#so it's all one thing to him - the biggest thing he can't abide about robert and cannot allow

[nobodysuspectsthebutterfly]

#i count dany and ned's resistance to her assassination as a betrayal as well btw #because not only was this a moment in which her killing could be contrived as honourable and ned said no thanks acc #but he was absolutely projecting his love for jon onto her #he could not stand by if it was his innocent son/nephew

"he was never unfaithful to robert, was he?" - jaime, acok

ha. ha ha ha. the irony of this line is incredible. what's so striking to me is how one dimensional the realm's understanding of eddard stark as an honourable man is - honour itself is an incredibly complicated and unattainable ideal in asoiaf and i think ned as the stereotypical emblem of it encompasses many of the reasons why. because whilst he absolutely does consider acting in a conventionally honourable way important, he always prioritises those he loves. he defended cat's actions as his own without a second thought when she arrested tyrion. his main priority in king's landing is to see his daughters safe, not to secure the succession. lyanna is the prime example: jon's existence is not the result of the lapse of honourable ned stark, it was honourable ned stark choosing his love for his sister over his duty to his king. that and his personal ethical belief that the political murder of a child is never morally acceptable.

no one in the realm has the insight into his personality we get in the first book. none of his children, vitally, understand that he would always prioritise their safety over any honourable scruples. all of the starklings question what their honourable father would think of their actions - killing in self-defence, marrying jeyne westerling, sleeping with ygritte to name a few examples - without recognising that ned's true first priority was always his family's safety.

in fact, he betrayed robert far more than he ever betrayed cat and he would have betrayed honour for his family's safety every time.

[0lemat]

butterfly's tags

#protecting dany is also because of ned's reaction to the murders of rhaenys and aegon#who are highly relevant to jon because their murders were almost certainly a major reason lyanna made ned promise what he did#and ned found out recently robert is *still* justifying their deaths#so it's all one thing to him - the biggest thing he can't abide about robert and cannot allow#it's the reason he warns cersei instead of just letting robert kill her and the kids#it's one major reason that he dies. because of his absolute need to protect children#and his love of his family above all is another#(the biggest reason is littlefinger's scheming but that's not important right now)#asoiaf#asoiaf meta#valyrianscrolls#ned stark#robert baratheon#house stark#queue and me we're in this together now

"he was never unfaithful to robert, was he?" - jaime, acok

ha. ha ha ha. the irony of this line is incredible. what's so striking to me is how one dimensional the realm's understanding of eddard stark as an honourable man is - honour itself is an incredibly complicated and unattainable ideal in asoiaf and i think ned as the stereotypical emblem of it encompasses many of the reasons why. because whilst he absolutely does consider acting in a conventionally honourable way important, he always prioritises those he loves. he defended cat's actions as his own without a second thought when she arrested tyrion. his main priority in king's landing is to see his daughters safe, not to secure the succession. lyanna is the prime example: jon's existence is not the result of the lapse of honourable ned stark, it was honourable ned stark choosing his love for his sister over his duty to his king. that and his personal ethical belief that the political murder of a child is never morally acceptable.

no one in the realm has the insight into his personality we get in the first book. none of his children, vitally, understand that he would always prioritise their safety over any honourable scruples. all of the starklings question what their honourable father would think of their actions - killing in self-defence, marrying jeyne westerling, sleeping with ygritte to name a few examples - without recognising that ned's true first priority was always his family's safety.

in fact, he betrayed robert far more than he ever betrayed cat and he would have betrayed honour for his family's safety every time.