Tyrion Lannister's sarcasm in A Game of Thrones

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DO CEARÁ

CENTRO DE HUMANIDADES

DEPARTAMENTO DE LETRAS ESTRANGEIRAS

CURSO DE LETRAS INGLÊS NOTURNO

ANA KARINE DE SOUSA DANTAS

TYRION LANNISTER’S SARCASM IN A GAME OF THRONES: A LITERARY

ANALYSIS

FORTALEZA

2014

ANA KARINE DE SOUSA DANTAS

TYRION LANNISTER’S SARCASM IN A GAME OF THRONES: A LITERARY

ANALYSIS

Monografia apresentada à Coordenação do

Curso de Graduação em Letras Inglês da

Universidade Federal do Ceará como requisito

parcial para a obtenção do diploma de

graduação do curso de Letras Inglês/Noturno.

Orientador: Prof. Dr. Fabiano Seixas

Fernandes

FORTALEZA

2014

RESUMO

Tyrion Lannister, personagem da aclamada série literária e televisiva As Crônicas de Gelo e

Fogo, é reconhecidamente famoso por sua inteligência e seu discurso afiado. O fato de A

Guerra dos Tronos, primeiro livro da série, ser uma obra recente e, portanto, ter uma

bibliografia acadêmica bastante reduzida a seu respeito, aliado ao fato de ser também uma

obra de grande repercussão no cenário literário atual, motivou a realização desta pesquisa.

Tyrion, por sua vez, foi escolhido pela importância do seu caráter e discurso dentro da obra.

Seu sarcasmo se revelou importante para a confecção do caráter desse personagem, bem como

para o desenrolar dos eventos dentro da narrativa. A partir daí e através da compreensão de

conceitos que compõem a fantasia épica, de estudos sobre a construção de personagens e,

principalmente, de teorias sobre humor, este trabalho concentrou-se na análise do discurso

sarcástico de Tyrion Lannister, com especial base na teoria de Conz (2010) sobre os quatro

papéis sociais da ironia, a saber: humor, status de elevação, agressividade e controle

emocional. Isolando os capítulos e eventos nos quais Tyrion produz sarcasmo, além do

próprio discurso do personagem, e analisando-os à luz de Conz (2010), foi possível identificar

quatro contextos nos quais o anão se sente mais inclinado a ser sarcástico: Tyrion como

membro da família Lannister (produz sarcasmo para manter o controle e a dignidade diante do

desprezo da família); Tyrion como um anão (produz sarcasmo para manter sua nobreza e

estabelecer superioridade em relação àqueles que o ofendem); Tyrion como uma pessoa

afetuosa (produz sarcasmo em situações amigáveis, para efeitos de humor); e, finalmente,

Tyrion como uma figura política em Westeros (produz sarcasmo para demonstrar força e

agressividade nas ações). Espera-se que este trabalho possa contribuir com os estudos iniciais

a respeito da obra de George R. R. Martin e, mais especificamente, a respeito de Tyrion

Lannister, estabelecendo-se como um material acadêmico bibliográfico precursor no assunto

aqui tratado.

Palavras-chave: A Game of Thrones; Tyrion Lannister; sarcasmo.

ABSTRACT

Tyrion Lannister, character of the acclaimed literary and television series A Song of Ice and

Fire, is admittedly famous by his intelligence and cunning discourse. The fact that A Game of

Thrones, first book of the series, is a recent work and thus has a significantly reduced

academic bibliography about it, allied to the fact that it is also a work of great repercussion in

the current literary scenery, encouraged the accomplishment of this research. Tyrion, by his

turn, has been chosen because of the importance of his nature and discourse within the plot.

His sarcasm revealed itself important to the confection of this character’s nature, as well as to

the unfolding of the events in the narrative. From this point on and through the

comprehension of concepts on epic fantasy, of studies about characters and, mainly, of

theories on humor, this work focused on the analysis of Tyrion Lannister’s sarcastic

discourse, with special emphasis in the theory proposed by Conz (2010) about the four roles

of irony: humor, status of elevation, aggressiveness and emotional control. By isolating the

chapters and events in which Tyrion produces sarcasm, as well as his discourse itself, and

analyzing them by the light of Conz (2010), it was possible to identify four contexts in which

the dwarf feels himself more inclined to be sarcastic: Tyrion as a member of the Lannister

household (he produces sarcasm to keep control and dignity in face of his family disdain);

Tyrion as a dwarf (he produces sarcasm to keep his nobility and establish superiority in face

of those who offend him); Tyrion as an affectionate person (he produces sarcasm in friendly

situations, for effects of humor); and, finally, Tyrion as a political figure in Westeros (he

produces sarcasm to show strength and aggressiveness in his actions). It is expected of this

work to contribute with the initial studies on George R. R. Martin’s work and, more

specifically, on Tyrion Lannister, establishing itself as a pioneer bibliographic and academic

material on the subject here presented.

Keywords: Game of Thrones; Tyrion Lannister; sarcasm.

SUMMARY

1 INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………… 06

2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK …………………………………………. 08

2.1 A Game of Thrones and the Epic Fantasy: a genre discussion ……………. 08

2.1.1 The Fantasy and the Epic Fantasy: considerations on A Song of Ice and

Fire …………………………………………………………………………….

08

2.1.2 The marvelous and the verisimilitude in A Game of Thrones ……………… 10

2.2 Theoretical issues on character development and the construction of the

discourse in a narrative ……………………………………………………...

12

2.3 Humor theories on sarcasm …………………………………………………. 16

3 METHOD ……………………………………………………………………. 19

4 TYRION LANNISTER’S SARCASM IN A GAME OF THRONES ……... 20

4.1 The sarcastic universe of the Imp …………………………………………... 20

4.2 The four roles of irony and an analysis of Tyrion’s sarcastic discourse …. 20

4.2.1 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and humor ……………………………………... 21

4.2.2 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and the status of elevation …………………….. 23

4.2.3 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and emotional control …………………………. 23

4.2.4 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and aggressiveness …………………………….. 24

4.2.5 When does Tyrion Lannister produce sarcasm and why? ………………… 25

5 RESULTS ……………………………………………………………………. 26

6 BIBLIOGRAPHY …………………………………………………………… 27

6

1 INTRODUCTION

Tyrion Lannister is a highborn dwarf in A Game of Thrones, the first of a

famous series of seven books called A Song of Ice and Fire, written by the acclaimed

George R. R. Martin and which tells the story of a fantastic realm inhabited not only by

men, but monsters, and whose conflicts are full of politics, sex, violence and trickery.

He is George R. R. Martin’s favorite character (SALTER, 2013) and the third child of

Tywin Lannister, the most powerful man in the Seven Kingdoms. His most remarkable

characteristic is, however, that he was born with a malformed condition: he is a dwarf,

which earned him names like “The Imp” or “The Halfman”.

Enter Tyrion Lannister, one of the most complicated and compelling

characters ever to appear in a fantasy series. Tyrion was born a dwarf,

offering reason enough for him to have been drowned at birth. A dwarf in the

Seven Kingdoms would normally be guaranteed a miserable existence, but

luckily Tyrion was also born a Lannister. House Lannister is the richest in the

Seven Kingdoms, and its political influence is vast. (Robichaud, 2012, p.

149).

The thunderous success of the series and character among millions of

readers worldwide functions as the main argument for the existence of this work, which

aims to analyze Tyrion’s sarcastic discourse within the narrative, when and why he is

sarcastic and the importance of what he says to the unfolding of the events.

This work is, then, organized through the following structure: chapter two

presents the theoretical framework and its concepts which were used as a basis for this

particular study. The studies of Tolkien (1947), Donaldson (1986) and Todorov (1970)

on fantasy, epic fantasy and the marvelous and the verisimilitude definitions in fantastic

plots, respectively, assisted the understanding of A Game of Thrones structure. Bakhtin

(1997) and Propp (1997), whose studies concern relies on the creation process of a

character and its functions within the narrative, respectively, assisted the comprehension

of Tyrion’s characteristics. Finally, the studies of Conz (2010) and Attardo (1994) on

humor assisted the possibilities and later the analysis of Tyrion’s discourse.

Chapter three presents the method which was applied to the development of

this work, while chapter four brings the analysis of some of Tyrion Lannister’s

discourse, in order to answer “when” and “why” this character is sarcastic, based,

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mainly, on Conz’ theory of the four social roles of irony (CONZ, 2010). Finally, chapter

five presents the results of this work, followed by the references.

This work, thus, attempts to contribute with the initial studies on George R.

R. Martin’s work and, more specifically, on Tyrion Lannister, the Imp.

8

2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

2.1 A Game of Thrones and the Epic Fantasy: a genre discussion

2.1.1 The Fantasy and the Epic Fantasy: considerations on A Song of Ice and Fire

In an attempt to explain the peculiarities and potentialities of the fantastic, an

essential feature of the fairy tales or fairy legends, J. R. R. Tolkien discusses the literary

form of fairy-stories, working with the concept of “fantasy” as a form of art which

carries the power of granting “(…) to ideal creations the inner consistency of reality”

(TOLKIEN, 1947, p.5). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, fantasy is “the

faculty or activity of imagining impossible or improbable things”, but also “a genre of

imaginative fiction involving magic and adventure, especially in a setting other than the

real world.”1 Both definitions are related to the creation of narratives whose events are

not only incredible (taking into account our experience of the world we live in), but

magical, not belonging to the real world. Tolkien, then, complements the second

concept by adding to it the idea of a creator who interferes in the fantasy universe

through the action of surrounding and filling this universe with the qualities of what is

real.

The “fantastic”, however, is a concept which was only later developed. It

was originally studied by Tzvetan Todorov, who tackled the issue of how characters

(and readers) react in face of the presentation of supernatural events within narratives

(TODOROV, 1973). Todorov’s approach will be seen in more details in the next topic.

For now, it is relevant to say that A Song of Ice and Fire, a series written by George R.

R. Martin, carries both concepts of fantasy and fantastic which are seen in Tolkien and

in Todorov, respectively, since it is characterized as an epic fantasy whose characters

are steadily facing supernatural phenomena. A Game of Thrones is then the first book of

this epic fantasy series which tells the story of a realm stricken by wars and other

political conflicts among powerful families who inhabit the Westeros continent and the

lands far beyond it.

Martin’s work would also fit into the idea of Faerie, which is the realm or state

where all the fantastic stories happen and to whose authority Tolkien (1947, p. 2)

1 In: < http://www.oxforddictionaries.com>. Accessed on 26, Nov. 2013.

9

attributes all the characteristics of fantasy stories: “An essential power of Faerie is thus

the power of making immediately effective, by the will, the visions of ‘fantasy’”

(TOLKIEN, 1947, p.4). The possibilities of Faerie are about the struggle of the creator,

or writer, to conceive a secondary world capable of carrying the particularities of

reality:

Probably every writer making a secondary world, a fantasy, every sub-

creator, wishes in some measure to be a real maker, or hopes he is drawing

on reality: hopes that the peculiar quality of this secondary world (if not all

the details) are derived from Reality, or are flowing into it. If he indeed

achieves a quality that can fairly be described by the dictionary definition

“inner consistency of reality”, it is difficult to conceive how this can be, if the

work does not in some way partake of reality (TOLKIEN, 1947, p. 14).

And what does the epic fantasy turn out to be? Donaldson (1986) examines the

meanings of both “epic” and “fantasy” in order to establish a concept for the term epic

fantasy. Donaldson (1986, p.8) states that fantasy accounts for two of the most

commonly identified aspects of fantasy, and the first one is that fantasy contains magic.

The second one (1986, p. 9) is about fantasy, inevitably, being allegorical.

In fantasy, the outside is an externalization, a metaphor, of the internal. And

magic is perhaps the most fruitful metaphor available to this kind of fiction.

In good fantasy, it is an expression of the inner imaginative energy of the

characters - an expression of their charisma, their force of personality - an

expression of the part of being human that transcends physiology. Writers of

fantasy use the metaphor of magic as a means of discussing the ways in

which human beings are greater than the sum of their parts (DONALDSON,

1986, p. 8).

Donaldson (1986, p.12-13) says that as a subject, the epic has been far more

studied than the fantasy and, for him, all epics begin with fantasy, because “(…) all

contain magic, all present supernatural perceptions of reality”. He believes that it is part

of the nature of the epic to deal with the great questions of mankind, inquiries about the

meaning of life and death, for instance. He also says that the epic, in its origins, was

“(…) the highest form of literature, and was expected to say the highest things”.

The epic is, thus, a superstructure arranged by magical “bricks” and which tries

to explain the reality we know and its meaning, to accomplish its transcendent goal

(DONALDSON, 1986, p. 12, 13).

Finally, Donaldson (1986) talks about the way Tolkien proposed that his work

was entirely apart from real world (denying that it was somehow allegorical), that the

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fantasy he created was pure in form, "(...) that it existed solely for itself"

(DONALDSON, 1986, p. 17). Here, it appears the connection between epic fantasy and

high fantasy. If epic fantasy is a narrative filled with magic, with the heroic function of

carrying men’s greatest dilemmas, high fantasy is, in turn, considered a sub-genre of

fantasy, and it is defined as a narrative set in a completely imaginary world (as

Tolkien’s Middle Earth, for example) and by the epic role of its plot (PERRY, 2003).

Thus, the epic fantasy is often connected to high fantasy, and both terms are sometimes

used as interchangeable.

Angelskar (2005, p.32) adds that there is also a difference between high and low

fantasy. In high fantasy, the supernatural is explained by the laws of the magical

universe, nearly always involving a secondary world. Low fantasy, on the contrary,

happens in the real world and its fantastic, non-rational elements are seen as such,

demonstrating the existence of a conflict with the known, recognizable laws of the real

world. Thus, in low fantasy there will be different, superposed and conflicting layers of

realities that belong to the same world, the one we know; whereas in high fantasy these

realities will take place in a different world.

Tolkien determines in his essay, then, that fantasy, as a representation of things

not present in this world, is a higher form of art, because it is the creation of images not

available in the primary world (a virtuous aspect, not a vice). He adds that fantasy is

“(…) not a lower, but a higher form of Art, indeed the most nearly pure form, and so

(when achieved) the most potent” (TOLKIEN, 1947, p. 6).

A Song of Ice and Fire can then be considered, in the context presented so far, as

belonging to the high fantasy sub-genre, set in a fantastic land, inhabited by dragons and

other wonders, and it is also an epic fantasy for its superior proposal to deal with great

adventures and complex human issues.

2.1.2 The marvelous and the verisimilitude in A Game of Thrones

Todorov states that to retain its consistency, its meaning, the fantastic must not

only signify the existence of a strange event, an action that causes a kind of hesitation

both in the reader and in the hero of the narrative, but it must also imply a certain way

of reading the events; a way that cannot be poetic, nor allegorical (TODOROV, 1970).

This author claims that the fantastic requests the fulfillment of three conditions. First,

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the reader will have to hesitate, in face of the narrated events in the story, between what

is natural and what is supernatural (this hesitation is caused by doubt); second, the same

hesitation must be felt by a character within the plot, thus becoming one of the themes

inside the narrative; finally, the reader will have to put aside both poetic and allegorical

interpretations, literally interpreting the supernatural phenomena, so that the fantastic

elements will be seen as an integral part of the narrative reality (TODOROV, 1970,

p.151-152). In Todorov, then, the fantastic resides in the hesitation of readers and

characters regarding the decision about the events that surround them: are they real or

not?

If readers and characters conclude that there is no breach between the event and

natural structure of reality, then the narrative is considered part of the strange genre. If

they conclude that the events depart from the known laws of nature and require a new,

superior explanation, the narrative is then part of the marvelous (TODOROV, 1970).

It is possible to trace a path from Todorov’s concepts to the structure of A Game

of Thrones. Although the supernatural events displayed in the narratives within the

books of the series are seen as natural for the readers (because they know the “truth”

about them), not all characters lose that hesitation mentioned by Todorov. Tyrion

Lannister, for example, is an incredulous man. He does not believe that dragons can

once again exist, nor the other strange and fantastic creatures that people believe to have

existed in their lands and far beyond them (MARTIN, 2011). During his visit to the

Wall, in A Game of Thrones, Tyrion Lannister is not so certain of his own beliefs:

As he stood there and looked at all that darkness with no fires burning

anywhere, with the wind blowing and the cold like a spear in his guts, Tyrion

Lannister felt as though he could almost believe the talk of the Others, the

enemy in the night. His jokes of grumkins and snarks no longer seemed quite

so droll (MARTIN, 2011, p. 214).

This distrust is what Todorov means by the uncertainty both readers and

characters can feel in front of the supernatural and, as it was said earlier, it becomes one

of the themes in Martin’s story. As the supernatural within A Game of Thrones is not

considered enlightened by the rules in the world that Martin created, it is acceptable to

say that Tyrion and other characters’ feeling of scepticism bestows the marvelous

property to the narrative inside the book.

About the marvelous and the verisimilitude inside A Game of Thrones, it is

possible to say that Martin’s books retain more realism and life-like consistency than

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any other fantasy book. Despite all the magical elements and the marvelous, A Song of

Ice and Fire is often reviewed as a watershed in the history of Epic Fantasy for its

realism and essentially human descriptions. Holland (2013), a British historian and

writer, said that “The appeal of Westeros is less that it is fantastical than that it seems so

richly, so vividly, so brutally real”. Lanchester (2013), another British writer, said that

there are two big reasons why A Game of Thrones is so widely read: the sense of

instability and the way characters see magic, features both related to the realistic

conduction of the plot. First, the readers do not know what is going to happen next, and

this feeling of instability and uncertainty make them feel anxious and insecure, the same

way people feel in real life. Second, magic, which is customarily so certain in other

fantasy books and recognized by their characters, is despised by the characters of

Martin’s books, as they do not believe in it, just like real people, in the real world

(Todorov’s hesitation). Thus, A Song of Ice and Fire is praised for the consistency of its

mimetic development and its proximity to our own world, as it possesses the elements

that are usually found in modern society: negotiation, trickery, violence and sexuality,

for example.

2.2 Theoretical issues on character development and the construction of the

discourse in a narrative

Vladimir Propp (2001), in his morphological analysis of the basic components of

Russian tales, proposes the study and investigation of many short narratives in an effort

to reunite all their elements under specific descriptions and functions, in order to

comprehend how the plots of this kind of story usually work. Through the establishment

of general aspects which are most recurrent, Propp’s work would be useful to the

understanding of the fantastic stories narratives in general. This way, Propp defines

some general functions to the characters in these stories which could be applied to most

heroes and villains within these tales and within many others which belong to the

culture of different countries, if considered that these functions rely on a kind of

universal construction of magic plots. Many famous magical sagas, such as The Lord of

the Rings, the Harry Potter series, The chronicles of Narnia, Eragon, etc., have in their

plots one or more main characters which have a superior mission on whose success

depend all the other elements in the narrative. This superior mission (destroy the “One

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ring”, defeat Lord Voldemort, liberate and pacify Narnia and defeat the evil in Alagesia

realm respectively) is carried by the protagonist(s) and the general theme within the

plots is always about the struggles between Good and Evil. This main role of the “hero”

in a fantastic narrative is studied by Propp and it can be considered for the analysis of

all these plots.

As time went by, fantasy plots have become more complex in terms of variety of

characters and roles within the stories, as well as the events in which the characters are

enrolled and the purpose of every detail in them. In Propp’s considerations and despite

the description of the presence of secondary characters and of their supporting roles, the

entire group of purposes and events related to the characters in these magic stories is

connected to what happens to and what is done by the protagonist (who is always the

hero) and antagonist of the stories, in the pursue of a major goal, which usually is to

overcome the evil. Tyrion Lannister, the character whose analysis is of interest to this

work, is neither one nor the other. Because Tyrion’s history is of great length,

developed through all published books until now (five books out of seven have been

published until this first semester of 2014) and because his trajectory and personality is

always receiving some new unfoldment due the passage of time, his characteristics

cannot be so easily pigeonholed. Although there is no literary novelty in this, reviewers

agree that the strong human descriptions amid the fantasy created by G. R. R. Martin

are an essential part of his appeal. The characters he created are not totally good, nor

totally evil. They are just human, with both virtues and vice, and their physical and

psychological characteristics face complex changes as the plot moves on. That is why

the study of this kind of character is much more complex.

In A Game of Thrones, Tyrion is immediately presented as a character of huge

importance and responsibility, and he takes part in decisive events in the plot. There is a

curious moment in the first chapter narrated through Jon Snow’s point-of-view, in

which the reader is greeted by a foreshadowing of the great importance of Tyrion

Lannister. After a conversation with Jon, Tyrion leaves and, for a brief moment, his

shadow makes him look like tall as a king:

“Remember this, boy. All dwarfs may be bastards, yet not all bastards need to

be dwarfs.” And with that he [Tyrion] turned and sauntered back into the

feast, whistling a tune. When he opened the door, the light from within threw

his shadow clear across the yard, and for just a moment Tyrion Lannister

stood tall as a king (MARTIN, 2011, p. 57).

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There is an interesting assertion in Propp’s Morphology of the Folk Tale, in the

chapter about the characters’ roles and significance (chapter 8). Propp claims that, in a

tale, a character can easily take the place of another character, and that these exchanges

have their own causes, sometimes very complex causes (PROPP, 2001, p. 49):

A vida real cria sempre figuras novas, brilhantes, coloridas, que se

sobrepõem aos personagens imaginários; o conto sofre influência da

realidade histórica contemporânea, do epos dos povos vizinhos, e também da

literatura e da religião, tanto dos dogmas cristãos como das crenças populares

locais (PROPP, 2011, p. 49).

Although Propp does not go further on these exchanges and transformations in

this characters' world of possibilities, his reflection show that these changings are

certainly worthy of being studied. He relates these probabilities of changes and of the

births of new characters to the influences of the real world, an assumption that

nowadays could not be more right. Currently, the events in the real world and the

context in which they are developed are intimately connected to the fictional world and

they are now mixed up. The readers can strongly recognize their nature in fiction. They

believe it without questioning too much, as characters and plots are much more complex

and rich in details and shifts.

Cândido (1976, p. 54) says that the reading of a novel depends basically on the

reader’s attitude in accepting the truth of a character. He believes that character and plot

are indissoluble elements and that the first one is, although complex, constructed in a

cohesive way, so that the reader believes he can have a total understanding of it.

According to this author, the modern novel found its way to an increasing complexity of

the characters’ psychology. He says that the characters are considered in two main

ways:

1) como sêres íntegros e facilmente delimitáveis, marcados duma vez por

tôdas com certos traços que os caracterizam; 2) como sêres complicados, que

não se esgotam nos traços característicos, mas têm certos poços profundos,

de onde pode jorrar a cada instante o desconhecido e o mistério (CÂNDIDO,

1976, p. 60).

This is the beauty in the modern novel: the profound complexity and the large

easiness the modern characters hold, at the same time. In the first case, the reader is able

to know the character’s entirety and recognize it; in the second one, the character will

always represent a mysterious box full of uncertainties and surprises, just like people in

15

the real world. And that is how Tyrion Lannister functions within A Game of Thrones.

The reader knows who he is, because the reading makes it possible for the one who

reads to see the plot and the character as a bird looking at a landscape; but the reader is

also continuously facing new findings about him and his thoughts, emotions and

actions.

Finally, to conclude the topic about the questions related to the study of the

character, Bakhtin (1997) states, not differently from Cândido (1976), that the character

has many masks, different disguises that cover the truth he carries, and that these masks

and disguises must be taken off, one by one, so that the “character’s whole” may be

achieved (BAKHTIN, 1997, p. 26). To him, “(...) todos os componentes de uma obra

nos são dados através da reação que eles suscitam no autor”. He then suggests that in

the narrative, the author reacts to the “whole” of his character, an attitude which is not

possible in real life, because people react to isolated aspects of other people and, in

addition, they are not able to recognize their own “whole” (BAKHTIN, 1997). Thanks

to the knowledge and to the authority of the author over his creation, this becomes,

through him and for him, absolute and complete, a “whole”, as the author has free

access to the entire external image of a character.

Bakhtin (1997) says that there are three basic types of possible relations with the

character. In the first one, the author is under the mastery of his character: the author

cannot see the world but through the eyes of the character. Outside the character, there

is no true stability (BAKHTIN, 1997, p. 37). In the second case, the character is

mastered by the author: the author impresses on the character his own principles; it is an

auto projection (Bakhtin, 1997, p. 40). Finally, the third case states that the character is

the author of itself. He thinks about his life through an aesthetic way, representing a true

role: unlike the romantic hero, he is auto satisfied and his final touch is totally secure

(BAKHTIN, 1997, p.40):

Tudo o que é transcendente à autoconsciência do herói e que serve para seu

acabamento pode ser utilizado para um ou outro desses fins (satírico, heróico,

humorístico, etc.). Assim, encontraremos uma satirização que joga com o

aspecto físico, uma zombaria das ambições ético-cognitivas que jogam com a

expressividade externa determinada pelo que em geral ela tem de demasiado

humano (...) (BAKHTIN, 1997, p. 41).

This third description can thus encompass Tyrion Lannister’s aspects, as he is a

character of great complexity and independency. He performs his own role, as one of

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Martin’s authentic creations, allowing the occurrence of Bakhtin’s endings mentioned

above, carrying an expressive humanity. The character is, then, a correlation between

him and the author that aims the realization of the hero’s “whole”, because since the

very beginning of the character’s journey he is given to the readers as this “whole self”,

and all things intend to characterize him: they are reduced to the formulation (and the

answering) of the following question: who is the character? (BAKHTIN, 1997, p. 187).

2.3 Humor theories on sarcasm

It is not the intention of this work to scrutinize the frontiers between irony and

sarcasm, but understanding their relationship is undoubtedly relevant for the

achievement of the goal of this research, which is to analyze and comprehend Tyrion’s

production of sarcasm in his discourses.

Conz (2010, p. 39) says that irony and sarcasm have an intimate relationship and

that sarcasm is a concept of irony. If irony is meaning the contrary of what is being said,

sarcasm happens when humor is reached through the ironic discourse. Sarcasm is then a

form of irony which uses sharp humor to highlight the obvious, the stupidity or another

annoying aspect of a given situation (CONZ, 2010, p. 40). Irony is soft, sarcasm is

rough.

Sarcasm has, according to Conz (2010), specific characteristics. The

propriety of saying something negative through positive formulations is one of them,

what is also defined as irony. Second, sarcasm has a target and, because of this, it can be

auto derogatory or targeted to its interlocutors. Third, sarcasm can carry lots of

seriousness, and can be destructive to relationships. Finally, sarcasm is usually

evaluative and it evaluates its addressee.

Castro (1997) explains that the effects of irony comprise two acts, different in

themselves, but complementary. They are the acts of enunciating and contesting the

enunciation itself:

ironizar é dizer algo pelo enunciado e, portanto, remeter à enunciação, mas é

também, e sobretudo, voltar-se contra a própria enunciação acrescendo-lhe

uma ideia oposta e, ainda mais, no mesmo instante em que é enunciada. A

mesma enunciação serve para dizer A e simultaneamente, devido ao valor

argumentativo oposto das enunciações (CASTRO, 1997, p. 130).

17

But who was first concerned about this? According to Attardo (1994, p. 18),

Plato is unanimously considered the first theorist of humor. The ancient philosopher

believed that humor was “a mixed feeling of the soul” which belonged to the field of the

“ridiculous” (Attardo, 1994, p. 19). Aristotle, Plato’s disciple, in his Poetics, proposes

what would be the first analysis of humoristic features, saying that it is the

“unexpected” aspect in humorous discourse that makes the comic to arise:

While discussing liveliness and surprise in metaphors, Aristotle comments on

several witticisms, puns, and on unexpected occurrence of words, and

concludes: "the speaker says something unexpected, the truth of which is

recognized." (III, 11 1412b). It is also extremely tempting to see in a passage

like the following an anticipation of the theories of the "resolution" of the

incongruity (see Suls (1983), or Aubouin's (1948) "justification" (see 4.0.1)

or Ziv's (1984) "local logic" (see 4.0.2): "In all these jokes, whether a word is

used in a second sense or metaphorically, the joke is good if it fits the facts."

(III, 11 1412b). (ATTARDO, 1994, p. 20).

And it would not be inappropriate to say that, here, on this idea of incongruity2,

relies on the power of the sarcastic discourse: when unexpected, when through a

metaphor or when under a second sense, the humorous discourse works because “it fits

the facts”.

Attardo (1994, p.7) establishes a simplified schema for the semantic field of

humor, adapted from the one created by Schmidt-Hidding (1963, p. 48) and which

encompasses the concepts of “mockery” and “sarcasm” under the sense of the ridicule,

next to the concepts of “satire” and “joke”. This relation shows, thus, the proximity and

complexity that permeate the positions occupied by these terms in the general usage of

humor within the discourses.

Although Attardo (1994) does not take into account the phenomenon of satire

and its aspects of sarcasm and irony (it only studies the phenomena of jokes and of

puns), it provides a broad view of the usage of humor in Literature. Also, it proposes the

theory that humor generally happens in the following context: it has a situation, a trigger

and finally the joke itself, this last one functioning as a “problem solution” or

“conclusion” of that initial instable situation (Attardo, 1994). This theory is helpful in

the sense that the sarcastic discourse, also, is always motivated by an initial situation,

and the moment when it is announced is the result or consequence of that situation.

2 Incongruity theories are based on the disconexion between two ideas; it is when the resolution or the

arrangement of the ideas does not correspond to the expected one (Attardo, 1994, p. 48).

18

In this context, Conz (2010) states that irony has four social roles to

perform: (1) humor, (2) status of elevation, (3) aggressiveness and (4) emotional

control. Irony can then be connected to one or more of these roles.

When it comes to humor, it means that the intention of the ironic discourse

is only to provoke humoristic surprise, which is the purpose of this kind of ironic

communication. Status of elevation means that the ironic discourse is produced to be

critic, in order to elevate the status of the speaker or to diminish the status of the one

towards whom the discourse is produced (CONZ, 2010, p. 43).

Aggressiveness occurs when the irony in the discourse is produced as means

of insulting, offending the listener. Finally, when it comes to emotional control, irony is

produced when the speaker demonstrates measures of self-control, a kind of defensive

attitude (CONZ, 2010, p. 44).

At last, Boyd (2004, p. 13), in his article about a Play Theory of Humor,

understands that if the humor phenomenon could be compared to the action of playing,

with the sharing of what is expected and the reactions in face of the unexpected in the

physical play, it would be easier to explain all the concepts Incongruity Theory of

Humor accounts for. Through this comparison and focusing on the importance of the

interaction among individuals in producing humor, Boyd (2004, p.15) proposes a

possibility for the production of sarcasm:

Humor, therefore, like play, is fundamentally social, but that means that it is

also always subject, and at multiple levels, to the competitive as well as the

cooperative. Mockery, sarcasm, scorn, taunts, and satire are part of the ever-

present tension between competition and cooperation (…) (BOYD, 2004, p.

15).

Therefore, sarcasm happens in a given situation and it functions as the

resolution, through the unexpected, of a stimulus or tension which contextualizes it. The

understanding of how these situations are presented and how the social interactions

occur in them, promoting the usage of sarcasm, for any reasons, is the basis for this

study, in an attempt to comprehend the sarcastic discourse of Tyrion Lannister in A

Game of Thrones, why and how it is produced, the way it affects other characters and its

importance and contribution within the narrative.

19

3 METHOD

For the development of this research, the following steps were followed:

1. All the chapters within the book A Game of Thrones which are

narrated through Tyrion Lannister’s point-of-view were isolated;

2. Charts to set apart the different aspects of the character under

analysis (both physical and psychological) were created;

3. All the events in the narrative in which the character uses sarcasm

were separated;

4. The research proceeded with a categorization of his sarcastic

discourse based on the four social roles of irony and the aspects of

sarcasm proposed in Conz (2010);

5. Finally, the results were found by understanding the purposes of

Tyrion’s discourse, basing them on the theories on irony and

sarcasm studied –Attardo (1994) and Conz (2010) in particular – for

the development of this work.

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4 TYRION LANNISTER’S SARCASM IN GAME OF THRONES

4.1 The sarcastic universe of the Imp

Tyrion Lannister is unanimously recognized by readers, fans and reviewers

as a character with a very humorous spirit and a sharp tongue. The importance of his

words to the universe of A Song of Ice and Fire is so intense that, recently, a book of

quotations entirely dedicated to his discourse was published: The Wit and Wisdom of

Tyrion Lannister (Bantam, 2013, 192). All along his journey in A Game of Thrones,

Tyrion Lannister has elaborated the most sarcastic remarks, and the set of his witty

discourse distinguishes his cunning and controversial character.

Tyrion Lannister. Was there ever a wittier, more sarcastic, more interesting

character in the realm of fantasy literature? If there is, I sure haven’t

discovered yet. Tyrion carries a lot of the story as the saga unfolds, and his

chapters get increasingly more interesting as A Game of Thrones progresses

(…). I chuckle and love the way Tyrion doesn’t care what he says, even to

anointed knights. Of course, his big mouth will also turn up to become

troublesome, and I love how GRRM puts in snide remarks not only for the

entertainment, but at the same time building the Tyrion we know and love

(…). (Verhoeve, 2011, p. 69, 71)

A few seconds are certainly enough for one to find hundreds of results on an

online research carrying “Tyrion Lannister” and “sarcasm” as key words. George R. R.

Martin has given readers one of the most fascinating characters in fantastic literature,

the witty and sarcastic dwarf, whose discourse within the books and the HBO series are

the finest and also the most appreciated ones.

The following topic will present the analysis of some sarcastic excerpts of

Tyrion Lannister’s discourse in A Game of Thrones, in an attempt to describe the

context in which they were produced, to understand the character’s motivations in doing

them and, finally, to elucidate their importance for the unfolding of the events within

the narrative of the book.

4.2 The four roles of irony and an analysis of Tyrion’s sarcastic discourse

In this section, some examples of the sarcastic discourse of Tyrion Lannister

will be displayed and analyzed, considering the theory presented in Conz (2010) about

sarcasm motivations and, in order to facilitate the comprehension of the situations in

21

which Tyrion uses sarcasm, subtopics related to the four functions pointed out by that

author will be presented.

Before proceeding with the analysis, it is important to recall Conz (2010)

considerations on sarcasm. She states that saying something negative through positive

discourse is one of the aspects of sarcasm, which is also comprehended as irony. Also,

sarcasm has a target, and can be auto derogatory or targeted to its listeners. Sarcasm can

also be produced in tense and serious situations, functioning as a destructive weapon in

relationships. The last characteristic states that sarcasm can be evaluative and it

evaluates its addressee. This being said, Tyrion’s pieces of discourse will be next

analyzed within the four social roles of irony proposed by Conz (2010), considering the

fours aspects sarcasm can carry.

4.2.1 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and humor

When Tyrion visits Winterfell in order to give Bran, the paraplegic boy of

the Starks, a special saddle which was designed in a way so that he could ride a horse

again, the Imp produces ironic discourse in face of the boy’s hostility towards him:

“I have a gift for you”, the dwarf said to Bran. “Do you like to ride, boy?”

Maester Luwin came forward. “My lord, the child has lost the use of his legs.

He cannot sit a horse”. “Nonsense”, said Lannister. “With the right horse and

the right saddle, even a cripple can ride”. The word was a knife through

Bran’s heart (…) “I’m not a cripple!” “Then I am not a dwarf”, the dwarf

said with a twist of his mouth. “My father will rejoice to hear it”. (Martin,

2011, p. 243)

The passage “Then I’m not a dwarf” in response to Bran’s anger in hearing

that he was now a cripple boy is a clear use of sarcasm as irony. The hostile boy

provides the situation that triggers Tyrion’s instinct to be ironic: he does not actually

mean what he says by standing up for a negative idea, but using a positive one (irony is

used to surmount the boy’s suspicion through good humor). He does not mean to be

rude or to offend Bran, and he makes use of irony to show the boy the importance of

acceptance. Bran is now a paralytic boy, as well as Tyrion is a dwarf man. Accepting

their conditions is a way of becoming stronger in face of the worldly difficulties, and

ironic discourse as means of causing surprise or embarrassment through humor is often

used by Tyrion as a way out in uncomfortable circumstances.

22

Another example of Tyrion’s ironic discourse happens when he is taken

captive to a castle where he once again faces bully. The most important moment in this

chapter happens when Tyrion says he wants to confess. Instead of making a serious

confession, he mocks at the situation and speaks with an ironic sincerity:

“Where to begin? I am a vile little man, I confess it. My crimes and sins are

beyond counting, my lords and ladies. I have lain with whores, not once but

hundreds of times. I have wished my own lord father dead, and my sister, our

gracious queen, as well”. Behind him, someone chuckled. “I have not always

treated my servants with kindness. I have gambled. I have even cheated, I

blush to admit. I have said many cruel and malicious things about the noble

lords and ladies of the court” (…) (Martin, 2011, p. 419, 420).

One more time, Tyrion is exposed to a hostile atmosphere, and here it is

possible to notice that he is trying to have more time to find a way of saving his neck,

and he uses his ironic and funny discourse to embarrass his listeners. His discourse

plays, this way, an important role in keeping him (and the plot which depends on him)

alive.

A last example can be the one when Tyrion becomes friend with Jon Snow.

They then have the following conversation:

“Stop it”, Jon Snow said, his face dark with anger. “The Night’s Watch is a

noble calling!”. Tyrion laughed. “You’re too smart to believe that. The

Night’s Watch is a midden heap for all the misfits of the realm. (…) Sullen

peasants, debtors, poachers, rapers, thieves, and bastards like you all wind

upon the Wall, watching for grumkins and or snarks3 and all the other

monsters your wet nurse warned you about. The good part is there are no

grumkins or snarks, so it’s scarcely dangerous work. The bad part is you

freeze your balls off, but since you’re not allowed to breed anyway, I don’t

suppose that matters”(Martin, 2011, p.125).

As they are trying to establish a good relationship, Tyrion offers the boy his

known sense of humor, but this time just to “break the ice” between them. Affection,

here, allows the first role of irony proposed by Conz (2010) to take place in the Imp’s

discourse.

As Conz (2010) suggests, humor can disarm people from their hostilities,

and Tyrion knows it. Good humor produced within an ironic discourse is once again a

weapon in the dwarf’s tongue.

3 Grumkins and snarks are monster creatures that belong to the folklore of the Seven Kingdoms

(MARTIN, 2011).

23

4.2.2 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and the status of elevation

The reader of A Game of Thrones will face the first glimpse of Tyrion

Lannister’s acid tongue in chapter 9, which is also the first one narrated through

Tyrion’s point-of-view. Tyrion’s arrogant nephew, future king Joffrey Baratheon, is

talking to his personal servant, Sandor Clegane, about Bran and his wolf, and is being

closely observed by his uncle:

Tyrion glanced down and saw the Hound standing with Joffrey as squires

swarmed around them. “At least he dies quietly”, the prince replied. “It’s the

wolf that makes the noise. I could scarce sleep last night”. Clegane cast a

long shadow (…). “I could silence the creature, if it please you”, he said

through his open visor. (…) The notion seemed to delight the prince. (…)

“Winterfell is so infested with wolves, the Starks would never miss one”.

Tyrion hopped off the last step onto the yard. “I beg to differ, nephew”, he

said. “The Starks can count past six. Unlike some princes I might name”.

Joffrey had the grace at least to blush. (Martin, 2011, p. 87)

Here and according to what is proposed by Conz (2010), Tyrion uses

sarcasm to diminish his nephew by making he feels stupid. Through irony and making

of Joffrey his target, Tyrion also evaluates the stupidity of his nephew, suggesting he

cannot count past six. The relation Tyrion cultivates with the members of the Lannister

House is not the best, and he is continuously sparing his sarcasm on them, often with

evaluative sarcasm (MARTIN, 2011). This is how Tyrion protects himself from the

dishonor he represents for his own family and this is how he makes himself strong to

place himself during the important events that permeate A Game of Thrones.

4.2.3 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and aggressiveness

As Tyrion leaves the Night’s Watch and stops by at Winterfell with the

special saddle for Bran Stark, he is received with coldness and distrust by Eddard

Stark’s oldest son, Robb. The reception is a tense moment and they have an initial

misunderstanding (MARTIN, 2011).Tyrion and his party are welcomed at Winterfell by

the following Robb Stark’s words:

“Any man of the Night’s Watch is welcome here at Winterfell for as long as

he wishes to stay”. “Any man of the Night’s Watch”, the dwarf repeated, “but

not me, do I take your meaning boy?”. Robb stood and pointed at the little

man with his sword. “I am the lord here while my mother and father are

24

away, Lannister. I am not your boy”. “If you are a lord, you might learn a

lord’s courtesy”, the little man replied, ignoring the sword pointed to his face.

(Martin, 2011, p. 242)

As the Imp is not received with courtesy by Robb Stark and is also threaten

by the teenager’s sword, he one more time uses his sarcasm to defend himself and his

dignity as a high-born lord and to guard his place of a mature man in face of the young

boy. Here, his discourse is a bit aggressive in response to the asperity in the boy’s words

and the act of evaluation occurs again, as the Imp suggests that the son of Eddard, his

target, is not as polite as he should be for a young lord. This way, Tyrion means to

offend the young lord, using sarcasm to achieve this.

Another example happens after the Imp’s brother is captured during a battle.

Tyrion is now much more involved in the political issues of Westeros and, in a

conversation with a lord, he loses his temper after the lord suggests they could trade

prisoners so Jaime could come back in safety. The Imp replies: “‘Unless they trade

three-for-one, we still come out light on those scales’, Tyrion said acidly. ‘And what are

we to offer for my brother? Lord Eddard’s rotting head?’” (MARTIN, 2011, p. 766).

His ironic discourse in here sounds aggressive to its target, trying to offend him by

making his suggestion sounds stupid. Discourse, here, is also evaluative.

4.2.4 Tyrion Lannister’s sarcasm and emotional control

This particular piece of discourse worth mentioning happens when Tyrion is

already free, now in company of his father, Tywin. His father did not expect to find him

alive, and the following excerpt occurs when Tyrion arrives from the Eyrie, surprising

his dad.

“Sorry to disappoint you, Father”, Tyrion said. “No need to leap up and

embrace me, I wouldn’t want you to strain yourself.” He crossed the room to

their table, acutely conscious of the way his stunted legs made him waddle

with every step. Whenever his father’s eyes were on him, he became

uncomfortably aware of all his deformities and shortcomings. “Kind of you

to go to war for me” (…) “By my lights, it was you who started this”, Lord

Tywin replied. “Your brother Jaime would never have meekly submitted to

capture at the hands of a woman”. [Then Tyrion answers] “That’s one way

we differ, Jaime and I. He’s taller as well, you may have noticed”. (Martin,

2011, p.611, 612).

25

In here, the target of Tyrion’s sarcasm is Lord Tywin, and it is possible to

notice that their relationship, already weak, is increasingly getting worse, and when

father and son are together in the same room, atmosphere becomes tense. Sarcasm is

then used to erode the relationship between Tyrion and Tywin Lannister, and the dwarf

uses his sharp sense of humor to prevent himself of losing his temper in front of his lord

father, this way keeping control of his emotions. As Conz (2010) states, this kind of

ironic role functions as a defensive attitude towards a situation which might somehow

cause pain to the speaker.

4.2.5 When does Tyrion Lannister produce sarcasm and why?

It was possible to identify that there are four situations in which the Imp

produces sarcasm and these situations can be connected to the four roles of irony

proposed by Conz (2010). The first one happens to be the one in which Tyrion is the

dwarf son of Tywin, a malformed member of the Lannister house. The Imp is often

trying not to lose his temper within clear situations that require emotional control. He

must remain strong and behave as a lord, despite his condition, and this is the reason

why he behaves sarcastically.

Second, Tyrion is a dwarf, and dwarves are naturally despised in the world

created by Martin. As a Lannister, Tyrion makes use of sarcasm to return the scorn he

receives, in a status of elevation position, diminishing the ones who attack him through

his intelligence, in order to feel himself superior, at least by the power of his mind.

Third, Tyrion produces sarcasm via an ironic discourse just in order to

establish a humoristic atmosphere in situations that involve a certain kind of affection,

and friendly towards his listeners in this kind of situation is his goal. Humor is the social

role of irony undertaken here.

Finally, Tyrion as a political man in Westeros, having to handle with tough

situations and using aggressiveness to overcome them and to remain respected within

them.

26

5 RESULTS

Tyrion Lannister’s sarcastic discourse, in A Game of Thrones, performs all

the roles described by Conz (2010). At least four contexts within the novel which are

likely to trigger his sarcastic remarks, not always to accomplish the same role, were

identified and, in all of them, Tyrion carried out the social roles of irony. These

contexts, as explained in chapter 4, are:

a) Tyrion as part of the Lannisters: the malformed youngest child,

despised by his proud father and hated by his cold sister (social role

of emotional control);

b) Tyrion as a dwarf in Westeros: although born in a rich and powerful

family, Tyrion is not free of the prejudice the court, the servants and

the general people dedicates to people like him (social role of status

of elevation);

c) Tyrion as an affectionate person: along the narrative, Tyrion finds

himself to develop good relationships (social role of humor);

d) Tyrion as the Hand of the King: dealing directly with the politics in

the Seven Kingdoms (social role of aggressiveness).

The conclusion therefore is that the theory studied in Conz (2010) accounts

for Tyrion Lannister’s production of sarcasm. All situations identified could be

analyzed through the comprehension of the four social roles of irony. Tyrion’s discourse

also falls under the theory proposed by Attardo (1994). His sarcasm is always generated

in one of the four contexts that have been identified (which are “situations”), and in all

of them there is a “trigger” to put forth the joke itself. His discourse is often a way of

concluding an uncomfortable situation or moving away a threatening one.

The importance of his discourse within the narrative can also be assured, as

Tyrion’s words and intelligence function as a kind of fuel that allows him to move on

inside the narrative events. His strength and capacity of survival depend on his sarcastic

discourse to exist, and these ones compound a bright side of Tyrion Lannister in A

Game of Thrones.

27

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