Saturday, December 12, 2015

Rape

General:

← Older revision Revision as of 05:48, December 12, 2015
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**In the novels, Roose goes on to explain to Reek that he claimed the miller's wife under the ancient laws of First Night - which have been banned throughout the Seven Kingdoms for over two centuries, but which the Boltons keep trying to get away with in private. The TV series omitted the detail about First Night - but considering that nothing remotely like First Night ever actually existed in the real-life Middle-Ages, it is perhaps better that it was not included. See the section on "First Night" below for full details.
 
**In the novels, Roose goes on to explain to Reek that he claimed the miller's wife under the ancient laws of First Night - which have been banned throughout the Seven Kingdoms for over two centuries, but which the Boltons keep trying to get away with in private. The TV series omitted the detail about First Night - but considering that nothing remotely like First Night ever actually existed in the real-life Middle-Ages, it is perhaps better that it was not included. See the section on "First Night" below for full details.
 
*In Season 3, [[Melisandre]] is convinced she needs the bastard [[Gendry]]'s royal blood for a human sacrifice involving [[Blood magic|blood magic]], but due to Davos's protests she is argued down to just using leeches containing his blood as a test of her power (which may or may not have worked, though Stannis's enemies do start dying). Melisandre seduces Gendry by disrobing naked and pushing him onto a bed and undressing him, and he is consensually interested in sex with her, but it is a trick - as he is distracted she binds his hands to the bed, and starts dropping a few leeches on his body (including apparently on his penis, for some reason). Subsequently Gendry isn't particularly hurt of emotionally traumatized but generally annoyed that Melisandre tricked him, after which he is being held in Dragonstone's dungeon (before Davos frees him). He blames himself for being a foolish boy who had never even seen a naked woman, easily swayed by Melisandre's charms. This is a condensation from the novels, in which Melisandre wants to sacrifice a different bastard son of Robert, Edric Storm (his only acknowledged bastard). Edric Storm apparently doesn't exist in the TV continuity, and Gendry's storyline was condensed with his, including the part where Melisandre takes leeches containing his blood for a magical ritual. In the novels, however, they just give Edric a regular leeching to take his blood (which is not an uncommon medical practice in Westeros), without [[Sexposition|needing Melisandre to get naked]] and feign that she is going to have sex with him before doing it. Still, overall Gendry wasn't ''too'' traumatized by these events and it does not deviate very drastically from the general situation in the novels.
 
*In Season 3, [[Melisandre]] is convinced she needs the bastard [[Gendry]]'s royal blood for a human sacrifice involving [[Blood magic|blood magic]], but due to Davos's protests she is argued down to just using leeches containing his blood as a test of her power (which may or may not have worked, though Stannis's enemies do start dying). Melisandre seduces Gendry by disrobing naked and pushing him onto a bed and undressing him, and he is consensually interested in sex with her, but it is a trick - as he is distracted she binds his hands to the bed, and starts dropping a few leeches on his body (including apparently on his penis, for some reason). Subsequently Gendry isn't particularly hurt of emotionally traumatized but generally annoyed that Melisandre tricked him, after which he is being held in Dragonstone's dungeon (before Davos frees him). He blames himself for being a foolish boy who had never even seen a naked woman, easily swayed by Melisandre's charms. This is a condensation from the novels, in which Melisandre wants to sacrifice a different bastard son of Robert, Edric Storm (his only acknowledged bastard). Edric Storm apparently doesn't exist in the TV continuity, and Gendry's storyline was condensed with his, including the part where Melisandre takes leeches containing his blood for a magical ritual. In the novels, however, they just give Edric a regular leeching to take his blood (which is not an uncommon medical practice in Westeros), without [[Sexposition|needing Melisandre to get naked]] and feign that she is going to have sex with him before doing it. Still, overall Gendry wasn't ''too'' traumatized by these events and it does not deviate very drastically from the general situation in the novels.
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*In Season 3's "[[The Bear and the Maiden Fair (episode)|The Bear and the Maiden Fair]]", when [[Qyburn]] explains that he was thrown out of the Order of [[Maesters]], Jaime asks if it is because he "fondled one boy too many" (though Qyburn then explains he was actually thrown out for conducting human experimentation). In Season 4's "[[The Mountain and the Viper]]", when Tyrion mentions old Maester [[Volarik]] who was stationed at Casterly Rock when they were boys, Jaime scowls that Volarik tried to touch him once (tried - nothing actually happened). There has been no mention of a Maester Volarik in the novels, or that Jaime nearly ran afoul of a maester in this fashion. However, multiple points in the novels mention that now and again in Westeros, there have been problems with men in trusted positions of authority belonging to celibate organizations (the maesters and the Faith of the Seven) that were found to be sexually molesting little boys. In the books, a group of sellswords brought in to the Riverlands to terrorize the local population are the "Brave Companions", a rogue's gallery of the worst dregs of humanity from across Westeros and Essos. They are led by Vargo Hoat in the novels, who has Jaime's hand cut off - the TV series heavily condensed this to make the group just a particularly vicious group of Bolton soldiers, and made Vargo into the TV character "[[Locke]]". One of Vargo/Locke's men in the novels was Septon Utt, an infamous pedophile known to prey on little boys. Ultimately Utt is captured during a small battle between the Brave Companions and the [[Brotherhood Without Banners]], after which they hang him for his crimes. Therefore, both the TV series and novels make sporadic mention that sometimes men in positions of authority have been known to sexually abuse children under their care, and this is not a major invention by the TV series.
 
*[[File:Abduction of Lyanna Stark.png|thumb|250px|In-universe artwork (from the "Histories & Lore" videos) depicting Rhaegar Targaryen kidnapping Lyanna Stark - though others say she ''ran off'' with him willingly.]] Since Season 1, the story has been related of how [[Robert's Rebellion]] began: Robert Baratheon was betrayed to Eddard Stark's sister [[Lyanna Stark]], but she was abducted by Crown Prince [[Rhaegar Targaryen]], was generally assumed by Robert and others to have been raped by Rhaegar while in captivity, but shortly after Rhegar's death by Robert's hand at the [[Battle of the Trident]], Lyanna died of fever where she was being held at the Tower of Joy. Anger over thoughts of Rhaegar raping Lyanna have kept Robert having dreams about killing Rhaegar again and again every night in all the years since. In Season 4, however, [[Oberyn Martell]] explains that Rhaegar had been married to his sister [[Elia Martell]] (who died in the fall of King's Landing), and that the Martells think that Rhaegar shamefully abandoned his wife to ''run off'' with Lyanna Stark, and she was actually his consensual lover. In Season 5, [[Petyr Baelish]] explains to Lyanna's niece [[Sansa Stark]] that he was present at the Tourney of Harrenhal as a boy, when infamously Rhaegar won the final tilt then rode past his wife Elia to give the victor's crown to Lyanna, and the entire crowd of thousands of people fell dead silent in shock. Baelish ponders how many had to die because Rhaegar chose Lyanna, at which Sansa says that he chose her, "and then he kidnapped her and raped her" - at which Baelish makes a wry look, implying that like the Martells he thinks Lyanna ran off with Rhaegar consensually. This plays out essentially the same way in the novels - some characters say Rhaegar raped Lyanna, others accuse that she ran off with him willingly, but the truth is clouded. The TV series moved around some of these scenes but the basic ambiguity remains (i.e. Baelish's scene with Sansa doesn't have a direct counterpart in the novels, but he is giving a description that other characters did give in the books).
 
*[[File:Abduction of Lyanna Stark.png|thumb|250px|In-universe artwork (from the "Histories & Lore" videos) depicting Rhaegar Targaryen kidnapping Lyanna Stark - though others say she ''ran off'' with him willingly.]] Since Season 1, the story has been related of how [[Robert's Rebellion]] began: Robert Baratheon was betrayed to Eddard Stark's sister [[Lyanna Stark]], but she was abducted by Crown Prince [[Rhaegar Targaryen]], was generally assumed by Robert and others to have been raped by Rhaegar while in captivity, but shortly after Rhegar's death by Robert's hand at the [[Battle of the Trident]], Lyanna died of fever where she was being held at the Tower of Joy. Anger over thoughts of Rhaegar raping Lyanna have kept Robert having dreams about killing Rhaegar again and again every night in all the years since. In Season 4, however, [[Oberyn Martell]] explains that Rhaegar had been married to his sister [[Elia Martell]] (who died in the fall of King's Landing), and that the Martells think that Rhaegar shamefully abandoned his wife to ''run off'' with Lyanna Stark, and she was actually his consensual lover. In Season 5, [[Petyr Baelish]] explains to Lyanna's niece [[Sansa Stark]] that he was present at the Tourney of Harrenhal as a boy, when infamously Rhaegar won the final tilt then rode past his wife Elia to give the victor's crown to Lyanna, and the entire crowd of thousands of people fell dead silent in shock. Baelish ponders how many had to die because Rhaegar chose Lyanna, at which Sansa says that he chose her, "and then he kidnapped her and raped her" - at which Baelish makes a wry look, implying that like the Martells he thinks Lyanna ran off with Rhaegar consensually. This plays out essentially the same way in the novels - some characters say Rhaegar raped Lyanna, others accuse that she ran off with him willingly, but the truth is clouded. The TV series moved around some of these scenes but the basic ambiguity remains (i.e. Baelish's scene with Sansa doesn't have a direct counterpart in the novels, but he is giving a description that other characters did give in the books).
 
*[[File:The Viper vs the Mountain.jpg|thumb|"You raped my sister! You murdered her! You killed her children!" - Gregor's rape of Elia motivates her brother [[Oberyn Martell]] to face him years later in a [[Second Trial by Combat of Tyrion Lannister|duel to the death]].]]In Season 4, the story of the rape and murder of [[Elia Martell]] by [[Gregor Clegane]] during the [[Sack of King's Landing]] is very prominently introduced by her brother [[Oberyn Martell]] and others. Previously in Season 3, [[Jorah Mormont]] mentioned that he saw King's Landing right after the sack, which occurred at the end of [[Robert's Rebellion]] nearly 20 years before: the Lannister army led by Tywin had turned on the Targaryens after being let through the city gates as allies, and Jorah says that more women were raped than could even be counted. When Lannister soldiers breached the [[Red Keep]] itself, Gregor killed both of Elia's children, the toddler [[Rhaenys Targaryen (daughter of Rhaegar)|Rhaenys]] and infant [[Aegon Targaryen (Son of Rhaegar)|Aegon]], because they were the children of the recently killed Crown Prince [[Rhaegar Targaryen]] (in the novels, Gregor only killed the baby Aegon, [[Amory Lorch]] killed Rhaenys). Still covered in the blood and gore from her children, the massive Gregor proceeded to brutally rape Elia, and afterwards killed her (it is rumored that he cut her completely in half with a blow from his greatsword). This is essentially also what happened in the novels: Gregor raped Elia Martell, but years before, and what happened is recounted by several characters but not actually "shown" in flashback. [[House Martell]] was so utterly horrified by the crime of Elia's death that while they surrendered at the end of the war, they have passionately hated the Lannisters ever since, and barely tolerated Robert Baratheon's rule because the Lannisters were his major financial backers (after switching to the rebel side at the last minute at the end of the war, only when it became obvious the rebels would win).
 
*[[File:The Viper vs the Mountain.jpg|thumb|"You raped my sister! You murdered her! You killed her children!" - Gregor's rape of Elia motivates her brother [[Oberyn Martell]] to face him years later in a [[Second Trial by Combat of Tyrion Lannister|duel to the death]].]]In Season 4, the story of the rape and murder of [[Elia Martell]] by [[Gregor Clegane]] during the [[Sack of King's Landing]] is very prominently introduced by her brother [[Oberyn Martell]] and others. Previously in Season 3, [[Jorah Mormont]] mentioned that he saw King's Landing right after the sack, which occurred at the end of [[Robert's Rebellion]] nearly 20 years before: the Lannister army led by Tywin had turned on the Targaryens after being let through the city gates as allies, and Jorah says that more women were raped than could even be counted. When Lannister soldiers breached the [[Red Keep]] itself, Gregor killed both of Elia's children, the toddler [[Rhaenys Targaryen (daughter of Rhaegar)|Rhaenys]] and infant [[Aegon Targaryen (Son of Rhaegar)|Aegon]], because they were the children of the recently killed Crown Prince [[Rhaegar Targaryen]] (in the novels, Gregor only killed the baby Aegon, [[Amory Lorch]] killed Rhaenys). Still covered in the blood and gore from her children, the massive Gregor proceeded to brutally rape Elia, and afterwards killed her (it is rumored that he cut her completely in half with a blow from his greatsword). This is essentially also what happened in the novels: Gregor raped Elia Martell, but years before, and what happened is recounted by several characters but not actually "shown" in flashback. [[House Martell]] was so utterly horrified by the crime of Elia's death that while they surrendered at the end of the war, they have passionately hated the Lannisters ever since, and barely tolerated Robert Baratheon's rule because the Lannisters were his major financial backers (after switching to the rebel side at the last minute at the end of the war, only when it became obvious the rebels would win).

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