A Game Of Thrones Tarot, Pt. 3

SPOILER ALERT: This article presupposes that you have read A Game Of Thrones/watched through the first season of A Game Of Thrones. I will make efforts not to spoil anything past that. (Though I will likely write a separate article that incorporates the entirety of the story thus far.)  

XI Justice - Eddard Stark

 

Another of the four cards that represent the Cardinal Virtues, the virtue of justice is defined as the moderation between self-interest and the needs and desires of one’s fellows, and is given to Libra, The Scales, a sign for which balance and order are of paramount importance.

While I wavered on some of the allocations, this is one of the first character-to-card assignations I was definite on. Loyalty is a big part of the Libran wheelhouse, and in its highest ideal, this also means honor...the ability to allow oneself to live by his word, to be willingly constricted by a vow. Depending on the source, Justice is often named as the highest, crowning virtue of the four, and its true attainment seems impossible unless one can truly give themselves over to a life of honor. Nobody in the entire Ice & Fire series exemplifies these qualities like Lord Eddard Stark. In true Libran fashion, he defines himself by his connections to those closest to him, and is almost co-dependent in his level of loyalty and selflessness.

Though we accent the word “justice” with halos and trumpets, we forget sometimes that justice always sucks for someone, and its results are rarely beautiful (see the Death card.) The condemned rarely think that justice is such a great thing, or at least, they do not think they’re receiving just treatment for their actions. We see Lord Eddard on one side of this equation when we first meet him, executing a Night’s Watch deserter, and of course, on the other end of this equation the last time we see him at the Sept of Baelor.

For reasons I’ll elaborate on in the next section, I did very briefly waver and consider Ned for The Hanged Man card. However, I believe that out of any Ice & Fire character, his life best represented this high-minded ideal, and his death best represented its inversion, the greatest injustice of the series. Unlike the Hanged Man’s noble sacrifice, a death or loss that makes sense and might serve some greater purpose, Ned’s death caused so much anger (with both characters and fans alike) exactly because it was so senseless. He’s not a martyr; nothing much is changed by his death, and nothing was even gained by the party executing him. The Lannisters and their allies wanted to handle Eddard without killing him, but Joffrey wanted blood. 

There are sometimes visual cues that really alert you to a clear correspondence. (Bear with me here.) For example, one of my favorite video games is Persona 4, an RPG that blends in themes from Tarot, including assigning each of the members of your party to a specific Tarot archetype. I noticed pretty early on that your second-in-command character, who wields two knives in combat, would casually juggle them in his idle animation. It struck me as very appropriate, but I couldn’t put my finger on why it tickled me...in mulling it over later, I realized that it’s because that character represents “The Magician” card in your group, and “The Magician” is known in other decks as “The Juggler.” They made The Juggler juggle, and I thought that was great.

Now, what’s the most famous and iconic promo image from Season One? Sean Bean as Ned seated on the Iron Throne, leaning against his single broadsword. Both are very evocative of the image we see here on the Justice card, a judicial, solemn figure holding a single sword and gazing out gravely before passing sentence. The only difference here is that Ned isn’t holding a scale, and his sword is pointed downward, perhaps foreshadowing the subsequent iniquities, and the failure of this utopian ideal to manifest in a savage reality.

Seriously now.

In Season Two, a character named Ser Davos Seaworth is introduced, and I think he really fills this archetypal vacancy - he’s a good, loyal man doing his best to follow the law and his ideals to their letter in a world where that is nigh impossible.


XII The Hanged Man - Jon Arryn

To be honest, Lord Arryn’s sort of a place-holder here. We don’t know much about him from Season One, and to be honest, reading the books doesn’t yield a whole lot of additional information. But though we never get to meet him, he is a pivotal character, and with what little we know about him, he fits all the criteria. And along the line of visual cues, the one time we do see him in the series, it’s his corpse lying upside down on a slab awaiting burning or burial.

The Hanged Man’s a very interesting and confusing card. It’s been given to Prime Water, therefore indicating a heartfelt sacrifice and a situation that will be emotionally trying no matter the angle of approach. It’s the Catch-22 card in many ways, evoking a situation that will simply be unpleasant and feel horrible and cause one to twist in the wind.

We have two contrasting Renaissance images informing this card’s history. On one hand, the hanged man in question is meant to show what was done to traitors in Renaissance Europe - they were killed and then hung over the battlements by one foot, on display for all to bear witness to their treachery (see “Pittura infamante.”) On the other hand, this is one of the four cards given to a Cardinal virtue by the Neoplatonists...in this case, the virtue is Prudence. Depending on the source, either Prudence or Justice were seen as the highest possible virtue, Prudence in this case being defined as the ability to match the appropriate action to the appropriate moment. In fact, a Prudence card actually replaced The Hanged Man in some early decks, and in an inversion of the image of a man hanging by one leg, it showed a woman raising one leg to avoid stepping on a poisonous snake.

This archetype is usually one who is doomed to a certain fate, and is labeled a martyr or traitor based on their acceptance or rejection of this fate. It is both Jesus Christ and Judas Iscariot, both hung from a piece of wood because of a situation over which they had no control, but remembered in very different lights for their conduct in the moment. (The card has also been linked to the sacrifices of Odin and Osiris.)

 

Jon led a dignified existence, but it also sounds like an unhappy one. He was the Lord of The Vale, one of the major powers of Westeros, residing in the mountainous regions to the West. Though he had two wives before marrying Lysa Tully, neither produced an heir, and all the younger kinsmen who he appointed to succeed him were killed, most through Robert’s Rebellion. He was appointed to be Hand to the king, which is a high honor, but that also meant being tasked with the impossible chore of financing Robert’s reign. He was basically responsible for pulling money out of thin air to finance party after party for his king’s indulgence. And although the exact circumstances of his assassination are not brought to light until later in the series, it’s pretty obvious that Jon died because he had figured out the true parentage of Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tomnen.

Jon was placed in a hard situation: Robert was like a son to him, and this discovery would have likely broken his big, fat heart. Such an accusation, if proven true, would also shake the kingdom to its core, and may well have come to war with the Lannisters - it’s unlikely that Lord Tywin would have sat idly by while his son, daughter, and grandchildren were executed. But with house words like “High As Honor,” and seeing what a little monster Joffrey was turning out to be, he could not stand by and let a group of abominations succeed the royal line. So Jon acted with prudence, making certain he could back up the claim before bringing anything public, but leaving enough breadcrumbs for Ned and Stannis to know the truth. His prudence did cost him his life, but it was a martyr’s death - without his discovery, Joffrey’s reign may not have been contested so heavily by Renly (and certainly not by the very by-the-books Stannis,) and there would be no “War Of Five Kings.”

I do think there’s a character who best matches this archetype, and it is someone we’ve met. But he hasn’t done most of the things that would make him The Hanged Man just yet, and I’d be spoilerizing if I called him out. But...I respect peoples’ right to have things ruined for them, as well, and it isn’t a spoiler if you’ve read the other books, so...highlight between the parentheses if you want it spoiled: (Theon Turncloak.) 


XIII Death - The Wights and The Cleganes

 

One of the simplest cards in the deck, and one people want to see least in a reading, the Death card is exactly what it sounds like: someone or something is going to die. In a reading, it needn’t signify a literal death, but the fact that something is coming to an end. This is a truth as universal as taxes, and the Rider-Waite decks shows the pale rider coming to a rich man, a poor woman, and a child all at once just to show us that Death doesn’t play favorites. This is further accented by the five-petaled flower on Death’s flag, its topmost point facing downward to symbolize the triumph of matter over spirit.

A lot of New Age-y types try to put a positive spin on this card by saying that it’s about transformation and rebirth. It’s true to an extent, but a) you still have to die before you’re reborn, and it’ll probably suck, and b) “rebirth” might mean mutation into something stranger.

Yup. A beautiful transformation.

That said, consider The Wights and White Walkers that reside North of The Wall. Like the image on the card, they are literally mobile death, people who have already succumbed to their fate only to be reanimated by the strange and horrible forces that lurk in the coldest parts of the world. Their motivation seems to be focused only on spreading more death.

This same archetypal force is singularly personified by The Mountain That Rides, Gregor Clegane. Devoid of personality and loathe to communicate, The Mountain is simply a killing machine on a very loose, long leash. Like the Wights, he seems to exist only to kill indiscriminately...it is well-known that he horribly murdered Prince Rhaegar’s wife and child. Gregor’s father, sister, and two wives have all died in mysterious circumstances, as well. The only person in the entire series who has faced him in combat and lived is his brother, Sandor, who seems to fit other aspects of this archetype. More on that in a moment...

                                                                                                                                                               Not even horses are safe.

Death is traditionally given to Scorpio: dark, emotionally intense, often troubled. This is an archetype often seen as a bad guy, so it’s understandable that we’ve only really gone over zombies, monsters, and horrible bastards up to this point. But while Scorps are often the ones perceived as doing horrible, despicable things, others rarely consider that they may have very good motivations for their terrible deeds. Thus, the totem of a Scorpion, a small and creeping thing, full of poison and lurking in the shadows. At the end of the day, it’s just another creature trying its best to exist, but to the rest of the world, it’s scum, and part of a larger scourge.

And with no regard for who he is inside, that’s how people see Sandor Clegane. One half of his face is a mass of scar tissue from a childhood disagreement with his older brother. The burns remind one of infection, uncleanliness, and disease. He even carries the title of a baseborn creature, “The Hound,” and is forced to do dirty work for the Baratheons and Lannisters. But Sandor’s the product of an extremely hostile environment, and he’s really getting by the best he can. He’s done horrible things, too - he ran down and killed a peasant boy just for being present when Joffrey was injured by Arya Stark and her direwolf - but he does try to do the right thing where he can. He saved Loras Tyrell from his brother’s wrath, and he stopped Sansa Stark from losing her cool and throwing her life away in an attempt to do in Joffrey. He is not even knighted, but his actions speak of more nobility than many knights in the realm...but, because his work is so public (being Joffrey’s personal bodyguard,) it is unlikely that many people will ever see him for what he is.

In its inversion, the Death card represents “Life,” as in, “we only get a certain amount of life, so let’s enjoy it while we can.” It conjures the image of a plague feast, wherein the celebrants know for  a fact that they’re doomed, but are determined to do all that they can with their time. We haven’t met many characters who round out this part of the archetype, but they’re on their way...


XIV Temperance - Samwell Tarly

 

The last of the “cardinal virtue” cards, Temperance is the practice of restraint or moderation in the face of temptation. The card has also been titled, “Art,” and is ultimately about synthesizes opposites, or an array of opposing forces, into one grand work. The antithesis to The Lovers, which is about dividing things in twain and creating choice, Temperance is about unity, and the incorporation of multiple elements into one path. It is traditionally given to Sagittarius, a sign which is easily given to excess, over-the-top displays, and which usually finds a singular source of excitement and inspiration upon which it can fix all of its focus. In the vein of “crazy, over-the-top displays,” Sagittarian things tend to be much like the Centaur of its namesake: raucous, bawdy, and larger than life. Anime and electric guitars and neon-colored Peter Pan food..all at once!

Samwell Tarly doesn’t fly and shoot laser beams out of his eyes. But he’s clearly given to excess, and he’s completely out of place among his black brothers.

Sam’s “Temperance” ironically has little to do with food, drink, sex, or any of the other typical hedonistic abuses that the word typically evokes. No, Sam’s poison is cowardice. He’s been told since a very young age that he’s a good-for-nothing coward because he neither enjoys nor excels at any of the typical male practices of his day (jousting, hunting, learning how to kill men.) Given a perfectly good excuse to avoid taking action, Sam’s been able to hide inside of that “coward” label, wasting away inside while growing into it. The truth is, though, Sam’s one of the bravest characters in the entire series. If you’ve only seen Season One, then you haven’t seen this yet, but you get a glimpse of it when he confronts he rides out to prevent Jon Snow from leaving The Night’s Watch, not taking a stand against his only real friend, but taking a stand against a desperate, edgy young man with a very high level of combat training and a touchy, silent, giant wolf. That takes balls.

                                                                                                                                                              Uhh, sorry. Wrong Samwell.

And while Sam keeps Jon’s impulsiveness in check, Jon reciprocates by encouraging Sam to man up and stop falling into his “I’m a coward” excuse. Sam’s “Art” is something that The Wall needs as just as badly as any lord or king in the realm, a man who attacks books and strives for utility of knowledge just as viciously as most men attack the lists and chances for glory. The value of Sam’s preference for study will make itself clear soon enough, as he forges his own multi-colored path...


XV The Devil - Tywin Lannister

 

Along with Death and The Tower, The Devil is one of the cards that nobody ever wants to see come up in a reading. And I don’t blame them, as it’s a pretty spooky-looking scene and a title that lacks wiggle room for positive interpretation. As you can see, the Rider-Waite deck’s devil sits atop a black square, representing earthly matter, and is adorned up above by a very scary looking inverted pentagram, which, like on the Death card, symbolizes the triumph of matter over spirit. The Devil has acquired some property in the form of two brazenly nude minions, who he has chained onto the rest of his property in order to increase its worth.

The Devil’s the guy that comes to you with a deal: if you do X, I’ll give you Y. “Y”, in this scenario, is almost always equivalent to some sort of earthly power. In a sense, this is what almost all of us do every single day: a large devil has offered us the chance to work for eight hours each day so we can retain some measure of earthly power. We don’t necessarily want to do the things we’re doing in order to get “Y”, but The Devil wants them done, and that’s the deal, because he’s in control of all the material power. We shouldn’t be striving for material power, of course...like all good little Neoplatonists, we should be investing in the spiritual, right? But we all have to eat, and that means dealing with devils.

Lord Tywin is a ruthless and powerful lord, one of the most powerful men in all of Westeros. He’s sitting on the continent’s material power just as surely as The Devil of the card, so much so that he is financing the Iron Throne, which blew through its treasury long ago. It has been said behind his back that Lord Tywin shits gold.

The Devil is typically given to Capricorn, Cardinal Earth, which at its most active, is the most acquisitive and ladder-climbing of the twelve signs. Lord Tywin is certainly all about making deals, bringing the most valuable players and properties to his side and expunging anything of no value. This is even reflected in his family life: Tywin treasures Jaime and Cersei, but detests Tyrion. The pretense for this is that his wife died birthing Tyrion, but if Tyrion had not been born an imp, I think we all know that Tywin’s attitude toward him would have differed. Still, Tywin does eventually come to recognize Tyrion’s value, and eventually appoints him to watch over King Joffrey as his Hand.

Lord Tywin is so fixated on ridding himself of value-less properties that (in the novels) he began to shave his head at the first sign of balding, and has done so ever since.

It should be noted, however, that the bonds of The Devil are very different from the vows of Justice. Whereas a man like Eddard Stark would hold true to his word at great personal risk and cost, The Devil does what is reasonable and profitable. Despite being long-time supporters of King Aerys, Tywin turned on him as soon as he was sure he was about to lose, and offered the royal family’s bodies and Cersei’s hand in marriage as a peace offering to Robert. Words are wind and matter is matter, and holding to one’s power is more important than holding to one’s word.

Still, “a Lannister always pays his debts” is a phrase proliferated by Tywin and his kin, who seem to try to hold firm to a set of business ethics, if not true honor. In this case, it’s a question of showing value by not being dishonorable, but it is still primarily a question of value.


XVI The Tower - Jon Snow & The Wall

 

The Tower is a devastating, violent scene - lightning from heaven strikes its top, engulfing the structure in flames and causing its occupants to leap screaming to their deaths. It’s the most outwardly violent card in the major arcana, and symbolizes the moment where structures in our life that we’ve outgrown, or which no longer serve their purpose, come crashing down around us so that the energy we’ve put into them can be re-allocated into more worthwhile activities. This sounds relatively positive and innocuous, but it can mean the end of a marriage, the loss of a job, or in Jon Snow’s case, a total departure from the world as you know it.

The Tower is given to Mars, the war planet, the vigorous force in our lives that allows us to accomplish our goals and to cut ourselves off from harmful elements. While Venus is a force that creates connections, Mars is the force that severs those connections. Martial characters in pop culture are typically action heroes, and Jon’s one of the most clear-cut, good guy action heroes we get in the series. Much like the Olympian Ares and Hephaestus, who are mythological components of this archetype, he’s looked down upon by much of the rest of his society, labelled a bastard and deprived the use of his father’s name. The beginning of the series sees him severing his connection to the world he’s grown up with, cutting himself off from Winterfell to start a new life in the largest “Tower” in Westeros, The Wall.

Jon’s a born fighter and is brimming with courage. Like most young men of this archetype, he’s also very angry at the hand he’s been dealt, which results in what I like to call Jon’s “bastard angst,” which makes him prone to whining about his base-born status, among other things.  However, much like his impulses to rejoin the Starks when trouble strikes, this angst is indicative of Jon’s inability to accept events as they are. The Tower has already fallen - the life he had at Winterfell is gone now. As a member of the Night’s Watch, he’s no longer a bastard any more than the guy on his right is a pimp, any more than the guy on his left is a Southron noble - they’re all crows now.

I like the designation of “crows” for The Night’s Watch a lot, too - they’re cloaked all in black, one of the most martial colors, and are known by the name of the bird most known to flock (“known to murder”?) to the battlefield.       

TO BE CONCLUDED...