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| Catelyn meets Ned at the godswood. Catelyn is portrayed by Michelle Fairley and Ned Stark by Sean Bean |
Summary
This chapter is told from the perspective of Catelyn Tully, Lord Stark’s wife. She is in the godswood, a sacred religious place specially for worshiping the old gods.
However, she doesn’t like the godswood of the Starks. The godswood she remembers at the Tully home of Riverrun in the South, was brighter, more pleasant and one she’s more familiar with. The Stark godswood was darker, brooding and more depressing in her opinion.
We are introduced to a special ancient tree known as ‘The Heart Tree’ which is said to be hundreds of years old and the symbol of Winterfell. Every castle has its own godswood and heart tree.
Catelyn meets her husband in the godswood cleaning his sword, Ice, in repentance. We learn that the youngest Stark boy, Rickon Stark, is only 3 years old. The girls, Arya and Sansa, like their Direwolves but Rickon is afraid of his. Lord Stark We learn that the Stark motto is ‘Winter is Coming’.
Eddard ‘Ned‘ Stark, mentions that the man he beheaded (aka Gared) died full of fear. He also says that his brother Ben, based in the Night’s Watch , says lots of men are dying on missions. Ned blames this on the Wildlings beyond the Wall and states that the Starks should ride up north one day and kill them all. We also learn that creepy Others and mystical beasts live north of the Wall but they haven’t been sighted for a long time so they’re a thing of the past.
Catelyn breaks some unpleasant news to her husband that his foster father, Lord Jon Arryn is dead. Lord Jon Arryn was based in the Eyrie and had no children of his own. He fostered Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon, who is now the current King. Later, Lord Jon Arryn also became Ned’s brother-in-law when they both married the Tully sisters - Catelyn Tully was married to Ned while, Lysa Tully was married to Jon. Lysa, now widowed, has a son and they live in the Eyrie.
After Ned tells Catelyn to go to her sister in the Eyrie, she reveals other news: King Robert is visiting Winterfell and they have to receive him. He didn’t really give them any prior notice. Catelyn is uneasy because of the Omen of the dead Direwolf that was killed by a Stag. We can assume that the Stag sigil is that of House Baratheon.
We learn that King Robert Baratheon’s wife is Cersei Lannister and the Starks don’t get along with the Lannisters. They’re based in Casterly Rock and their entourage will be coming to visit too. Despite everything, Ned Stark is glad to see King Robert as he has not seen him in years.
Analysis
Themes and Topics
-Religion
-History
-Family relations
-Customs and traditions
-Death/ fear of it
- Culture shock/ home sickness - Catelyn is homesick and thinks of her home in Riverrun. She’s not quite adapted to Stark customs and culture as she’s a Tully.
- Omens and Mysteries of the Unknown
-War mongering for the sake of ’homeland security’ - the Starks want to kill off the Wildlings beyond the war.
-Fear leads to Hate - the Starks fear the Wildlings and blame the deaths of the Night’s Watch on them.
-Power and Politics/ arranged marriages of people of same social status (Lords marry Ladies)
We are introduced to Catelyn Tully, wife of Ned Stark. She’s a foreigner from the South and is clearly homesick. She misses her home in Riverrun and describes the great contrast between the godswood in her home vs. the one the Starks have at Winterfell. “The godswood there was a garden, bright and airy, where tall redwoods spread dappled shadows across tinkling streams…. The gods of Winterfell kept a different sort of wood. It was a dark, primal place…. It smelled of moist earth and decay.”
This also shows the difference in mindset between the Tullys and the Starks. The Tullys seemed to be a brighter, more pleasant household vs. the Starks that were more brooding, grounded and sullen. Lord Stark would go to his godswood to seek remorse every time he took a man’s life. It’s a more reflective place for him. While for Catelyn, the godswood was said to be more personable. The Tullys are more people oriented people ‘Her gods had names and their faces were as familiar as the faces of her parents.’ while the Starks treated the old gods like a natural force. ‘his own gods were the old ones, the nameless, faceless gods of the greenwood…’
‘The Heart Tree’ is like the sacred life force of Winterfell. And it was a creepy aged tree. ‘a face had been carved in the trunks of the great tree, its features long and melancholy, the deep-cut eyes red with dried sap and strangely watchful. They were old, those eyes; older than Winterfell itself.’ Catelyn doesn’t like this tree and she felt unease as if those eyes were always watching her.
Catelyn tells Ned that her daughters, Arya and Sansa like their Direwolves, except Rickon, who's 3 years old and is a little afraid of them. Ned broods and says his son needs to grow up fast "He must learn to face his fears, He will not be 3 forever." We thus learn that Stark upbringing encourages that boys should toughen up fast because its a dangerous world out there, full of death and things out to get you.
We learn the Stark family motto is ‘Winter is Coming’, which Catelyn finds weird and foreign. ‘Every noble house had its words. Family mottoes, touchstones, prayers of sorts, they boasted of honor and glory, promised loyalty and truth, swore faith and courage. All but the Starks. Winter is coming, said the Stark words. Not for the first time, she reflected on what a strange people these northerners were.’
Winter is Coming, is kind of a warning of doom and dread. Winter, is a dangerous season as we read in the prologue, the cold is enough to kill people. So the Stark motto is more like an ominous toiling bell that bad stuff is coming. Sounds awfully depressing.
We learn more about Ned Stark’s mystical sword, Ice. It’s a sight to behold that even Catelyn, who doesn’t like swords, admits that it is a beautiful weapon. ‘Catelyn had no love for swords, but she could not deny that Ice had its own beauty’. The sword was forged in Valyria and the ironsmiths would forge the blade with magic as well as hammers. Ice is said to be 400 years old and is still sharp till present day. The sword is a family heirloom and has been around since Ned’s ancestors were Kings in the North.
Ned talks about the man he executed, saying that this was the fourth guy who deserted the Night’s Watch. He also notes that the man was mad with fear. ‘The poor man was half-mad. Something had put a fear in him so deep that my words could not reach him.’. He blames the recent deaths and losing of men on Night’s Watch missions to that of the Wildlings, the ‘creatures’ beyond the Wall. He’s determined to ride up there one day with an army and kill them off.
Ned’s understanding of Wildlings is also very limited, all he knows is they’re a force to be reckoned with and should be eradicated. A rather simplistic view of foreigners but I suppose the Wildlings are based so far north and no one has much information about them, all they know is they’re been branded an enemy and should be destroyed.
Catelyn believes in the supernatural and is fearful of it. She talks about ’darker things beyond the Wall’ and chooses to believe in the Others and other creepy things beyond the Wall as described by Old Nan. Ned on the other hand, thinks its all hogwash and rather believe in facts. ‘The Others are as dead as the children of the forest, gone eight thousand years…. No living man has ever seen one.’
Catelyn breaks some unfortunate news: Ned’s foster father, Lord Jon Arryn has died.
Lord Arryn, based in the Eyrie, had no children. He fostered Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon, who is now the current King. When the previous king, Mad King Aerys Targaryen demanded for Ned and Robert’s heads, Lord Jon Arryn rose up and revolted against the Mad King. Eventually, Lord Jon Arryn also became Ned’s brother-in-law as he married Catelyn’s sister, Lysa Tully. Lysa is now widowed and has one child, a boy.
Ned tells Catelyn to go to Eyrie to see her widowed sister because he understands she means a lot to her. ‘Take the children. Fill her halls with noise and shouts and laughter.’
But Catelyn knows she can’t.. because she also breaks the news that King Robert is coming to visit Winterfell, and they have to receive him. He didn’t give any prior notice. Ned hasn’t seen his half-brother for many years and is excited.
Catelyn wants to be happy at the news but her fear of the dead Direwolf omen disturbs her. ‘but she had heard the talk in the yards; a Direwolf dead in the snow, a broken antler in its throat. Dread coiled within her like a snake, but she forced herself to smile at this man she lived.’
We are sort of led to put two-and-two together, if the Direwolf is the sigil of House Stark, the Stag must be the sigil of House Baratheon, the house of King Robert. Catelyn fears something really bad could go wrong but she hopes for the best.
We also learn that King Robert’s wife, Queen Cersei, is from House Lannister. The Lannisters do not get along with the Starks because they came late to aid Robert Baratheon in war, they only came when ‘victory was all but certain‘. In other words, the Lannisters were kind of cowardly dicks who only came round to help when things looked favorable, well, according to Lord Stark anyway.
Catelyn warns her husband to guard his tongue because the Queen is a powerful woman. ‘The Lannister woman is our queen, and her pride is said to grow with every passing year.’
Chapter Impressions
Another power packed chapter with lots of history, info about religion, family relation stuff and more info about the prominent families related to the characters.
It’s sweet that Catelyn and Ned love each other in a formal, business like way like a good ol married couple. They have been married for 15 years and they’re still doing ok. But despite that, Catelyn is still resistant of Stark custom and culture but she loves Ned and he loves her too.
This is the first time we hear Ned lose someone close to him. The death of Jon Arryn does affect Catelyn too as her sister is now a widow. The death has also brought the both of them together and now with the King’s visit, they’ll have to work together to entertain King Robert and also his queen, Cersei Lannister.
That nagging feeling of the Dead Direwolf being killed by a stag is kind of ominous. Like something could happen, there’s a warning sign there.
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