How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Narrator.Paragraph)
Quote #7
"Theon wants me to yield the castle," Bran said as the maester was fastening the cloak with his favorite wolf's-head clasp of silver and jet.
"There is no shame in that. A lord must protect his smallfolk. Cruel places breed cruel peoples, Bran, remember that as you deal with these ironmen. Your lord father did what he could to gentle Theon, but I fear it was too little and too late." (47.Bran.37-38)
For that matter, the smallfolk seem to do a good amount of dying, too. So what does this social setup do for them? Just like in medieval feudalism, the local vassals protect the peasants from raiders and invaders. Thought it seems the lords of the Seven Kingdoms have been slacking on this responsibility lately.
Quote #8
"Just as if I was one of those true knights you love so well, yes. What do you think a knight is for, girl? You think it's all taking favors from ladies and looking fine in gold plate? Knights are for killing." (53.Sansa.46)
The knight job serves a social function that—when you think about it—is pretty nasty, but arguably necessary. To hide this nastiness, the society fancies up the exploits of knights with romantic tales and pageantry. Of course, these types of stories went out of fashion after the Middle Ages. Right?
Quote #9
"Only fools like Thoren Smallwood despise the wildlings. They are as brave as we are, Jon. As strong, as quick, as clever. But they have no discipline. They name themselves the free folk, and each one thinks himself as good as a king and wiser than a maester. Mance was the same. He never learned how to obey." (54.Jon.17)
The wildlings employ a communal society where everyone is viewed as an equal, but Qhorin believes this social structure is where the wildlings fall short. Given what you've seen with kings running the show, which society do you think is more on point?