Season 7 of HBO's Game of Thrones just wrapped up, but the speculation and commentary still rages on. A few weeks ago, I reviewed a book about medieval warfare in Game of Thrones. This time, I take a look at You Win or You Die: The Ancient World of Game of Thrones by Ayelet Haimson Lushkov, Associate Professor of Classics at the University of Texas at Austin. This book analyzes Game of Thrones from the perspective of Greco-Roman literature, showing how ancient epics from our own world can help us better understand Westeros.
The title of this book is a bit confusing, so to be clear: this book isn't about the ancient history of the world of Westeros (for that, see George R.R. Martin's World of Ice & Fire). Rather, Lushkov uses ancient literature from our own history in order to analyze Game of Thrones. This book is best described as a literary analysis of key themes/aspects in Game of Thrones that also appeared in ancient literature. Unlike books about Medieval European history and Game of Thrones, the parallels between the Greco-Roman world and Westeros aren't immediately clear. Westeros looks, sounds, and probably smells like medieval Europe. As Ken Mondschein points out in Game of Thrones and the Medieval Art of War, George R.R. Martin even uses many real-world medieval terms to describe armor and weapons in his works. By contrast, Robert Baratheon isn't an emperor, Daenerys doesn't ride around in a chariot, and the Lannisters don't wear togas.
So, why bother with a book about Greco-Roman literature and Game of Thrones? Lushkov argues that certain themes and institutions in Game of Thrones resemble those of Greco-Roman epics, such as The Iliad, and thus can be analyzed the same way. The most obvious example is the parallel between the Wall manned by the Night's Watch to keep out the Wildlings and Hadrian's wall in Roman Britannia to keep out the "barbarians." Another example is feasts. Feasts in Greco-Roman stories often herald grave misfortune or wrongdoing. In one such myth, Atreus, sought vengeance on his brother Thyestes by cooking and serving up his children at a feast (sound familiar?).
Ultimately, Lushkov's goal is to try to better understand Game of Thrones by looking at parallels with ancient literature. Sometimes this works really well. She spends an entire chapter on what stories of Greco-Roman youth can tell us about the relationship between Renly Baratheon and Set Loras Tyrell, and why it's so important to the overall story (she makes a fascinating case). Her discussion of slavery in Westeros is particularly useful because that's one institution present during the Greco-Roman era that wasn't as prevalent during the Middle Ages. As she points out, slavery in ancient times - and in Westeros - wasn't determined by race, as it would become hundreds of years later. On the other hand, her attempt to transpose Polybius's model of political regimes onto Westeros doesn't work quite as well; although some rulers are obviously more tyrannical than others, Game of Thrones does not explicitly or implicitly deal with what the Greeks and Romans would have considered democracy.
For the most part, Lushkov doesn't claim that Greco-Roman myths directly influenced George R.R. Martin, and for good reason. Whereas Martin has publicly spoken about the influence of medieval history, especially the War of the Roses, he has spoken far less about Greco-Roman myth. Of course, Greek and Roman stories influenced Medieval Europe, so they could have influenced Martin indirectly. As Mark Twain said, history might not repeat itself, but it often rhymes.
In fact, given all of the topics that the book does cover, I was surprised that it never touched upon how the Greco-Roman world influenced the Middle Ages. Medieval Europeans knew that they lived in the shadow of the ancient world. They could see Roman ruins all around them, priests conducted mass in Latin, and kings, such as Charlemagne, sought to claim the mantle of Holy Roman Emperor. This sense of medieval Europe living in the shadow of a more advanced Roman civilization echoes the role of Old Valyria in Game of Thrones. The Valyrian Freehold was an ancient superpower in Essos that used dragons as weapons of war. It was destroyed in a mysterious even known as the Doom of Valyria, but Valyrian remnants can still be seen around Essos, much like Roman ruins in Europe. It's still unclear what if any role the the Valyrians will play in the story, so it would be fascinating to see what hints Medieval conceptions of ancient Rome might tell us about the Valyria.

[Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.]

I enjoyed reading author George R. R. Martin’s books. I also enjoyed reading “The Iliad,” “The Odyssey,” and Greek mythology. Drawing parallels between current and classic literature as a way to enhance my understanding of A Game of Thrones proved to be a different experience.

Author Ayelet Haimson Lushkov possesses a wealth of knowledge, and it was wonderful to review the ancient stories I had already read while she provided a detailed understanding of them. Fans of A Game of Thrones should know that the book does live up to its billing, providing essential reading for anyone interested in the creation of George R. R. Martin’s Westeros. Readers seeking similarities between A Game of Thrones and ancient stories and legends will find much to entertain them in this book.

There are times when the comparisons become similar to after-the-game quarterbacking. When you squeeze every last possibility out of a story, one begins to see things that possibly were not intentionally planned out by author Martin. I find it hard to believe that the battle between the Clegane brothers was a foretelling of the future, or that “…the disruption of the games suggests that the future is uncertain and dangerous…” is nothing more than a part of the story Martin is relating to us. In these types of instances, I felt the author went too far.

Overall, while the examination of the classic literature was a treat, I personally didn’t enjoy the relating of past stories with present ones. However, my personal enjoyment should not be the basis for my review or rating. The book is wonderfully written, and Ms. Lushkov’s extensive knowledge of the classics seems unparalleled. Inquisitive fans seeking an enhancement of the book’s (and show’s) background should give this book a read. Four stars.

What happens when a classicist reads Game of Thrones

This is so much fun as Lushkov unpicks the classical influences that exist in the GoT books. I've read something similar where a medievalist reads the books as a reception of medieval culture, and this book is both a good companion to that and a testament to the wide range of intertextual influences that comprise and underpin the books.

Organised largely around the household, warriors, epic heroes and politics, this ranges widely and cleverly between the classical world and its literature, and Martin's books, illuminating and deepening the latter.

Beware, this inevitably contains spoilers (I had to skim so bits!) but it's an informed look at a contemporary phenomenon, and adds to the literature on classical receptions in popular culture.

To be posted on Amazon and GoodReads