Thursday, September 19, 2013

Stefan's Theory Hour, part 43

Thursday is Theory Day!
This is the fourty-third article of the series. Since there are a lot of theories floating out there and I'm asked often enough what I think of them, I thought I write it down. You can then laugh about me when I am totally proven wrong by "The Winds of Winter" or something like that. Rules are as follows: you put a question about any theory or plot element (really, let's stress "theory" a bit for the sake of interesting questions) either in the comments of any theory post or by mail (stefan_sasse@gmx.de) and I will answer them in an upcoming post. And if you now ask "Stefan, isn't this a shameless rip-off of Sean T. Collin's "Ask me anything"?", I would tell you to shut up, because you are right.
Prepare for part 43. Spoilers for "A Song of Ice and Fire", obviously.

Is the world of “A Song Of Ice And Fire” part of apocalyptic future?
This is certainly one of the weirdest theories I ever heard. You find it in full here: http://www.middlemind.org/index.php/literature/88-why-a-song-of-ice-and-fire-is-set-in-a-post-apocalyptic-future. However, I think it doesn’t hold any water. Sure, you can explain a lot of the elements in “A Song of Ice and Fire” and much of what happened around Valyria with stuff like genetic engineering and nuclear experiments, and there certainly have been stories built on that premise (R. A. Salvatore’s “Echo of the Fourth Magic” comes to mind). But I can practically guarantee that we don’t have such a story here. Martin is a good writer, and he knows that he has to stick to certain things. What he wants to create is a revisionist fantasy story, and he totally succeeded in this. So why would he throw everything away and render it basically meaningless by the reveal that it “was earth all along” and a mighty roar “What have you done?” by some character kneeling beside the Statue of Liberty? The idea is not new or interesting anymore, but has been explored hundreds of times. It would add nothing to the story Martin wants to tell. And everybody would only talk about that stupid reveal that ruined the whole story for them. No, Westeros is not a post-apocalyptic world. It’s what it seems to be. 

Did Lord Hightower raise krakens from the deep against the Ironborn?
The krakens simply don’t go away, do they? But Lord Hightower is a new one. I can only guess that the idea behind it is that some members of the family are rumored to have been involved in magic or at least some nerdy studies up in their high tower (heh). I think the most realistic explanation for what happened to the third of the Iron Fleet that never met with Victarion was attacked by Aurane Waters new pirate fleet in the Stepstones. It’s a bit tight regarding the timeline, but certainly possible, and if the brand-new fleet with its mighty dromonds engaged the Ironborn while they recovered from the autumn storms, I know who I put my money on. I don’t think that someone in this world possesses the power to summon and control a giant kraken; it would diminish Danaerys’ status as the one person in the world having really large and dangerous pets. 

Do you think there are dragons in the North, and if so, how will they be awakened?
The idea for this seems to come from two sources: first, the “Wormways” the Night’s Watch built in Castle Black (and, presumably, other castles as well) and second, the prevailing fantasy notions of Ice Dragons. First things first. The wormways don't have anything to do with dragons. They're clearly built for people (and pretty small) and I haven't heard anyone refer to dragons as "wyrms" or anything like it (yet). It seems like that analogy is not a Westerosi/Essosi one but exists only in our culture. Second, while it may be possible, I somehow doubt there's a dragon in Winterfell. It wouldn't really feel right in my opinion, just from the whole flow of the story. I can't put my finger on it. There’s another element to consider as well: it’s the “Song of Ice and Fire”, and we have multiple references by now that associate the dragons with fire. Both elements are set in sharp contrast to each other, so the idea of Ice Dragons seems wrong somehow. The only imaginable thing is that the Others have something like that in their arsenal, but since dragons are “fire made flesh”, it seems unlikely that there’s such a thing as a whight dragon. And why would they create one just for the fun of it? Doesn’t seem like what the Others are. So, no dragons in the North. They are a thing of the East.

20 comments:

  1. What do you think is the ultimate purpose/ role of the direvolwes in the series?

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    1. Put that one on my list, thanks. It's pretty full, however, so it will take a couple of weeks for me to get there.

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    2. Stefan, feel free to delete if you want to handle this on your own, but I'd like to take a swing at it.

      First and most obviously, the direwolves presence serve as symbols of the Starks. The antler in the throat of the mother direwolf foreshadowed the downfall of Ned, or the larger family, via the Baratheon clan (both true and false stags). Shaggy Dog will prove that Rickon is a true Stark upon his return from Skaggos. Ghost shows Jon as both a Stark and a Snow.

      Second, the wolves provide warg bonds for the Stark children who all share the warg trait according to GRRM's comments. We've seen Bran and Arya warg in their POVs as well as Jon. Since Lady was killed we never see Sansa realize her ability, but she apparently has the trait. With Rob we have evidence that he is a capable warg through Gray Wind leading attacks and finding unknown paths for the Northern Army. Rickon and Shaggy are a mystery, but given the temperament of each it seems likely that Rickon has warged Shaggy but probably has no clue how to control the ability.

      Third, the direwolves represent life in its old form. They are very much representative of the old gods, weirwoods and the children of the forest. I think they stand in stark (no pun intended) contrast to the Others and the death that marches with them and as such will play some integral part in the coming fight in said role.

      I'm sure there are several other avenues to explore regarding the wolves, but that's what was on the top of my head.

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    3. I will sure not delete this ^^ My ability to write on the stuff is not hindered if you write about it, too :)

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    4. Is Ghost white as snow or platinum as a Targaryen?

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    5. White as snow. I don't see any ambiguity here.

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    6. Aren't the eye colors of the Tragaryen also similar to that of people or animals with albinism?
      I might be on a total wrong path here, but why discard it that fast, maybe it's another twist by George R. R. Martin?

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    7. You're totally on the wrong path, their eyes are lilac to purple.

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  2. I do agree on all points at the three topics. Every theory would ridicule everything Martin has told so far, if they were true. On the other hand is it always amusing what people can read out of the ASOIF Books.

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  3. Do you think Barristan Selmy will live to see Dany be crowned? Many of the bloggers feel otherwise but I think Barristan will be central to Dany's success when she final arrives on Westeros.

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    1. Put that one on my list, thanks. It's pretty full, however, so it will take a couple of weeks for me to get there.

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  4. Hi you are doing a good job here..I had a question for you, tackle it whenever you can. What is the significance of Bran and Arya s story arc..may be bran will help against the Others somehow but m totally confused about Arya.

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    1. Put that one on my list, thanks. It's pretty full, however, so it will take a couple of weeks for me to get there.

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    2. You could write volumes on this question. This might be more of an essay topic than a theory hour quickie.

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    3. Yes, but I can at least tell you what I think (not necessarily why) in my paragraph. :)

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  5. Haha, Stefan AutoResponse™ :D

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  6. Another question, what happened to Robert's war hammer?

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    1. I have only two mundane possibilities for this: either it is destroyed by know (being a tool of war, that's likely) or it rests within the extensive royal arms collection. I wouldn't attribute any importance to it.

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  7. I have read that it is a valerian steel hammer, surely it will make an appearance as it was the weapon that brought he end of Rheagar. Actually, saying that means the Kingslayer's weapon should be renowned, but it has no name.

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