Harmonious Coexistence of Incongruous Worlds in Game of Thrones

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to foreground the ontological elements and to explore the clash between the medieval and the contemporary worldviews in the narrative of the series Game of Thrones (based on G. R. R. Martin’s novel A Song of Ice and Fire). The narrative in Game of Thrones efficiently merges the medieval and the contemporary world, rendering the borders between them almost invisible on the level of the story, even if they are incompatible on the level of the cultures and values they represent. This paper is based on research of how certain contemporary traits, such as Jon Snow’s unification of traditional enemies and Arya Stark’s attitude to identity and gender roles, manage to blend in into an apparently medieval setting and system of values, in which they could otherwise be expected to appear completely incongruous. Such examination will bring together aspects from film, literary theory, history and ethics.