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If there’s one character on GOT I relate to the most (besides Tyrion), it’s Sansa Stark. At the start of the show (and books) she annoyed the hell out of me and most fans; she was a spoilt brat who couldn’t see what a total arsehole Joffrey was. Her badass sister Arya was way cooler. Eight seasons later and Sansa’s become one of my favourite characters, and I seriously hope she will survive to the end and rule the north with Tyrion as her husband.
(Post will contain spoilers for Game of Thrones Season 8.)
Vulnerable Beginnings
Sansa represents the growth of a naive, vulnerable girl into a resilient woman. At the beginning, she is the dainty daughter of a rich house who wants to marry a prince and live happily ever after in King’s Landing. She adores Joffrey and believes he is her perfect soulmate. Obviously after the first season she realises he is an evil heartless monster. She goes from being a pain to someone we sympathise deeply with. In King’s Landing she suffers horrible emotional abuse at the hands of the Lannisters and Littlefinger, all of whom keep her a prisoner in the south, isolated from her family.
She goes on to marry Tyrion, and rather than realising she’s the luckiest girl alive, she views it as punishment. Tyrion may be loved by fans, but in the world of Westeros he is an ugly drunken dwarf. Certainly not what Sansa pictured; instead of a loving husband and beautiful children, she got a cruel stepmother (Cersei), creepy godfather (Littlefinger), nasty almost-husband (Joffrey), and unpopular spouse (Tyrion). Cersei does teach Sansa a lot about resilience and playing the game as a woman in a man’s world. It’s clear to see Sansa has some respect for Lady Lannister in Season 7 when she discusses her with Jon.
Terror of Ramsay
But the worst thing to happen to Sansa was, say it with me folks: Ramsay Bolton. Sansa doesn’t marry Ramsay in the books, but in the show she does and it is awful. One of the most heartbreakingly disturbing scenes is when Ramsay and Sansa consumate their marriage (Sansa and Tyrion never did so were never ‘really married’ by the law of the land) and Ramsay forces Theon to watch. The camera slowly closes in on Theon’s weeping face, seeing his practically sister getting raped by the man who destroyed his life. (By the way, after Episode 3 of Season 8 I can’t think of Theon without crying – truly one of the best written characters in the show).
The Sansa Stark Redemption
Redemption comes for Sansa when Theon helps her escape (still wondering how the fuck they survived jumping off the ridiculously high wall of Winterfell, but then again people walk through fire in this show). We see her growth strengthen when she gets the knights of the vale to help Jon take back the north in the Battle of the Bastards. We see her as the Lady of Winterfell, no longer a silly naive bimbo who believes that a man will come to rescue her. Sansa puts her family first. She will make an amazing ruler and I can’t wait to see how things pan out for her.
Also, never thought I’d say this but I like her more than Daenerys now. Dany has been getting increasingly arrogant and tyrannical to the point where I’m thinking she and Cersei are the main villains now. Sansa endured more than Daenerys and she didn’t have three dragons to back her up, and she truly cares for her people and shows her worth as a leader rather than basing it on her name, claim and titles. Maybe Sansa will team up with Jon to kill Dany, the love of his life but unfortunate villain. That’ll be bittersweet for sure. Long live the Starks!
Poem I wrote inspired by Sansa’s character:
She Grew Up
Sansa gazed out the window
Waiting for the prince she was promised
A sight of golden blonde hair
And blue eyes like his mother’s.
He’d whisper sweet words in her ear
Tell her she was his one and only
Together they’d ride to the sunset
On their shared white horse.
Yet as the prince stepped closer
Sansa began to notice things
His harsh jeers and laughs
Mocking all within his path
Prince Joffrey seemed so perfect
Yet why was he so arrogant?
For a brave gallant young man
He was nought but a coward
Joffrey snapped and snarled, that sadist
Discarded all he deemed inferior
Sansa’s perfect dream was shattered
As she saw beneath the mask
To her horror, this shining prince
Mounted daddy’s head on a stick
And so Sansa finally realised
Fairy tales do not exist
After many years of hurting
And pining for true love
Sansa learned the best love
Was there all along
She knew her true power
Was running through her veins
Little girl finally grew up
Seeing the ‘prince’ was her reflection.
16th July 2018
Taken from Art is a Waste of Time, my debut poetry collection. Download the eBook for free here or check out the paperback via my website.
Other GOT Character Analyses:
Jon Snow: The Prince Who Was Promised
Theon Greyjoy: The Tragic Traitor
Margaery Tyrell: The ‘Perfect’ Vixen
Cersei Lannister: A Complex Villain
Daenerys Targaryen: Hero or Villain?
