#and if sansa is allowed to own her kindness wit and bravery

[arte072]

"Sansa bullied Arya? Oh so you think she's worse than Tywin Lannister, Gregor Clegane and Ramsay Bolton??" is such a hyperbolic, insincere and ultimately non-existent argument. Literally name one person who says this shit with any sort of sincerity, if at all lol

This is up there with "Talking about Arya's importance to the North means you think Jeyne Poole's life doesn't matter!!!" in terms of disningenous talking points.

It's only ever used to shut down any attempts at considering Arya's feelings and well-being when discussing the girls' relationship.

and no offense, but why are 🫵 YOU🫵 equating the acknowledgement of a fictional child's flaws with calling her a war criminal? why are you treating it like that?? 👀👀👀

I mean, this fandom regularly says Arya lacks morality for surviving war zones with violence. They consider her a walking tragedy whose story is about losing her humanity and becoming the ultimate killing machine. Everyday Dany gets called a N@zi Barbie for not abolishing slavery perfectly. But Sansa gets clocked as a mean girl bully in the first book and y'all fall apart at the seams at that?? C'mon now

[trinuviel]

Winterfell’s Daughter. On Sansa Stark (part 7)

I’ve previously written a series of metas on Sansa Stark’s narrative arc during season 1 of Game of Thrones (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6). In this post I’m taking a look at her story in season 2. Sansa Stark is one of my favorite characters and in this respect season 2 is hard to watch because so much mental, physical and sexual abuse is heaped upon the poor girl. Yet despite her hardships, Sansa also shows that she’s both courageous, compassionate and kind. She shows us that she is strong - a strength that is mental rather than physical since she is not trained to fight like her sister. Sansa’s resilience lies in the strength of character.

Sansa refuses to be broken by the malice of the Lannisters. She fights back in her own way. Her resistance is a passive one but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t a form of resistance. She doesn’t physically or verbally attack her captors. Instead she deploys her courtesy as an armour and she also employs a subtle and snarky wit as well as a strategic form of flattery to manipulate Joffrey. Those who are clever can see through her ploys yet cannot really reproach her since her statements seem flattering on the surface. She shows the audience that she is more clever than people initially assume.

COURAGEOUS AND KIND

Season 2 of Game of Thrones opens with a tourney in King’s Landing in honour of King Joffrey’s nameday. However, this tourney is a far cry from the chivalric pageantry that characterized the Hand’s Tourney in the previous season. In fact, Joffrey’s nameday tourney looks more like gladitorial combat, an exhibition of lethal bloodsport for the king’s amusement. Joffrey revels in the fact that people are killed for his personal entertainment - people getting injured and killed is amusing to him. Indeed, any kind of abuse is amusing to him but he particularly enjoys causing Sansa pain, whether it is physical or emotional pain.

After a particularly lethal fight where a man dies, Joffrey goads Sansa for a response to the violence. Here we see Sansa tonelessly “parroting” Joffrey’s words back at him – a subtle form of passive resistance. She outwardly complies but refuses to express any kind of emotion. From Joffrey’s face it is clear that he finds Sansa’s icy politesse frustrating. He wants to revel in her fear but she doesn’t allows herself to show any feelings and neither does she talk back at him, which would give him an opportunity to have her punished.

However, things come to a head when on of the contestants, Ser Dontos, arrives late and drunk. Joffrey pounces on the opportunity to have another person abused for his personal entertainment by having his Kingsguard force wine down Donto’s throat. Sansa’s reaction is immediate and purely instinctive as she blurts out “You can’t!”. 

This kind of instinctual outburst is dangerous for her. The last time she impulsively contradicted Joffrey, she earned herself a beating. Joffrey reacts angrily to her outburst – as he doesn’t like to be told no.

Joffrey: What did you say? Did you say I can’t?

She quickly realizes her danger and tries to salvage the situation.

Sansa: I only meant it would be bad luck to kill a man on your nameday.

Joffrey: What kind of stupid peasant’s superstition…

Sandor Clegane: The girl is right. What a man sows on his nameday, he reaps all year.

Sansa’s attempt to appease Joffrey may not be particularly inventive and you could argue that it is only the Hound’s intervention that saves her from a beating. However, she does manage to stop the abuse of Dontos.

Joffrey: Take him away. I’ll have him killed tomorrow, the fool.

Sansa: He is a fool! You’re so clever to see it. He’ll make a much better fool than a knight. He doesn’t deserve the mercy of a quick death.

This is the most important part of this entire scene. At this point, Sansa has managed to save her own skin (with some help from the Hound). Most people would have kept silent (as does the rest of the courtiers). Yet Sansa does not avert her eyes or keep silent. Indeed, keeping silent would probably have been the less risky option for her at this point.

Instead, Sansa decides to try saving the life of Ser Dontos. She notices Joffrey calling Dontos a fool and she then proceeds to plant the notion in Joffrey’s head that making a knight a fool is a much more humiliating punishment than death. This is an impressive piece of quick thinking and subtle manipulation. Sansa strokes Joffrey’s ego and gets her way. She saves a life – and she does so at a certain risk to her own person because she could easily earned herself a beating if Joffrey had reacted aversely to her suggestion. Sansa is actually very brave here. Many people confuse bravery with fearlessness but that is not the case! You can only be truly brave when you’re doing something despite your fear! Sansa is sticking her neck out for a stranger, knowing full well that her intervention may backfire, which could end up with her getting hurt once again. Yet she still intervenes on behalf of Dontos.

Sansa is brave here and she is compassionate, which is a testament to her fundamentally kind nature – even in adversity.

Tyrion arrives. He extends his condolences to Sansa on the death of her father. We get a profile shot of Joffrey and Sansa; she opens her mouth in order to answer Tyrion. However, before Sansa gets to speak, Joffrey reacts badly once again and throws a strop.

Joffrey: Her loss? Her father was a confessed traitor.

Tyrion: But still her father. Surely, having so recently lost your own beloved father, you can sympathize.

Joffrey turns to Sansa to gauge her reaction to Tyrion’s words. She sits with her shoulders slightly hunched, which indicates her fear. Her response will most definitely influence her treatment by Joffrey so she calibrates her answer carefully.

Sansa: My father was a traitor. My mother and brother are traitors, too. I am loyal to my beloved Joffrey.

This particular line becomes a sort of litany for her during her time in King’s Landing, always delivered in a toneless voice. Anyone with half a brain can see that she is being disingenuous but Joffrey is both stupid and vicious. I would argue that this kind of performance constitutes a form of passive resistance on Sansa’s part. She knows she cannot speak her mind openly. It will only earn her a beating. However, whilst she is outwardly complying, her wooden “performance” makes it clear that she isn’t honest.  She is speaking under duress and anyone with a modicum of intelligence can see that. She makes a performance out of the duress she’s under and this is part of how she authors her resistance with the very means that she has at her disposal.

SCAPEGOAT

Sadly, Sansa is not always able to save herself from physical abuse. However, that doesn’t mean that she’s weak or stupid. Sometimes she is just helpless in a certain situation, like when Joffrey decides to use her as a scapegoat for Robb Stark’s military victories.

The crossbow scene in ep04 is just such a situation. Sansa’s brother Robb has won yet another victory over the Lannisters and Joffrey decides to vent his anger on his helpless hostage. Once again, Joffrey’s sadistic nature is on full display, only this time it is not disguised by a socially acceptable scenario such as the nameday tourney in ep01. 

The scenes begins with low-angle close-up of Joffrey aiming the crossbow directly at the camera. In cinema and television, the camera acts as the eye of the audience so in this shot we, the audience, are directly confronted with Joffrey’s threat of violence. We are, so to speak, on the receiving end of Joffrey’s malice here.

However, this shot is followed by a point-of-view shot from Joffrey’s position, showing the audience what he’s looking at: a blurry outline that quickly is resolved into the figure of a kneeling Sansa Stark. These two shots sets the stage for the following confrontation.

These kind of shots create a POV structure where the audience is invited to inhabit both positions. It is a bit unnerving in this particular instance since we are not only invited to step into Sansa’s shoes with the first, establishing shot but also into Joffrey’s shoes with the second POV shot. However, the first shot establishes the primary POV: that of Sansa Stark - under the threat of lethal violence and it most certainly her POV that we are expected to empathize with (especially since Joffrey is such a sadistic piece of shit).

Enraged by the Lannister losses on the battlefield, Joffrey has created a mockery of a “trial”, complete with Lancel Lannister spouting an absurd accusation of sorcery and cannibalism on the part of the Northern army. All of this is accompanied by the horrified gasps of the surrounding courtiers.

Joffrey: You are here to answer for your brother’s lastest treasons.

[...]

Joffrey: Ser Lancel, tell her of this outrage.

Lancel Lannister: Using some vile sorcery, your brother fell on Stafford Lannister with an army of wolves. Thousands of good men were butchered. After the slaughter, the Northmen feasted on the flesh of the slain.

Then Joffrey quite literally threatens to kill Sansa as a “message” to Robb Stark. Fortunately, Cersei still has some influence over him so instead he decides to “punish” Sansa by having his Kingsguard beat her up.

Joffrey: Killing you would send your brother a message. But my mother insists on keeping you alive. Stand. So we’ll have to send your brother a message some other way. 

Joffrey: Meryn. Leave her face. I like her pretty.

This is where things get really nasty. Sansa is literally being beaten up by a grown man wearing armour. She is punched in the stomach by a man wearing steel gauntlets and then beaten with the flat of a sword! Even that is not enough since Joffrey orders her stripped in public.

Joffrey: If you want Robb Stark to hear us, we’re going to have to speak louder.

This scene makes me recall a conversation between Eddard Stark and Jaime Lannister in season 1 where Jaime tells Ned that 500 hundred people stood silently by and watched Rickard and Brandon Stark die on the orders of King Aerys II. The present situation is not nearly as dire but the circumstances are rather similar: an audience stands silently by whilst a king has one of his knights abuse a teenage girl. Lancel Lannister can’t even bring himself to face the abuse that he himself has played a part in, as you can see in the picture below.

I’m also reminded of another scene from season 1 where Sansa raises the subject of the deaths of her grandfather and uncle to Septa Mordane, who doesn’t want to discuss such “unpleasant” subjects with her young charge.

Septa M: They were killed on the orders of King Aerys, commonly known as the Mad King.

Now another innocent Stark is tortured on the orders of a mad king in the very place where her close relatives were killed on the orders of a mad king. The spectre of Mad King Aerys is indeed invoked in this scene when Tyrion remonstrates with Joffrey.

Joffrey: You can’t talk to me like that. The king can do as he likes!

Tyrion: The Mad King did as he liked. Has your Uncle Jaime ever told you what happened to him?

Sansa is very fortunate that Tyrion intervened when he did because Ser Meryn Trant was about to use his sword on her again and it looks as though he was about to do her serious harm.

Many people often fail to realize exactly how dangerous Sansa’s situation really is in King’s Landing. Joffrey is both vicious and stupid. He detests Sansa and he is dangerously unpredictable. He could very easily have her killed in a fit of rage before anyone would be able to intervene. At present, he still listens to his mother on this particular subject but he might not continue to do so because he has such a volatile temper. Furthermore, a situation like this could very quickly spiral completely out of hand and Sansa might get seriously hurt or even killed. 

Neither should we minimize the severity if the physical abuse that Sansa suffers here. A grown man is beating up a teenage girl and he’s not pulling his punches. The book makes this abundantly clear:

Boros slammed a fist into Sansa's belly, driving the air out of her. When she doubled over, the knight grabbed her hair and drew his sword, and for one hideous instant she was certain he meant to open her throat. As he laid the flat of the blade across her thighs, she thought her legs might break from the force of the blow. Sansa screamed. Tears welled in her eyes. It will be over soon. She soon lost count of the blows. (ACoK, Sansa III)

When Tyrion escorts Sansa out of the throne room, she is both terrified and very likely in a lot of pain. Yet she schools her countenance so that she reveals neither pain nor fear. It might not be much but it IS a small act of passive resistance. They might abuse her body but she won’t let them kill her soul.

She uses her ladylike manners as her armour. Standing tall, she squares her shoulders and lifts her chin and leaves the place of her abuse and humiliation with all the grace and dignity of a queen. She cannot stop her abusers but neither can they deprive her of her dignity.

Joffrey absolutely hates that about her - he enjoys her pain and he wants to revel in her fear. Tyrion, on the other hand, seems rather impressed with her.

To be continued...

(GIFs not mine)

[toaquiprashippar]

Different from the others

Okaaay, so, please, be kind to me, this is the first fanfic I ever post at tumblr, but my friend @porrabett showed me this beautiful gif from @gendry (thanks for letting me use it here, hon!) and I couldn’t not write this, it was like…there, begging to be written. Jon, Dany and Arya are my favorite characters, so I just had to! I have 3 more fics to post, not finished but almost there…anyway, I hope you like this.  Arya sees Dany staring at Jon from the stands of Winterfell patio, while he trains the youngest with the new dragonglass weapons, and they talk about Jon and Arya tries to decide what she thinks of Dany. Daenerys could feel herself being observed, but over the course of her life, being watched was something she became used to. She was too mesmerized by Jon Snow’s movements with his sword, teaching his people how to defeat the Army of the Dead, to mind the eyes that would not leave her.

What she did not know is whom these eyes belong to: a certain she wolf.

Arya Stark was curious when she heard of Jon’s commitment to Daenerys Targaryen, she understood his needs for her army, but knowing his brown eyes too well, there was more to it – more than a political alliance, it was admiration, maybe even…love? The woman that found the way into the heart of her dearest brother intrigued the assassin.

She saw the platinum haired woman watching Jon, she would watch him like Arya remembered her mother watching her father from above: as a woman watched her beloved.

If this Daenerys had any bad intentions towards Jon, she was good at hiding, but Arya was good at finding lies at people’s faces, and she saw none in hers.

For now, that was good enough for her. She would not try inviting her for the game of faces any time soon.

(gif by: @gendry)

“Was he always this – determined?” Daenerys heard Arya arrive at her side, while she saw Jon give the young boys and girls their dragon glass weapons, and lecture them about it with so much respect and patience, that only a true Eddard Stark relative and northern man would.

“Yes” Arya smiled to her side. “When I was younger, no one would ever let me use a sword, or a bow, or even mount a horse properly…I was supposed to be a Lady, not a Knight, like I wanted. I was meant to sow, enchant and smile.” Arya remembered bitterly. “Jon would see through all this crap, you know? He would sneak me out of my room, in the middle of the night, and take me out into the stables, when there were no one awake around and teach me how to mount a horse, wield a sword or even how to hold a bow properly.” Daenerys would not stop smiling at herself, this suited what she come to meet and love about Jon Snow.

While he did the same for these kids, that he had done to me years back, except snow was falling harder, winds were howling louder and winter was here.

Winter was here, but the Dragon Queen heart seemed warm towards Jon, that did not went by unnoticed by Arya.

“He doesn’t seem to share the common men opinion on where women belong” She comment and Arya smiled.

“No, he doesn’t. He never did. He always told me to pursue my knight dreams. He never did get the chance to fully teach me how to wield a sword, but he did give me my own” Arya took Needle out of its sheath, and proudly showed it to Dany.

“He gave it to you?” Dany was both proud and not surprised at all, she didn’t know Jon Snow long, but sounded like something he would have done for his little she-wolf sister, he would not break her dreams, he would encourage her to pursuit it. Who was this man?

“You like it? I called it ‘Needle’, Sansa had hers, to make her pretty dresses, I had mine to torn mine to pieces. Jon had it made for me. He gave it to me right before he left for The Wall, right before all hell broke loose for all of us.” Arya looked at her beautiful sword, remembering happier times. “Little did we know, the storm that we had coming our way” She sounded so sad, Daenerys had do look away, and stare at Arya Stark, and she could not help but feel sad for her.

She did not know her well, but from what Jon so sadly told her the other night at his chambers, his sister had seen their brother murdered and mocked alongside his direwolf, her mother killed, her father decapitated and had witnessed so much more…Dany could still feel the pain of her sweetest child falling across the sky, Viserion and not being able to help, not being able to save him. To know this young girl saw her mother, brother, father and so many others suffer the same destiny and could not do a thing? So much more pain than anyone in her age should be allowed to. Daenerys was a dragon, Arya was a wolf, but life hadn’t been kind for either of them, making them pay for their fathers choices. Dany wasn’t fond of the the Hand of the Usurper, but from what everyone says, he was quite an honorable man, and the world is running short of those. But he made choices, and his family paid for it, damned be the Lannisters for it.

Now meeting Arya and Jon, even the beautiful but distant and guarded Sansa…A man who had such children must have been a great man, for his children seen to have inherited bravery, endurance and something else Dany cannot name yet, but pleases her enough to make her feel welcomed in a foreign cold land such as Winterfell.

Maybe it had something to do with the white wolf sleeping next to her and Jon every night; maybe it had something to with the King in The North himself, snuggling into her side through the night, after the most meaningful and passionate love making Dany has ever had; or maybe it was just the air of this place, where you can’t help yourself but believing everything you were told growing up, where you cannot forget the White Walkers are coming and a place where Winter is coming is definitely not about the seasons and the Starks words seems more like an omen compared to mere house words.

“I am sorry for you lost, Lady Arya. For your father, mother and brothers” Dany spoke to her.

“I am no Lady, my Queen. But thank you” She looked down, and remember her painful training and what it taught her. “Valar morghulis”.

“All men must die” Dany answered her with a bitter smile “But we are not men”. Dany looked back to Jon.

“I’d like them not to, so perhaps…let’s stick to Valar dohaeris”. Arya could not help but be sure she liked Daenerys Targaryen without a doubt, now. Jon could marry this girl, she seemed to be just in love with him as he was with her.

Not to forget, the woman had two amazing dragons! That should be interesting… (more to come?) to my bae @porrabett that stands me talking about nothing but got 24/7 for the last months (and prob the next ones too lol)

[sheikah]

Jon needing to be saved tim and time again Stannis, Crasters wife, Sansa and LF, Sandy, Benjen is too just overdone. Basically like a damsel in distress because it were a woman, people would have been saying exactly this. They always put him in these situations, same as Jon will die or won't die?

I don’t mind the moments when Jon needs other people to help him. I think that he does so much good for others that when people help him it’s just fine. And I couldn’t think of anyone less a damsel than my boy Jon Snow. 

So here we go, you didn’t ask for this but you’re going to get it. All of the times Jon Snow either shows he is a strong ass dude who can take care of himself and/or the times Jon does genuine good for others that earn him a little good karma and assistance.

This will strictly refer to the show!Jon since anon is bringing up some examples of Jon being “saved” that we don’t know will take place in book!universe (Sansa/LF, Benjen, etc).

Jon grows up in a household full of people he can nevertruly feel a sense of belonging with. He loves his father and siblings so muchbut Catelyn and (we are to assume based on her insistent apology in 6.04) Sansa make sure he is aware that he is one apart from them. So one would understand if maybe Jon turned out to be weak or bitter. But he’s not.

He is driven from his home as a teenager,sent to live in one of the most inhospitable—and we later learn, dangerous—placesin the world. Yes, he’s a bit of a shithead at first when he’s there but he quicklylearns his place and makes friends with his brothers. The real reason I bringup his early time at the The Wall is because we get to see the strength of Jon’scharacter very quickly when he defies Alistair Thorne, putting his own statusthere in jeopardy, just to defend his friend, Sam. That takes its own sort ofbravery.

At the end of the first season after Ned is killed Jonalmost deserts The Wall so he can fight at Robb’s side. He knows theconsequences of being a deserter. Our first scene with Jon shows him watching abeheading of a deserter. He knows that he will be on the run forever and willhave to hide his identity, but he is perfectly willing to ruin his own life totry to help his brother.

In season 2 when he ranges north of The Wall with hisbrothers he is separated from them with Qhorin Halfhand and falls upon thegroup of wildlings. Jon is expected to execute Ygritte but he doesn’t, becausehe thinks for himself and sticks to his own ideals. He knows early on that itisn’t right to kill someone just because they were unlucky enough to be born northof The Wall. He defies his superiors again, again to help someone else.

When he is taken prisoner by the wildlings he followsthrough with Qhorin’s plan to stage a fight, and as Qhorin orders, Jon killshim. This is a man Jon admires, his ally. This was likely incredibly difficult buthe does it to keep them both from dying as wildling prisoners so that someonecan get back to the Watch and deliver news of what they’ve discovered.

Then Jon manages to ingratiate himself to the wildlings andbecome one of them. And while to some extent it’s an act so he can get back toCastle Black alive, he also genuinely likes the wildlings and develops realrelationships with them and a real appreciation for their spirit and way oflife. Even so, he never forgets his duty and almost dies getting back to TheWall to report back to his Brothers.

He doesn’t lie about breaking his vows and sleeping withYgritte. He could. There aren’t any wildlings at Castle Black to contradict isstory. But he is open and honest with Thorne, Maester Aemon, and the othersbecause Jon is an honest person and someone who always takes responsibility.

He takes some men with him back north of The Wall after hisreturn to avenge the mutiny at Craster’s Keep. He is under no obligation toundertake such a task and the party of men to go with him is small. Doing thisagain signifies Jon’s principles and sense of justice. He does not leave theresponsibility to someone else but takes it on himself at great personal risk,and he is successful.

When the wildlings assault Castle Black Jon fights peoplewho were his friends, and he fights bravely. If it wasn’t for his warnings tohis Brothers, his battle strategy, and his own fighting prowess, one couldargue that Castle Black would have fallen to the wildlings’ greater numbersthat day.

He then travels north of The Wall again to face Mance man-to-man and try to treat with him, knowing that to do so is likely suicide. I can’tstress this enough. In what way is this kind of courage indicative of a “damsel”character? 

When Stannis’s men apprehend the wildling forces and attempt to burnMance at the stake, Jon Last of the Mohicans their sadistic asses and shootsMance to end his suffering. Once again, what a badass. He has just witnessedfirsthand what Stannis and Melisandre are capable of, and still put himself onthe line to save his friend from a tortuous death. I mean???

Also in season 5, Jon is elected Lord Commander. He hasrisen through the ranks from being a simple bastard, barely more than a child,to the leader of a force of men that protects the entire realm from thegreatest threat it has ever known. He of course, like literally ANY human, hadhelp along the way from others, but no one gavethis to him. He earned it, and did the job well—though not well enough toplease all of his Brothers (but more on that later).

While serving as Lord Commander Jon brought about the mostradical reform in the history of the Night’s Watch. He travelled north of TheWall to Hardhome with Tormund to treat with the last of the wildling forces.This scene shows us the depth of Jon’s courage when he killed a White Walker insingle combat and evacuated thousands of wildlings to safety so that the NightKing didn’t have a total victory that day.

He actually brought wildlings through the gates and intosafety despite intense protest from his Brothers. Once again, Jon put himselfin harm’s way to help other people. And of course, as we know, this cost himhis life. Literally. Thorne and the others murder Jon for what they considertreason to The Watch.

When he is brought back, Jon is given literally no time tograpple with what has happened to him. He has died and seen that there is noafterlife. He is visibly extraordinarily shaken by this incident and wantsnothing more than to leave The Wall and find peace somewhere else. But thenSansa arrives and we get another example of Jon putting his personal wellbeingsecond to assisting others.

He even tells Sansa that he has spent his entire lifefighting and is tired. But he agrees to help her take Winterfell back from theBoltons and in doing so takes part in an extremely dangerous battle where theodds are stacked soundly against them. This, as we know, starts off with Ramsay’ssick game in which he murders Rickon right before Jon’s eyes. This causes Jonto abandon the battle plan and the pincer maneuver as he rushes headlong into acolumn of armed cavalry.

Is it ill advised? Yes. Is it an emotional decision on hispart? Yes. But is it cowardly, inept, or something that makes him a “damsel”who needs saving? No. I believe strongly after having watched 6.09 severaltimes now that even if Ramsay had not pulled his stunt with Rickon and Jon’smen had followed their original battle plan verbatim, they still would have lost to Ramsay’s superior numbers and clearlyvery well-trained army without the assistance of The Vale.

So I guess you could make the argument here that the men ofThe Vale had to “rescue” Jon like a damsel in distress character. But Idisagree. This is one of the big issues that I have with season 6 and with therelationship the writers created between Jon and Sansa. Sansa knew that she hadLF on her side and the Vale’s army at her disposal, but she chose to hide thisfrom Jon. So I feel this is a matterof viewer perspective. You say Jon needed to be rescued because he is a damsel.I say Jon would not have needed any help and thousands of men could have livedinstead of died on that battlefield if only Sansa had been honest with him. Iknow that Sansa has been hardwired not to trust anyone after all that hashappened to her throughout the series, but we even heard that she trusts Jonwhen Brienne asks her about it. In the now famous scene where Briennehilariously calls Jon “brooding.”

And she had plenty of opportunity to put that trust inJon and tell him about LF. The writing in this part of the season was verystrange to me. We saw scenes, such as the one where Jon receives the letterfrom Ramsay, where Sansa was treated with respect and allowed to speak freelyand say her piece among his men and advisors. When they went around the Northasking the Stark bannermen for assistance, Sansa was by Jon’s side, treated asan equal, freely allowed to speak with these lords and try to win their favor.At no point do we see Sansa silenced by Jon or Davos or Tormund, etc. Yet onthe eve of battle, their dialogue suggests that Sansa has been given no chanceto warn Jon of Ramsay’s trickery or to tell Jon that she’s got an ace up hersleeve, that if they wait just one day, the numbers will be on their side andtheir chances of victory will be far better with LF’s army.

Instead they have a yelling match in the tent during whichSansa cryptically tells Jon not to do what Ramsay expects him to do, and leavesit at that. If she had told him that she has this other force coming their way,then things could have been different and no one would have needed saving inthe first place. I don’t feel that the events of 6.09 are the result of Jon’sown failings or something that required him to be saved as if he is a helpless,damsel character. What I think actually happened in that instance was thewriter’s doing a huge disservice to Sansa’s character–one of the smartest women and most adept survivors in the show–by making her withhold importantinformation with no real good reason that we can see, resulting in anear-disaster that simply made better suspense and good TV for the viewer because it caused the battle to be more dire for our heroes.

And as far as Benjen is concerned, the wight hunt in general seems, from what we know, to be a very foolhardy endeavor but a necessary one nonetheless. It is just another instance of Jon walking into danger to do what MUST be done. It is conceivable for not only Dany but the rest of the southron lords to need proof in order to be invested in the Great War, and someone needs to get that proof. We have seen at Hardhome just how devastatingly powerful the WW army is, and Jon faces their horde with only a handful of men. That is incredibly brave and yes, I am glad that Benjen intervenes to help him in this crucial moment.

But overall, for every person who has ever come to Jon’said, he has helped more people. He is a physically and mentally strongcharacter who still maintains his conscience and kindness in a cruel and twistedworld. Jon Snow is by far my favorite character and I will continue to love himforever, and hope that people save and help him, as he saves and helps others.Because he is the glue holding all of our favorite characters together, andwithout him, we would be watching a very different, and frankly not asinteresting show.

I think what would be boring and unwatchable would be if Jonnever needed help. If he was this impossibly perfect hero figure who not onlyalways saves the day, but is always moral and good, always does the rightthing, always looks fuckable, is a sex god who goes down on women unprompted,always treats his family right …  doyou see what I’m saying? He has to mess up sometimes to be human We all needhelp sometimes, even Jon Snow. And I don’t think that makes him like a weak character as you suggest. I don’t think that at all. If anything I thinkit is more progressive in terms of gender tropes for Jon to need savingsometimes. So I don’t really know what prompted this ask, anon.

[blogofthunder-blog]

Westeros School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Thunder and Lightning were having a chat, as they often do, about utter nonsense. On this particular occasion, Lightning asked Thunder to play the game of sorting Game of Thrones characters into Hogwarts Houses. This sounded like fun so of course Thunder obliged, promptly. Lightning acknowledged the choices Thunder’s sorting hat had made but then decided that some of them were wrong, which is of course entirely possible; not only does the sorting hat take choice into account but Dumbledore himself quips that he sometimes thinks they sort too soon, when talking to Snape.

Lightning has made his justifications, Thunder has commented. Allow us to enlighten you…

Westeros School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

"You might belong in Gryffindor,

Where dwell the brave at heart,

Their daring, nerve and chivalry

Set Gryffindors apart"

 Jon Snow: Jon and Harry are very similar in their bravery — almost foolhardily so. They’re quick to action, struggle with a temper, and will fight for what is right, just like any Gryffindor would.

Thunder agrees with this.

Theon Greyjoy: The Peter Pettigrew of Westeros, he betrays Robb Stark and takes over Winterfell because he thinks it will impress his father.

Although Thunder had originally put Theon in Slytherin given his treachery and want of power and glory, when considered he really is the Peter Pettigrew of Westeros.

Jamie Lannister: Jaime displays incredible courage in order to protect others. Although he is an oath-breaker and Kingslayer, he still tries to do what is right in his own personal code of honour.

Thunder originally put Jamie in Hufflepuff; he is loyal to his family and you cannot deny that he is a grafter. But, beyond that he is brave and lives by his honour. I think Gryffindor would value that quality.

Grey Worm: Always the first to get stuck in a fight, Grey Worm's Unsullied training prepared him to be brave — even if it means death.

Thunder hadn’t considered Grey Worm…

Arya Stark: Classic Gryffindor, hot-headed and bold enough to survive on her own, Arya is Gryffindor.

True story bro.

Robb Stark: Though Robb never wanted to be king, he steps up to rule because he knows he's the man for the job. His bold strategies in war and his personal life would definitely make him a Gryffindor.

Preach!!!

Catelyn Stark: "act first, think later" attitude, taking Tyrion Lannister prisoner resulting in all-out war. Nope. Catelyn Stark is a Hufflepuff. She isn’t fiercely brave or particularly chivalrous. She is however fiercely loyal as a wife and mother and has great potential but makes daft mistakes. As such, Thunder thinks she is a Hufflepuff.

Daenerys Targaryen: Though Daenerys is ambitious like a Slytherin; she isn't willing to achieve her goals by any means necessary. She stands up for what's right but doesn’t take power by force.

This is a very well reasoned argument but Thunder still thinks she should be a Slytherin. There is little in purity about her quest for the Iron Throne. A Gryffindor would stand up for what they believe in and would stand up in support of their friends, but they rarely seek power. Dumbledore in his quest for the Hallows being an exception to that rule. It’s possibly that Dany could sit in both Gryffindor and Slytherin.

Samwell Tarley: Sam displays Ravenclaw traits when it comes to his inclination toward academics. He’s also loyal and has strong feelings about what's right, like a Hufflepuff. But Sam’s bravery to join to Wall, stand up to his father, and stand toe to toe with a ‘walker make Sam a Gryffindor.

Again, Thunder had gone down the Hufflepuff route with Sam and stands by this. Yes he has shades of Ravenclaw and Gryffindor in him but not enough.

"You might belong in Hufflepuff, Where they are just and loyal, Those patient Hufflepuffs are true, And unafraid of toil"

Ned Stark: Controversial, but Ned embodies the Hufflepuff qualities of fairness and justice. He doesn’t act to appear brave, he believes in always doing what is right. “The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword”

Ned doesn’t appear to be brave?! I’m sorry, what?! He co-led an entire rebellion to save his sister’s life. What’s not Gryffindor about that?!

Ned doesn’t act in a way to look brave. His actions might very well be brave, but “appearing” brave is not why he does them. His acts like he does because it’s the right thing to do. If turning and running with tail between legs was the right thing to do (although I can’t picture a scenario where it would be; this is strictly hypothetical) Ned would do that. Ned doesn’t care about how others perceive him. I’m not saying he doesn’t “appear” brave, because he is brave. But whether or not he is or isn’t brave isn’t what’s important; it’s about fairness and justice.

Can we agree that he could be placed in either Hufflepuff or Gryffindor therefore he would like choose Hufflepuff because actually he just wants a quiet life in the north with his family. 

I think the hat would recognise his bravery, but his loyalty and justness would prevail.

Agreed 

Hodor: Faithful, tender, and good-hearted. Hodor

Brienne of Tarth: Loyal to the point she named her sword is named "Oathkeeper."

She is loyal and brave, true of heart. She is a Gryffindor.

Podrick Payne: Pod lives to serve, tagging along with Brienne — a knight whose cause he believes in.

Hadn’t thought about Pod before now. Good point, he’s probably a Hufflepuff.

Tommen Baratheon: Totally opposite to the rest of his family, Tommen seemingly wanted the best for the realm. He placed his trust in loved ones which meant others took advantage of him.

The dude was married to Margaery Tyrell and found religion. Tommen is a squib.

Jorah Mormont: Whilst his past is super sketchy, Jorah is so loyal to Daenerys that he turns down opportunities to return from being banished in order to protect her; even when she doesn't want his help.

Yeah, this makes sense.

Ser Davos Seaworth: "just, loyal, and unafraid of toil," something that Davos displays continuously, even at the expense of body parts. As above.

"Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, If you've a ready mind, Where those of wit and learning, Will always find their kind."

On reflection, all of these are right. I may have disagreed to begin with but the logic is sound.

Lord Varys: "Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure".

‘Nuff said.

Tyrion Lannister: Brave and incredibly ambitious, but Tyrion's Vulcan logical side always prevails: "My brother has his sword, King Robert has his warhammer, and I have my mind… and a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone if it is to keep its edge. That's why I read so much, Jon Snow."

 Olenna Tyrell: Feisty and quick nothing gets past her sharp eye. It might have been money that put her in such an influential position, but her intellect keeps her there.

 Sansa Stark: Sansa learns observation and adaptation are key to survival, and her knowledge is her greatest weapon.

“Or perhaps in Slytherin, You'll make your real friends, Those cunning folk use any means, To achieve their ends."

Littlefinger: Littlefinger is a lot like Snape. They both carry a torch for dead love, play both sides of a political war, and are willing to do anything to accomplish the end goal.

This is unquestionable, although once could argue that his pure genius belongs in Ravenclaw.

 Bronn: Brave like a Gryffindor, but a sellsword. And sellswords always look out for number one. This would be one that could have been sorted too soon…

 Joffrey Baratheon: Nothing stands in the way of Joffrey and what he wants. The heir of Slytherin…

 Margaery Tyrell: "I don't want to be a queen, I want to be the queen"

I would…

 Ramsay Bolton: Ramsay is willing to kill literally everything in his path in order to win his father's favour, and eventually his father.

Agreed 

 Cersei Lannister: Hungry like the wolf for power, Cersei doesn’t let anything get in the way of her and her cubs. Plus, she has Malfoy hair.

Agreed 

 The Hound: The Hound would end up between Slytherin and Gryffindor but since he’s unlikely to give a fuck he’d end up green and silver.

Agreed 

 Tywin Lannister: For a lion he’s an awful lot like a snake. Tywin Lannister cares more about maintaining control than he does about his children.

Agreed