A Game of Thrones

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This article is about the novel. For the TV series, see Game of Thrones. For derivative works of the same name, see A Game of Thrones (disambiguation).

A Game of Thrones
US first edition cover
EditorAnne Groell[1][2]
AuthorGeorge R. R. Martin
LanguageEnglish
SeriesA Song of Ice and Fire
GenreHistorical fantasy, epic fantasy
PublishedAugust 1, 1996 (1996-08-01)[3]
PublisherBantam Spectra (US)
HarperCollins Voyager (UK)
Pages694
Followed byA Clash of Kings 

A Game of Thrones is an epic fantasy novel by American author George R. R. Martin. It was published in August 1996 as the first entry in his series A Song of Ice and Fire. Set across the continents of Westeros and Essos, the novel is narrated in third person from the perspective of eight point-of-view characters. In the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, the powerful House Stark and House Lannister influence the political fate of the Seven Kingdoms. In Westeros' far north, an illegitimate son of House Stark joins a group maintaining a giant wall of ice to protect Westeros from raiders and a group of mythical enemies. Across the sea in Essos, the plot depicts the exile of Daenerys Targaryen, the last daughter of the Seven Kingdoms' deposed former royal dynasty.

Martin had written three novels before A Game of Thrones. The first two were well received, but the third was a commercial disappointment, stalling his literary career, and he became a television writer. He became frustrated by the limits imposed by television budgets. While writing a science-fiction novel in 1991, he imagined an image of "dire wolf pups in summer snows" and began writing A Game of Thrones. Martin's commitments to television meant it took around five years to complete.

The novel received positive reviews from critics, with reviewers praising the novel's characters and commending the political intrigue. It won the 1997 Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel and was nominated for several others. A novella comprising Daenerys' chapters from the novel won the 1997 Hugo Award for Best Short Story. Scholars have discussed the novel's depiction of the Middle Ages, the conventions of medieval literature, and its depiction of gender, sex, and violence

The novel is the namesake and basis for the first season of Game of Thrones, an HBO television series that premiered in April 2011. It inspired several spin-off works, including several games. A Song of Ice and Fire has become one of the most famous fantasy series. Only selling a few thousand copies after release, it became a New York Times Bestseller in January 2011,[4] and reached the top of the list in July 2011.[5] he BBC listed A Game of Thrones on its list of the 100 most influential novels.

Plot

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In the Seven Kingdoms

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After the death of Lord Jon Arryn, King Robert Baratheon recruits his childhood friend Eddard "Ned" Stark, the lord of the northern castle of Winterfell, to replace Arryn as Hand of the King, and to betroth his daughter Sansa to Robert's son Joffrey. Shortly thereafter, Ned's son Bran discovers Robert's wife, Queen Cersei Lannister, having sex with her twin brother Jaime. Jaime throws Bran from a tower to conceal their affair, leaving Bran comatose and paralyzed.

Ned brings his daughters Sansa and Arya to the capital city, King's Landing, and finds that Robert is an ineffective king whose only interests are hunting, drinking, and womanizing.

At Winterfell, an assassin attempts to kill Bran while he is unconscious, and Ned's wife Catelyn travels to King's Landing to bring word to Ned. Catelyn's childhood friend, Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish, implicates Tyrion Lannister, the dwarf brother of Cersei and Jaime, in the assassination attempt. On the road, Catelyn encounters Tyrion by chance and arrests him to stand trial for the attempt on Bran's life. In retaliation for Tyrion's abduction, his father Lord Tywin Lannister sends soldiers to raid the Riverlands, Catelyn's home region. Tyrion regains his freedom by recruiting a mercenary named Bronn to defend him in trial by combat.

Ned investigates Jon Arryn's death and discovers that Robert's legal heirs are Cersei's children by Jaime; he infers that Jon Arryn was killed to conceal his discovery of their incest. Before Ned can act, Cersei arranges Robert's death in a hunting accident and installs Joffrey on the throne. Ned enlists Littlefinger's help to take Cersei and Joffrey into custody; but Littlefinger betrays him, resulting in Ned's arrest. Arya escapes the castle, but Sansa is taken hostage by the Lannisters.

Ned's eldest son Robb marches his army south in response to his father's arrest. To secure a strategically necessary bridge crossing, Catelyn negotiates a marital alliance between Robb and the notoriously unreliable House Frey. Robb defeats a Lannister army in the Riverlands, capturing Jaime. Tywin sends Tyrion back to King's Landing to act as Hand of the King to Joffrey. When Joffrey has Ned executed, Robb's followers declare the North's independence from the Seven Kingdoms, proclaiming Robb the "King in the North".

On the Wall

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The prologue of the novel introduces the Wall: a huge magical wall of ice at the northern border of the Seven Kingdoms. The Wall is defended by the Night's Watch, an order of warriors who serve for life to defend the realm from the Others, an ancient and hostile inhuman race, and human "wildlings" who live north of the Wall.

Jon Snow, Ned's bastard son, is inspired by his uncle, Benjen Stark, to join the Night's Watch, but becomes disillusioned when he discovers that its primary function is as a penal colony. Jon unites his fellow recruits against their harsh instructor and protects the cowardly but good-natured and intelligent Samwell Tarly. Jon is appointed steward to the leader of the Watch, Lord Commander Jeor Mormont. Benjen fails to return from an expedition north of the Wall; when the bodies of two men from his party are recovered, they re-animate as undead wights before being dispatched by Jon.

When word of Ned's execution reaches Jon, he attempts to join Robb against the Lannisters, but is persuaded to remain loyal to the Watch. Mormont declares his intention to march north to find Benjen, and to investigate rumors of a "King-beyond-the-Wall" uniting the wildlings.

Across the Narrow Sea

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Across the sea to the east of Westeros live the exiled prince Viserys and princess Daenerys, children of the late "Mad King" Aerys Targaryen, who ruled Westeros before being overthrown by Robert Baratheon. Viserys betroths Daenerys to Khal Drogo, a warlord of the nomadic Dothraki people, in exchange for the use of Drogo's army to reclaim the throne of Westeros. Illyrio Mopatis, a wealthy merchant who has been supporting the penniless Targaryens, gives Daenerys three petrified dragon eggs as a wedding gift. Jorah Mormont, a knight exiled from Westeros and Jeor's son, joins Viserys as an adviser. Initially terrified of her new husband and his people, Daenerys eventually embraces her role as Drogo's "khaleesi ". Drogo, however, shows little interest in conquering Westeros. When Viserys publicly threatens Daenerys and her unborn child, Drogo executes him by pouring molten gold on his head.

An assassin seeking King Robert's favor attempts to poison Daenerys, finally convincing Drogo to conquer Westeros. While sacking villages to fund the invasion, Drogo is badly wounded, and Daenerys commands the captive folk healer Mirri Maz Duur to save him. The healer, angered by the Dothraki raids against her people, sacrifices Daenerys's unborn child to power the spell to save Drogo's life, which restores Drogo's physical health but leaves him in a persistent vegetative state.

With Drogo completely incapacitated, much of his army disperses. Daenerys smothers Drogo with a pillow and has Mirri tied to Drogo's funeral pyre. She places her three dragon eggs on the pyre and enters it herself. When the fire burns out, she emerges unharmed, with three newly hatched dragons.

Background

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Author

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Martin at a book signing in Ljubljana, Slovenia (2011)

George R. R. Martin was born and raised in Bayonne, New Jersey.[6] His family were poor;[7] he lived on a government housing project and his family did not own a car.[8] He started writing in childhood and sold horror stories to other children for a nickel.[7][9] He developed an interest for science fiction and fantasy after discovering comic books and, as a teenager, wrote superhero stories for fan magazines.[10] His first published work was a science-fiction story for Galaxy Science Fiction in 1971.[11][7]

Martin's first two published novels, Dying of the Light (1977) and Fevre Dream (1982), performed well,[10][7] and he had accrued 3 Hugo Awards by 1983.[12] Martin's publisher provided him with a large advance for his third novel, The Armageddon Rag (1983).[12] It was a commercial disaster and temporarily halted his literary career.[13]

A fan of The Armageddon Rag hired Martin as a writer on a revival of The Twilight Zone (1985–1989),[12] and he later worked on the CBS series Beauty and the Beast (1987–1990) and The Outer Limits (1995–1997).[10][14] This work paid Martin well.[8] The limitations of television budgets began to frustrate him; he was asked to reduce the size of his character lists and minimize special effects.[11] He also found the experience of writing unsatisfying when it was sometimes only viewed by a handful of people.[11]

Composition

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In summer 1991, while writing a science fiction novel, George R.R. Martin envisioned "dire wolf pups in the summer snows", sparking the idea for A Game of Thrones.[15] The chapter came to him fully formed and he knew immediately he wanted to write it.[16] Frustrated by television's budget limitations, which often forced him to reduce his cast sizes and special effects,[14] Martin sought to write an epic fantasy with a massive scope—a genre he had interested him since reading J. R. R. Tolkien's work. He planned for the characters, except Daenerys, to be together in the same place, diverging for some of the tale, and ultimately reuniting.[16]

The novel took him around five years to write,[6] with progress slowed by his ongoing television work and the Wild Cards series.[14] He initially planned for the novel to be the first of a trilogy.[a]

Martin's novel bears an acknowledgement to writers who helped him with the work, including Roger Zelazny, Sage Walker, Melinda Snodgrass, Roger Zelazny, Jane Lindskold, and Laura Mixon.[18]

Publication

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A Game of Thrones was published in August 1996 by Bantam Books (USA) and HarperCollins Voyager (UK).[19] It bore a recommendation from The Wheel of Time author Robert Jordan.[20] Several thousand copies were printed in the United States; only 1500 were produced for the United Kingdom.[17] Bantam's edition was printed several months earlier so that copies could be disseminated at the June 1996 American Booksellers Association convention. Some copies were distributed the following month at Westercon.[19]

Style

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Narration

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A Game of Thrones is narrated in the third person from a character's limited perspective, alternating with each chapter.[21] While Martin primarily uses noble-born perspective characters,[22] a non-noble member of the Night's Watch, named Will, focalizes the novel's prologue.[22] Shannon Wells-Lassagne writes that this keeps the reader's interest and loyalty with the aristocratic houses.[22]

Three distinct narratives shape the novel. Daenerys Targaryen provides the sole viewpoint on her exile.[23] Concurrently, the political fate of the Seven Kingdoms unfolds primarily through the perspectives of House Stark members—Ned, Catelyn, Sansa, Arya, and Bran—dispersed across Westeros, with Tyrion Lannister also offering a viewpoint.[23] Finally, Jon Snow's journey and service with the Night's Watch on the far northern Wall form the third plot line.[23]

Martin's viewpoint characters often provide unreliable accounts,[24] which Brian Pavlac describes as "sources" that sometimes contradict each other.[25] Some narrators actively suppress their thoughts to conceal information from the reader.[26] A notable example is the true parentage of Ned Stark's supposed illegitimate son, Jon Snow.[27] Ned's recurring memories of his dying sister Lyanna's plea—"Promise me, Ned"—gradually reveal more details about her death as their contexts shift.[28] Fans theorized that Lyanna was Jon's mother by Rhaegar Targaryen, her apparent abductor, since at least 1997; this was ultimately confirmed in 2016 by the season 6 finale of Game of Thrones.[29]

Genre

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Martin described the series as epic fantasy "inspired by and grounded in history",[30] and some scholars concur.[31][32][33] Others apply labels like modern fantasy,[34] romance fantasy,[35][36] medieval or neomedievalist fantasy,[37][38][39] historical fantasy, and fantastical history.[40] Ned Stark's death is often regarded as the moment the novel "became a distinctive, original contribution" to the genre.[41][b]

Carroll notes broad influence in Martin's work,[42] observing that his attempts to subvert or avoid medievalist literary conventions resulted in thematic overlap with Victorian medieval romance—specifically, "the anxieties of the nobility regarding behavioral expectations, identity, and dynastic succession".[36] However, in the introduction to George R. R. Martin and the Fantasy Form (2021), Joseph Rex Young challenges characterizations of Martin's work as subversive. Young argues that Martin "[follows] fantasy formulae to great effect" rather than utterly overturning them.[43] Young's book also argues that the novel's various plot lines align with different Mendlesohnian fantasy categorizations—for example, Daenerys and Bran's journeys as portal-quest fantasy.[44][c] Helen Young identifies Khal Drogo in the lineage of fantasy barbarians, beginning with Conan the Barbarian.[47]

Commentators often compare Martin's work and universe with those of Tolkien.[48][49] Martin himself has compared his work to Tolkien's and its imitators.[50] As with The Lord of the Rings, A Game of Thrones was initially planned as the first in a trilogy,[25] and original novel's book jacket described the novel as an heir to Tolkien's work.[51] According to Young, commentary positioning Martin's work against Tolkien's neglects to consider their respective professional backgrounds.[d]

In A Game of Thrones, magic belongs to a mythological or lost past.[53][54][44] Young states this theme of a lost or diminished world is "pervasive" in modern fantasy.[55] Symons specifically identifies the dragon eggs as representing a lost past, noting that their birth is remarkable because it establishes A Game of Thrones as supernatural fantasy at the novel's conclusion.[54] In Westeros, characters generally downplay magic, relegating it to superstition,[56] as seen in omens,[e] cursed or haunted places, apotropaic runes, and resurrection. Excluding the novel's prologue and events involving Daenerys and the maegi, Young counts three explicitly supernatural events.[58]

Reception

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Upon release, A Game of Thrones was widely praised.[59] Don D'Ammassa said it might be "the major fantasy publishing event of 1996".[60] In The Year's Best Science Fiction (1997), Gardner R. Dozois described the novel as "the year's Big Fantasy Novel, reviewed everywhere", and a favorite for the World Fantasy Award.[61] The first printing sold a few thousand copies.[62] While not an immediate commercial hit, some independent booksellers championed the novel and it gained a small following through word of mouth—400 people attended a bookstore signing in Kentucky but nobody appeared at a St. Louis signing.[63]

It won the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel and the 1997 Premio Ignotus for best foreign novel.[64] A novella titled Blood of the Dragon, comprising Daenerys' chapters and published in Asimov's Science Fiction, won the 1997 Hugo Award for Best Novella.[59] The success of the HBO adaptation Game of Thrones (2011–2019) reignited interest in the novel, making it both a best seller and topic for critics.[59] BBC Arts named A Game of Thrones among the 100 most influential novels in 2019.[65] The novel became a New York Times Bestseller in January 2011,[4] reaching the top of the list in July 2011.[5]

Contemporary reviews celebrated Martin writing prose fiction again after a long absence.[51][66][67][68] Several observed that readers would eagerly await a sequel.[69][70][71] Jeff Watkins of the Albuquerque Journal said that "[a]fter so many pages, a reader wants to know how the thing comes out".[72] Two reviews said the ending provided little narrative resolution,[73][74] and it was framed as the first instalment of a trilogy.[67][72][21] Vector's Steve Jeffery said that HarperCollins' marketing had done Martin's novel a disservice by comparing it to The Lord of the Rings and described AGOT as "widescreen epic fantasy, well delivered and competently told".[51] The New York Review of Science Fiction's Lisa Padol said it "aspires to be a page-turner" more than epic fantasy.[21]

Several reviews, including by Phyllis Eisenstein for the Chicago Sun-Times, said Martin's execution elevated a conventional fantasy set-up;[75] Dave Gross writes that he "makes vital figures of what seems to be stock characters".[76] Dorman Shindler of The Des Moines Register said Martin imbued the Stark children with as many weaknesses as their antagonists.[67] An anonymous 1999 review by The Guardian described the characters as "so venomous they could eat the Borgias".[77] The Washington Post's John H. Riskind criticized them as one dimensional.[78] In Interzone, Gwyneth Jones criticized the major female characters as "fools and rotters" except Arya Stark; she said Daenerys has "no characteristics except a will of iron".[79]

Reviewers frequently praised the intrigue and emphasis on politics.[80] The Associated Press' review commended the narrative structure;[70] Kirkus Reviews praised the characters and complex plot "flawlessly articulated against a backdrop of real depth and texture".[74] Anticipating future instalments, Booklist said the novel was likely to reward rereading, but described the large cast as a "daunting" burden of the fantasy genre.[81] Several reviewers mentioned Martin's influence from historical narratives. Jones compared the novel to Macbeth and Ned Stark's intransigence to Scottish Calvinists.[79] Padol identified the ice wall with Hadrian's Wall and compared the dothraki to the Mongols.[21] In Locus, Shira Daemon said the novel felt closer to historical fiction than fantasy, with supernatural threats that would not pay off until future entries.[82] A second review the following month by Faren Millar called it "a medievalesque fantistorical novel".[83]

Interpretation

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Further information: Themes in A Song of Ice and Fire

Historical

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Scholars have explored Martin's depiction of the Middle Ages and ideals associated with the period.[f] Carolyne Larrington and Joanna Kakot identify the influence of medieval Europe.[85][33] Kakot compares to dothraki culture as North African tribes,[85] and Larrington highlights additional influence from central Asian cultures.[33] KellyAnn Fitzpatrick describes A Song of Ice and Fire as neomedieval fantasy, indebted to "medieval history, medieval myth, and later medievalist and neomedieval interpretations".[86] Carol Jamison describes the setting as detailed and intricate "a pseudo-medieval society".[87] Martin has described epic fantasy and historical fiction as siblings.[88][g]

Some writers explore the novel's treatment of medieval chivalric conventions. Shiloh Carroll describes the novel as eschewing the knight-errant and honorable nobility.[h] He proposes that A Game of Thrones presents Sansa Stark as an idealist and Ned Stark as the likely romantic hero, then corrects Sansa's notions of a just aristocracy.[92] Alyssa Rosenberg notes that King Robert abuses and commits marital rape, contravening chivalric ideals.[93][i] Medieval scholar Rebekah Fowler says romantic and idealistic characters either die or have their faiths broken, foregrounding the novel's inspirations but acknowledging the limited appeal of these ideals to modern audiences.[95] Medievalist Steven Muhlberger says the primary chivalric institutions—chiefly the Night's Watch and the Kingsguard—represent the erosion of chivalric standards. While the Night's Watch dedicate their lives to protecting the realm, many of their numbers are condemned criminals and they are widely disrespected. The Kingsguard may resemble "royally-sponsored orders of chivalry from the Middle Ages" but their members are selected for political reasons and not their skill or leadership.[96]

Martin generally avoids direct historical analogy,[97][j] but there are clear allusions.[87] Westeros' history of invasion may represent the Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Norman conquests of England.[97] Medieval scholar Kavita Mudan Finn notes that Cersei's introduction underscores her loyalty to House Lannister over her husband the king, which Finn parallels with Edward IV's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville, bringing her ambitious family to court and ultimately culminating in civil war.[98] Several scholars note parallels between House Stark / House of York and House Lannister / House of Lancaster.[99][100][101] Larrington describes the presumed deaths of two young Targaryen heirs in the novel's pre-history as a motif recalling the 15th-century Princes in the Tower;[102] she compares Petyr Baelish to Geoffrey Chaucer—she cites his low birth and penchant for political climbing[103]—and Khal Drogo to a fictional version of Attila;[104] and she characterises Westeros' primary religious institution, the Faith of the Seven, as a less powerful medieval Catholic Church.[105][k] Brian de Ruiter and Carroll comment on the connection of Hadrian's Wall to Martin's Wall.[107][108]

Gender and sex

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Several female characters are entered into marriage to cement alliances or facilitate a transfer of wealth.[109] Viserys trades his sister Daenerys to receive military support from Khal Drogo,[110][111] so that he can regain the Iron Throne.[112] Borowska-Szerszun notes that Daenerys' story—marriage and loss of freedom—traditionally conclude women's stories in fairy tales, but affords Daenerys with power and social status.[110] Larrington says Daenerys' growing influence over Drogo weakens his standing as a leader,[113] and her decisions cause the end of Drogo's rule and the birth of her dragons.[113] Before the events of A Game of Thrones, Cersei and Catelyn are both married to establish political alliances, with Cersei becoming queen.[109][114] Cersei and Catelyn's children—Joffrey and Sansa—are betrothed to ensure the north's loyalty to the crown.[109] This betrothal is ultimately abusive and she is held hostage and used as a pawn.[115][l]

Medieval women were subject to marital rape.[117] This was not a concept recognized in the Middle Ages because marriage was a transfer of property from father to husband.[118] Mariah Larsson states that Drogo knows only one word in Daenerys' language, "no", and that he uses this word to "ensure his wife's consent" before consummating the marriage.[111] According to Carroll, Daenerys' age and circumstances "problematize" the consent and he says Drogo "rapes her every night on the way to Vaes Dothrak", ultimately "[falling] in love with her attacker".[119][m] Daenerys prevents her husband's warriors from raping a woman called Eroeh. They later return and gang rape the woman. According to Carroll, it is "an expression of ownership and power over a woman [and] a vengeance against Daenerys for denying the men's claim to Eroeh earlier".[120] Cersei is subject to sexual violence by Robert, who blames it on alcohol.[121]

Eidsvåg contrasts Cersei's role as a mother against her ordering the assassination of Robert's illegitimate children.[122] Similarly, Catelyn Stark is depicted as devoted to her children, but she acts hatefully towards Ned's illegitimate son Jon.[100] Catelyn's role as a viewpoint character is unusual because mothers are not typically depicted in fantasy.[100] Robert does not think Daenerys herself presents a direct threat to his rule, but he is deeply alarmed by the news of her marriage and the prospect of offspring.[123] Carroll notes symbolism that frames Daenerys as the dragons' mother: "the eggs begin to hatch, lactating in 'streams'; when the fire dies [...] two of the dragons are nursing at her breasts".[124]

Several writers have explored Daenerys' encounter with the maegi Mirri Maz Duur. Sheilagh O'Brien describes the maegi as a conventional representation of witches, symbolizing anxieties over female power, "monstrous births, and the influence of an evil elderly woman over a younger woman often encountered in early modern witch narratives".[125] Anne Gjelsvik writes that Mirri Maz Duur represents Daenerys' denial of her role in oppression. She attempts to save Mirri Maz Duur from gang rape but fails. The maegi takes vengeance by causing Daneerys' child to be stillborn. Consequently, Daenerys takes the maegi into Drogo's funeral pyre and symbolically assimilates the witch's magic into herself.[126]

Adaptations

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Main article: Works based on A Song of Ice and Fire

A Song of Ice and Fire became the basis for the HBO television series Game of Thrones (2011–2019), taking its name from the first entry. The first season was broadly faithful to A Game of Thrones. It diverged more from the novels in later seasons.[127] The Game of Thrones title sequence is an animated version of the maps that accompany each volume in the book.[128] A major change for the series was adding several years to the novel's timeline, increasing several characters' ages: Sansa (from eleven to thirteen), Arya (from nine to eleven), Bran (from seven to ten),[129] and Daenerys (thirteen to fifteen).[130] Martin's last published novel for the series—the fifth entry, A Dance with Dragons (2011)—was published the same year the first season aired.[127] Game of Thrones was both the highest viewership of any HBO series and the most-pirated television series of all time.[131]

A Game of Thrones was directly adapted as a graphic novel of the same name by author Daniel Abraham. Anne Groell, who edited the original novel, requested that Abraham outline his proposed approach to the adaptation.[1] Abraham described several problems in adapting the work: predicting what was vital to preserve in an unfinished series; how to visualise elements that already existed in the popular imagination; and a US child abuse law precluding an illustration of young Daenerys in a sexual context.[1]

A Game of Thrones: Genesis (2011) shares its name with the novel. A real-time strategy game, it was the first video game title to use the Game of Thrones licence. It does not depict the events from the novel, but uses setting elements spanning the millennium preceding the novel.[132]

Notes and references

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Notes

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  1. ^ After finishing the second novel, Martin decided it was a five-book series, and later a seven-book series.[17]
  2. ^ Of Stark's death, Young notes that "Eddard dies, almost literally, on-stage, in front of a crowd, in a manner carefully arranged by characters and author alike for maximum dramatic effect."[41]
  3. ^ In portal-quest fantasy, characters enter environments they do not understand and acquire information from guide characters, with the reader learning alongside the character and prevented from learning what they do not know.[45] For example: Bran is advised by the Three-Eyed Crow, whose dialogue is not represented by speech marks and are thus "matters of narrative truth".[46]
  4. ^ Young describes The Lord of the Rings as "a deeply personal experiment in linguistics, medievalism and moral philosophy" and emphasising Tolkien's lifelong academic career. Young writes that Martin's background as a writer of science fiction and superhero stories, "and as such he fits the profile of a typical genre fantasist".[52]
  5. ^ Gary Westfahl, for instance, highlights: "Lord Eddard Stark agrees to spare a litter of dire-wolf pups when his bastard son, Jon Snow, points out that they correspond in their number and genders to his own children."[57]
  6. ^ David Symons notes that Martin's work has featured in medievalist university classes.[54] Bartlomiej Blaskiewicz narrows it to the High Middle Ages.[84]
  7. ^ For many readers, Martin's work has become the primary reference for the Middle Ages.[89] Literature scholar Helen Young argues this has negatively impacted discussions about the series' authentic representation.[90]
  8. ^ Carolyne Larrington notes that some knights publicly keep with "the tenets of chivalry": Jaime does not kill Ned during their duel, and is angry at a soldier who injures Ned in the middle of it.[91]
  9. ^ Blaszkiewicz says that male sexuality is frequently depicted as "disruptive, if not explicitly violent" in chivalric romance.[94]
  10. ^ Carroll argues that Martin aimed to create an impression of the real and not to reproduce actual historical reality.[89]
  11. ^ Larrington writes: "Although Ned remarks to Catelyn, "it’s your religion which has all the rules," it's quite hard to distinguish between the different mores produced by class, gender or ethnic differences and those derived from the Faith’s religious teachings."[106]
  12. ^ Carroll describes Cersei as a narrative foil to Sansa: the "archetypal princess" and the "bitter and power-hungry queen".[116]
  13. ^ Carroll also writes: "The difficulty with rape in A Song of Ice and Fire is that commentators have trouble differentiating between authorial endorsement and portrayal. Martin's narrative voice, hidden as it is behind the third-person viewpoint with which he writes the seres, clearly does not approve of rape or violence in general."[120]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Abraham 2012, p. 29.
  2. ^ Beaumont-Thomas 2014.
  3. ^ Martin, George R. R. (August 1, 2016). "The Long Game... of Thrones". Not A Blog. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016.
  4. ^ a b Taylor, Ihsan (January 2, 2011). "The New York Times Bestseller List". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 22, 2011. Retrieved May 16, 2011.
  5. ^ a b Taylor, Ihsan (July 10, 2011). "The New York Times Bestseller List". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Berwick 2012.
  7. ^ a b c d Gilmore 2014.
  8. ^ a b Levy 1996.
  9. ^ Macnab 2014.
  10. ^ a b c Flood 2018.
  11. ^ a b c Carroll 2018, p. 1–2.
  12. ^ a b c Huddleston Jr. 2019.
  13. ^ Shindler 2005.
  14. ^ a b c Carroll 2018, p. 2.
  15. ^ Snider 2025.
  16. ^ a b Hibberd 2011.
  17. ^ a b Schubart & Gjelsvik 2016, p. 3.
  18. ^ Martin, George R. R. (1996). Game of Thrones (2016 Mass Market Tie-in ed.). p. 836.
  19. ^ a b Miller 2012, p. 198.
  20. ^ Power 2021.
  21. ^ a b c d Padol 1997, p. 23.
  22. ^ a b c Wells-Lassagne 2016, p. 52.
  23. ^ a b c Kokot 2014, p. 63.
  24. ^ Kokot 2014, pp. 60–61.
  25. ^ a b Pavlac Introduction, p. 3.
  26. ^ Carroll 2018, p. 28–29.
  27. ^ Carroll 2018, p. 28.
  28. ^ Kokot 2014, pp. 61–62.
  29. ^ Romano 2017.
  30. ^ Fitzpatrick 2019, p. 121.
  31. ^ Carroll 2018, p. 1.
  32. ^ Finn 2020, p. 29.
  33. ^ a b c Larrington 2019, p. 16.
  34. ^ Young 2019, p. 1.
  35. ^ Blaskiewics 2014, p. 115.
  36. ^ a b Carroll 2018, p. 183.
  37. ^ Rohr & Benz 2020, p. xxxiii.
  38. ^ Fitzpatrick 2019, p. 60.
  39. ^ Carroll 2018, p. 20.
  40. ^ Uckelman, Murphy & Percer 2017, p. 248.
  41. ^ a b Young 2019, p. 9.
  42. ^ Carroll 2018, p. 182.
  43. ^ Young 2019, p. 3.
  44. ^ a b Young 2019, p. 6, 104–105; 90.
  45. ^ Young 2019, p. 72.
  46. ^ Young 2019, p. 104.
  47. ^ Young 2018, p. 18.
  48. ^ Fitzpatrick 2019, p. 107.
  49. ^ Staggs 2012, p. 149.
  50. ^ Rohr & Benz 2020, p. xxxiv.
  51. ^ a b c Jeffery 1997, p. 19.
  52. ^ Young 2019, pp. 2–4.
  53. ^ Kokot 2014, p. 54.
  54. ^ a b c Symons 2017, p. 94.
  55. ^ Young 2019, p. 6.
  56. ^ Kokot 2014, pp. 52–53.
  57. ^ Westfahl 2012, p. 56.
  58. ^ Young 2019, pp. 138–139.
  59. ^ a b c Symons 2017, p. 95.
  60. ^ D'Ammassa 1996.
  61. ^ Dozois 1997, p. xxxii.
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Bibliography

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Contemporary reviews

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Interviews with GRRM

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