this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2023
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I’m a fan of both the books and the series but I don’t care if people dislike it (since I like to think that I’m not treat-brained even though I am) and I also think there are plenty of weird problems with it, namely that the grimdark subgenre basically serves to justify the shittiness of our own world (“things could be worse, just look at GoT!”). I won’t spoil the ending for you but it definitely comes out very strongly against the idea that anything can actually get better. I’ve also realized lately that ethnic minorities which were very much present in medieval Europe (Jews, Roma) just don’t exist in GoT. We have the Dothraki, who are basically Mongols, and then some occasional vague references to darker skin that GRRM makes in the books now and then. That’s pretty much it? There are references to diversity and different languages, but minority groups are rarely if ever mentioned to be living in a massive city like King’s Landing for instance. As a Marxist it also frustrates me that the economic base for Westeros is barely depicted. Peasants either don’t exist or are passive, weak, on the run, etcetera, even though that is also historically inaccurate. We get some slave liberation in the series but the slaves themselves are also extremely passive.(It’s easy to say that “it’s just fantasy” in response but w/e.) GRRM definitely has better politics than Tolkien but he’s obviously not a Marxist.
That being said, for all his faults and annoyances, as a writer I am generally very impressed with GRRM’s abilities. His wealth of detail and dedication to complex characters, neverending conflict, and somehow managing to keep things interesting for thousands of pages (“and then things got worse,” tightening the screws for chapter after chapter after chapter)—it’s all really unrivaled IMO. Just randomly mercing main characters is also kind of funny, I have to admit, and really keeps readers on their toes—I don’t think it upsets them as much as in other series, either (Star Wars Disneyverse for instance) since they get kind of used to it?