I’ve recently become a very huge fan of the exceedingly popular show - Game of Thrones and an avid reader of the books - A Song of Ice and Fire. My likes has speculated a lot of controversy where my peers are concerned. On the outside, game of throne’s superficial exterior can be summed up in one word - ‘explicit.’ This choice of wording is not anyone’s fault. The show - yes, for those who do not watch; it is very explicit, but over time, the careful viewer realises that it being ‘explicit’ symbolises a great many things. The main point is that - there is so much more to it than intercourses, naked bodies and juvenile violence. The show has been interpreted, analysed, taken apart and puzzled so many brilliant analysts. Why, you may ask? Why would such brilliant human beings spend so much of their time and effort into analysing such a superficially pleasing show? It’s because the show, inspired and adapted from the series - A Song of Ice and Fire, written by George R.R. Martin, tells us of our lives, it tells us of the lives we lead and the lives we are going to lead. I’m not claiming that this means that we all have previously lead a life without technology, nor that the dystopian future is likely to be set in a medieval setting. Nor am I saying that we are living a life filled with such horror. Martin has taken the real world and added some imagination combined with serious history. The books were inspired by the War of Roses - a war in England fought primarily by the Yorks and the Lancasters (also the name of two rivalling houses in the books and the show.)

The show is filled with intriguing characters, what Martin has brilliantly done and what I admire in his writing is that he has balanced a perfect combination of sensing and intuition in his books. The Myers Briggs Personality Type states that - sensers see literally everything in steps, while intuitive people see the bigger picture. I’m trying to connect the two ideas. He has every chapter named after a person and in their point of view. We see that there is no person in the story who is flat and has more than one chapter dedicated to them. On top of that, he has framed an entire world - two major continents and sub continents, lakes, rivers, streams, mountains, villages, religion, culture. We are literally, LITERALLY transported to a whole new world where nothing is remotely similar to the world we live in. In that world, there is a highly organised structure of society and he has added to all of that structure - corruption. Which leads to chaos. There are a variety of symbolism involved, there are ominous messages and direct mirroring to our own world. The show also tells us how everything is interconnected and how it can all fall apart and be mended back together. The show teaches us mind games, empathy, power, intelligence, strong will, resilience in the face of adversity and how a person can break under pressure. It teaches us about revolutions, culture, religion, fascist rulers.

The beauty of the books is that it doesn’t entail one single idea, there are millions of ideas, millions of problems and conflicts and thoughts and chain of thoughts. All in one show and one book series written by one brilliant man. So, the next time you say game of thrones is low quality pleasure, think again.