How Jon Snow Never Met His Mother

The following post is of a speculative nature.  Spoilers are contained within.  Reader discretion is advised.  Some of these realizations I had on my own, and some of these I've read other people hash out in comments and wikipedia articles across the internet.  These are very commonly held theories.  If I get any facts wrong, please correct me in the comments.  Is everyone who worries about spoilers and theories gone now?  Nope?  Need to do a few more lines of text so that Google + doesn't put spoilers in the preview?  Okay, we can do that.

So, for my Mother's Day special, I thought I'd talk about the most elusive mother in the Game of Thrones franchise:  Jon Snow's mother.  Ned Stark, bless his heart, promised to tell Jon about his mother next time he saw him, and then promptly died in King's Landing, never seeing his alleged bastard again.

Jon Snow was conceived during Robert's Rebellion, and Ned brought him home afterward, never having told his wife who his mother was.  We assume he was brought home from Dorne, and that was likely where Jon was born, but that doesn't necessarily mean his mother was Dornish.

Wylla, the name Ned gives Robert Baratheon, would be too easy.  If that had been the truth, Ned could have just told Jon that name in that moment.  She was of no consequence.  There would have been nothing to stop him.  I don't think of Ned as a man who embarrasses easily.  He's a stoic silent type, sure, but I don't believe it's because he's so ashamed of his sins that he can't talk to his own son about them.

A more interesting theory is Ashara Dayne.  The reason I sat down to write this blog post today is that something Oberyn Martell said on the show a few weeks ago kind of set off some alarm bells in my head. "We don't despise them in Dorne," Prince Oberyn said.  His paramour Ellaria Sand is a bastard.  He has eight bastard daughters.  Ashara Dayne was from Dorne, and the Daynes were a family of consequence.  If Jon Snow were a Dornish bastard, Ned would never have taken him from Dorne, because Dornish customs would have given him some advantages he wouldn't have in the other six kingdoms.  Being a bastard is not considered a dishonor there, even though it's colored that way through Westerosi eyes.  Ashara allegedly had a stillborn girl at around this time, which would make the times match up with Jon's birth, but even this could have been completely made up, and even if it weren't, there were many other potential fathers for her child at Harrenhal.  Why would they make up a dead daughter to hide a relationship with Jon Snow?  Even with the circumstances of Ashara's death by suicide following the death of her brother and of Elia Martell, Jon would have been better off with the remaining Daynes, and Ned was pragmatic enough to see that.  And while we're on the topic of Elia Martell, here's an interesting thing to note:  Ashara was close to Princess Elia.  She was her handmaiden, they spent a lot of time together.  Ashara's brother was a member of the King's Guard, serving Rhaegar Targaryen to his last breath.  They were well connected to the royal family, and probably knew a lot more about what was going on than Ned did.

The most persuasive theory remains that Lyanna Stark is Jon Snow's mother.  The best evidence for me is Ned's continuous remembrances of his sister pleading with him to promise her something.  Ned doesn't even dare to think about what that something was, least the readers hear his thoughts and tell Robert Baratheon the truth.  Rhaegar Targaryen famously spirited away Ned Stark's sister, and that was King Robert's motive for Robert's Rebellion, as she was promised to Robert, and he was infatuated with her.  Rhaegar Targaryen's interest seemed to begin at the tournament at Harrenhal, where Lyanna is crowned the Queen of Love and Beauty, and she at the least was moved by his musical skill.  Later, she was taken away the the Tower of Joy, where she was inevitably found soaked in blood in bed, begging Ned for something.  Oh, what could it be?

Elia, Rhaegar Tagaryen's wife, had just been raped and murdered for her marriage to Rhaegar Targaryen.  Her children had been slaughtered like animals by the Mountain.  I agree with the general impression that the thing Lyanna Stark begged for was Jon's life.  If Robert Baratheon knew Jon Snow was Rhaegar Targaryen's son, he would be in danger, because he was a potential heir to the throne.  It would make sense that Eddard Stark wouldn't want to talk to Robert about Jon.  It would make sense that Ned would lie to Robert to protect Jon.  Wylla was an easy name to give, she was a lowborn woman of little consequence, much like the mothers of Robert's bastards.  Wylla may have even been Jon's wet nurse, it would make sense for Ned to name her.  It would even have made sense for Wylla to lie about Jon to others, because if she were his wet nurse she might have gotten attached to him and wanted him to live.  Wylla may have been present at the tower of Joy, she may have known the truth about him and been part of the conspiracy.

I also believe that Elia Martell was in on the conspiracy, partly because of Daenyrs Targaryen's visions in the house of the undying.  Elia could have no more than two children, and Rhaegar believed his children were part of a prophecy that he believed required one more child.  Metaphorically speaking, the dragon must have three heads.  I believe Elia was aware of his intention of having another child, and knowing the Dornish view on bastards and the behavior displayed by her brother, Oberyn Martell, I believe she supported Rhaegar's decision.

Let's learn to speak High Valyrian!

So, I'm only a couple of chapters into Wuthering Heights.  I've enjoyed what I've read so far.  I'll get back to that when I've read more.

But here's something interesting related to A Song of Ice and Fire.  How would you like to learn a Conlang?


I would like to learn to speak a Conlang.  I've thought about learning to speak Quenya or Klingon in the past because I'm that kind of nerd, but I definitely don't have the Klingon persona down.  And while Quenya is pretty and interesting, but as the man says, it's not a complete language.

I would like to learn some High Valyrian, because I mean (spoilers)



But how would one go about doing that?  I mean, it's easy enough to find a tutorial in Dothraki.



But so far I haven't found many tutorials in High Valyrian.  Probably because they haven't been speaking High Valyrian as much on the show?  I don't know?  There are some websites one can go to for words in High Valyrian.
Valyrian Numerals
High Valyrian Vocabulary

I'm not a linguist, so I have no idea how the pronunciation would work.  There are some videos on Youtube that go over pronunciation of syllables.



Hopefully there will be some more practical tutorials in the future.  Interesting stuff!

Weeks later, I've finally finished "A Feast For Crows."

And here's what I thought about it:

This book was LONG.  It was in the neighborhood of a thousand pages.  This is probably the longest book I've ever read.  I've probably read series shorter than this.  And the book was originally much, much longer, and he cut it in half!  I don't know how George R.R. Martin manages to write so prolifically and pack so much plot into the books.  I mean, there is filler, but it's hard to tell what isn't important, there are so many important things.  And I've talked to other people who've read the books, and the things that stood out as important to me were things they didn't remember well.

I think I know who Jon Snow's mother is, and my theory is my favorite thing about the books.

I support house Targaryen's claim to the iron throne.

I still hate Cersei Lannister.  I've also decided she's stupid.

HOUSE MARTELL.  Oh my gosh, if you haven't read these books, go do it.  I'll wait here.  House Martell is legit amazing, I love every last one of those characters.  I had to stop and hug my book at the end of Arienne's last chapter.  THAT FAMILY.  I'm amazed.

I love this world so much, I've bought supplies to cosplay Lyanna Stark.  And after that, I want to do Elia Martell.  Because Starks and Martells, lovelies.

A Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire is now my main fandom.

I'm going to have to pick a shorter book for my blog next time, though, because this took forever.

<3  Can't wait for April.

Reconsidering Cersei Lannister

I'm taking a moment to consider why exactly I don't deeply sympathize with Cersei Lannister.  She's lost very nearly as much to the game as any of the other contenders.  Two people she cared very deeply about died within two books.  She had a loveless arranged marriage.  She's a mother who is motivated to protect her children.  She's a woman who is attempting to hold her power against men who would rather she not have it.

Those traits all point to a character I should like.  And yet, she kills with so little thought over such petty purposes.  She tries to take revenge on people who have done her absolutely no harm.  She sees everyone around her more as a potential threat than a person.  And despite all her loses, despite all the deep personal grief a person in her situation should feel, she's motivated only by rage, jealousy, and thirst for power.  She's not angling to get her daughter back from the Martells.  She's not focused on investigating the recent murders.  She has no interest in the threats the Wall is facing.

And because of all of this, she is left in the dark against ever increasing dangers around her.  She believes she can hold power by force and by cloak and dagger tactics.  But death is coming for King's Landing from all sides, and she's too foolish and selfish to notice it.  She dismisses the idea that there are dragons in far away lands.  She dismisses the fears of the brothers of the watch.  She is oblivious.  And because of all of that, there will be even more war and death.  Stannis Baratheon at least has the sense to see that the iron throne is worthless in a winter full of white walkers.  But instead of sending help to the wall, she plots against their efforts.  She does not care about their purposes.

And I think that's the real reason I hate Cersei Lannister, more than any of the other things she's caused to happen. 

I'm only halfway through this book, and I can already see that it's only going to get worse for them all from here.

Cersei Lannister is the reason we can't have nice things

Still working on this book.  It's a lot to chew on.  But here are my thoughts so far on Game of Thrones in general.

I hate the Lannisters.  Okay, Tyrion is awesome.  Jaime is okay in small doses.  But the rest of the adults in that family?  They can go straight to the white walkers.  Especially Cersei.

She's paranoid.  She's selfish.  She's obnoxious and hateful.  She hasn't got a kind word to say about anybody, including her own family and friends.

And this is a world where there are tons of likeable characters.

I love the grand majority of Tyrells.  Margaery is very bright and sweeter than a cupcake.  I mean, yeah, she's playing politics, but that's the whole plot of the book.  Everybody's playing politics, at least she does so in a way that's kind and not terribly bloody.  Then you've got Margaery's grandmother who is so incredibly sharp and witty.  A truly kicking older female character is always a welcome surprise in this media climate.  And of course there's Loras who's a cool knight and who had this really interesting romantic storyline.

Then there's the Starks, who are to the last man understandable if not likeable.  You've got Ned Stark, who was a man of principle.  I give him a little bit more credit than most people because I believe I know who Jon Snow's mother is.  You've got Catelyn Stark, a tough but flawed woman.  And there's Sansa, the brave prisoner who struggles to stay afloat politically.  There's even Arya, the child with a warrior's spirit.  If you count Jon Snow as a Stark, then the Starks have one of the coolest characters in the game.

My favorite house is House Targaryen, which has more evil in its history than most of the rest of its competitors, and yet somehow they still manage to have some of the best characters as well.  The famous and acclaimed one for fans of the show is Danaerys Stormborn (the Khalessi), but there are plenty in the books as well.  Can't tell you who they are without spoiling things for you, but they are seriously very cool.

The Lannisters?  They have Tyrion, who is clever and who champions the weak and the maltreated.  They've got Jaime, who is a flawed man who made some bad choices, but who has also done some heroic things.  And that's basically all there is nice to say about them.  Tywin Lannister was a cruel, cold father to his children.  Cersei craves power and manipulates and isn't afraid to have people assassinated to reach her goals.   Joffrey is easily the most warped character in the whole lot, killing and torturing people for fun.  And they form alliances with all these petty lords and knights like The Hound and The Mountain.

The Greyjoys, the Martells, practically every house I've witnessed in this book series has more good in it than the Lannisters.

Practically all my favorite characters are in one way or the other working against the Lannisters, most of all Cersei.  I know I'm only on the third book.  I know there's a whole additional book to go before I'll have read the series.  I've been told they get better.  But I really, really hate those Lannisters.

There was a moment on the show where I started to feel some empathy for Cersei, as she was sitting on the iron throne with Tommen (her young son), preparing to poison her own son to spare him from dying a more painful death.  In that moment, I feared for Cersei Lannister, which is a testament to the quality of the show.

Is it possible that Cersei will become a more sympathetic character?  I highly doubt it.

A Waiting Game of Thrones

Tonight the ground is under a blanket of snow, and my instant coffee and I are under a blanket of blankets.  Baby, it's cold outside.  Temperature tomorrow doesn't look good, either.  Winter isn't just coming, it's here.

I remember when good old Ned Stark first said "Winter is coming," on a Game of Thrones, the television series.  It's an amazing family motto.  The phrase is truly ominous and full of meaning.  That said, I am beginning to feel that winter in "A Song of Ice and Fire" is dragging its feet.

A Song of Ice and Fire is a fantasy book series by acclaimed author George R.R. Martin.  He has been called the modern Tolkien.  The series has five entries so far, with a sixth coming out in the near future (no date so far).  The books are about rival factions attempting to secure power.  Many of these factions are vying for the Iron Throne, some are only attempting to solidify control over smaller regions, and many individuals are scratching and clawing just to stay alive in the wake of the others.

I'm 282 pages into A Feast For Crows.  I began reading this book because I'm becoming impatient.  Season 4 of a Game of Thrones cannot come fast enough.  I had attempted to read the earlier books, but I became somewhat stymied because the books were very much like the series.  I felt like I'd seen it before, and those books are very long.  Surely, if the first season was basically the first book and the second season was basically the second book, then it stood to reason that the third season would be the third book and the fourth season would be the fourth book.

No.  No, that isn't how it works.  Best I can understand, the third book was stretched out so it could feature in season 4, possibly to give the author more time to work on "Winds of Winter."  I've read some concern in the past that the series may catch up with the books if they aren't careful, and that would be bad because there would be a longer hiatus between seasons.

The gist of my problem is season 3 of A Game of Thrones ends right in the middle of the third book.  So, when I began reading A Feast For Crows, major characters were dead, other characters were thrown to the wind, and there are new characters I'm still not entirely sure about nearly 300 pages into the book.  Also, major details are different between the books and the TV show.  I knew that going into the book, but it still changes my reading experience quite a bit, to have these ideas about the series that aren't fully reflected in the actual material.

A Feast for Crows is slow reading, and metaphorically speaking, it needs more cowbell.  Many of my favorite characters from the series are used sparingly if at all.  Winter is taking forever to get here.  There is a whole lot of gearing up for war and very little actual war.

I love the diverse landscapes over which the story takes place.  I love the vast scope of the book, with all its strange, mighty, beautiful, and terrible characters.  I love the conflict at the center of the tale.  I love the strange dark magic, mysterious myths, and mortal struggles contained within.

It's an excellent book, but it's slow reading.  I miss the characters that compelled my interest in this series.  They're still floating around out there, somewhere.  As far as I'm concerned, winter cannot get her fast enough.  I've grown tired of these Lannisters and their petty paranoia.  Bring on Jon Snow and all the little Starks.  I want to revel in the dragonfire and cower in the wake of the white walkers.

When I finish the book, I'll come back and say more.  And then I'm going to go back and read the third one, because clearly skipping it was a critical error on my part.  Meanwhile, here are some interesting Song of Ice and Fire news items and fun stuff:

Five Game of Thrones Events to Look Forward to in 2014
Winter is Coming:  Government Uses Game of Thrones to Warn Americans About Snow
If Lisa Frank Designed the Game of Thrones House Sigils
Japanese Editions of Game of Thrones are Incredible
English Town Will Change Name to King's Landing for Game of Thrones