College class blends Game of Thrones and Medieval history

In recent years, we’ve seen more and more Game of Thrones-themed college courses pop up. They’ve focused on everything from religion to historical figures to war to the more granular R+L=J theory. Virginia Tech University is the latest to join the pack with a Game of Thrones-themed class centered on medieval history.

Virginia TV station WSLS-10 recently took a look at the online class and at professor Matthew Gabriele, who combined his passion for medieval studies with his love for the show. The course concentrates on three major themes: power and politics, the role of women, and the fantasy element of dragons.

“Most people have never read an academic history book about the Middle Ages but a lot of people have seen Game of Thrones so showing them that bridge that connects an academic study and more popular study is incredibly important,” said Gabriele.

The students watch three episodes from Season 1 and provide analysis on the show, culture in the Middle Ages, and actual historic events. “One may think this is an “easy A” type of course, however, there is a lot of critical thinking, research and analysis that goes into it,” said student Nate Axt.

Gabriele hopes students walk away excited about medieval history and how the themes from the show fit into our world today. If you were tasked with creating a Game of Thrones class, what would the course objective be?