Game of Thrones was, at one point, the biggest television show in the world during its run on HBO, producing some of the finest hours of TV, depicting the fantasy land of Westeros. Game of Thrones became known for its interweaving storylines, featuring Daenerys Targaryen’s ascent from a powerless wife to the almighty and powerful Mother of Dragons, Jon Snow’s journey from a Night’s Watch Brother to King of the North, and the continuous chaos surrounding the treacherous Lannisters.
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Throughout its eight seasons, Game of Thrones has featured numerous characters who serve as teachers, guiding their students to tap into their full potential. Here are some of the most fascinating and best student-teacher relationships in Westeros and Essos.
Warning! Spoilers Ahead!
For much of Bran Stark’s existence as a Warg, the Three-Eyed Raven had been directing and luring Bran beyond the Wall, in hopes of making him his successor. Found to be an old man stuck in a cave, the Three-Eyed Raven teaches Bran the basics of seeing into the future and the past, a talent Bran would need to harness in the wars to come, specifically, the Battle of Winterfell against the Night King.
While Bran is overeager in his training when viewing key moments in the past, the Three-Eyed Raven attempts to quell his eagerness. However, Bran’s attempts to peer into the past and the present result in the Night King gaining hold of him, allowing the undead to swarm their protective cave. In one of GOT’s saddest episodes, the Three-Eyed Raven, the Children of the Forest, and Hodor meet their end, with Bran taking his short but valuable learnings to help protect the future of Westeros, now inheriting the Three-Eyed Raven moniker from his teacher.
The devious schemer from the shadows, Littlefinger, while grooming Sansa Stark, unknowingly produced a political expert who would have a hand in his demise. After lusting over Catelyn Stark for decades, Petyr Baelish turns his attention to Sansa, helping the troubled hostage escape from King’s Landing during Joffrey Baratheon’s death at his grand wedding. As Littlefinger takes Sansa back north, the slimy manipulator starts to show Sansa the ropes of politicking and scheming, even despite his actions resulting in Sansa’s traumatic time as the wife of the vile Ramsay Bolton.
Despite Littlefinger’s gross infatuation and grooming of Sansa, the Lady of Winterfell is taught many valuable lessons, which ultimately contribute to her mentor’s demise, as the Stark siblings team up to end Littlefinger’s nefarious ways. Sansa’s astute political mind comes into play after Baelish’s execution, with Sansa soon taking the throne in the north, reigning as Queen, a powerful position Littlefinger wished to attain.
While Sandor Clegane, otherwise known as The Hound, would never be considered a traditional teacher, the former lapdog of Joffrey rubs off on Arya Stark, his energetic prisoner. After The Hound takes Arya hostage after their run-in with the Brotherhood Without Banners, The Hound’s natural displeasure with people and his bluntness start to seep into Arya’s behavior.
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Even after Arya leaves The Hound for dead after his defeat by Brienne of Tarth, their reunion sees Clegane try to guide Arya away from her vengeance tour, showing care and affection for someone other than himself.
In terms of power players in King’s Landing, the dynamic duo of Olenna Tyrell and her granddaughter Margaery Tyrell proves to be elegant yet intelligent schemers, with Olenna teaching Margaery all her secrets on how to manipulate and acquire what she wants. Once the Tyrells were brought into the royal fold, when they joined Tywin Lannister’s army in defeating Stannis Baratheon’s invasion, Olenna and Margaery’s plotting led to Margaery marrying into the royal family, becoming a nuisance to Cersei and Tywin Lannister as they fought for control in the capital.
After Olenna, alongside Littlefinger, eliminates the monstrous Joffrey from the equation, Olenna’s words of wisdom help Margaery seduce King Tommen Baratheon, firmly establishing a strong position against the Lannisters, with Margaery playing the game effectively thanks to her grandmother’s sage counsel.
On Arya’s path to becoming a deadly assassin, her youthful exuberance and eagerness to fight led her father, Ned Stark, to hire the Former First Sword of Braavos, Syrio Forel, to teach Arya the ways of swordplay, setting Arya down a treacherous path full of violence. Syrio’s exotic and playful approach to teaching captures the heart and attention of Arya, as her lessons in Braavosi water dancing are put to use later in GOT.
Perhaps Syrio’s greatest parting of wisdom comes in his teachings of the god of death, with Arya becoming its true embodiment over the next few years after Meryn Trant presumably slays Syrio. As revenge for her teacher, Arya savagely brutalizes and assassinates Trant while in Braavos, Syrio’s homeland, a perfect location to avenge the first of her many teachers.
Despite begrudgingly taking on Podrick Payne as her squire, Brienne and Podrick come to be a formidable duo, with Brienne showing Podrick the ways of chivalry. When Tyrion Lannister is accused of murdering King Joffrey, Jaime Lannister and Bronn ship Podrick off for his protection to Brienne, aiding her on her journey to rescue the Stark daughters, Sansa and Arya.
Although Podrick’s overenthusiasm is a nuisance to Brienne in their early days together, the Sapphire Isle warrior can turn Podrick into a capable fighter, as he and Brienne would become involved in the Battle of Winterfell against the hordes of the undead. Brienne and her squire soon form a solid relationship built on trust, as their time together lasts till the end of the show, with the pair becoming members of Bran Stark’s Kingsguard, rising high in the world as esteemed knights, with Brienne’s guidance paying off for Podrick.
After her father’s death, Arya travels back north with Yoren and comes across Jaqen H’ghar, a nonchalant assassin whom Arya helps out of a pickle. From then on, Arya would use Jaqen’s service at Harrenhal, killing Lannister guards to allow Arya and her friends to make a grand escape. When Arya later sets sail for Braavos, Arya becomes a student under Jaqen’s watch at the base of operations for the Faceless Men, an elite force of assassins capable of disguising themselves as other people using collected faces.
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Despite being keen to follow in Jaqen’s footsteps, Arya finds the Faceless Men’s training to be challenging and restrictive, as Jaqen’s strict rules lead to Arya having her vision stripped after taking the life of Trant. While their relationship turns sour, the harsh lessons Jaqen imposed on Arya later come to bear fruit, with Arya’s assassin methods eliminating notable figures such as Walder Frey and the Night King.
While Jon became one of the most powerful leaders in all the Seven Kingdoms, his journey to reach the King of the North title all stems back to his days at The Night’s Watch, where Jeor Mormont, the Lord Commander, personally picked out Jon to shadow him in his duties. Often hotheaded and reckless, Jeor attempts to steer Jon into the path of leadership and wisdom, with Jeor taking a keen liking to the bastard of Winterfell.
Besides imparting sage advice to Jon, Jeor even goes ahead and gifts his valerian steel sword, Longclaw, to Jon, seeing him as his eventual successor and future Lord Commander, which he would go on to achieve, much in thanks to Jeor’s worthwhile lectures.
2011 – 2019-00-00
David Benioff, D.B. Weiss
David Nutter, Alan Taylor, D.B. Weiss, David Benioff
Isaac Hempstead Wright
Brandon Bran Stark
