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Chapter 40: Catelyn
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Game of Thrones, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Politics and Power
Climate Change and Collective Action
Gender and Power
Honor and Integrity
Identity
Summary
Analysis
Jon Snow and his cohort of recruits are preparing to take their vows and receive their positions for the Night’s Watch. Once they take the vows, there’s no turning back. They’ll be members of the Night’s Watch until they die. Everyone is sure that Jon will be named a ranger, like his uncle Ben. But Jon is hesitant to take the vow, especially considering that Sam was absent from dinner the night before. Since Sam came to Castle Black later than Jon, once Jon graduates from training, Sam will be left alone at Alliser’s mercy. Jon is convinced that Sam will be injured or killed if there’s no one to look out for him.
Jon again demonstrates the leadership capacities he has developed since becoming a recruit of the Night’s Watch. Notably, an essential aspect of Jon’s leadership qualities seems to be compassion, as his desire to ensure Sam’s well-being keeps him awake. That concern seems to demonstrate Jon’s idea that he and his fellow recruits are all on their journey together—and if one person is harmed, then they are all harmed.
Themes
For a moment, Jon considers riding home to Winterfell. But the voices of people deriding him and calling his siblings his “half-siblings” echo in his mind. He feels that Winterfell is no longer his home. He comes up with an alternate plan. Even though it’s the middle of the night, he wakes up Maester Aemon. He explains the whole situation regarding Sam to the Maester, including when Jon threatened other recruits to ensure they wouldn’t mistreat Sam. After Jon has explained, Maester Aemon asks what Jon wants him to do. Jon encourages the Maester to take Sam out of training and take him on as an apprentice.
Jon thinks that Winterfell is not his home just before going to wake up Aemon to try and make sure Aemon takes on Sam as an apprentice. That juxtaposition suggests that Jon has found a new home at Castle Black to replace the home he was exiled from. In that sense, his fellow recruits seem to have started to become as important to him as his siblings are. As Ben earlier told Jon, that’s exactly what the vow of the Night’s Watch means: to take on the Night’s Watch as one’s new family.
Themes
