What is the Hero’s Journey? It is a basic narrative pattern common across all cultures and time that seems to be shared by all heroic characters. With this in mind, mythologist Joseph Campbell designed a paradigm, also known as the monomyth, to identify the universal stages of the hero’s journey. In this series, we take a look at Game of Thrones characters and how their unfolding path follows the Hero’s Journey. This time: Tyrion Lannister.
Tyrion Lannister, the Imp, is a freak; a drunken, whoring, despised member of a notorious, powerful family, and yet it can be argued that he is a Hero, or at least a complicated version of an Anti-hero. The Anti-hero archetype is not, as is some mistakenly assume, the same thing as a villain, but rather a darker, more conflicted version of the classic Ideal Hero archetype.
"“Antihero is a slippery term that can cause a lot of confusion. Simply stated, an Anti-hero is not the opposite of a Hero, but a specialized kind of Hero, one who may be an outlaw or villain from the point of view of society, but with whom the audience is basically in sympathy.” —Christopher Vogler"
In Tyrion, George R. R. Martin has given us a wonderfully complex character who operates in shades of grays rather than in black and white. Much good resides in Tyrion’s heart, but he has also been abused by a brutal world and is capable of lashing out, sometimes murderously. Like Jon Snow the bastard, Bran the cripple, Daenerys the exile, and Arya the lost, he must overcome his own self-centered needs in order to sacrifice for the greater good, which is the essence of the Hero.
You can revisit the structure and stages of Joseph Campbell’s famous 17 stage monomyth model and Christopher Vogler’s more streamlined 12-stage version here. It is important to remember that the Campbellian Hero’s Journey paradigm is highly flexible, so not all stages need appear in order or appear at all, while others flow through many other stages. Joseph Campbell sums up the monomyth concept below:
"“A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from his mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons upon his fellow man.” —Joseph Campbell"
Please note what we are looking at here is how the Hero’s Journey fits the Tyrion Lannister character as he is presented in Game of Thrones, NOT in A Song of Ice and Fire. This article deals only with the TV show, which means the book stories and characters have been altered—telescoped, pared down, and folded into each other in a variety of ways, and influenced by the increasingly large creative input of producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.
Unlike Jon Snow, who resembles the classical Ideal Hero character, Tyrion is more profoundly flawed, and sometimes gives in to the darker side of his nature. George R. R. Martin dislikes the predictability of the traditional monomyth formula, so he is often pushing his story in the opposite direction, happily confounding narrative expectations in dark and unexpected ways.
Yet it’s hard for him to avoid the monomyth entirely. The Hero’s Journey is a flexible, living idea, a suggested blueprint of how mankind’s greatest myths bubble up and out of the shared human condition, and even deeper than that, from the structural depths of the cosmos themselves. For the bloody bard George R. R. Martin, who steeps his stories in mythology, it seems impossible that he could completely avoid Campbell’s theoretical ballpark.
In this article, we will attempt to answer three questions: first, does Tyrion’s journey fit into the monomyth at all? Second, if Tyrion’s journey fits the framework, how closely does it mirror the traditional experience of the Campbellian Hero? Third, what clues can the monomyth offer us about his character’s future in Season 6 and beyond? There are dangers inherent in approaching any story structure with a pre-set theory in mind, and I’ll do my best to highlight where I think Tyrion Lannister’s story line fits the monomyth without trying to force square pegs into round holes.
With that said, let us embark with the Imp on the Hero’s Journey (monomyth) through Game of Thrones.
THE HERO’S JOURNEY, PART I: DEPARTURE
1a) WORLD OF COMMON DAY: the hero, unfinished and incomplete, lives in his ordinary world before receiving the call to adventure. (This is a stage described by Vogler, not Campbell, but the world of common day is such a typical starting point for stories I decided to use the stage here.)
Tyrion Lannister’s story begins in a Winterfell brothel. We see Tyrion in his everyday world, as the dwarf son of Tywin Lannister. He’s a hedonist—he’s carousing around the realm, drinking heavily and seeking physical pleasure where he can find it. He has realized that he can never escape his deformity, so he has chosen to embrace it.
"“Let me give you some advice, bastard. Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor and it can never be used to hurt you.” —Tyrion Lannister, to Jon Snow (“Winter is Coming,” S1/Ep1)"
Although sometimes insulting and rough-edged, Tyrion is also well-read and competent at many tasks when given the opportunity. In many ways, Tyrion is defined by his size, but he’s also constantly subverting the expectations of people who don’t expect much of him precisely because he’s a dwarf. He has been forced to take stock of what he is and who he is since a very early age, and because his intellectual talents have been ignored under a perceived skin of the grotesque and despairing, drunken uselessness, he presents one of the least formed of GRRM’S heroes at the beginning of his journey.
"“Human beings are born too soon; they are unfinished, unready as of yet to meet the world.” —Joseph Campbell"
Wealthy but despised by most, Tyrion is the tormented black sheep of the Lannister family. Perhaps, deep down, he knows he could be more, but without opportunity or motivation, he simply wanders. His current quest:
"“I just want to stand on the top of the Wall and piss off the edge of the world.” —Tyrion (“The King’s Road,” S1/Ep2)"
Not exactly a real call to adventure.
1b) CALL TO ADVENTURE: the hero is presented with a challenge, problem, or adventure and can no longer remain within the safety and comfort of the World of the Common Day. He embarks on a journey into a new and frightening realm.
What is Tyrion’s call to adventure? Let’s take a look at Campbell’s definition of this stage.
"“The first stage of the mythological journey—which we have designated ‘The Call to Adventure’—signifies that destiny has summoned the hero and transferred his spiritual center of gravity from within the pale of his society to a zone unknown. The fateful region of both treasure and danger may be variously represented: as a distant land, a forest, a kingdom underground … but it is always a place of strangely fluid and polymorphous beings, unimaginable torments, superhuman deeds and impossible delight.” —Joseph Campbell"
In Game of Thrones, Tyrion’s call to adventure is forced upon him. Lady Catelyn Stark and her bannermen arrest Tyrion for the attempted murder of Bran Stark. Tyrion is taken to the Eyrie to stand trial for his crimes. Tyrion’s call to adventure—the bad luck of being captured by Lady Catelyn—is similar in its haphazard start to the rolling of the Princess’ ball into the pond of the Frog King in the old Grimm’s fairy tale:
"“This is an example of one of the ways in which the adventure can begin. A blunder—apparently the merest chance—reveals an unsuspected world, and the individual is drawn into a relationship with forces that are not rightly understood.” —Joseph Campbell"
Like many of the heroes in Game of Thrones, Tyrion is unwillingly cast about on the tides of fate as his adventure unfolds, similar to Odysseus in The Odyssey:
"“The hero … may be carried or sent abroad by some benign or malignant agent, as was Odysseus, driven about the Mediterranean by the winds of the angered God Poseidon.” —Joseph Campbell"
While Tyrion’s call to adventure is not as clean-cut as Jon Snow’s (choosing to leave Winterfell and join the Night’s Watch), it does symbolize the passage from the safe, uneventful life Tyrion once new into a new one where Tyrion will constantly find himself under threat. Soon, he’ll acquire a sellsword bodyguard, lead armies into battle, and be given real political power for the first time in his life.
The Hero’s call to adventure often occurs while the world or land is dying or under threat. We have already glimpsed the return of the White Walkers. Winter is coming.
2) REFUSAL OF THE CALL: the hero, not fully committed, considers turning back, but a mentor convinces him to remain.
Tyrion’s refusal of the call comes when his father, Tywin, installs him as the acting Hand of the King at King’s Landing in his stead. Tyrion’s first instinct is to refuse the offer.
"“Why not my uncle? Why not anyone? Why me?” —Tyrion (“Fire and Blood,” S1/Ep10)"
Tywin responds: “Because you are my son.” This is a big moment for Tyrion—it’s the first time in his life his father has given him real responsibility, even acknowledged him as a son rather than something more than a “stunted dwarf.” Tyrion is so shocked he cannot believe it.
"“Refusal of the summons converts the adventure into its negative. Walled in boredom, hard work or ‘culture,’ the subject loses the power of significant affirmative action and becomes a victim to be saved. His flowering world becomes a wasteland of dry stones and his life feels meaningless . . . The myths and folktales of the whole world make clear that the refusal is essentially a refusal to give up what one takes to be one’s own interest.” —Joseph Campbell"
A great example of the refusal of the call is found in the character of Rick Blaine in Casablanca. Like Tyrion, Rick is a wounded and cynical creature, with the mantra “I stick my neck out for nobody.” Rick only wants to exist in the distractions and small responsibilities of his nightclub. When the conflicts of the real world come crashing down upon Rick, his first instinct, like Tyrion’s, is to do his best to avoid getting involved.
3) SUPERNATURAL AID: Once the hero is committed to the quest, a mentor or guide shall appear who often awards him a magical talisman to aid with his journey.
"“For those who have not refused the call, the first encounter of the hero-journey is with a protective figure (often a little old crone or old man) who provides the adventurer with amulets against the dragon forces he is about to pass.” –Joseph Campbell"
This stage does not appear to apply to Tyrion, unless you want to make a stretch. Imprisoned in the Eyrie by the insane Lady Arryn, the desperate Tyrion chooses to resolve his case in a trial by combat. The sellsword Bronn rises as Tyrion’s champion and defeats Ser Vardis Egen.
Bronn might be something of a guide and mentor to Tyrion, but there is nothing supernatural about Tyrion’s escape from his death sentence, unless you subscribe to the Westerosi belief that the gods intervene in trials by combat by letting the innocent party come out alive. If not, then this stage isn’t a part of Tyrion’s Hero’s Journey.
4) CROSSING THE FIRST THRESHOLD: the hero reaches the limits of his known horizon: beyond lies darkness, danger and the unknown. “The beginning of the awakening of the self.” —Joseph Campbell
Tyrion puts on a brave face as he arrives in King’s Landing, a place he has long avoided, to act as the Hand of the King. The much-emphasized transition from wandering boy to man is under way, but, more importantly, Tyrion has begun a journey of self-discovery: he is on his way to transforming from a discarded royal appendage to a brilliant player of the game.
"“… instead of passing outward, beyond the confines of the visible world, the hero goes inward, to be born again.” —Joseph Campbell"
A famous example of crossing the first threshold comes in The Wizard of Oz: Dorothy is standing in the threshold of her home when the tornado hits, and when she arrives in Munchkin Country, her house squashes the first threshold guardian, the Wicked Witch of the East.
5) THE BELLY OF THE WHALE: when crossing the magical threshold, the hero enters a womb to be reborn, so rather than conquering what lies beyond, the hero is swallowed into the unknown and may appear to have died.
"“We heard you were dead.” —Joffrey, to Tyrion upon his arrival in King’s Landing (“The North Remembers,” S2/Ep1)"
Tyrion takes control of the Small Council and for the first time in his life, he wields real power. When Cersei asks him what he knows of war, he responds:
"“Nothing. But I know people. And I know our enemies hate each other almost as much as they hate us . . . It must be odd for you, to be the disappointing child.” —Tyrion “The North Remembers,” S2/Ep1)"
Tyrion has been swallowed by King’s Landing, surrounded by the court’s experienced and powerful players, and he immediately begins to enjoy this new phase of his life. He instinctively knows how to play this game and he has a talent for it.
"“I am not Ned Stark. I understand the way this game is played.” —Tyrion, to Varys (“The Night Lands,” S2/Ep2)"
Tyrion’s path is different from many of the other Game of Thrones characters at this stage; rather than vanishing somewhere he can’t be contacted by the people from his old life (e.g. Jon joining the wildlings beyond the Wall, Bran striking out north from Winterfell, Arya vanishing off the radar as she attempts to make her way home), Tyrion plunges into the highly public machinations of the Lannister court.
Tyrion has now moved into the second phase of the Hero’s Journey: Initiation.
THE HERO’S JOURNEY, PART II: INITIATION
6) THE ROAD OF TRIALS: the Hero must undergo a series of tests, some of which he will fail, to prepare him for his transformation.
"“Once having crossed the threshold, the hero moves in a dream landscape of curiously fluid, ambiguous forms, where he must survive a succession of trials. This is a favorite phase of the myth-adventure. It has produced a world literature of miraculous tests and ordeals.” —Joseph Campbell"
The Road of Trials thread continues throughout the second part of the Hero’s Journey: some of Tyrion’s tests include sparring Cersei, Maester Pycelle, Varys, and Lord Petyr Baelish in the corridors of power, attempting to negotiate Jaime’s release, controlling Joffrey, and seeing to the city’s defenses in the face of an impending attack by Stannis Baratheon.
"“The ordeal is a deepening of the problem of the first threshold … for many-headed is this surrounding Hydra; one head cut off, two more appear—unless the right caustic is applied to the mutilated stump. The original departure into the land of trials represented only the beginning of the long and really perilous path of initiatory conquests and moments of illumination. Dragons have now to be slain and surprising barriers passed—again, again and again. Meanwhile there will be a multitude of preliminary victories, unretainable ecstasies, and momentary glimpses of the wonderful land.” —Joseph Campbell"
When Tyrion leads the defense of King’s Landing at the Battle of the Blackwater, he realizes his value to the well-being of the city. He matters. The Battle of the Blackwater is a surprising barrier, a dragon to be slain, an unretainable ecstasy, and a glimpse of a wonderful land where Tyrion does good work all at once.
7) THE MEETING WITH THE GODDESS: the Hero experiences losing himself in unconditional love, usually represented by finding the woman he will always love the most, his ‘soul-mate.’
While preparing for battle with Robb Stark’s army, a whore named Shae is brought to Tyrion by Bronn; Shae will soon become one of the greatest loves of Tyrion’s life.
"“I am yours and you are mine.” —Shae, to Tyrion (“Valar Morghulis,” S2/Ep10)“The ultimate adventure, when all barriers and ogres have been overcome, is commonly represented as a mystical marriage of the hero-soul with the Queen Goddess of the World. This is the crisis … within the darkness and the deepest chamber of the heart.” —Joseph Campbell"
Can Shae represent the Queen Goddess of the World? Of course she can, because she is a woman:
"“The meeting with the Goddess (who is incarnate in every woman) is the final test of the talent of the hero to win the boon of love (charity: amor fati) …” —Joseph Campbell"
The Goddess can appear in many forms and win the hero’s heart: Shae and Tyrion provide a good example of the ‘beauty and the beast’ pairing, as with Belle and the Beast or Clara and her soldier in The Nutcracker. Shae even calls Tyrion her ‘lion.’
In many ways, Shae and Tyrion’s first wife Tysha are the same woman, at least in his eyes. They are the loves of Tyrion’s life, and both absolutely unacceptable to his father.
"“I would kill for you. You know that. I expect I’ll have to before this is over.” —Tyrion, to Shae (“A Man Without Honor,” S2/Ep7)"
8) WOMAN AS THE TEMPTRESS: the hero faces sexual temptations which threaten to make him stray from or abandon his quest.
Once again we find Shae center stage, this time in the role of the temptress. The age-old idea that the Hero must remain ‘pure’ and female flesh is an unwholesome distraction can be found in many mythologies: one of the most famous is the Holy Grail quest in Arthurian legend, where the pure (chaste) knight Galahad achieves the grail while Lancelot (the adulterer) is allowed no more than a glimpse. The unwholesome lure of the female theme is present in Game of Thrones, though for sex-loving Tyrion, the problem is simply that he chooses women who are unsuitable for his station, and whom his domineering father does not accept.
After the Battle of the Blackwater, Shae remains loyal to Tyrion even though he has lost his position, and whatever looks he might once have had:
"“Let’s leave . . . Let’s leave King’s Landing. They tried to kill you. They will try again. Going to war, fighting, soldiers, you are terrible at this. Let’s take a boat to Pentos and never come back. You don’t belong here.” —Shae, to Tyrion (“Valar Morghulis,” S2/Ep10)"
The old Tyrion might have accepted, but the reborn Tyrion, a player in the court who has tasted power, refuses:
"“I can’t. I do belong here. These bad people…are what I’m good at—out-talking, out-thinking them. It’s what I am. And I like it. I like it more than anything I’ve ever done.” —Tyrion, in response to Shae (“Valar Morghulis,” S2/Ep10)"
Shae remains with Tyrion and this decision seals her fate. As with Ygritte and Jon Snow, it is the female who suggests escaping and leaving it all behind, but the male characters will not willingly extricate themselves from their quests. The females retain their unchanged roles instead of leaving, and both pay for it with their lives. Shae, like Ygritte, ends up joined with the enemy and dies in their company.
Once Tyrion, now betrothed to Sansa Stark, learns that Tywin knows of Shae’s presence in the city, he turns desperate.
"“She won’t leave. I’ve told her this is a dangerous place for her so many times she no longer believes it.” —Tyrion, to Varys, upon learning that Tywin is aware of Shae’s presence at King’s Landing (“The Lion and the Rose,” S4/Ep2)"
Tyrion realizes the only way to make Shae leave—and probably save her life—is to be brutal with her.
"“Don’t. Don’t call me that (‘my lion.’) I’m afraid our friendship can’t continue . . . There is a ship waiting in the harbor, bound for Pentos . . . I need you to leave . . . You’re a whore. Sansa is fit to bear my children and you are not. I can’t be in love with a whore. I can’t have children with a whore . . . you’ll have a comfortable life in Pentos.” —Tyrion, to Shae (“The Lion and the Rose,” S4/Ep2)"
As his final showdown with his father looms, Tyrion, “like Hamlet, is beset by the moral image of his father,” and Tywin shall poison Shae against him, turn her into his betrayer—Shae is no longer the beauty who loves the beast, but rather the beauty Esmeralda, who never returns the love of the deformed Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre-Dame.
"“I know that he (Tyrion) is guilty. He and Sansa planned it together.” —Shae, on the assassination of Joffrey as she stands as a witness at Tyrion’s trial (“The Laws of Gods and Men,” S4/Ep6)"
"“Where this Oedipus-Hamlet revulsion remains to beset the soul, there the world, the body, and woman above all become the symbols of no longer of victory but of defeat . . . No longer can the hero rest in the innocence of the flesh: for she is become the queen of sin.” —Joseph Campbell"
9) ATONEMENT WITH THE FATHER: the hero must confront someone with the ultimate power over his life, often a father figure.
"“Don’t despair, I am a constant disappointment to my father and I’ve learned to live with it.” —Tyrion, to Theon (“Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things,” S1/Ep4)"
We are going to spend some time on Tyrion’s atonement stage because, wow, does the showdown between Tyrion and Tywin rock the mythological foundations of Game of Thrones. We shall discuss the death of Shae here, for she is inextricably bound up in this stage as well.
Note: In order to better navigate this section, I refer to the Inmost Cave (where the Hero experiences supreme wonder and terror) and the Supreme Ordeal (the deepest chamber of the Inmost Cave where the Hero faces their greatest challenge and most fearsome opponent yet–think of Luke Skywalker entering the cave to face Darth Vader on Degobah), both terms coined by Joseph Campbell and employed as stages in Vogler’s version of the Hero’s Journey.
"“Oh, father! (if thou grantest me the right to use that name!) Phoebus! Light of the entire world! Grant me a proof, my father, by which all may know me as thy true son!” —Joseph Campbell, recounting the tragic Greek tale of Phaëthon, son of the solar charioteer, Phoebus."
Like Phaëthon, Tyrion has always wanted his father to officially acknowledge him as his son and heir, and as always, Tywin has refused:
"“I would let myself be consumed by maggots before mocking the family name and making you heir to Casterly Rock . . . you, who killed your mother coming into the world. You are an ill-made, spiteful little creature full of envy, lust and low cunning. Men’s laws give you the right to bear my name and display my colors since I cannot prove that you are not mine. And to teach me humility the gods have condemned me to watch you waddle about wearing that proud lion that has my father’s sigil and his father’s before him.” —Tywin Lannister, to Tyrion (“Valar Dohaeris,” S3/Ep1)"
The destruction and overthrow of the father by the son is as old as Greek mythology itself. In Theogony, written by the ancient Greek poet Hesiod in 700 B.C., there is a description of the origins and genealogies of the Greek gods. Uranus, fearing usurpation, was brutal to his children and ended up being castrated and overthrown by his son, Cronos, who devoured his offspring until he was eventually overthrown by his sixth child, Zeus.
When Tyrion, freed from his cell by Jaime and Varys, decides to postpone his departure from King’s Landing, his only motivation is revenge. The furious son sneaks back into the Tower of the Hand—the Inmost Cave—to face his father, and only one shall survive the meeting. Unfortunately for Shae, she happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
When Tryion discovers Shae in Tywin’s bed whispering “Tywin, my lion,” he is shocked. When Shae sees Tyrion, her instinct is to grab a paring knife and try to kill him. This is her second betrayal of Tyrion and he, acting in rage and self-defense, strangles her to death. He weeps beside her dead body, whispering “I’m sorry.” When he recovers, his cold, consuming rage towards Tywin takes hold again.
Tyrion obviously departs from the archetypal tent of the Hero when he strangles Shae to death with his own hands. This is one of the character’s darkest moments, the ‘black’ end of the spectrum George R.R. Martin refers to, and while we understand how Tyrion feels betrayed by Shae, it is a complicated emotional and psychological labyrinth because she is so locked up inside what Tywin is to Tyrion. Shae, her love callously rejected by Tyrion, is simply acting to survive as she always has by finding a powerful man to keep her. Here we are reminded that no character is pure in Game of Thrones, and if we consider Tyrion a true Anti-heroic figure, then we must also accept the bad with the good, and if we cannot not forgive, we can at least understand the tormented dwarf’s murderous rampage.
"“Two things can potentially be expected of the father figure. “One must have a faith the father is merciful, and then a reliance on that mercy . . . it is in this ordeal that the hero may derive hope and assurance from the helpful female figure . . .” —Joseph Campbell"
Tyrion receives neither mercy from his father nor help from the dead Shae: Tyrion believes that his father was willing to let him be executed, regardless of what he has to say in their last confrontation, and also Tyrion has destroyed Shae, for she has betrayed him, so he no longer has her as support. Tyrion strides to the deepest chamber of the Inmost Cave, the privy, and in entering his ‘supreme ordeal’ with Tywin, Tyrion comes face to face with the “archetypal nightmare of the ogre father.”
"“Seeker, enter the Inmost Cave and look for that which will restore life to the Home Tribe. The way grows narrow and dark. You must go alone on hands and knees and you feel the earth press close around you. You can hardly breathe. Suddenly you come out into the deepest chamber and find yourself face to face with a towering figure, a menacing Shadow composed of all your doubts and fears and well armed to defend a treasure. Here, in this moment, is the chance to sin or die. No matter what you came for, it’s Death that now stares back at you. Whatever the outcome of the battle, you are about to taste death and it will change you.” —Joseph Campbell"
Like the Trojan hero Aeneas, who enters the underworld to have a conversation with the shade of his dead father, Tyrion follows a somewhat parallel track. After emerging from the dungeon underworld beneath King’s Landing, Tyrion confronts his father seated on the privy and has a conversation with a dead man, because Tyrion has already resolved to kill Tywin. (After his conversation with his dead father in Virgil’s Aeneid, Aeneas goes on to found the city of Rome.) What follows is the last conversation between Tyrion Lannister and Tywin Lannister:
"Tyrion: “All of my life you have wanted me dead.”Tywin: “Yes. But you refused to die. I respect that, even admire it. You fight for what’s yours. I’d never let them execute you. Is that what you fear? . . . You’re a Lannister. You’re my son.”Tyrion: “I loved her.”Tywin: “Who?”Tyrion: “Shae.”Tywin: “Oh, Tyrion. Put down that crossbow.”Tyrion: “I murdered her with my own hands.”Tywin: “It doesn’t matter.”Tyrion: “It doesn’t matter?”Tywin: “She was a whore.”Tyrion: “Say that word again.”Tywin: “Or what? You’ll kill your own father in the privy? No. You’re my son. Now, enough of this nonsense.Tyrion: “I am your son and you sentenced me to die. You know I didn’t poison Joffrey but you sentenced me to die all the same. Why?”Tywin: “Enough. Let’s go back to my chambers and speak with some dignity.”Tyrion: “I can’t go back there. She’s back there.”Tywin: “You’re afraid of a dead whore?”(Tyrion fires the first crossbow bolt and calmly reloads).Tywin: “You’ve shot me. You’re no son of mine.”Tyrion: “I am your son. I have always been your son.”(Tyrion fires the second bolt, killing Tywin)—Tyrion and Tywin exchange (“The Children,” S4/Ep10)"
The atonement of Tyrion with his father Tywin is an unpleasant, Oedipal, David vs. Goliath kind of bloodbath: the result is not positive but patricidal. The son destroys the ogre-father who has tormented him for so long. The son does not win the father’s position, but is rather cast into permanent exile.
"“The problem of the hero going to meet the father is to open his soul beyond terror to such a degree that he will be ripe to understand the sickening and insane tragedies of this vast and ruthless cosmos . . . he beholds the face of the father, understands—and the two are atoned.” —Joseph Campbell"
10) APOTHEOSIS: the hero suffers a death, either physically or spiritually, and achieves a state of knowledge and understanding to equip him upon his return. He now views the world in a radically different way.
"“This is the critical moment in any story, an Ordeal in which the hero must die or appear to die so that he may be born again.” —Christopher Vogler"
Tyrion, escaping his death sentence, vanishes from King’s Landing, leaving behind his old life and transforming into something new. Tyrion is an Anti-hero, however, so he first veers away from a move into enlightenment and enters a state of despondent oblivion. Upon escaping his crate at the home of Illyrio Mopatis in Pentos, he is terribly disillusioned and wants nothing more to do than drink himself to death.
"“The future is shit, just like the past.” —Tyrion, to Varys (“The Wars to Come,” S5/Ep1)"
But Varys convinces Tyrion to journey with him to meet the young Daenerys Targaryen, a royal exile Varys thinks an excellent contender for the Iron Throne.
"“You have a choice, my friend. You can stay here at Illyrio’s palace and drink yourself to death, or you can ride with me to Meereen, meet Daenerys Targaryen and decide if the world is worth fighting for.” —Varys, to Tyrion (“The Wars to Come,” S5/Ep1)"
Tyrion undergoes a number of trials along the way, including being kidnapped by Jorah Mormont, fighting the Stone Men in Valyria, and surviving the fighting pits of Meereen, but when he is finally able to offer himself up to Daenerys as a gift from Jorah, his enlightenment begins:
"“. . . the most well-informed person I knew told me that this girl, without wealth, land or armies had somehow acquired all three in a very short span of time, along with three dragons. He thought she was our last, best chance to build a better world. I thought you were worth meeting at the very least . . . When I served as Hand of the King I did quite well, considering the King in question preferred torturing animals to leading his people. I could do an even better job advising a ruler worth the name—if indeed that is what you are.” —Tyrion, to Daenerys (“Hardhome,” S5/Ep8)"
Do you remember our previously mentioned Casablanca Anti-hero, Rick Blaine? Though he refused the call and was then drawn in by events, he also discovered that what he truly needed was to be a part something bigger than himself and fight for a greater good:
"“But I’ve got a job to do, too. Where I’m going, you can’t follow . . . Ilsa, I’m no good at being noble, but it doesn’t take much to see that the problems of three little people don’t amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world.” —Rick Blaine, Casablanca"
Let us remember what Tyrion, like Rick Blaine, is becoming:
"“A Hero is someone who is willing to sacrifice his own needs on behalf of others, like a shepherd who will sacrifice to protect and serve his flock.” —Christopher Vogler"
Or, in a more Game of Thrones-friendly version of the same sentiment:
"“Ernest Hemingway once wrote: ‘The world is a fine place and worth fighting for.’ I agree with the second part.” —William Somerset, Se7en"
11) THE ULTIMATE BOON: the ultimate boon is the achievement of the goal of the quest. The Hero wins the thing he/she suffered through so many trials to attain. The boon often appears in the form of an elixir, ability, knowledge, or a symbolic object such as the Holy Grail. The hero must then eventually return to the Common World and use the boon to everyone’s advantage.
Is Daenerys Targaryen, the Mother of Dragons, the Ultimate Boon for Tyrion Lannister? Was Tyrion’s sighting of Drogon flying over old Valyria a harbinger of his impending success? Has Tyrion found the subject of his quest (in this case, a person) who has the power to control dragons, win the Iron Throne and defend the seven kingdoms from the White Walkers?
"“I’d given up on life until Varys convinced me you might be worth living for.” —Tyrion, to Daenerys (“Hardhome,” S5/Ep8)"
The end of Season 5 saw Tyrion left behind to govern Meereen in the company of Missandei, Grey Worm, and Varys, while Daario Naharis and Jorah Mormont rode off in search of Daenerys in the wilderness.
"“Now the heroes are off to find her. And I am stuck here, trying to placate a city on the brink of civil war.” —Tyrion, to Varys (“Mother’s Mercy,” S5/Ep10)"
BEYOND SEASON 5: Let’s remember our three original reasons for taking a look at Tyrion Lannister’s journey in Game of Thrones through the prism of the monomyth paradigm. First, does Tyrion’s journey fit into the Hero’s Journey at all? Looking at the evidence, even with Tyrion acting in the Anti-hero archetype, it is fair to say it does fit the framework of the paradigm.
Second, if Tyrion’s journey fits, how closely it mirror the traditional experience of the Hero? Tyrion’s journey is very much one of a traditional hero, matching up quite nicely even if he is an Anti-hero and his experience does not involve the Supernatural Aid stage.
Thirdly, what clues can the monomyth offer us about Tyrion’s future in Season 6 and beyond? Let’s take a look.
The structure of Game of Thrones can be seen to roughly fit the overall three-part structure of the Hero’s Journey. Part 1 (Departure) = GoT Season 1, Part 2 (Initiation) = GoT Season 2-5 (remember that Campbell says that this is a “favorite part of the myth-adventure,” so it makes sense that it would take up a lot of space), and Part 3 (Return) = GoT Remaining Seasons
If Tyrion is truly installed in the Ultimate Boon stage at the end of Season 5, then the monomyth paradigm advances into Part 3 (Return), which includes 6 stages in Campbell’s model: Refusal of the Return, The Magic Flight, Rescue from Within, Crossing the Threshold, Return, Master of the Two Worlds and Freedom to Live.
If we look ahead to the Refusal of the Return stage, Tyrion may initially refuse the responsibility of bringing the magical boon (let’s say the boon is Daenerys Stormborn and her dragons) back into the World of the Common Day (Westeros). Tyrion has already suggested that Daenerys might do the most good by remaining permanently in Essos, and he might return to that argument.
In the next stage, Magic Flight, the Hero’s attempt to return and use the boon is made perilous by the evil forces doing everything in their power to prevent him from using it against them. Well, if Tyrion accompanies Daenerys as she attempts to cross the Narrow Sea and bring her army and dragons to Westeros, there will probably be some major resistance. And of course there are always the White Walkers coiling to pounce.
CONCLUSION: So there we have it. I hope you enjoyed taking a look at Anti-hero Tyrion Lannister’s Hero’s Journey through the lens of Joseph Campbell’s monomyth. It doesn’t match up exactly—nothing ever does, and you may accuse me of overplaying a weak parallel here and there—but since George R.R. Martin is using so many traditional archetypes in a high-fantasy setting, it may be impossible for him to escape the classic narrative structure. Martin may not consciously apply or agree with the monomyth paradigm, but the argument for it, in theory, is that no matter how much you mess with the story structure and payoffs, you’re still bound to the collective human unconscious from which the Hero’s story springs. Fun stuff to think about and consider, anyway.
As we watch the Imp’s journey unfold through Season 6 and beyond, it will be exciting to see what adventures lie in wait for our Anti-hero Tyrion Lannister, our character made of grays with both goodness and rage in his heart, our tormented dwarf, our champion of cripples, bastards and broken things.
All quotes by Joseph Campbell from The Hero with a Thousand Faces unless otherwise noted.
All quotes by Christopher Vogler from The Writer’s Journey unless otherwise noted.
Other WiC Game of Thrones as Myth articles in the Archetype and Hero’s Journey series:
The Hero’s Journey in Game of Thrones: Jon Snow
Jon Snow as the Archetypal Hero
Alliser Thorne as the Archetypal Threshold Guardian
Melisandre as the Archetypal Dark Herald
Osha the Wildling as the Archetypal Protector
This Hero’s Journey comic strip version by Ryan Dunlavey is still pretty darned cool: