Game Of Thrones: The Arranged Rape

 

The Arranged Rape

Game of Thrones has been around since 2011. It has been both loved and hated. Game of Thrones is a series that tells the story of a medieval country’s civil war. It is set on fictional continents of Westeros and Essos in a world where seasons stretch on for years. This is entertaining to people, which has made the show very popular and known. Seeing what medieval times were like before we were born is interesting to people, not to forget the immense number of sexual encounters between characters the show implements. I bet you are wondering why the creators of the show named it Game of Thrones. Well, the civil war between the houses of Westeros, who are each vying for the Iron Throne and control of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros is the reason the shows name is Game of Thrones. Game of Thrones just like any other show or fictional story has a very potent theme. Family is very important, which is why a lot of viewers continue to watch, it is relatable. People relate to the strong family dynamic and love to see families fighting by their siblings’ side! If you are not someone who likes fantasy, you will still love Game of Thrones. I myself did not want to watch it because of the hour-long episodes, the amounts of sex scenes, and the gory deaths of innocents, but after getting over that and giving it a try, I fell in love with the show. It is not so much a fantasy tale but an outstanding character-driven drama that just so happens to be in a fantasy setting. The show will make you shed tear, give you goosebumps, and leave you wanted more after each episode.

There are a lot of things that are depicted differently in the book than in the show. The wedding night of Khal Drogo and Daenery is one of the things the creators of Game of Thrones chose to change. Instead of their sex scene being consensual, the creators chose to change the adaption and make it a rape scene. It was easy for them to do this because Daenery was sold unwillingly, she is a teenager, and having sex under these circumstances are nonconsensual factors. I can’t imagine any scenario between a thirteen-year-old and a man that is be twice her age participating in anything remotely consensual. In the show, Daenerys is never considered a “woman”, she is always referred to as a “girl.” Drogo being as rebellious as he is, did not ask for consent or know what that even means, so this just adds to the number of reasons why this was considered rape. It just does not register in any way. I understand what the creators were doing when they chose to make their wedding night rape. There are a lot of factors that will help back up their reason to do so. It is hard for someone to have consensual sex with someone they do not love, trust, know, or even want to be with. Knowing that she was going to be a bargaining chip and sold into marriage, Daenerys could have made up her mind to love Khal Drogo and have sex with him. Ultimately, I think the idea to make the wedding night a rape scene would make the episode and characters a lot more relatable and gain sympathy from viewers. Daenerys is a thirteen-year-old girl who has been bought by Khal Drogo. If a viewer is watching the show, they will say that because she is so young, she is not old enough to be able to give anyone consent to any form of sexual activity. I think the wedding night is a forerunner to Daenery standing up for herself for the first time. After that night her and Khal get intimate again and before Khal takes her, she stops him and begins to get intimate. In the show after their wedding night Daenery takes control and tells Khal that she does not want him to be rough with her. She wanted to look him in his eyes and have, what some people would then call,

consensual sex. Do we really think it is really consensual sex though? This question is answerable. The answer is no. it is not consensual sex because she is underage, her husband was a stranger ten hours ago, and she is a victim of rape, so she would be in shock after going through something so traumatizing.

The evolution of the relationship between Daenery and her husband, Khal Drogo, is interesting. Daenery is sold to Khal Drogo, he rapes her, then soon after, Khal Drogo dies. The timeline of their marriage is not one I would love to have. If I were Daenery and I had been told I was getting sold that day to someone I do not know or want to be married to, I would go insane. I cannot tell you what I would do. I do know that whatever I do will not be tasteful. We cannot really say that there was any evolution in the relationship between Daenery and Khal Drogo because their whole relationship was fake. Daenery may have grown to care about him, but she did not love him. Her marriage to Drogo may have helped develop her character a little more by showing us her other side. She takes over a village and becomes the queen. She gains the power she has been yearning to receive and deserves it. I think that Daenerys evolution of character was misogynistic. The show portrayed her as a sex symbol without letting us see her true side and who she is. We do not see another side of her until after she is sold and has three children, which are dragons. If we were introduced to Daenerys character during a time where her strength was being shown, then I would have loved her character a lot more. Deanery has a strong bloodline, being the daughter of dragons and all. She truly has a pure heart and we can see this by her acts of service. Although, the witch who cursed Deanery’s husband had already been sexually assaulted, Daenery saved her. Daenery told the villagers that were there the night of her hands death that they could go free if they chose. On the other hand, Daenerys evolution could also be feministic. Even though Daenery used her sexuality to get where she is after Drogo’s death, she still achieved it on her own. She used whatever she had accessible to her in order to gain power. In my opinion, what she did was witty and smart.

The creators of this show knew what they were doing when they chose to change the material. Doing so made the scene shocking and gained a lot of recognition from supports of the author of the book. I myself would also change this scene because it would increase the viewings, gain the show more publicity, and add something to the show to make it less predictable.