks away from the premiere of the final season of Game of Thrones and the pre-show jitters are real. The realization that such an immense visual creation will soon be coming to end has had some unanticipated effects on my emotional stability in recent weeks but, alas, the show must go on (or… not *muffled sobs*).
In preparation for the last six episodes of the series, I re-watched all 7 seasons in quick succession for the umpteenth time. Throughout that emotionally taxing binge session, I came to pick up on a few lessons that were perpetually woven into the backbone of the show. Some you may know well, others perhaps not; however, they were all mentioned on more than one occasion and in different contexts which, to me, makes them principles of the series and thus, worth reiterating.
Lesson #1: “Chaos is a ladder”
Who could forget those ominous words as they fell from Bran's mouth in response to Little Finger's fruitless attempts at coercion? It was like the world stopped spinning on its axis, and Little Finger felt it too. He had, in fact, already uttered those exact words to Varys in the throne room of the Red Keep years earlier as he plotted and plodded his way to the top, crushing any who would stand in his way, most notably Lord Eddard Stark, Bran's father.
But how could Bran have known Little Finger's words and repeated them verbatim? As any Game of Thrones aficionado is well aware, Bran is the Three-Eyed Raven, giving him psychic abilities beyond comprehension. While he can see events as they unfold in addition to those that have already come to pass, he is not clairvoyant. For Bran to make a veiled threat (and you can be sure Baelish perceived it as such) was quite a risk. Little Finger is a hoarder of knowledge and power, so for anyone to have more of either as Bran did in that moment gave him an edge that not many have come to possess in the show.
However, this phrase is not limited to just Bran and Baelish. It would seem to be quite an omnipresent message considering the grave means by which many of the protagonists (and antagonists) in the show found their way to the top. Cersei lived through the deaths of her three children, the murder of her father at the hands of her dwarf brother, and the desertion of her lover/brother to the enemy, all so that she could become Queen of the Seven (but more like 3 or 4) Kingdoms. Daenerys’ situation is one perhaps best abridged by her very own words, having been "sold like a brood mare... chained and betrayed, raped and defiled," all to become the *possible* future ruler of Westeros. Sansa herself was sold into marriage after marriage until being raped and beaten by her late husband, Ramsay Bolton. Jon... well, Jon died, and then came back to life, so I think he wins. The point being that the one formative theme for all of their successes was chaos. Because, as we know, "when you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground."
Lesson #2: "We don't get to choose whom we love"
It's never lost on us how much the motif of love has both enriched and abso-fuckin’-lutely destroyed people's lives in Game of Thrones. The war for the Seven Kingdoms began because of it. Rhaegar Targaryen fell in love with Lyanna Stark and she literally became ‘the face that launched a thousand ships.’ Just as the Trojan War is of myth and legend today, so it would seem is Robert's Rebellion. We've seen very little of the battle against the Mad King and know only what we've been told by the characters' reminiscence of that time.
Perhaps the most notable examples of not being able to choose whom one loves is that of the long-standing incestuous tryst between Cersei and Jaime. Some of the more devastating and deplorable moments in the show have happened as Jaime uttered those words, almost as if to use them as an excuse for his actions. Pushing Bran from a window, forcing Edmure Tully to surrender Riverrun by threatening his wife and child, the moments spent prior to Myrcella's death, fighting for escape from Brienne as she tried to deliver him to King's Landing. It would seem that Ser Jaime's commitment to love has taken more than it's given, and not just from himself.
While he is the one that most often uses those words to validate his predicaments, there are certainly various applications to the phrase. Take, for instance, Brienne's budding passion for Jaime that she would never speak of, but they both know is there. Or Jon and Daenerys' heated passion that will soon come to their knowledge of being an incestuous one. And let's not forget Robb Stark's immediate taking to Talisa Maegyr that led to both of their deaths (including that of their unborn child) and the deaths of all their men (in addition to Robb's mother, Catelyn Stark).
Yes, based on this trend, it would seem that love has done more harm than good in this show. You can be certain that, if there is some sort of romantic connection brewing, it will likely lead to devastation of epic proportions and great reviews.
Lesson #3: "We only make peace with our enemies... That's why it's called making peace"
Yet another ingenious quote from Lord Baelish, and one that was recycled by Lord Tyrion later in the show for a much more savory purpose. In turn, Missandei herself used it in defense of the truce with the masters in Slaver's Bay. There have been two major (I say major because I'm disregarding the small battles or trivial conflicts) moments in the series where this statement has been applied. In one case, it worked. In the other, it failed miserably, and we have yet to see the consequences of that failure.
The former took place when Aegon Targaryen VIII (née Jon Snow) negotiated a conditional peace between the Night's Watch and the Free Folk, allowing the latter passage through the wall. While Jon lost the vast majority of Wildlings to the White Walker massacre at Hardhome, his intentions were pure, and they allowed for at least 5,000 Free Folk (give or take) to make it to safety. Yes, this did result in Jon's untimely death, but it was only temporary so I'm not counting that as a loss.
As for the latter scenario, it occurred when Jon and Daenerys took to King's Landing in order to appeal to Cersei for a ceasefire in order to focus all the realms on the great war to come - the one between the living and the dead. This proved to be an unsuccessful mission due to Cersei's duplicity. Ironically, when Lord Baelish first spoke this expression to Lord Stark, Ned thought he was being honorable in refusing, a decision that ultimately cost him everything, including his own life. Now the same fate has befallen Jon. When asked not to take allegiance with either side of the war between Cersei and Daenerys, Jon took the honorable route, confessing that he'd already pledged his allegiance to the Dragon Queen. This decision may very well be the reason that countless more die... all in the name of honor.
Lesson #4: "Everything before the word 'but' is horseshit"
The first time we hear this expression is when Benjen Stark is trying to convince Lord Tyrion of the evils that lurk beyond the wall. Tyrion says some very agreeable things, followed immediately by a "but," which warrants a little snicker from Benjen. Much later on, it's Jon that reiterates this phrase in the presence of Sansa, and with a bit more graphic rhetoric.
Although this is already a widely held belief in the real world, I can’t imagine anyone saying it with quite as much finesse as Jon.
Lesson #5: It’s “Fewer,” not “Less”
If you don’t understand the meaning behind those four words, I’m sorry to say that you really aren’t a true Game of Thrones fan. No one that has seen the show could ever forget how much of a grammar Nazi Stannis Baratheon was when it came to the correct usage of “fewer” versus “less.”
He was adamant about drilling the principle into Ser Davos’ head and, in turn, Ser Davos did the same for Jon Snow. Is it a coincidence that both Stannis and Jon have been considered to be the possible (yet, at this point, completely mythological) Azor Ahai? I think not. To me, the usage of this statement is an endearing way of passing along the prophetic torch from the now-deceased Stannis to the possible Prince that was Promised, Jon Snow.
As the days count down to the final season of Game of Thrones, there is so much that the show has offered for us to be thankful for, but arguably no better gift than that of some of the best-written lines and lessons in television history. What I’ll do without Petyr Baelish’s subterfuge or Jon Snow’s knack for resuscitation is beyond me. But I will say one thing - knowing who will be sitting on that coveted yet utterly uncomfortable-looking throne will give me fewer things to worry about 😉.