Shipping Arya and Gendry : Creepy or Not?

[Hos the Hostage]

In various forum/social media discussions, I found that this pair is more criticized than Dany-Jorah and Hound-Sansa (both pairs with larger age-difference), due to Arya being a child and Gendry being almost a man grown by Westerosi standards.
The supporters of Arya-Gendry shipping cite Acorn Hall incident, Gendry getting jealous of Edric Dayne, Gendry getting furious at `m'lady high' in the Peach, and him finally leaving so that he will not have to shoe horses for Lady Stark.
As much as I'd like to see Arya and Gendry to get together in future(chances are less for Arya being together with anyone), I too find the idea of a fifteen year old boy having romantic feelings for a ten year old girl as creepy. Also the girl is Arya, who looks eight year old (to the Hound), skinny as stick, not beautiful as Sansa is.

However, while reading Arya chapters, I can't help but wonder if Arya has feelings for Gendry. Do ten year old girls get attracted to fifteen-year boys in Martin's universe? Yes, according the wiki page for Myrcella Baratheon, it says she was smitten with Robb Stark in Winterfell. The disturbing fact is, we see this first through the PoV of Jon, another bastard.

Jon noticed the shy looks she gave Robb as they passed between the tables and the timid way she smiled at him. He decided she was insipid. Robb didn't even have the sense to realize how stupid she was; he was grinning like a fool.

Myrcella, insipid and stupid? We find in later books that she is quick-witted("we are supposed to be childish"), strong-willed(no tears during farewell), and clever(cyvasse). Of course Jon had no way of knowing her nature, and to him, she might have resembled Jeyne Poole with her wet eyes watching Robb. But the obvious alternative explanation is, Jon's remarks about Myrcella are simply a case of sour grapes. He knows he can never be in Robb's place, walking the princess and getting her admiration. So he convinces himself she is not worth being envious about. This is somewhat in parallel to Gendry's disgruntled attittude towards Edric Dayne: "Lords and ladies," Gendry groaned behind them

I'd use the same thing to explain his behaviour in the Peach. And the Acorn Hall incident should have been a beautiful moment, where two children traumatized by the war, doing what children should do (like playing in water gardens), amidst a raging war. Except, Martin chose that moment to include the bloody song. Of all the colors the lord in song could choose, its "yellow sillk", the Baratheon color, he will dress his lady in. Why not purple or violet?

What about Arya? She notices he is strong, almost a man grown, things like that, but never remarks upon Gendry's looks. If Gendry is the spitting image of a young Robert or Renly, he must look like a maiden's fantasy, as Ned Stark puts it. Yet Arya notices nothing attractive about him. 'He's just a stupid bull-headed bastard' is what she thinks most of the time. But can it be interpeted as a self-deception? She has to tell herself so, because really, he is not 'just a [..] bastard'. All I have to support this is, Arya seems jealous of Bella.

* When the girl shrugged, her gown slipped off one shoulder :

This is about Bella, trying to seduce Gendry at the Peach. How frequently does Arya observe other people's clothes? We never hear what Lady Smallwood is wearing or how her gown moves.
* He could ring all the bells he wanted, it was nothing to her.

-If it was nothing, she wouldn't be thinking about it.
* "My father had honor," she said angrily. "And we weren’t talking to you anyway. Why don't you go back to Stoney Sept and ring that girl's stupid bells?"

Also, this:
..she could ride with Gendry and be an outlaw, like Wenda the White Fawn in the songs. But that was just stupid, like something Sansa might dream

Sansa is the good girl, she would never dream of being an outlaw queen. Then what is Arya dreaming that she thinks is more like Sansa's dream? Living a life similar to the people in songs, or romance, maybe?

[Dimples]

I find SanSan, Dany/Jorah, and Arya/Gendry to all be rather creepy.

[Pod The Impaler]

I don't find it creepy at all. It's "puppy love", kids stuff. At least one of them, perhaps both, do not even realize they have a crush going on.

Arya does not notice that she is conspicuously noticing things about him; Gendry does not really seem to acknowledge impressing this "m'lady" means something. Both of them get these funny flashes of jealousy.

[Dimples]

I don't find it creepy at all. It's "puppy love", kids stuff. At least one of them, perhaps both, do not even realize they have a crush going on.

Arya does not notice that she is conspicuously noticing things about him; Gendry does not really seem to acknowledge impressing this "m'lady" means something. Both of them get these funny flashes of jealousy.

I didn't initially find that aspect creepy, but then I stumbled upon fanfic that turns it into a full-fledged pairing. :ack:

[Dya of Oldstones]

I don't get squicked by the way it's presented in the books, since as Pod says, it's more of a puppy love thing and if anything, she notices boys much less than Sansa or even Cat at the same age.

What's more disturbing is some of her plot arcs after she goes to Braavos, but even those she uses to get her missions done.

[Pod The Impaler]

I didn't initially find that aspect creepy, but then I stumbled upon fanfic that turns it into a full-fledged pairing. :ack:

Dude, don't read any of the fanfic ships, seriously. Gendry / Arya is tame compared to many of them.

[FreeParking]

I don't find it creepy at all. It's "puppy love", kids stuff. At least one of them, perhaps both, do not even realize they have a crush going on.

Arya does not notice that she is conspicuously noticing things about him; Gendry does not really seem to acknowledge impressing this "m'lady" means something. Both of them get these funny flashes of jealousy.

I think this is a really good way of describing it. There is something there, but neither of them really know what it is. I think it is amusing more than anything.

[ARYa_Nym]

A couple of things...

I will say that IRL I find the notion that a 14/15 year old guy would be attracted to a 9/10 year old girl damn near impossible unless something was wrong with him. Think back when you were in high school. You probably liked kids your age, upper classmen, and if they were younger they were at best about to graduate from middle school. You were not into any elementary schoolers who still have lunch boxes and are excited to play on the playground at recess. This isn't happening. A 15 year old is hormonal. A 10 year old wouldn't register to them. However, this is the same books where that Harlaw lord can offer a 12 year old to Victarion and they talk about how she has just flowered and is still underdeveloped and that's normal. So for the books it can happen. Quentyn was possibly into that little girl.

I don't think it's fact that she was jealous.

http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/104102-was-arya-really-jelaous-of-bella-from-the-peach/

She never expresses anger towards Bella and spares no thought of her. The problem could have been more social status and not jealousy.

Some things I don't understand about this ship is that some favor to depict Arya as this jealous girl-would kill if Gendry liked some other girl even though she hasn't thought of Gendry since AFFC and it was barely and mostly negative. Or they want her to like him and only him her entire life. Fixating on one person from young is LF/Tristifer behavior. She already is not thinking about him anymore.

Also, I agree with the notion that Arya is not too young. Asha was into boys prepuberty. SweetRobin is younger than her. Lysa was younger than Arya was in AGoT when she was kissing on LF and Cat would have been Arya's age when she was doing it too. Sansa and Jeyne Poole had crushes prior to the beginning of AGoT so they would have been Arya's age then. IRL One Direction's most blind supporters are going to be those little preteens.

Which is why the fact that she's been surrounded by males in Braavos yet is interested in none of them is interesting.

I don't think Arya saying a male is handsome means much. Like some made a big deal about her potentially being jealous over not being paired with Joffrey in AGoT. She has murdered men she's said were good looking twice now. It means next to nothing. She has also shown appreciation for women and one of which was more appreciative than any male she's described so far. I see it as something that doesn't matter.

Also, this:
..she could ride with Gendry and be an outlaw, like Wenda the White Fawn in the songs. But that was just stupid, like something Sansa might dream

This isn't really romantic because the full quote includes:

Sometimes she thought she might go back to Sharna's inn, if the floods hadn't washed it away. She could stay with Hot Pie, or maybe Lord Beric would find her there. Anguy could teach her to use a bow, and she could ride with Gendry and be an outlaw, like Wenda the White Fawn in the songs. But that was just stupid, like something Sansa might dream

This is a dream about all of them. It especially isn't romantic since she used to be their captive. Immediately after she thinks:

Hot Pie and Gendry had left her just as soon as they could, and Lord Beric and the outlaws only wanted to ransom her, just like the Hound. None of them wanted her around. They were never my pack, not even Hot Pie and Gendry...

[Black Wolf Smith]

I am not one much for shipping, but Arya and Gendry where one couple I wanted to see later in the books, however I think both are long past that now, and won't be together again.

[Dimples]

Dude, don't read any of the fanfic ships, seriously. Gendry / Arya is tame compared to many of them.

It was a terrible accident. I didn't know what "kinkmeme" meant.

[Faydra]

In various forum/social media discussions, I found that this pair is more criticized than Dany-Jorah and Hound-Sansa (both pairs with larger age-difference), due to Arya being a child and Gendry being almost a man grown by Westerosi standards.

This difference of which you talk about could be made by the fact that Gendry is not a fan favourite, at least he's not like Jorah or Sandor. It could also be due to Arya's lack of romantic thoughts.

[ARYa_Nym]

This difference of which you talk about could be made by the fact that Gendry is not a fan favourite, at least he's not like Jorah or Sandor. It could also be due to Arya's lack of romantic thoughts.

I think it's because Dany and Sansa are not prepubescent for most of the story. . Even the latest chapter can't be compared to those two because she hasn't flowered yet and we're told that to have desire for a girl that hasn't is regarded as perverse in Westeros.

[Kyoshi]

I don't find it creepy at all. It's "puppy love", kids stuff. At least one of them, perhaps both, do not even realize they have a crush going on.

Arya does not notice that she is conspicuously noticing things about him; Gendry does not really seem to acknowledge impressing this "m'lady" means something. Both of them get these funny flashes of jealousy.

:agree: I missed it completely on my first read but on my second it was constantly hitting me over the head. It's just so obvious, I think.

I didn't initially find that aspect creepy, but then I stumbled upon fanfic that turns it into a full-fledged pairing. :ack:

Never ever ever ever ever read fanfic! Ever!!! Characters ruined. Eyes blinded. Mind disturbed! :ack:

To answer the original question, I don't think it's creepy at all. Jorah/Dany on the other hand....

[ARYa_Nym]

I don't know about puppy love unless one just means they possibly had a crush. I don't think they loved each other even in the superficial way or that they even believed they were in love like kids do i.e. Sansa thinking she loves Joffrey.

ETA: At no point does Arya think she loves him even as a friend. She just says he's pack but then later rejects him as pack.

[Mithras]

Arya also noted how the servant girls giggled when they saw Jaqen bathing in Harenhal. Dare I say she was a little jealous? Maybe. But in any case, I don't think Arya showed any romantic interest to anyone.

[Le Cygne]

There are lots of romances (stories) that start with the characters young or start with friendship then develop into more. And characters may marry their childhood sweethearts. And age gaps, where the male character may say, you're just a kid, then suddenly she's not a kid anymore, and there's a romance. And the ages in this story are off, he set a lot of the younger characters too young, so there's that, too. He's definitely teasing something with Arya and Gendry. When a pairing is this popular, and this one is, pay attention, because something in the story made an awful lot of people think there's something there. Do these things always lead to happily ever after, no, but that doesn't mean it's not important.

[Kienn]

If 5 year gap had stayed I would have called it likely.

"We'll join our houses Ned, your daughter and my son"*

*quote from memory, may not be exact.

[Ibbison from Ibben]

If Gendry was serious, I would find it a bit creepy. I don't think he really is, though.

Gendry is very sensitive to the social differences between Arya and himself. Some of the jealousy he exhibits (toward Ned Dayne, for example) is aimed at that. I suspect he will be attracted to self-reliant girls like Arya. She's his "type". (If she was older.)

Arya isn't even thinking romance yet. She's too young, and romance is too "Sansa-ish". But she's getting there. I've always seen this as setup for when Arya runs into Gendry's little brother, Edric Storm.

[Stannis's birthright]

It's puppy love that means nothing unless the two cross paths again .. Gendry is now Ser Gendry .. Hopefully being trained to act like one and Arya is off in Essos learning to kill . They may never see each other again .. So it won't matter

[Tynned Lannistark]

Its amazing that we find the fact a 10 years old girl is attracted to a 15 years old boy more disturbing than the fact that she becomes a professional assassin and kills people coldly and without hesitation.

The way our modern western society accepts violence so easily while having so many taboos about sex is a bit twisted

I think the story hints about some sort of mutual interest between Arya and Gendry and quite a bit of jealousy.

and I don't think it is that improbable for a 10 years old girl to have a crash on a 15 years old boy.

It happens everyday. Though admittedly the chances of the 15 years old boy to even notice the existence of that girl a scarce.

I think part of the problem is that GRRM made Arya a bit to young. I believe he has admitted it himself in the past.