an unsolicited ramble about Jon Snow

[pocochina]

So in my Jon/Ygritte post a few days ago I said I was going to hold off on doing my whole thing about Jon and bastardry, and then in comments I started inadvertently doing my whole thing about Jon and bastardry anyway, so I thought I'd write at least some of it out.

Comments

[horatios]

Now, gods, stand up for bastards!

... :D

[pocochina]

BUT FOR REAL

[horatios]

Edmund made A+, 400% valid points throughout the entire play, tbh. A strange kind of strangled moaning sound escaped me the first time I saw him die. HE WAS BORN IN THE LUSTY STEALTH OF NATURE! PLUS HE HAD MORE COMPOSITION AND FIERCE QUALITY. Liiiiiiiiike.

[pocochina]

ha, yeah, it's been a while since I read Lear, but TOTALLY Team Edmund.

That said, I think Jon is a neat deconstruction of that literary archetype in some ways? Because I feel like the general expectation people have is "it's OKAY to be an outsider as long as you REACT RIGHT and either become our rebel iconoclast, or trip and fall into a narrative where ~~power falls to you (though you did not get above yourself by actually desiring it) and you ~~nobly but unwillingly accept." Neither of those are particularly fair expectations? And I feel like Jon's response of wanting to get some recognition but not wanting to SMASH THE SYSTEM!!! is...just a very honest conflict, you know?