No one: The Trickster gods of ASOIAF
May 24, 2016 4:02:50 GMT
voice, Lady Dyanna, and 4 more like this
Post by wolfmaid7 on May 24, 2016 4:02:50 GMT
It is my belief that the concept of being “No one” has its roots in the real world mythological figure of the “trickster”. Be it Loki, Dionysus, Anansi or Raven; every Trickster figure has several traits that include them being; ambiguous, anomalous deceivers, shape-shifters, situation-inverters, messengers and imitator of the gods-Keep that in mind-(Hynes, Doty).
An important archetype in our history,The Trickster is seen as a god figure, though he is not. In some cultures The Trickster is considered a wise-fool whose machinations oftentimes reveal chinks in the constructs of human societies (Hyde). While The Trickster is anti-authority and an antagonist of natural laws, its very existence is suppose to urge the questioning and rejections of things on face value. What’s remarkable about this figure is when a mindset becomes obsolete and needs to be replaced and rebuilt The Trickster is instrumental as the “Destroyer of Worlds “yet at the same time he can be viewed as “its savior”.
The trickster is the quintessential "man of many faces which makes it difficult for anyone to discern his presence or even his involvement. George uses the “trickster’ archetype skillfully and artfully in some of the more interesting "No ones" in ASOIAF. "No ones" appear in this story as people who by choice,status,bias or actions of others seem inconsequential to the people around them and even in some cases to the reader.Where there is are "No ones" in this story we are assured to find the “trickster." The political and supernatural aspects of this story have a fair share of "No ones" and it is in these two arenas the meat of our discussion takes place.
What makes the trickster one of the most successful creatures in myth is the same thing that makes people like Little finger, Varys, the Faceless men, skin changers/greenseers so powerful in this story; they have perfected the art of being “No one”,
Coyote Politics
Little finger once told Sansa:
“Always keep your foes confused. If they are never certain who you are or what you want, they cannot know what you are like to do next. Sometimes the best way to baffle them is to make moves that have no purpose, or even seem to work against you.
Remember that, Sansa, when you come to play the game.”Love him or hate him you have to admit this type of thinking is why LF's one of the smartest and most dangerous players in the game.Whatever his game is. Baelish as far as we know has no supernatural powers but he embodies the “trickster” archetype to a tee.The way he manipulates individuals into doing things to serve his end is poetry in motion.
On the surface he is not a threat because he doesn’t present himself as one,causing many to overlook him. Yet, despite being perceived as non-threatning, Littlefinger has been allowed rise to the point where he has established himself as a man of influence among the high lords and monarchs. Logically, he should be one to fear but he isn’t for a Mockingbird sings many songs and so he has been singing.A song that sounds like wisdom,truth and loyalty,they were really seeds of murder, lies and treachery. Playing factions against eachother;giving information in such a way the person who hears can't really finger him as anything else but being compliant.According to GRRM,
Despite his Mocking Jay sigil,Baelish reminds me a bit of Reynard the Fox, a trickster figure whose tale is told in a number of anthropomorphic fables from medieval Europe.In one of the more prolific tales, Reynard has been summoned to the court of king Noble, aka Leo, the Lion, to answer charges brought against him by Isengrim the She-Wolf. Hirsent the She-wolf and others, testify against Reynard and to their dismay Reynard proves them false by one stratagem or another.
It’s the same case with Littlefinger,just when it seems someone has him i.e. Lysa's confession infront of Sansa,him murdering Lysa and framing Marillion.It's kind of an nverse of the story i told with Reynard .In this case the She-wolf could have testify,she had information on him but his den of lies held sway and trapped her and a singer in his tale.
The same can and can’t be said of Varys because while the motives may be different from LF the traits are still there. The end result of the trickster transformation for Varys is a bit more different. A bald, squeamish effeminate man, smelling of lilacs with no balls, talk about not being a threat.Varys strength doesn't lay "too" much in manipulating people.
While no magic is involved, unlike Littlefinger who changes his tune Varys manipulates his own appearance;thus allowing him to move virtually undetected. Even if he's seen he's not noticed.Much like another Spider and Trickster of African mythology-Anansi.In addition to being cunning and wise,Anansi was a master at changing his appearence.Anansi is a bit more self-serving, and even if he helps others, its usually a cover for getting something out of it. Varys remains an enigma though,his purpose according to him has always been about serving the realm
Yet Varys like the trickster in his dispatching of Pycelle and especially Kevan shows that he’s not above a little chaos and murder to bring about what he sees as order..
Varys and Littlefinger by their traversing of the political landscape may have a selfish motive for what they are doing.Or in the case of Varys ,may have a good reason for what he's doing for all we know.No matter the reason, their roles as Tricksters has been instrumental in their success at changing the political landscape in Westeros.
A dream of a man without a face:
For this portion we will be looking at The Faceless men and Greenseers/Skinchangers ,the same common thread of them being "No one" runs through both factions that tie the Trickster arctogether.Bear and follow with me through this thought process.
The Faceless and the Greenseers/Skinchangers have the most in common with the Tricksters of myths;both for what they are doing and what they are capable of doing with their powers.Other interesting observations of these groups is that they are a singular unit that comprises of individuals that have come out of and endured oppression of some sort.They are the forgotten,the cast away ..... another form of "No one" born from,not just the physical but mental.I will place some emphasis on this...These guys are the ultimate "No ones."
The faceless men took root among the slaves in the mines of Valyria
-Keep the above quote in mind as well-
Sometimes oppression breeds purpose and depending on what that purpose is,or depending on how the oppressed see themselves in relation to the world,like the Trickster they can be and have been pivitol in enacting change on micro and macro levels.Now what's also interesting about the FM and skinchangers is the strong "religious", code or dogma they live by,that without them even knowing it, exalts the ego to the level of divinity.Say what Wolfy? Think about it a second,but i will sum it up in one trait they exhibit and will ask you to now call to mind the highlighted parts in this Trickster trait "imitating gods."
I'm not going to talk about what pathology may or may not have been present in the first Faceless Man,but what is important is the taking upon oneself the choice of who lives,dies and under what circumstance.Then attributing that to the will of yourself which directly exalts you ....or its really yourself cloaked as a higher power supposedly having giving you the go ahead to do "this service".In a twisted way they have basically made themselves gods.Don't believe me....You pray they answer right?You give "an offering" they answer.They are acting in an attribute that is associated with gods thematically and mythically.And even if all of them don't play a part in the outcome of what happens in Westeros directly,we have a Warg undergoing the training to become one.Speaking of let's look at the uber class of skinchangers-The Greenseers.I'm going to ask a question that many have probably asked but never thought about and its going to be put in greater perspective in light of the Trickster.So when people pray in front of a Weirwood tree,who are they praying to? Are they praying to a god? Keep this is mind.Let's look at some reference texts.
This can't go without saying.....The greenseers are posing as "gods" they know that people who kneel before them think they are praying to gods.How would someone feel if they found out they were praying to Ned's Stark little boy? Or a Targ who was sent to the Wall or how many soul that walked the earth killing,scheming etc.Tricksters.And the worse part is one can never know if their influence is self serving or for the benefit of all. Skinchangers have influenced behaviors by speaking through Crows.....Jon Snows's elsection to Lord Commander,whatever may happen to Theon,saving Sam's life from Wights.The have the ability to influence people's choices......And they are seen as dieties,but they are people,extraordinary people yes,but still people.
There is a healthy fear of Skinchangers,why? Could it be because Wildlings feared the introduction of a being such as this makes you a bit weary.Given the fear how would
these people feel,and what would they do if they found out when they kneel before a Heartree and tell their secret sins that they are actually talking to some Skinchanger/Greenseer?This indvidual is not an individual at all by the way but a mishmash ,a collective of "no ones."People are in a position where they are dupped tricked and they don't know it or know who.
How certain am i that the greenseers are Trickster archetypes and that they have their hands in a lot of pots,posing as other gods.
We see here that there's an image being repeated here.A man that looks like a corpse,so we have association with the dead,one eye with Weirwoods in the mix.I think this is GRRM'd way of saying we are dealing with the same power.The greenseers at their core concept in this world are the Many faced god as they can wear any face,any skin and the Many faced god at its core is a Trickster.Why? They are posing as gods.
The Trickster always,always wins the game.....always:
In myth the Trickster always wins because he's essential as an agent of transformation, and transformation is directly connected to the trickster’s typical character as a shape-shifter.He's neither fully one thing nor the other, someone "betwixt and between" all moral and ontological categories (Herman).
We have met the Trickster incarnations in the form of The political Coyotes in the form of inididuals like LittleFinger and Varys and The imitators of gods in the form of the Faceless man and Skinchangers/Greenseers.The success of both types hinges on the fact that they are "No one" the people in Westeros don't know who they are or in the case of the Greenseers if they are.So they can and have operated in secret,used,manipulated and influenced others to what end? That's up for discussion.
Last thoughts:So who among the Tricksters with all their schemes and machinations in play do i think will win the game? Who has the best pawn in the game ofcourse.
An important archetype in our history,The Trickster is seen as a god figure, though he is not. In some cultures The Trickster is considered a wise-fool whose machinations oftentimes reveal chinks in the constructs of human societies (Hyde). While The Trickster is anti-authority and an antagonist of natural laws, its very existence is suppose to urge the questioning and rejections of things on face value. What’s remarkable about this figure is when a mindset becomes obsolete and needs to be replaced and rebuilt The Trickster is instrumental as the “Destroyer of Worlds “yet at the same time he can be viewed as “its savior”.
The trickster is the quintessential "man of many faces which makes it difficult for anyone to discern his presence or even his involvement. George uses the “trickster’ archetype skillfully and artfully in some of the more interesting "No ones" in ASOIAF. "No ones" appear in this story as people who by choice,status,bias or actions of others seem inconsequential to the people around them and even in some cases to the reader.Where there is are "No ones" in this story we are assured to find the “trickster." The political and supernatural aspects of this story have a fair share of "No ones" and it is in these two arenas the meat of our discussion takes place.
What makes the trickster one of the most successful creatures in myth is the same thing that makes people like Little finger, Varys, the Faceless men, skin changers/greenseers so powerful in this story; they have perfected the art of being “No one”,
Coyote Politics
Little finger once told Sansa:
“Always keep your foes confused. If they are never certain who you are or what you want, they cannot know what you are like to do next. Sometimes the best way to baffle them is to make moves that have no purpose, or even seem to work against you.
Remember that, Sansa, when you come to play the game.”
On the surface he is not a threat because he doesn’t present himself as one,causing many to overlook him. Yet, despite being perceived as non-threatning, Littlefinger has been allowed rise to the point where he has established himself as a man of influence among the high lords and monarchs. Logically, he should be one to fear but he isn’t for a Mockingbird sings many songs and so he has been singing.A song that sounds like wisdom,truth and loyalty,they were really seeds of murder, lies and treachery. Playing factions against eachother;giving information in such a way the person who hears can't really finger him as anything else but being compliant.According to GRRM,
"Everybody trusts him because he seems powerless, and he's very friendly, and he's very helpful."
It’s the same case with Littlefinger,just when it seems someone has him i.e. Lysa's confession infront of Sansa,him murdering Lysa and framing Marillion.It's kind of an nverse of the story i told with Reynard .In this case the She-wolf could have testify,she had information on him but his den of lies held sway and trapped her and a singer in his tale.
The same can and can’t be said of Varys because while the motives may be different from LF the traits are still there. The end result of the trickster transformation for Varys is a bit more different. A bald, squeamish effeminate man, smelling of lilacs with no balls, talk about not being a threat.Varys strength doesn't lay "too" much in manipulating people.
“The voice was strangely familiar, yet it took Ned Stark a moment to place it.”Varys?" <snip> The eunuch's plump cheeks were covered with a dark stubble of beard. Ned felt the coarse hair with his fingers. Varys had transformed himself into a grizzled turnkey, reeking of sweat and sour wine. "How did you . . . what sort of magician are you?"
“A different look, a different smell, a different way of walking ... most men would be deceived” Tyrion.
Eddard: Tell me, Lord Varys, who do you truly serve?
Varys: Why, the realm, my good lord, however could you doubt that? I swear it by my lost manhood. I serve the realm, and the realm needs peace”
Varys: Why, the realm, my good lord, however could you doubt that? I swear it by my lost manhood. I serve the realm, and the realm needs peace”
Varys and Littlefinger by their traversing of the political landscape may have a selfish motive for what they are doing.Or in the case of Varys ,may have a good reason for what he's doing for all we know.No matter the reason, their roles as Tricksters has been instrumental in their success at changing the political landscape in Westeros.
A dream of a man without a face:
For this portion we will be looking at The Faceless men and Greenseers/Skinchangers ,the same common thread of them being "No one" runs through both factions that tie the Trickster arctogether.Bear and follow with me through this thought process.
“My time is done.' Jaqen passed a hand down his face from forehead to chin, and where it went he changed. His cheeks grew fuller, his eyes closer; his nose hooked, a scar appeared on his right cheek where no scar had been before. And when he shook his head, his long straight hair, half red and half white, dissolved away to reveal a cap of tight black curls.”
I dreamt of a man without a face, waiting on a bridge that swayed and swung. On his shoulder perched a drowned crow with seaweed hanging from his wings."
No one will ever know. I will be Thistle the
spearwife, and Varamyr Sixskins will be dead. His gift
would perish with his body, he expected. He would lose his
wolves, and live out the rest of his days as some scrawny,
warty woman … but he would live.
spearwife, and Varamyr Sixskins will be dead. His gift
would perish with his body, he expected. He would lose his
wolves, and live out the rest of his days as some scrawny,
warty woman … but he would live.
Under the hill, Jojen brooded,Meera fretted, and Hodor wandered through dark tunnels
with a sword in his right hand and a torch in his left. Or wasit Bran wandering?No one must ever know.
with a sword in his right hand and a torch in his left. Or wasit Bran wandering?No one must ever know.
The faceless men took root among the slaves in the mines of Valyria
The Dragonlords of the old freehold were strong in sorcery ,and lesser men defied them to their peril.The first Faceless man was one who did.Who was he Arya blurted out before she stopped to think ."No one" he answered ...........<snip>The slaves were not crying out to a hundred different gods, as it seemed, but to one god with a hundred different faces . . . and he was that god’s instrument.
Sometimes oppression breeds purpose and depending on what that purpose is,or depending on how the oppressed see themselves in relation to the world,like the Trickster they can be and have been pivitol in enacting change on micro and macro levels.Now what's also interesting about the FM and skinchangers is the strong "religious", code or dogma they live by,that without them even knowing it, exalts the ego to the level of divinity.Say what Wolfy? Think about it a second,but i will sum it up in one trait they exhibit and will ask you to now call to mind the highlighted parts in this Trickster trait "imitating gods."
"All gods have their instruments, men and women who serve them and help to work their will on earth. The slaves were not crying out to a hundred different gods, as it seemed, but to one god with a hundred different faces . . . and he was that god’s instrument. That very night he chose the most wretched of the slaves, the one who had prayed most earnestly for release, and freed him from his bondage. The first gift had been given."
Arya drew back from him. "He killed the slave?" That did not sound right. "He should have killed the masters!"
"He would bring the gift to them as well . . . but that is a tale for another day, one best shared with no one." (Arya II, AFFC)
Arya drew back from him. "He killed the slave?" That did not sound right. "He should have killed the masters!"
"He would bring the gift to them as well . . . but that is a tale for another day, one best shared with no one." (Arya II, AFFC)
I'm not going to talk about what pathology may or may not have been present in the first Faceless Man,but what is important is the taking upon oneself the choice of who lives,dies and under what circumstance.Then attributing that to the will of yourself which directly exalts you ....or its really yourself cloaked as a higher power supposedly having giving you the go ahead to do "this service".In a twisted way they have basically made themselves gods.Don't believe me....You pray they answer right?You give "an offering" they answer.They are acting in an attribute that is associated with gods thematically and mythically.And even if all of them don't play a part in the outcome of what happens in Westeros directly,we have a Warg undergoing the training to become one.Speaking of let's look at the uber class of skinchangers-The Greenseers.I'm going to ask a question that many have probably asked but never thought about and its going to be put in greater perspective in light of the Trickster.So when people pray in front of a Weirwood tree,who are they praying to? Are they praying to a god? Keep this is mind.Let's look at some reference texts.
When they died, they went into the wood, into leaf and limb and root, and the trees remembered. All their songs and spells, their histories and prayers, everything they knew about this world. Maesters will tell you that the weirwoods are sacred to the old gods. The singers believe they are the old gods. When singers die they become part of that godhood."
“Theon,” a voice seemed to whisper. His head snapped up. “Who said that?” All he could see were the trees and the fog that covered them. The voice had been as faint as rustling leaves, as cold as hate. A god’s voice, or a ghost’s.
The night was windless, the snow drifting straight down out of a cold black sky, yet the leaves of the heart tree were rustling his name. “Theon,” they seemed to whisper, “Theon.” The old gods, he thought. They know me. They know my name.
And suddenly there came a wild thumping, as the maester's ravens hopped and flapped inside their cages, their black feathers flying as they beat against the bars with loud and raucous caws. "The tree," one squawked, "the tree, the tree," whilst the second screamed only, "Theon, Theon, Theon." - Theon Preview TWOW
A leaf drifted down from above, brushed his brow, and landed in the pool. It floated on the water, red, five-fingered, like a bloody hand. “… Bran,” the tree murmured. They know. The gods know. They saw what I did. And for one strange moment it seemed as if it were Bran’s face carved into the pale trunk of the weirwood, staring down at him with eyes red and wise and sad. Bran’s ghost, he thought, but that was madness. Why should Bran want to haunt him? - ADWD, A Ghost in Winterfell
The raven landed on his shoulder. “Fair, far, fear.” It flapped its wings, and screamed
along with Gilly. The wights were almost on her. He heard the dark red leaves of the weirwood
rustling, whispering to one another in a tongue he did not know. The starlight itself seemed to
stir, and all around them the trees groaned and creaked.
along with Gilly. The wights were almost on her. He heard the dark red leaves of the weirwood
rustling, whispering to one another in a tongue he did not know. The starlight itself seemed to
stir, and all around them the trees groaned and creaked.
“The world beyond the Wall is
not for our kind,” Haggon used to say. “The free folk fear
skinchangers, but they honor us as well.
not for our kind,” Haggon used to say. “The free folk fear
skinchangers, but they honor us as well.
these people feel,and what would they do if they found out when they kneel before a Heartree and tell their secret sins that they are actually talking to some Skinchanger/Greenseer?This indvidual is not an individual at all by the way but a mishmash ,a collective of "no ones."People are in a position where they are dupped tricked and they don't know it or know who.
How certain am i that the greenseers are Trickster archetypes and that they have their hands in a lot of pots,posing as other gods.
“Let us see.” The priest lowered his cowl. Beneath he had no face; only a yellowed skull with a
few scraps of skin still clinging to the cheeks, and a white worm wriggling from one empty eye
socket.
few scraps of skin still clinging to the cheeks, and a white worm wriggling from one empty eye
socket.
Before them a pale lord in ebon finery sat dreaming in a
tangled nest of roots, a woven weirwood throne that
embraced his withered limbs as a mother does a child.
His body was so skeletal and his clothes so rotted that at
first Bran took him for another corpse, a dead man
propped up so long that the roots had grown over him,
under him, and through him. What skin the corpse lord
showed was white, save for a bloody blotch that crept up
his neck onto his cheek. His white hair was fine and thin as
root hair and long enough to brush against the earthen floor.
Roots coiled around his legs like wooden serpents. One
burrowed through his breeches into the desiccated flesh of
his thigh, to emerge again from his shoulder. A spray of
dark red leaves sprouted from his skull, and grey
mushrooms spotted his brow. A little skin remained,
stretched across his face, tight and hard as white leather,
but even that was fraying, and here and there the brown and
yellow bone beneath was poking through.
“Are you the three-eyed crow?” Bran heard himself say. A
three-eyed crowshould have three eyes. He has only one,
and that one red. Bran could feel the eye staring at him,
shining like a pool of blood in the torchlight. Where his other
eye should have been, a thin white root grew from an emptysocket, down his cheek, and into his neck.
tangled nest of roots, a woven weirwood throne that
embraced his withered limbs as a mother does a child.
His body was so skeletal and his clothes so rotted that at
first Bran took him for another corpse, a dead man
propped up so long that the roots had grown over him,
under him, and through him. What skin the corpse lord
showed was white, save for a bloody blotch that crept up
his neck onto his cheek. His white hair was fine and thin as
root hair and long enough to brush against the earthen floor.
Roots coiled around his legs like wooden serpents. One
burrowed through his breeches into the desiccated flesh of
his thigh, to emerge again from his shoulder. A spray of
dark red leaves sprouted from his skull, and grey
mushrooms spotted his brow. A little skin remained,
stretched across his face, tight and hard as white leather,
but even that was fraying, and here and there the brown and
yellow bone beneath was poking through.
“Are you the three-eyed crow?” Bran heard himself say. A
three-eyed crowshould have three eyes. He has only one,
and that one red. Bran could feel the eye staring at him,
shining like a pool of blood in the torchlight. Where his other
eye should have been, a thin white root grew from an emptysocket, down his cheek, and into his neck.
"...a man sat lost in the tangle of weirwood. ... A scarecrow of a man, he wore a ragged black cloak ... One of his eyes was gone, Arya saw, the flesh about the socker scarred and puckered..."
We see here that there's an image being repeated here.A man that looks like a corpse,so we have association with the dead,one eye with Weirwoods in the mix.I think this is GRRM'd way of saying we are dealing with the same power.The greenseers at their core concept in this world are the Many faced god as they can wear any face,any skin and the Many faced god at its core is a Trickster.Why? They are posing as gods.
The Trickster always,always wins the game.....always:
In myth the Trickster always wins because he's essential as an agent of transformation, and transformation is directly connected to the trickster’s typical character as a shape-shifter.He's neither fully one thing nor the other, someone "betwixt and between" all moral and ontological categories (Herman).
We have met the Trickster incarnations in the form of The political Coyotes in the form of inididuals like LittleFinger and Varys and The imitators of gods in the form of the Faceless man and Skinchangers/Greenseers.The success of both types hinges on the fact that they are "No one" the people in Westeros don't know who they are or in the case of the Greenseers if they are.So they can and have operated in secret,used,manipulated and influenced others to what end? That's up for discussion.
"Stay, and the Many-Faced God will take your ears, your nose, your tongue. He will take your sad grey eyes that have seen so much. He will take your hands, your feet, your arms and legs, your private parts. He will take your hopes and dreams, your loves and hates. Those who enter His service must give up all that makes them who they are."
...It reminds me of a certain forum. LOL
...It reminds me of a certain forum. LOL