History DeconstructedTrope / ASongOfIceAndFire

** Hoster Tully was afraid his daughter would not be able to marry well if people knew she was pregnant -- and the child's father was from a lower class and [[spoiler: Hoster's own ward]], no less, [[spoiler:so he deceived her into taking abortifacients. The loss of her child left Lysa so bitter and traumatized that she refused to see her father while he was dying.]]

* DroitDuSeigneur: Even when the custom was legal and widespread, raping your inferiors is an utterly awful idea on [[PragmaticEvil a pragmatic level]] at the very least. House Qoherys, the first Lords of Harrenhal after the Hoares, met it's end because Gargon the Guest abused this right so much that the smallfolk betrayed and handed him over to [[RebelLeader Harren the Red]] to be castrated and executed. [[spoiler: In the present, one of the few StupidEvil decisions Roose ever partook in was the rape of a peasant girl and the hanging of her husband. This encounter produced [[BastardBastard Ramsay Snow]] who causes no end of problems for Roose, and there's a heavy implication that the peasant Roose raped raised Ramsay to be a monster, and sent him in Roose's general direction [[RapeAndRevenge precisely so she could pay him back for taking his lord's rights.]]]]

* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Walder Frey didn't bring his troops when ordered to by his liege lord during Robert's Rebellion, only showing up after the battle had been won, which to many signifies disloyalty. For this he became known as the Late Lord Frey and his family's reputation took at hit. [[spoiler:When the Freys betray Robb at the Red Wedding they figured it would be for the best, as they had a bunch of people to stand by them. But because everyone knows they're involved, it taints their reputation basically beyond repair, to the point where even their ''allies'' are taking swipes at them. And it's not just their reputation at stake -- some members of House Frey are in fact being ''murdered'' because their betrayal broke one of the most fundamental elements of pre-modern society: [[SacredHospitality guest right]]. The effect extends far beyond the Twins; now, ''no one'' can trust ''anyone'' not to murder them at dinner, and their betrayal means that the riverlanders and Northerners despise them and won't willingly help them.]]

** When Tyrion becomes Hand in ''Literature/AClashOfKings'' he initiates a period of austerity so as to secure resources for preparing a siege. To this end, he shuts down businesses pertaining to expensive armory and other luxury businesses and then shuts down the fisheries wharf, which was also coupled with a blockade of food sent by the Tyrells to King's Landing. Tyrion's refusal to supply some form of distraction makes the people of King's Landing angry at starvation and war deprivation, triggering a riot and mass anger at the government and especially the Demon Monkey whom they associate with the bad times, whereas the real culprits such as Joffrey and Cersei are associated with a period of peace. This also leads businessmen such as the Antler Men to plot defection to Stannis because they feel Tyrion is bad for business since he brushed away their feelings, citing an imminent siege rather than giving assurances. When the Tyrells arrive alongside his father, they come bringing food and are greeted as heroes despite being responsible for a mini-famine by depriving food to begin with. His father, Tywin, puts a tax on prostitution and other pleasure businesses which gets labelled the "dwarf's penny" because Tyrion was demoted to Master of Coin without his consent. Tyrion's genuine service to the realm and protection of the common people gets brushed aside thanks to empty displays of charity and superficial rhetoric of heroism simply because he never put in token efforts of distraction and indeed scorned displays such as the Royal Wedding with its 77-course meals at a time of widespread starvation in the city.

-->Renly: (speaking to Catelyn) Men respect Stannis, even fear him, but precious few have ever loved him.

* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Walder Frey didn't bring his troops when ordered to by his liege lord, only showing up after the battle had been won, which to many signifies disloyalty. For this he became known as the Late Lord Frey and his family's reputation took at hit. [[spoiler:When the Freys betray Robb at the Red Wedding they figured it would be for the best, as they had a bunch of people to stand by them. But because everyone knows they're involved, it taints their reputation basically beyond repair, to the point where even their ''allies'' are taking swipes at them. And it's not just their reputation at stake -- some members of House Frey are in fact being ''murdered'' because their betrayal broke one of the most fundamental elements of pre-modern society: [[SacredHospitality guest right]]. The effect extends far beyond the Twins; now, ''no one'' can trust ''anyone'' not to murder them at dinner, and their betrayal means that the riverlanders and Northerners despise them and won't willingly help them.]]

** Let's point at the Freys a bit. Tall ask, but had somebody somehow knocked sense into, say, Lord Walder, Lame Lothar and Reyman ''before'' they started party planning with Roose Bolton and Tywin Lannisters, the family wouldn't be facing as much murder now, right? [[spoiler: Nope. Between the Blackfyre-Golden Company-?Gary's?'s bloc, whatever Littlefinger was doing even before he got Harrenhal (note: the Freys are competing in the debt-management-and-extortion game) ''and'' the Brave Companions spotting a fat target (see "extortion" -- nobody likes their rich sharks and won't mourn if orcas get 'em), the Freys were going down even before Ned triggered the formation of the Brotherhood (after some prodding). Whether you're after lands and titles (or just a home), revenge for past defeats/ slights, a way to trigger instability in ''several'' regions (Freys are married to a lot of Vale and some Westerland families) or just for dat phat loot (Freys are only poor when compared with Lannisters), the sprawling Riverlander house in a strategically important area that everybody already dislikes is getting hacked to pieces. Regardless.]]

** Let's point at the Freys a bit. Tall ask, but had somebody somehow knocked sense into, say, Lord Walder, Lame Lothar and Reyman ''before'' they started party planning with Roose Bolton and Tywin Lannisters, the family wouldn't be facing as much murder now, right? [[spoiler: Nope. Between the Blackfyre-Golden Company-?Vary?'s bloc, whatever Littlefinger was doing even before he got Harrenhal ''and'' the Brave Companions spotting a fat target, the Freys were going down even before Ned triggered the formation of the Brotherhood (after some prodding). Whether you're after lands and titles (or just a home), revenge for past defeats/ slights, a way to trigger instability in ''several'' regions (Freys are married to a lot of Vale and some Westerland families) or just for dat phat loot (Freys are only poor when compared with Lannisters), the sprawling Riverlander house in a strategically important area that everybody already dislikes is getting hacked to pieces. Regardless.]]

** Let's point at the Freys a bit. Tall ask, but had somebody somehow knocked sense into, say, Lord Walder, Lame Lothar and Reyman ''before'' they started party planning with Roose Bolton and Tywin Lannisters, the family wouldn't be facing as much murder now, right? [[spoiler: Nope. Between the Blackfyre/ Golden Company/ Vary's bloc, whatever Littlefinger was doing even before he got Harrenhal ''and'' the Brave Companions spotting a fat target, the Freys were going down even before Ned triggered the formation of the Brotherhood.]]

** Ramsay Bolton (formerly the bastard Ramsay Snow) thinks his father Roose took him in out of kindness and that Roose and his mother couldn't marry because she was just a peasant. Ramsay is actually a ChildOfRape and his mother never wanted him.

** Robert Baratheon sires a lot of illegitimate kids only to abandon them. [[spoiler:Most of them are later killed by his widow because of the threat they might pose to her children]]. Also a dangerous case of WrongGenreSaavy on Cersei's part: she assumes that one of Robert's bastards might be the Hero in a ChangelingFantasy that ends with [[RightfulKingReturns the rightful king returning]], when in fact [[spoiler:the laws of Westeros state that, even without any legitimate children, Robert's ''brothers'' should inherit before any of his bastards. Both go on to be very dangerous and damaging opponents in the War of the Five Kings, which could have been greatly averted if Cersei had targeted them before Robert.]]

** Robert Baratheon sires a lot of illegitimate kids only to abandon them. [[spoiler:Most of them are later killed by his widow because of the threat they might pose to her children]].

** The construction of Harrenhal Castle almost bankrupted both the Riverlands and the Iron Islands. Unfortunately, it was [[CripplingOverspecialization designed for defense against a ground attack]], and Aegon Targaryen had [[GameBreaker dragons]]. Even though most of it is a ruin 300 years later, it's still too big to be properly garrisoned and very expensive to uphold. Harrenhal remains Westeros' ultimate symbol of AwesomeButImpractical. Petyr Baelish [[spoiler:after being made Lord of Harrenhal, says once he has enough money he intends to tear the place down and built a more practical castle.]]

** Aegon V Targaryen has gone down in history as one of the honestly and straightforwardly [[TheGoodKing good kings]], particularly among the smallfolk. His reign is seen as the trend-bucking, shining highlight of about 200 years worth of dismal lowlights and strife, which even the nobility admit -- despite his attempts to erode "rights" aka "unequal treatment". However, all this packaged goodness wouldn't have happened without Bloodraven cutting down errant family members left and right while gaining a much-deserved reputation as a Kinslayer, [[TheSpymaster Spymaster]] and a (possibly less-deserved one of) EvilChancellor. Without him thinning the Blackfyre threat considerably beforehand and setting the stall up for more peaceful times in other ways using some ''very'' pragmatic means, Aegon's reign would have been plagued with many more problems than it was. He even shuffled off the scene quite openly by getting banished to the Wall for his supposed wrongdoings by Aegon. Which, ''could'' even have been by his own suggestion, in part to make sure that none of the taint of previous issues would bleed into Aegon's Small Council by his remaining an obvious mover and shaker. [[spoiler: Not that it's ever exactly stopped him from keeping his eye on the realm via the tree-network and raven-post, of course. Or trying to interact with it in various ways.]] Yet again, we have the GoodCopBadCop thing going on.

** Tyrion's demonization by the commoners in King's Landing wouldn't have helped his case with his father after Blackwater, when Cersei was able to convince Tywin that most of the preparation and defensive work was her doing. Had the blame for most of the Lannister mistakes been applied to the correct people in the popular mind instead of reaching for the easy "Demon Monkey" scapegoat role they loaded him with, Tywin might have actually taken note and taken pains to include him in later reconstructive efforts. [[TheUnfavourite Well, maybe]]. At the very least, Cersei would not have come out of it quite so glowingly and a whole raft of problems might have been avoided. As it was, Tyrion's perceived failures at curbing the Crown's self-inflicted chaos during the siege using financially and verbally harsh means come back to bite him time and again, [[TheScapegoat blown up out of all proportion]] and scuppering any attempt by all half-competent Lannisters to stabilize the boat ''without'' reaching for the even bigger crackdown-and-take-hostages option. [[spoiler: Tywin, Kevan and Jaime have to resort to this when the wheels start to fall off, if in slightly different ways -- Jaime and Tywin picking the rather direct versions; Kevan attempting the more diplomatically disguised route.]]
** Roose Bolton ponders all the pitfalls having such a negative public image can plague a whole House if even only ''one'' member pushes the envelope a little too far. If Ramsay continues being gratuitously StupidEvil right in front of people's faces, the whole House, not to mention the population of the Dreadfort, could be exterminated by the combined effort of the unhappy Northern Houses in less time than it took them both [[spoiler: to work their way into holding Winterfell's lands and titles in the first place.]] And, that whole speculation was made before [[spoiler: the revelations of House Bolton being actively involved in the Red Wedding]] had even started to leak through various sources. [[spoiler: There is a possible plus-side: if that one member of the House is loathed enough, the rest ''might'' get off by throwing him to the wolves and blaming most of the collective monstrosities on him, then citing whatever can be proved of as their own doing as, "We were just trying to protect our own blood -- even if he was an unpredictable, AxeCrazy idiot. Will his head and reparations do?" Maybe.]]

** Tyrion's demonization by the commons in King's Landing wouldn't have helped his case with his father after Blackwater when Cersei was able to convince Tywin that most of the preparation and defensive work was her doing. Had the blame for most of the Lannister mistakes been applied to the correct people in the popular mind instead of reaching for the easy "Demon Monkey" scapegoat role they loaded him with, Tywin might have actually taken note and taken pains to include him in later reconstructive efforts. [[TheUnfavourite Well, maybe]]. At the very least, Cersei would not have come out of it quite so glowingly and a whole raft of problems might have been avoided. As it was, Tyrion's perceived failures at curbing the Crown's self-inflicted chaos during the siege using financially and verbally harsh means come back to bite him time and again, [[TheScapegoat blown up out of all proportion]] and scuppering any attempt by all half-competent Lannisters to stabilize the boat ''without'' reaching for the even bigger crackdown-and-take-hostages option. [[spoiler: Tywin, Kevan and Jaime have to resort to this when the wheels start to fall off, if in slightly different ways -- Jaime and Tywin picking the rather direct versions; Kevan attempting the more diplomatically disguised route.]]

** Tyrion's demonisation by the commons in King's Landing wouldn't have helped his case with his father after Blackwater when Cersei was able to convince Tywin that most of the preparation and defensive work was her doing. Had the blame for most of the Lannister mistakes been applied to the correct people in the popular mind instead of reaching for the easy "Demon Monkey" scapegoat role they loaded him with, Tywin might have actually taken note and taken pains to include him in later reconstructive efforts. [[TheUnfavourite Well, maybe]]. At the very least, Cersei would not have come out of it quite so glowingly and a whole raft of problems might have been avoided. As it was, Tyrion's perceived failures at curbing the Crown's self-inflicted chaos during the siege using financially and verbally harsh means come back to bite him time and again, [[TheScapegoat blown up out of all proportion]] and scuppering any attempt by all half-competent Lannisters to stabilise the boat ''without'' reaching for the even bigger crackdown-and-take-hostages option. [[spoiler: Tywin, Kevan and Jaime have to resort to this when the wheels start to fall off, if in slightly different ways -- Jaime and Tywin picking the rather direct versions; Kevan attempting the more diplomatically disguised route.]]

* CockFight: Petyr Baelish challenged Brandon Stark to duel for the hand of Catelyn Tully [[WrongGenreSavvy thinking that]] UnderdogsNeverLose. He only survived because Catelyn begged Brandon to spare him. The duel left Petyr physically and emotionally scarred and he spent the rest of his life [[MagnificentBastard screwing everyone else over]] because he couldn't let go of his bitterness.

** As a race of AlwaysChaoticEvil [[OmnicidalManiac omnicidal maniacs]], [[TheFairFolk the Others]] who once brought about [[DarkestHour the Long Night]] should be the perfect enemy for all of Westeros, nay, the ''entire world'' to band together and fight against. But since the last sighting of the White Walkers was millenia before the beginning of the saga, they've been reduced to legends and fairytales while they're collecting strength and rising again in the Land of Always Winter, while Westeros itself is falling apart in the midst of a SuccessionCrisis as all but a few are aware that the Long Night is about the happen once more.

*** Invoking the Hero's Journey also gets Benfred Tallhart and his band of "Wild Hares" into phenomenal amounts of trouble. Interpreting news of Robb Stark's initial military successes as their CallToAdventure, the group goes on to similarly interpret their elders' misgivings and warnings against their UNcoordinated mobilization as obstacles any stalwart group of young heroes will naturally overcome during their myth arc. Unfortunately, they turn out to be horrifically WrongGenreSavvy about their self-appointed "call" to defend the North from Ironborn or surprise Southern incursion while the bulk of the far more seasoned Northern forces are focussed South. Heroes, apparently, don't need to worry about things like communications, experience, scouts, stealth or the element of surprise when on the march... It gets them mostly ignominiously slaughtered by Theon's small, but well-deployed, and experienced raiding party. Furthermore, upon capture, "defying The Villain to his face" doesn't result in imprisonment pending a badass rescue (who from: nobody else "on your side" even knows what you've got yourselves into, yet) or a prison breakout montage to stirring music leading up to a redemptive rallying of your fellow Northmen to take back what was lost of your honor due to your own screw-up: it gets you unceremoniously executed by drowning, doesn't it, Benfred? It just doesn't pay to outright prove to your captors that you'll be far more trouble than your ransom will be worth to try keeping imprisoned than to just... kill.

*** Invoking the Hero's Journey also gets Benfred Tallhart and his band of "Wild Hares" into phenomenal amounts of trouble. Interpreting news of Robb Stark's initial military successes as their CallToAdventure, the group goes on to similarly interpret their elders' misgivings and warnings against their mobilization as obstacles any stalwart group of young heroes will naturally overcome during their myth arc. Unfortunately, they turn out to be horrifically WrongGenreSavvy about their self-appointed "call" to defend the North from Ironborn or surprise Southern incursion while the bulk of the far more seasoned Northern forces are focussed South. Heroes, apparently, don't need to worry about things like experience, scouts, stealth or the element of surprise when on the march... It gets them mostly ignominiously slaughtered by Theon's small, but well-deployed, and experienced raiding party. Furthermore, upon capture, "defying The Villain to his face" doesn't result in imprisonment pending a badass rescue (from who: nobody else "on your side" even knows what you've got yourselves into, yet) or breakout montage to stirring music leading up to a redemptive rallying of your fellow Northmen to take back what was lost due to your screw-up: it gets you unceremoniously executed by drowning, doesn't it, Benfred? It just doesn't pay to outright prove to your captors that you'll be far more trouble than your ransom is worth to keep alive than to just kill.

*** Invoking the Hero's Journey also gets Benfred Tallhart and his band of "Wild Hares" into phenomenal amounts of trouble. Interpreting Robb Stark's initial military successes as their CallToAdventure, the group goes on to similarly interpret their elders' misgivings and warnings as obstacles any group of heroes will naturally overcome during their myth arc. Unfortunately, they turn out to be horrifically WrongGenreSavvy about their self-appointed "call" to defend the North from Ironborn or surprise Southern incursion while the bulk of the Northern forces are focussed South. Heroes, apparently, don't need to worry about scouts, stealth or the element of surprise when on the march... It gets them mostly ignominiously slaughtered by Theon's small, but well-deployed, raiding party. Furthermore, upon capture, "defying The Villain to his face" doesn't result in imprisonment pending a badass rescue or breakout montage to stirring music leading up to a redemptive rallying of your fellow Northmen to take back what was lost due to your screw-up: it gets you unceremoniously executed by drowning, doesn't it, Benfred? It just doesn't pay to outright prove to your captor that you'll be far more trouble than you're worth to keep alive than to just kill.

*** Invoking the Hero's Journey also gets Benfred Tallhart and his band of "Wild Hares" into phenomenal amounts of trouble. Interpreting Robb Stark's initial military successes as their CallToAdventure, the group goes on to similarly interpret their elders' misgivings and warnings as obstacles any group of heroes will naturally overcome during their myth arc. Unfortunately, they turn out to be horrifically WrongGenreSavvy about their self-appointed "call" to defend the North from Ironborn or surprise Southern incursion while the bulk of the Northern forces are focussed South. Heroes, apparently, don't need to worry about scouts, stealth or the element of surprise when on the march... It gets them mostly ignominiously slaughtered by Theon's small, but well-deployed, raiding party. Furthermore, upon capture, "defying The Villain to his face" doesn't result in imprisonment pending a badass rescue or breakout montage to stirring music leading up to a redemptive rallying of your fellow Northmen to take back what was lost due to your screw-up: it gets you unceremoniously executed by drowning, doesn't it, Benfred?

** Ser Jorah Mormont hates Ned Stark for "driving" him away from the North and sees him as a HangingJudge for being so unreasonably biased against Jorah to uphold the penalty of death. For, you know, the crime of selling poachers into slavery. For which there was rock hard evidence against him. Within Westeros, SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil, but Mormont expected a man of his rank and privilege to receive leniency, ''especially'' since he "did it for love". Ned Stark didn't buy it; heck, Jorah's own blood kin didn't buy it, and the Highcastles didn't bother to pull any strings for Lynesse, either. It was Jorah who packed up and fled before Ned could arrive at Bear Island with his sword in hand to personally chop his head off, at which point Jorah became a voluntary fugitive from justice perennially hating and blaming Ned for treating him like any other criminal in Westeros.

* ForWantOfANail: It's remarked several times how certain characters were brought to ruin by a single event or decision, and how things could have been better. Except reading between the lines suggest that even if different choices were made, sometimes the events would have stayed the same.

** Ser Jorah Mormont hates Ned Stark for driving him away from the North and sees him as a HangingJudge for his crime of selling poachers into slavery. Within Westeros, SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil but Mormont expected a man of his rank and privilege to receive leniency especially since he did it for love. Ned Stark didn't buy it, arriving at Bear Island with his Sword in hand to personally chop his head off at which point Jorah became a fugitive from justice perennially hating and blaming Ned for treating him like any criminal in Westeros.

** Stannis Baratheon is feared and disliked by many partly because he believes in equality before the law and that those in power who abuse their posts should submit to the same justice doled out on those below them. This makes him come across as unlikable and tyrannical but it also makes him meritocratic and fair, and the first King-claimant in Westerosi history to allow Wildlings to immigrate into the Seven kingdoms and settle on the land with the same rights and dues as any Westerosi of their station.

** In short, if you're guilty of something, you're going to declare the person stopping it, and bringing accountability as the monster.
* EverybodyHatesMathematics: Westerosi culture may regard reading and writing with great suspicion, but that's nothing compared to how high-end arithmetic, bookkeeping and even vaguely complex mathematics generally gets treated (it's considered an art almost as dark as magic). This... allergy... contributes massively to their bad case of MedievalStasis, leaving them highly vulnerable to players like the Iron Bank, Petyr Baelish or any other culture (say, Valyrian-descended ones) with a better grasp of mundane or magical engineering due to knowing tricks with integers. It's biting them hard, but most people can't even spot the problem.

** Jorah Mormont' s marriage didn't work out because he couldn't give her her accustomed lifestyle.

* In short, if you're guilty of something, you're going to declare the person stopping it, and bringing accountability as the monster.