bran_the_unbroken Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Aside from the obvious similarities between Danaerys and Cersei, i.e. highborn, blonde etc. there are also other similarities between them. They both have three 'children', both forced into marriages by family for power and Cersei's relationship with Jaime is similar to the traditional incest of the Targaryens. Then, towards the end of ADWD, Cersei had to walk through the streets of King's Landing and Danaerys had to try to get back to Meereen. Whilst they were in slightly different circumstances both were challenging in their own way and they were both all but naked. The most striking thing about it though was the fact that they had both been made bald, which is not something that has happened to either before, and it happened to both within a few chapters I wonder if you guys think that could signify something, or whether it's a coincidence. Could Martin be hinting that Danaerys is the 'younger and more beautiful' queen, or that Cersei is really a Targaryen? Sorry if this has been discussed before (I'm new) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Game Of Thrones Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 GRRM himself stated that originally (prior to the split of AFFC and ADWD) we were supposed to directly compare Cersei to Dany. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Selig Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Most of this seems like quite a stretch honestly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nictarion Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 The most striking thing about it though was the fact that they had both been made bald, which is not something that has happened to either before, and it happened to both within a few chaptersDany has been bald before. When she came out of Drogo's pyre she was completely bald. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyoshi Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Welcome!I would say their parallels are more visible along the lines of prophecies. Not really parallels though. Cersie had one prophecy in her life and she allowed it to ruin her life. Daenerys on the other hand, has had magical things happening in her life yet she is still wary of prophecies.Cersei doesn't care about her subjects while Daenerys says, "a Queen does not belong to herself but to her people."Cersei believes ruling is her right while Dany be lives she must first learn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bright Blue Eyes Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 If you are looking for similarities, both know shit about ruling. Both refuse to acknowledge that. And both have a volatile and (self-)destructive temper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mladen Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Aside from the obvious similarities between Danaerys and Cersei, i.e. highborn, blonde etc. there are also other similarities between them. They both have three 'children', both forced into marriages by family for power and Cersei's relationship with Jaime is similar to the traditional incest of the Targaryens. Bran, welcome to the forums. May you have nice time here. :cheers: Alas, these parallels don't work, IMO. For every parallel you named there is like 2 dozens of differences between these two. Furthermore, their hair is not the same. Cersei has golden-blonde hair, while Dany's silvery Targ-hair. Plus, if you use incest as parallel, then you have to actually acknowledge that Dany was never into her brother. If you are looking for similarities, both know shit about ruling. Both refuse to acknowledge that. And both have a volatile and (self-)destructive temper. This, OTOH, is a valid parallel. Dany is not as bad as Cersei, but there are some moments when she is dangerously close to what Cersei is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mladen Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Cersei doesn't care about her subjects while Daenerys says, "a Queen does not belong to herself but to her people."Cersei believes ruling is her right while Dany be lives she must first learn. Although Dany does care for her subjects, she also have the same entitlement Cersei, and the rest of boy club have. Basically, she believes she is the right person for Westeros not for a second thinking about whether Westeros needs her. She wants to be better in ruling, but she is not someone who doesn't believe ruling is not her right... All that talk of dragon's blood speaks volumes about entitlement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordStoneheart Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 I find their parallelism in accordance with how they emerge from trouble. Cersei's WOS was heavily damaging to her, but Dany's dive into the pit, flight, and wander through the Dothraki sea are not exactly pride-breaking. Her confidence is just like that scene where Emilia Targaryen emerged from the bath in that show as if it was nothing. GRRM's interviews indicate to me that he purposefully put Dany, Jon, and Cersei in positions of power with hard choices to make to let us judge. Jon, I think most would agree, is the best but not great, and Cersei is by far the worst. If I may be a little bold, I think that Dany's ruling is supposed to be a positive contrast to Cersei. Dany gets bad circumstances and makes poor choices, but does not buckle under pressure whereas Cersei actually had good circumstances when Tywin died, began her rule, made poor choices, and basically went ape shit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Drunkard Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Both are nominally the leaders of their respective cities/kingdoms, but allied with or relying on people looking to supplant them. Cersei has the Tyrells and some of her councilors, Dany has the Green Grace, her husband and everyone else belonging to that faction. Same with Jon, actually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bran_the_unbroken Posted September 14, 2014 Author Share Posted September 14, 2014 Yeah, I guess it was a bit of a reach, the bald thing struck me as interesting but other than that you could probably make a similar case for just about any two characters tbh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeyBanana Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Dany tries and fails, Cersei just fails But seriously, i see no real parallels between the two, aside from incompetence. There's a lot more meat for a Jon and Dany comparison, duty vs desires, good will vs pragmatism, mercy vs fear/strength, etc.. Both have to deal with these central conflicts of ruling & leading, while Cersei is obviously not conflicted about anything but herself and her paranoia. I guess they're all surrounded by enemies and stripped of power in the end. The Queen Dowager mention may be a sign that they'll return to power, harder and stronger (and crazier in Cersei's case). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liaraeyne Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Interesting.I think Daenerys is the 'younger and more beautiful queen'. Maggy: "Queen you shall be... until there comes another, younger and more beautiful, to cast you down and take all that you hold dear."Cersei has no doubt that it's Margaery, but the bad relationship between Cersei and Margaery is Cersei's fault. Margaery is only marrying Tommen, she doesn't want him dead or anything like that, at all. Your son getting married doesn't mean you'll never see him again. If Cersei opened her mind to it she and Margaery could be good friends...Daenerys, though... She wants to take the iron throne by force and exterminate house Lannister for what they did to her family. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Game Of Thrones Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 If you are looking for similarities, both know shit about ruling. Both refuse to acknowledge that. And both have a volatile and (self-)destructive temper. :bowdown: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arakan Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 If you are looking for similarities, both know shit about ruling. Both refuse to acknowledge that. And both have a volatile and (self-)destructive temper.I agree with that. Though I would attest Dany the much better character. As someone said upthread: at least Dany tries to better the life of her subjects and genuinely cares about them. Cercei couldnt give a shit about lowborns (or other human beings in general). Cercei clearly is the epitome of a self-centered, egoistic, narcissistic human being. Dany is not. We should be fair (even if I dont like Dany myself). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordStoneheart Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 If you are looking for similarities, both know shit about ruling. Both refuse to acknowledge that. And both have a volatile and (self-)destructive temper. there is also the difference that Cersei grew up in a high lord's home, spent time around a highly praised Hand of the King/father, and spent years at court as Robert's queen before getting to rule as she did in feast... and learned nothing. I took Dany's decision to stay in Meereen as very much an acknowledgement that she doesn't know ruling. and her poor hand at trying can be in part explained by lack of teaching and experience (yes, I know, reasons she shouldn't try to rule in the first place but we'll leave that discussion for another thread) whereas Cersei failed to learn anything even though she grew up with a golden spoon in her mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ingelheim Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Dany was bald in ACOK. I know, I know, no one pictures her as bald, the same for Jaime, but technically, she was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maid So Fair Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 I think the way AFFC and ADWD are set up, we are supposed to notice the parallels and compare the two. Cersei is a foil for Dany: They deal with very similar situations in very different ways, leading to different outcomes, whether it is ruling as a woman in a traditionally patriarchal society, dealing with vague prophecies, being surrounded by a court full of liars with their own agendas or being forced to marry against their will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARYa_Nym Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 The most striking thing about it though was the fact that they had both been made bald, which is not something that has happened to either before, and it happened to both within a few chapters I thought it could be compared to Arya because she was the one who was also first made bald in ADWD. They both had positive reactions instead of having a complete meltdown or being angry. Cersei said hair grows back and Arya just shrugged it off and saw the benefit of lice not being a problem anymore. On tumblr I saw a graphic that compared Cersei's reaction to Catelyn's don't cut my hair line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordStoneheart Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 I would almost be offended by the comparison of that bitch to my Lady, but actually in the beginning of Feast Cersei herself thinks of Catelyn clawing her face on, wondering if that would please Tywin if she did it for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.