I was introduced to Game of Thrones somewhere last year, after listening to friends glorifying the show, I either had to watch the show or go mad. Today I would describe succumbing to that particular piece of peer pressure one of the best decisions I ever made.
That is because the show has so much going for it, weaving a complex web around people from varying backgrounds, to the point that I sometimes find it incredulous that one man can really be responsible for such a vast world. The man in question being the author of the Game of Thrones source material, the book series A Song of Ice and Fire, George R.R Martin.
Lord Eddard Stark was Lord of Winterfell for a long time until his untimely demise, but in the timeline that the show took place he lasted little more than a year before meeting his end. Technically he died by decapitation, after being betrayed during a power coup.
I say technically because though his head was cut off, Ned really died because he lived by a code, a code of honour so ingrained he failed to see the rest of the world had no interest in living by such a code. His mistake was believing others would see the world as he does, and in doing that he lost ‘The Game of Thrones’ horribly, not because he was incompetent but because it was a game his very constitution prevented him from being nothing more than an amateur at.
As the saying goes ‘when you play the Game of Thrones you win or you die, there is no middle ground’
The lesson to be taken from Ned’s death is not that honour is bad, but that at times one must shelve some characteristic and adapt in order to survive. After all when as a football player you find yourself in a boxing ring, your shin guard is not going to be much help and you better get some gloves and a mouth guard or you’re toast.
In the politically corrupt, Machiavellian environment of King’s Landing, honour was a hindrance, not a help. We must be ready to adapt to our environments, no matter how unpleasant. Sometimes always being My Goody Two-shoes is going to land you in deep trouble; it’s easy to be cast as a scapegoat that way.
Today’s world is not much different from Westeros, with corrupt politicians, lending itself to a corrupt system which trickles down to the grassroots. Thus no matter the environment you find yourself in, there’s a good chance the system around you has serious flaws. In that environment, you adapt or you die.
Well, not die, but I’m sure you catch my drift.
Honour and all those nice, wholesome qualities are good and all, but there are points where they hold you back big time; there’s a reason the world is not ruled by nice guys.
I’m not saying honour is bad, just that like everything else there is a place for it. I’d rather take this position than pretend I’d do otherwise, and then when push comes to shove be revealed as a lying hypocrite.
People like Ned Stark are rare, willing to live and die for their principles. You can admire them, yet learn from them as well.
What kind of person are you? Are you Ned Stark, or are you willing to adapt to the situation as seen fit. Are you comfortable admitting that to yourself, or you like to pretend otherwise until you have to choose between compromising your principles and keeping your job?