Friday, May 22, 2015

Rewriting Sansa's arc

In a discussion of the rape scene in last week's "Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken", Miodrag Zarković made a distinct point about Sansa's arc which I find worth exploring: 
The critics were, however, okay with the nonsense from the pilot. Just like, until the very last episode, they saw no problem in Sansa marrying Ramsay. I’ll repeat once more: some of them were even congratulating Benioff and Weiss on a job well done!

I’d really like to know how would those critics solve the wedding night. Would they choose to make it ridiculous by having Ramsay act normal and omitting the rape? Ramsay? Normal? Do they really think that would cure the mess created the moment TV Littlefinger sent a raven with the marriage proposal to the Boltons?
I still think the problem isn't sending Sansa up North, because what is happening here is a total flaw in the argument. I think it's a Black-and-White-fallacy. Therefore, let me take up the challenge. 


The idea that a rape "has to happen" as soon as Sansa goes down the "marry Ramsay"-plot road is inherently wrong. Writers are able to choose between different options. They chose this one, and, to quote Indiana Jones, "they chose poorly". It is true that many people anticipated this (or something in this vein) was happening, but I have to confess that I really expected it not to precisely because it didn't seem that good storytelling to me. So, let me quickly lay down the structure of Sansa's plot this season. 

Sansa has emancipated herself a bit from Littlefinger, but at the same time had thrown her lot in with him at the end of season four, which, given that she didn't know the Vale lords, was probably a wise move. Littlefinger now coaxed her into accepting to be a cog in his new (entirely stupid) plan to marry Ramsay, but only so she was in position to take over the North herself by proxy of Stannis Baratheon. That's the part of the story that makes more sense. Stannis would still not make her Wardeness, but any husband after Ramsay would be one she could entirely dominate - a theme that seems to be coming with Harry the Heir in the books, too. What Sansa doesn't know is a) Ramsay's total psychopathy, b) that a tortured and breaking Theon is there and c) that Brienne is out there, plotting her escape. 

Now, the most boring version of this story is by her getting imperiled by Ramsay and rescued by a Theon who finds back to his old self, by Brienne or a combination of the two. This would be bad because it removes the agency Sansa started to gain and negates her story arc, as I explained in my review. The rape is definitely laying the groundwork this version could build on, and I didn't expect them to go down this somewhat lazy route. 

What I expected them to do was on the one hand to divert Brienne's quest once more. Stannis is on the way down, and they established (again) her deep hatred and thirst for revenge against the guy. I expect for her storyline to get tempted to kill Stannis but to actually reconcile with him in the face of greater threats, thereby maturing. With Sansa, we get at the heart of the argument I hinted at earlier: there is absolutely no discernible need to rape her. None. It would have been possible to give Ramsay some reason not to consumate the marriage. Let me outline just two ways for this. 

Roose Bolton, aware of the PR problems his son causes (as established in the dinner scene of episode five), forbids him to do anything brutal to Sansa. Ramsay, who obviously isn't a guy to enjoy normal, consensual sex, isn't in the mood to play the nice husband. From here, we have several possibilities. For example, he could pull a Tyrion and seek solace with Myranda or, more in line with his characters, take the lemons and make lemonade out of them by reimagening the twisted things from the book in forcing Sansa to partake in some naked or otherwise sexual stuff including Myranda and, if you want to get really sick, even Theon. 

And don't tell me this would be unrealistic or not in character. Joffrey never raped her, either, despite being hot on the idea, and in the books, Margaery survived several marriages without consumation and isn't the only one to do so. And please, don't imagine any of those scenes as graphical. As in the actual episode, there is no need to show any of this in detail. But all of it allows Sansa to keep her virginity intact, and it can be done in such a way as she capitalizes on the lessons from King's Landing and denies Myranda and Ramsay any joy in it (like it was already established in her bathing scene), thereby aborting the scene before it really starts. It would contribute to really elevate Sansa and to put Ramsay into place. 

And this is just out of my head.

15 comments:

  1. Great post Stefan, I totally agree with your points here and the refutation that the only possible outcome was for Ramsay to rape Sansa. While I knew this was a possibility, I was hoping for something along the lines of Roose restraining any brutality towards Sansa as well as a more savvy Sansa being able to manipulate/maneuver Ramsay away from this action. As you say, it came off as lazy writing and seemed totally unnecessary for any of the characters involved.

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  2. Don't really agree here. I am more in line with this article: http://www.rawstory.com/2015/05/all-hopefully-of-the-bad-arguments-about-rape-on-game-of-thrones-debunked/#.VV9f_jTOnkl.twitter I think it analyzes the whole situation quite well :)

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  3. Good post, but I find the total belief by so many that Sansa has been through the worst and nothing bad should happen to her to be somewhat amusing. Have they read the same book as I have? The one by an author who loves to pull the rug out from characters and either kill or maim them?

    The idea of Sansa as a beacon of purity that will never be damaged is an interesting one, but not one that seems based on book analysis. More emotional attachment to an idea, spurred on by an almost decade of no character development. (due to lack of chapters) People simply are more attracted to the IDEA of Sansa than the actual character.

    I will find this outrage very amusing if TWOW has a consumation night that is unpleasant, or something else bad happens to her. (how could it not?) Will GRRM be as lambasted by book readers, accused of "removing agency", "ruining the character", or "lazy plotting"? Somehow I doubt it. Rape as a plot point is apparently OK in book form.

    Have book readers completely forgotten how they felt after the Red Wedding?

    Anyway, I do appreciate you at least waiting to see the rest of the season until giving final judgement. It was a tough scene, and it was meant to be a tough scene. I hope that the follow-up is worthy.

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    1. Again, the problem isn't rape per se.

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    2. Which is my point. That people can't comprehend/digest the Sansa pot changes because they are so incredibly sure of what Sansa future book plot will be - her inevitable ascent to be the queen of the realm, powered by the famous plot armor that GRRM gives characters we like (sarcasm). Who needs the book? They have already decided how her story will play out in their minds.

      If only GRRM didn't enjoy challenging expectations.

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    3. The outrage is not about the destruction of Sansa that much as of the use of rape as a plot device.

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    4. Stefan - You're confusing me. "the problem isn't rape per se", then you write "the use of rape as a plot device"? Or are you citing other peoples main concerns?

      I agree that excessive use of that as a plot device is problematic. But unfortunately that is one thing that the source material leans on quite a bit. And while people seem to think that the show emphasizes it and uses it for shock value, I don't believe it is the case. While some instances of it have been added (the Craster scenes last year being the most disgusting IMO), there are MANY written accounts of rape that have been omitted.

      I would be happy to hear some balanced criticism of GRRM's use of rape as a plot device with the show in the next "boiled leather" podcast. (one of my favorites, by the way)

      Keep up the good work.

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    5. I have no problem when rape is being depicted in the show. What's bad is when it serves a pure function, like showing that Ramsay is evil. It's totally unnecessary for that purpose.
      But as I said in the Solar over at the Tower of the Hand, I can't really pin down why it troubles me here.

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  4. Good point Stefan, there's always another way!
    What I can't quite warp my head around is why this scene causes such an uproar and backlash and why Talisas and Catelyns murder or even Theons continuous torture scenes caused almost none?

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    1. Beause sexual assault is a sensitive topic the show hasn't that good a history with.

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  5. Hi Stefan, while your on the topic of choices the writers can make that would be better. What kind of path can the writers take from here that would justify the scene in your opinion? How about if Sansa gains more understanding of what Theon has been through and she is the one who makes him remember who he is and gets him out of Winterfell, rather that Theon being the one who gets Jeyne out. Will it be worth it?

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    1. Sansa understanding Theon because she has been raped would be pretty offensive. She knows Theon was abused, and she is a frequent victim of all kinds of abuse. It doesn't need this to emphasize. One thing is for certain: if Sansa doesn't take as her major lesson from this that she needs to get rid of Littlefinger, I don't know what is.

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  7. Great post Stefan (as always)! I found it hard to formulate, what really bothers me with the Sansa arc, too. But, thanks to your flight of links, I found an atticle which does this for me. (The "too dark and full of terror" one). Sansa's dreams and whole view of the world had been already crushed by Jeoffry and Cersei. She had to suffer a lot to lern how things work in the Weterosi society. She had been in the shadow lands of her heroes journey. By all means of story-telling she should now find her true destiny and become powerfull player. Instead, the writers decided, that she needs to endure even worse things. They just wrote "Sansa and Joeffry 2.0 now with rape and flaying. This isn't about character developement (Sansa already had that arc for god's sake!), it's just for shock value. It's to show that it will always come worse for the protaganoists we care about. As brilliantly pointed out in the cited article, this is as bad as if all the main characters are save. I wonder, how the same writers who do the a great job in displaying Jon and Arya's growth, can destroy Sansa's character developement so brutaly (I mean really they do that: literally).

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    1. Wrote that before I read the Mary Sue article. They certainly better express the problems than I do.

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