Follow us on Google News
Get the latest updates directly in your Google News feed
George R. R. Martin gave us one of the most riveting pieces of literature with hisA Song of Ice and Firenovel series. He wrote a number of books, short stories, and so on that took the readers to a place far away in a time where magic, madness, and dragons lived. The world he built also gave us one of the most popular shows in television history.Game of Thronesbecame an iconic show in the current pop culture scenario and is only expanding its reach.
But the novels or the show is not without criticism. While there are those who adore the world of Westeros and its people, there are also elements that people have found fault with. The treatment of female characters at the hands of their male counterparts is one part of the story that a lot of people have criticized over the years. When pointed out, what GRRM said about it didn’t seem right to many.
George R. R. Martin Says His Portrayal of Females In a War Story is Justified
Over time,A Song of Ice and FirebyGeorge R. R. Martinhas become an iconic piece of pop culture of our time. When HBO announced a TV show adaptation of GRRM’s book series, fans were ecstatic. Similar to the novels, the show gained massive popularity and became one of the greatest TV shows in television history, sans maybe the last season. But the one thing that has rubbed fans the wrong way for a long time is how the female characters are treated in the story, especially at the hands of men.
Daenerys Targaryenwas basically sold by her brother to the Dothrakis and then rped by her husband, Khal Drogo. Cersei Lannister first became a pawn at the hands of her father, and then a set piece to her husband. And the worst of them all was probably Sansa Stark, who was treated like a toy by way too many men in her life. There are many other women in between, from different ranks of society, who suffered at the hands of men, rped and s*xually violated, and still had to suffer through without voicing their pain.
George R.R Martin on Writing Game of Thrones: “I know not all writers work that way” But This One Process Works Best for Me
But if you askGRRM, all these difficulties and discomfort that the women folk felt, was his way of showing the reality of war. According to the author, he was justified in writing all the pain and suffering the women went through, because in war, r*pe is one of the most common tools used against humans, especially women. So to write a war story without these elements would not feel authentic to him.
In aTIMEinterview, when Martin was asked if it was surprising that fans were enraged by how the female characters were treated by the males in his story, the author said yes. Elaborating on it further, he added:
I don’t think the criticisms are true or apt. I know everyone has a right to their own opinion but… whatever. I’m writing a war story, essentially — the Wars of the Roses. The Hundred Years’ War. They have “war” right in the title of each of my inspirations here. And when I read history books, r*pe is a part of all these wars. There’s never been a war where it wasn’t, and that includes wars that are going on today. It just seems to me that there’s something fundamentally dishonest if you write a war story and you leave that out.
“We had totally destroyed the…”: George R.R. Martin Almost Made the Gravest Mistake That Could’ve Doomed the Game of Thrones TV Franchise For Good
While it is true that s*xual violence against women is one of the biggest weapons used in wars, that does not, in any way, justify how the women inA Song of Ice and Fireare treated most of the time. If not always, then for a large part of the story, the women are viewed as chess pieces by men, something they can use to their advantage to win something or the other. And the criticism he has received for it is not at all inappropriate or wrong.
Female Characters In Pop Culture Should Be Viewed As More Than Their Gender
Female characters, for the longest time in the entertainment industry, have been treated as the inferior ones when compared to their male counterparts. Even in women-centric dramas likeBig Little LiesorThe Handmaid’s Tale, or even comedies likeEmily in Paris,the female characters are more prone to be showcased in a way that accentuates their beauty, sensuality and sexuality than anything else of substance. Their worth is based on how desirable they are to the male eye, and that is something that needs to be changed.
In case of historical fantasy shows likeGame of Thronesor its spinoff,House of the Dragon, the women, even if they are way ahead of their male contemporaries in terms of wits and even battle strategy, their words are barely taken with as much importance than if it were spoken by a male. Their value is always made in accordance with what they can bring in exchange – whether by being pawned off in a marriage or something worse.
Pedro Pascal Confessed He Had a Crush on the Most Hated Game of Thrones Actor Lena Headey and He Was Not the Only One on the Set
And of course, most marriages in these stories are business transactions rather than love affairs. Dany and the Khal, Cersei and Robert, Sansa’s betrothal to Prince Joffrey, Rhaenyra and Laenor, Alicent and Viserys – all these marriages happened because, in one way or the other, the females were forced into it. Maybe not in the most literal way, but in a way that they were made to believe that this was the only way.
EvenRhaenyra’s marriage to Damonis a transaction, where she knows that being with him will increase her chance to take the throne alongside a powerful ally, and he believes it is his way of getting the throne for himself. And sx is just a part of this transaction. Even the women themselves use sx as a tool to gain the upper hand in the war they become part of, whether intentionally or not. And maybe that is something that needs to change – for these female characters to feel like they are more than just their bodies and what they can give to their male contemporaries.
Game of Thronesis available for viewing on Max.
Swagata Das
Senior Features Editor / Reviewer
Articles Published :356
Swagata works as a Senior Features Editor at FandomWire. Having previously worked as a Content Writer, her passion for everything pop culture became her true calling as she now works with a global team of writers to brainstorm unique, groundbreaking ideas. Having done her Masters in English Literature, Swagata is a self-professed K-Pop addict with an affinity to work her charms on unsuspecting friends to induct them into the fandom cult.
More from Swagata Das
5 Major Hollywood Celebrities Who Have Talked About P Diddy’s Parties in Public
“I’m an attention wh*re”: JoJo Siwa Doesn’t Mind Being Hated as Long as She Does One Thing Right
Thunderbolts* Trailer Romanticizes a Dangerous, Sexist Stereotype All Women Should Be Scared of
Recommended
Sean McLaughlin’s Dad Just Became the Unlikely Villain (or Hero) of ‘Bachelor in Paradise’
Madison Beer’s Boyfriend: Who Is She Dating?
Helldivers 2 X Halo ODST Legendary Warbond Crossover: Complete Rundown
Good Boy Director Explains How He Made His Dog Act in 2025’s Most Inventive Horror Movie
The Terminal List: Dark Wolf: Luke Hemsworth Reveals Marvel Link That Sneaks Into His Dark Wolf Role
The Batman 2: Is Zoë Kravitz Not In the Robert Pattinson Starring Sequel? Reports
A Song of Ice and FireGame of ThronesGeorge R. R. Martin
