Realism and Representation in Game of Thrones

The world of Game of Thrones is not that different from our own. Despite the dragons and face-changing assassins, the concepts of power struggles, familial ties and loyalty are as equally important (though differently handled) in reality. The narrative of Game of Thrones is loosely based on ancient European history with a particular emphasis on the conflicts in Scotland and its rivalry with England. Nevertheless, the reality created within Game of Thrones is an internal one, as is clearly seen in the use of mise en scéne and the general lack of a modern order within the societies portrayed. However, such a situation alone would be near impossible for any audience to relate with. Therefore, the programme is granted verisimilitude via the use of character, history and representation as the basic struggles, archetypes and personalities which most audiences can accept to be true today and mayhap in a more medieval (and fictional) time Game of Thrones encourages the audience to believe.

Within the scene of Tommen Lannister’s coronation as King of Westeros in the fourth series of the show, the world is presented in the view of the Lannister family, one of the most powerful families within the narrative. The way in which the attending members are represented clarifies the internal realism of the series. The opening shot of the scene is a long, wide, extended shot which pans in from the right and focusses on the multiple characters in deep space. The movement in from the right is notable as it is the reverse of what is typically associated in the presence of powerful characters. A common convention of visual and print media is the focus of key characters, objects, text etc. in the centre-right of the frame; by coming in from the right the movement connotes that the scene currently unfolding is not the most important event occurring at this point in the narrative, suggesting that the crowning of Tommen is not as influential to the narrative as his family believes and claims in the development of the scene. This movement represents Tommen, and the Lannister family, as weak and unimportant. This is supported in the use of a long shot with the characters in deep space at the top of the frame as it makes them comparatively small in relation to the frame as well as making the watching crowd far larger than them in the spacing of the shot. This implies that the masses have more power and are possibly about to rise above the Lannister’s who, whilst currently at the top of the social hierarchy (as is connoted by placing them at the top of the shot), are fading into the distance.   Furthermore, the camera movement here is the reverse of the way an individual would naturally look or read. This suggests to the audience that the Lannister family is a step-back in the reality of Game of Thrones, prior evolution and progress has been ignored and the Lannister family are represented to have brought the people back into a time of darkness; this is supported through the use of natural low-key lighting which casts all but the King into partial darkness. In extension, the placement of a backlighting window over Tommen creates a halo effect around him (especially when he is seen through mid-close ups several times after this shot), representing the young King as largely innocent and naïve of the world he has been thrown into and it is instead the actions of his older family which are causing the darkness around him. Resultantly, the audience is made to believe that the reality of the Westerosi monarchy is similar to many real societies; those at the top are obsessed with power but they are uncaring or perhaps ignorant to the greater issues they are causing in society and how close they are coming to being revolted against entirely. This is best presented by the ending camera movement and editing. As the last shot of the scene ends it begins to fade to black, at this point the camera pans to the left- a more natural progressive movement- into a brightly lit scene showing Daenerys Targaryen who is most commonly believed to be the rightful Queen of Westeros. Here Daenerys is represented as the powerful leader that Westeros deserves; someone who will move it into the present in a less macabre fashion.

Essential to this sequence is the resulting conversation between the Queen Mother, Cersei Lannister, and the Queen Regent, Margaery Tyrell. The pair converse on an internal balcony on the left side of the hall. The balcony is strongly shadowed with the only visible light source coming from a small window above Margaery. Margaery initially appears alone on the balcony to catch the King’s - Her future husband- attention in the busy room, Cersei quickly blocks her view before joining her. Both women have similar appearances- blond hair, pale skin, tapered eyebrows, natural makeup and dark-coloured extravagant dresses- this physical presentation signifies both women as powerful and characteristically similar. Both Cersei and Margaery are power hungry and desperate for control which they have obtained, and lost, through marriage to kings who died, relinquishing them of their power. Even without the background knowledge of the show, it is clear to the audience they have similar intentions. Their dialogue is crisp and proper but dripping with passive aggression, as if the women are in competition with each other. The editing of the conversation is kept short; a series of mid shot and close-ups that swap between the two individual women and them as a pair. This clipped style symbolises the direct, but not elaborate, relationship of the pair. Particularly, the more common use of close-ups of one of the subjects uses blocking to position each woman in the foreground (a position of power and focus). This indicates the competition between them, with one constantly trying to ‘up’ the other. Meanwhile the singular-subject shot with very minimal background indicates each woman as self-obsessed, making sure the audience sees them as isolated, independent figures who are too obsessed with their personal, petty disagreements to recognise their similarity- which can be physically seen in a wider, mid-shot- and how by utilising that similarity they could construct a situation beneficial to both of them. This is supported by the use of natural side-lighting during the close-ups, the half of the subject’s face adjacent to the unseen character is always shadowed, symbolising how each of the women are attempting to keep the other in the dark regarding their next power play. Therefore, the constrictive and isolating nature of mise en scéne during this conversation represents Cersei and Margaery as women naïve of the more general issues of their reality (such as revolution) as the opening shot of the scene suggests. Mayhap this causes the world of Game of Thrones to lack internal verisimilitude as how could two highly intelligent and powerful people be so ignorant of the hatred and bigger issues surrounding them? However, it is possible that this is not a realistic representation but rather a stereotypical one whereby the show’s creators are attempting to portray the two fickle women as nothing more than ‘dumb blondes’- an image that could be placed over the entirety of the Lannister family by association.

Alternatively, this section of dialogue could be utilise to comment on the reality of woman’s power in the world of Game of Thrones. The balcony Cersei and Margaery converse upon is part of a walkway on the side of the room. It is physically higher than the level on which the throne sits and the floor where the guests are mingling. Initially this suggests to the audience that these women are powerful, enough so to control the actions of the King and his people, which they do. However, this placement also gives the impression that Cersei and Margaery are being made to stand on a pedestal as figures of beauty rather than influence. This is suggested through the use of natural, soft lighting that hits the two women front-on. Rather than exposing them, the light blurs their flaws and appears to make them glow, this is furthered by the light from the small window above Margaery which gives her a slightly angelic appearance as the light falls upon her. In comparison, the aforementioned close-ups utilise a harsher form of light which accentuates their flaws, such as the signs of age on Cersei’s face. The fact all these forms of light appear natural implies that women aren’t meant to be in the spotlight- suggesting to the audience that in the world of Game of Thrones power is an ugly trait on women. However, the higher positioning of the women also speaks massively towards the nature of power in women. At several points the conversation is seen through a long, low-angle shot of the women on the walkway. The long shot emphasises the emptiness of both shallow and deep space, but also the darkness surrounding the women, representing them as being isolated and without support, but also nothing in the way of them moving on, walking forward. The combination of lighting, the low-angle and the presentation of space connotes that not only is it hard for a woman to gain power (as is suggested by their heightened appearance due to the low-angle) but they have to do it entirely alone and sometimes that just isn’t enough to reach the end goal. Therefore, the techniques employed in this scene may not only represent women as objects and stereotypes, but also as victims of a faulted societal construct. This has verisimilitude to our reality and may be used by the creators of Game of Thrones to create another point of relation to the internal reality for the audience.