Monday, May 6, 2013

The Climb on A Game of Thrones teaches us that selfishness is the way to your doom

I honestly could not imagine the upper body strength it would take to
climb The Wall. I guess I'd never make it as a Wildling. Good thing my
plans would be to live in Highgarden.
Last night's episode of "A Game of Thrones" was built around the premise of a climb. In one case, this climb is quite literal with Jon Snow having to tackle the 700 foot icy death wall that separates the free North from the lands of the South. In a metaphysical sense, it emerged from a soliloquy delivered by Littlefinger to Varys where he made up a lot of b.s. about how "Chaos is not a pit, it's a ladder" and eluding to the fact that in chaos there is opportunity for those who are bold enough to seek it out "balls to the wall" style.

In truth, Littlefinger's speech came across to me with a definitive Tony Robins-esque "self help" style. It almost sounded like a guru paid to convince you to pull yourself up by your bootstraps while coaching you that it's okay to walk across burning coals when in fact, the only reason it works is because there's a "trick" to it. And where there are "tricks" to anything, it also means it isn't legit (because the only way you fail is by not doing the "trick").

So what was "The Climb" really about? In my opinion, it had to do with sacrifice for the realm versus being a selfish prick. If you do what's right by the realm, then the realm prospers (and consequently you prosper too). Varys a.k.a. "The Spider" had maneuvered Sansa Stark and Loras of Highgarden together. This would have solidified two relatively strong families and made Sansa happy. Loras could have saved his reputation as a "sword swallower" and probably made a good husband while carrying on discreet affairs with his squires at night.
It's always interesting when Varys and Littlefinger meet. I truly like
Varys, even though I'd never trust him. These two are always at each
other's throats, and I hope that someday Varys out maneuvers
Littlefinger. I think Varys is the perfect counterweight to this rat in robes.
But of course, that all got put on the back burner for selfish reasons, namely Littlefinger's. And I've a feeling there's going to be more blood shed as a result of Littlefinger's selfishness (think of it as anti-realm and completely pro-Littlefinger) than the death of poor Roz who got murdered by Joffrey because Littlefinger felt betrayed.

How did it happen? Well Littlefinger clued Cersei into the arrangement made by the Tyrells, undoing all the hard work Varys had done. This led to more selfish decisions by Tywin to marry Sansa and Tyrion (which is doomed) and to marry Cersei to Loras (also doomed). And let's not forget Robb who in the role of hypocrite is trying to force one of his lords to marry a Frey girl in the hopes that this will patch up the grievous wrong he dealt Walter Frey by casting aside his vows. He's doomed too. Ironically the one that deserves doom the most is Littlefinger, but he as yet seems immune to it.

Everyone that's been selfish is doomed. Doom Doom Doom. It's like the drums underneath the Great Hall of Moria in the Fellowship of the Ring.

I think "The Climb" on A Game of Thrones teaches us that selfishness is the way to your doom. It has nothing to do with chaos or whether you want to visualize it as a pit or a ladder (both being absurd metaphors for true chaos). If anything, the only ones in last night episode that were truly doing things for "The Realm" were Jon Snow and Ygritte. And because of that, they made it to the top of the Wall and got to see the world spreading out before them horizon to horizon.  Maybe Ygritte should change her line from "You know nothing Jon Snow," to "You know everything Jon Snow" because Jon (like Daenerys) is most definitely not selfish.

Still, the title of the episode was well-named, and I enjoyed it immensely. I look forward to seeing next week's installment with baited breath.

28 comments:

  1. I enjoyed it also. I just love this show in general! It gives me something to look forward to on Sunday nights.

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  2. I think I may just have to give in to the peer pressure and watch a couple of episodes.

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  3. We're only in the 2nd season, so I skipped the post. You're not gonna spoil every single episode, are you?

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  4. It sounds like I'm still missing a great show. :(

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  5. I had a different takeaway from the books. It seemed to me that the selfish are the only ones that have a chance to succeed in that world. The reward for trust is a knife in the back. Of course being selfish is no shield either but the selfless are doomed.

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  6. Hooray for spoilers! But by the time I watch season 3 I'll have probably forgotten them all anyway.

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  7. Okay, I haven't seen last night's episode yet so I didn't read cause it looked like there was spoilers (I love abroad so I have to wait and watch them online:( woe is me.) But I'll be back!

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  8. Awesome overview! You know, I have yet to start this series. Not having cable anymore and young kids doesn't help, but I do enjoy what you have to say about this show. And I don't mind spoilers. I pick stories apart all the time, especially the ones I don't get to watch or read (if that makes any sense). :)

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  9. I thought maybe that the Wall symbolized the difficulties and obstacles that stand in the way of love.

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  10. One of my favorite things about Game of Thrones is all the symbolism.

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  11. Nice recap. No way I could have made it all the way up that wall. Holy crap what a climb!

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  12. Loved it. Quite a hard climb. I wonder if Jon Snow will try and get even with the guy who cut him lose to fall to his death.

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  13. There are only two characters on that show I really like: Jon Snow and Arya. Everyone else is an a-hole.

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  14. OK, I'm not going to read this, because we just finished season 2 and haven't gotten this far. I don't want any spoilers. Weird, because I have read the books, so I do know what will happen.

    Anyway, Happy Monday!

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  15. That's an interesting message. And from the picture, it does look like a pretty darned hard wall to climb!

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  16. I'm not looking, I'm not looking...
    And, unlike Mary, I haven't read the books either!
    Ok, I did peek a little...yes, Littlefinger does seem immune so far...
    I'm not looking!!!

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  17. I'm sure watching that climb would've made me dizzy. I'm a wimp.

    I like the idea of selfishness=doom. It would make sense in a community where people must rely on each other for survival. I guess it's true in every community even ours. Aren't our biggest problems due to selfishness/greed?

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  18. I love it! And what a great summary, Michael. You did it justice. Selfishness will send us to our doom. I'm reading my pal Theresa's comment and nodding. The title of the episode was well-named. Haha. Great job, pal. :-)

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  19. I'm still trying to catch up on GOT.

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  20. All great art teaches important lessons thematically.

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  21. So the Game of Thrones is pushing an anti-Ayn Rand philosophy? I really am glad to hear it.

    But I skipped a couple parts of your post due to spoilers. Thanks for the update...

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  22. I really like your analysis. After reading all the books, it's very easy to despise Littlefinger above all others.
    I really like the Tyrell's though they maneuver as much as everyone else. At least they're likeable people. I don't remember Loras's squire being Littlefinger's spy. Was that in the book?

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  23. I just got HBO back so I can start watching season 3...I need to catch up!

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  24. Quite a thing to learn. I want to watch this season after I've caught up on the past episodes.

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  25. I do think the writers manage to do a great job of giving us a theme for each episode - more cleverly than most do. Waiting a full week between episodes is awful though.

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  26. This was my favorite episode of the season. Loved it!
    Littlefinger is such a nasty piece of crap.

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  27. You've almost made it sound interesting enough to watch. Maybe after a few more posts. ;)

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