The Noble Fool Ned Stark and His Failure to Adapt to a New Environment

https://www.wired.com/2011/06/you-should-keep-watching-game-of-thrones/

 

            The first episode of the Game of Thrones, we are witness to Ned Stark executing a member of the Night Watch, who ran away from his duty because of the horrors he saw beyond the wall. Ned himself was the one who carried out the executing of the Night Watch member, because of the belief he held about the one who does the sentencing should be the one that swings the sword. This honorable way to see this act was a foundation of Ned’s homeland, that being Winterfell. Being completely different than the later locations that Ned Stark would find himself in before his death. Winterfell, and somewhat the whole of the Northern part of the nation, seem to be a place which puts honor in the highest regard. Because of this Ned’s world is very different than King’s Landing, which puts him at a disadvantage when dealing with the people found within.

            This new land, called King’s Landing, is where Ned and his two daughters would travel and it is also here where many of the story’s main problems, events or people, come from. Seat of the leader of the seven nations, this would be a main focus point for most characters in the story. A city where there are so many players of the game that Ned couldn’t possibly hope to be prepared for what he and his family was going into. Even the journey to King’s Landing was filled with mischief and was a possible way George R.R. Martin may have decided to foreshadow how much of a different world the Starks were going into. We saw a child killed and Sansa’s dire wolf named Lady unfairly killed, all having a connection to the Lannister family. However, Ned should have saw the corruption of this new land when King Robert passed the judgement onto Lady, but wouldn’t carry out the sentence himself, something the honorable Ned did in the first episode of the television show. But being an honorable person in a den of vipers isn’t what made Ned a fool, not adapting to the new situation and environment was what made him a fool.

            One of the many ways Ned Stark could have adapted to King’s Landing was to take some of the advice from characters that called this alien environment their home to heart. During his writing Bruce Craven points out, “The king has warned Ned that some council members were flatterers and some were fools. As soon as he takes his seat, writes Martin, He thought he knew [which were which] already”. Suggestion that Ned is already overlooking the danger many of this people were to him and his sense of honor. Two characters whose suggestions seemed to have countered most of Ned’s belief system about honor were the king’s youngest brother Renly and one of King’s Landing Small Council members Littlefinger. Renly told Ned that he needed to take Robert’s children under his control, this in turn would have giving Ned not only control over the “heirs”, but Cersei as well. Because of his sense of honor Ned dismisses this plan and yes, I feel the same about not wanting to put children into harms way. But the being in a setting where many people’s lives could have been placed in the hands of a boy that would seemed to be under the control of his mother and the likelihood of Ned’s death would occur evening if he decided not to take the children. Littlefinger’s advice on the other hand seems to make Ned uneasy and goes against everything he stands for. He tells Ned to keep quiet about his newly found knowledge on the legitimacy of the heir to the throne and become somewhat of an uneasy ally to the Lannister family. Ned would view this as a stab to his honor based on the foolish belief of divine right when it comes to the heirs to King’s Landing’s throne, something that he helped his friend Robert took from the past royal family only twenty years before this point in the story, making Ned illogical with this decision.

            Another of the member of the King’s Landing’s Small Council that tried to talk some sense into Ned was Varys. Even before Ned was imprisoned as a traitor, Varys tried to give Ned some advice about things he should be doing during his time as Hand of the King. Much like many characters found within the city Ned more than likely didn’t care much Varys. Always seeming to place himself higher than Varys, however Varys didn’t have the luxury of being honorable like Ned. As this is being said many, including Ned would believe this makes him lower than them, but even if Varys sees himself as not honorable everything that he does is for the betterment of the realm. Putting his pride away to help others over himself, arguably one of the more honorable things done in the story. Kyle Cupp said, “He wishes to honor the law governing the transition of the crown … but his honor gives him no cause to consider how honoring the law may dishonor the people ruled by whoever sits on the Iron Throne”. Point this out allows us to compare the two character’s view on the importance of who sits on the throne verses what is good for the realm. Making the lone wolf character of Ned and his belief that his honor is all he needs win over the people, look kind of foolish. Ned even tries to cast blame onto Varys, because he didn’t help in taking the power away and it is here, we see that can’t adapt to King’s Landing even when there is someone, he could have gotten to help him do so. However, Varys did get Ned to not reveal the true about the Lannister family for Sansa’s safety, maybe to late but at least he tried to help.

            Lastly, Ned Stark’s final act of foolish that cost him his life was to underestimate Cersei because of the fact that she is a woman. Ned seemed to believe this would be enough to get her to listen to him. Overlooking her as a true enemy was bought on by a life on the battlefield where he may have gotten the sexist view about the place of men and women within the world. When talking to Cersei and he told her what she should, it more than likely shocked him when she didn’t listen to him like he was in charge like most women back in Winterfell did. Cersei must have believed Ned Stark was far easier an opponent than she originally suspected he would be when he had overlooked her tactics. One such being when he believed the Lannister army outside his window was only a show of force and not really the threat that it was. Having a female enemy such as Cersei would more than likely have been something complete new to Ned. Because of the sexism that was found in his older belief system and after years of facing his enemies head, having to fight someone who wouldn’t face him head to head in combat may as well have left him unable to adapt to the situation at hand. 

https://mbird.com/2013/06/the-rains-of-castamere-why-were-we-surprised/

            Renly, Littlefinger, Varys, and Cersei attempts to persuade the noble Ned Stark failed in the end. Ned took the ways of his Winterfell home with him to King’s Landing and believed that he would be able to come out the same way. Placing his life, the lives of his men, and that of his family members in danger when he refused the advice given to him. While reading this blog you may have gotten the idea that I dislike the character of Ned Stark. Although I am not the biggest Game of Thrones fan and I don’t really connect with any of the characters so far in the story or show, Ned is one character I can see something I liked about him, that being his honor. However, the mistakes that happened because of his deep belief of honor that was hounded into him while at Winterfell gives me reason to hate this character. Most of the problems or conflicts can be traced back to him in some way or another. YiLi also points out, “Cultural dominance doesn’t mean that honor is a very good moral … much of Game of Thrones plays out like an argument against the elevation of honor to an exceptionless moral code”. The fact that he is an honorable man helps him only slightly, but if he is so dumb that he cannot see that he is at a disadvantage, then his foolish is far greater than any honor he will ever have because it stopped him from adapting to his new environment. Which makes him an excellent example of natural selection.