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Chapter 44: Sansa
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
Ned hears that the Hound has returned to King’s Landing with Joffrey. Littlefinger warns Ned that the Hound may be feeling vengeful after learning that Ned ordered his brother’s death. Ned turns the words that Sansa said over in his mind—that Joffrey is nothing like “the drunken old king [Robert].” Suddenly it dawns on him: Joffrey is nothing like Robert because he’s not Robert’s son. Ned re-examines the book that Jon Arryn was reading when he died, a book about the lineages of all the great houses in the realm. Ned asks Vayon Poole to give a message to someone before he (Ned) goes to the godswood.
While Ned most likely doesn’t see himself as playing the “game of thrones” (as he has no interest in power), he has been thrust into the contest no matter how much he might want to avoid it. Now that Ned is playing, the Hound’s potential ire toward Ned illustrates the high stakes of that game, as the Hound could target Ned for revenge for his brother. Ned also finally gets a breakthrough in his investigation into Jon Arryn’s death when he discovers that Joffrey is not Robert’s biological son. That leaves the question open, then, of who Joffrey’s biological father is.
Themes
Later that day in the godswood, Cersei comes to see Ned, who sent her the message through Vayon Poole, asking her to meet him. Now, Ned confronts her with the truth he has discovered: Joffrey is not Robert’s son. He is Jaime’s son, and Cersei and Jaime are lovers. Cersei doesn’t deny it. She says that the Targaryens married brother and sister for generations, so why shouldn’t the Lannisters? Plus, she says, she and Jaime are twins and are like one person in two bodies.
Ned finally figures out why Jon Arryn was killed. Jon Arryn figured out the truth of Joffrey’s parentage, which reveals that Joffrey has no legal claim to the throne because he is not Robert’s rightful heir. The Lannisters then presumably killed Jon Arryn to keep that secret from getting out so they could retain power. Now that Ned knows the secret, there is a target on his back, too.
Themes
Cersei says that all three of her children are Jaime’s, not Robert’s. Ned asks if she and Jaime had anything to do with Bran’s fall, and Cersei says that Bran saw them. Ned says that he will tell Robert everything as soon as he returns from hunting. In the meantime, he says, Cersei should leave with her children and go into exile as far away as possible. Ned says he’s being more generous than he should be. Cersei says that Ned should have seized the throne when he had the chance. Ned says he’s made a lot of mistakes in life, but passing up the throne isn’t one of them. Cersei says, “When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground.” She then turns and goes.
Jaime’s motivation for pushing Bran out the window comes into clearer focus. While previously it seemed like Jaime pushed Bran out the window to ensure no one learned that he and Cersei were lovers, with this new information, it becomes clear that he also pushed Bran out the window to make sure no one figured out that he is Joffrey’s father. Jaime said, “The things I do for love,” when he pushed Bran. That suggests that he wants to keep the secret safe for Cersei even more than for himself. He presumably wanted to protect Cersei from any potential retaliation from Robert, but he also wanted to ensure that Joffrey would one day inherit the throne, which would enable Cersei to have some semblance of the power she has always wanted.
Themes
