Tyrion's Tragic End

[Lord Cactus]

I think Tyrion is going to lose his tongue by the end.

So far, the Lannisters have all lost the one thing that makes each powerful.

Tywin died in a humiliating way, and had an embarrassing funeral, undoing his mighty deeds in the eyes of the people.

Jaime lost his sword hand, his main source of strength, and the only thing he thought he was good for.

Cersei has lost her much of her beauty (by both her physical appearance and character) and has practically gone insane in the eyes of the public. She has also lost one of her children, and if Maggy is to be believed, she will eventually lose all three.

Tyrion's main strength lies in his quips, which he takes pride in. Unfortunately, his quips tend to get him into trouble:

Quote

You have a certain cunning, Tyrion, but the plain truth is you talk too much. That loose tongue of yours will be your undoing.

Quote

Brother or no, I should have your tongue out for that.

Quote

Bronn snorted. “You have a bold tongue, little man. One day someone is like to cut it out and make you eat it.”

And, in one of Tyrion's more famous quotes:

Quote

When you tear out a man's tongue, you are not proving him a liar; you're only telling the world that you fear what he might say.

We also have seen first hand (no pun intended Jaime) the loyal Lannister Ilyn Payne, the King's Justice, follow Jaime around through many of his chapters. Because of this, we have seen the actions of the man who lost his tongue due to a quip to Mad King Aerys.

I just looked up some quick Tyrion tongue quotes, but I remember reading countless others throughout the books. Due to this, I think Tyrion will end up losing his central point of pride at some point due to a quip gone too far. We will still be able to hear Tyrion's quips, of course, through his POV, but no other characters will be able to.

Particularly tragic would be if he finally found Tysha afterwards...

 

In short, I believe the proud Lions will all have lost their points of pride by the end of the series. Instead, they will have to find new ways to press forward, or die. The mute Tyrion will no longer be able to make a witty comeback that isn't in writing. Furthermore, most of the people that he would make the one-liners to cannot read, so there is that.

HEAR ME RO-err-BE MUTE

[zorkman]

Interesting theory. I would certainly be sorry to see Tyrion lose his tongue as he is very witty & adds a lot to the books. Saint Tyrion in the show is a different matter, & would be happy to see him hanged drawn & quartered.

[Count Winter]

4 hours ago, zorkman said:

Interesting theory. I would certainly be sorry to see Tyrion lose his tongue as he is very witty & adds a lot to the books. Saint Tyrion in the show is a different matter, & would be happy to see him hanged drawn & quartered.

Yes, agree... Show Tyrion is pathetic

[Daniel Niemietz Braz]

Euron Greyjoy will cut off Tyrion tongue.

[PrettyPig]

8 hours ago, Lord Cactus said:

I think Tyrion is going to lose his tongue by the end.

Completely agree.  Been saying this for years.     Tyrion has some kind of tongue-cutting-out reference in almost every one of his POV chapters throughout AGOT, and more scattered about here and there.      IMO it would be true poetic justice if Dany actually ordered it, the same way Aerys did against a Lannister henchman for making light of Targaryen rule. 

If the show is loosely following the book plot and

Spoiler

Tyrion ends up as advisor/Hand to Dany in Meereen, and effectively begins 'ruling' Meereen for her in all but name the same way Tywin ruled the Seven Kingdoms in all but name,

I can't see the Mad Queen taking this well if in fact Tyrion proves to be better at it and/or brings the snark one too many times.

[Lord Cactus]

1 hour ago, Daniel Niemietz Braz said:

Euron Greyjoy will cut off Tyrion tongue.

 

1 hour ago, PrettyPig said:

IMO it would be true poetic justice if Dany actually ordered it, the same way Aerys did against a Lannister henchman for making light of Targaryen rule. 

These are the two most likely candidates for me. Perhaps if they wed one another?

[Lord Cactus]

As a more recent example, Griff tells Tyrion:

Quote

Guard your tongue or lose it.

The Wit and Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister, Volume II:

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Mmph mmph mmph! MMMMMMMPH MMPH MMPH MMPH!!

Always witty, Tyrion.

[Ygrain]

Ugh. A really nasty idea, which, unfortunately, makes too much sense. With the guy who has a penchant for cutting out people's tongues, even more so. 

[BricksAndSparrows]

This is a possibility. Al though I don't think Tyrion would find it half so tragic as the loss of his cock.

[Elisabetta Duò]

I'm inclined to think you're wrong.

I think those quotes and other similar ones are meant not like 'you're gonna lose your tongue' but like 'your mouth will be the end of you' (that's basically what Tywin and Varys told him more than once) so I'm inclined to think either:

- he's going to die, because he couldn't keep his mouth shut at the right moment (that's one of the reasons why some people think he will develop belated greyscale, which will kill him from inside out: when he swallows black water, potentially getting greyscale, it happens like that: "when he opened his mouth to curse them all, black water filled his lungs, and the dark closed in around him"; back in ACOK, he had a dream where he was experiecing something similat to what happens to people who suffer from greyscale "He would have asked one of the silent sisters, but when he tried to speak he found he had no mouth. Smooth seamless skin covered his teeth. The discovery terrified him. How could he live without a mouth? He began to run. The city was not far. He would be safe inside the city, away from all these dead. He did not belong with the dead. He had no mouth, but he was still a living man. No, a lion, a lion, and alive. But when he reached the city walls, the gates were shut against him";it was the bandages all over his face and mouth that made him feel like that, but some people thought it could be foreshadowing as well): be it greyscale, angering somebody who will kill him, drinking poison or whatever, it's possible his mouth will in fact be his end;

- he's going to survive (tongue included), because the 'threats' / references were specifically set by GRRM in order to keep us wondering and/or be worried about his fate (it depends whether one would like for him to survive or not); after all, one of the main literary inspirations for Tyrion as a character is Odysseus, who often found himself in deep trouble because of his sharp mouth/tongue, who was at times reminded he had better to keep it under control and who in the end survived and even got his wife back, despite half the realm wanted to marry her.. because Odysseus was a very lucky man and survived a lot of deathly situations, because he managed to outwit his opponents and because he (kinda...) kept his mouth under control. 

Both of the theories have ground and might prove to be correct, only time will tell.

[Endymion I Targaryen]

Very interesting parallel between the Lannisters.If you notice, Tyrion relies on his tongue,his name and his gold.By the end of Dance he has only his tongue.He has lost two of the things he was relying on.

[Scorpion92]

If Tyrion loses his tongue, then what good is he in the story? You might just as well go ahead and kill him. That is why I think it is not plausible.

That does not mean his tongue will not get him to near death like situations. But even in ADWD he starts to guard his tongue a little more since he knows there is a shaky ground beneath his feet.

[Curled Finger]

Planetos would be at a loss for witty comebacks and sound reason if Tyrion was to lose his tongue.  Tyrion isn't afraid to say what he thinks and temper it with careful choice.  Honestly, Tyrion is the brilliant one in this story and face it, his tongue is the majority of it.  Look at the historical scenarios Tyrion makes up for himself.   He was thrown down a well, cast out--he's got a million of them.    Doesn't mean Tyrion is predicting his future.  How many times is Jon called sullen?   Doesn't mean that's all he is or that he will stay that way.   

[Fox of House McCloud]

While I do think Tyrion losing his tongue would neuter his character and limit his ability to interact with the world (not to say that he's too important to lose his tongue - nobody is too important to lose anything, from body parts to their life) it's worth remembering that he would still be able to read and write, and we would still get his thoughts in POV chapters.

[Ser Wun Wun]

This theory does make a lot of sense.  Seems like something for the tail end of the story, since Tyrion's chapters would become pretty boring if he couldn't speak imo.  

Euron's definitely the #1 candidate to do the deed as well.

[Lord Cactus]

11 hours ago, Ser Wun Wun said:

Euron's definitely the #1 candidate to do the deed as well.

Particularly due to him owning an entire ship full of mute slaves.

[Alan of Rosby]

This theory fits in with The Law of Conservation of Detail, I don't think GRR Martin would have included all those similar threats if there wasn't going to be a payoff.

 

[Yuzzybus]

Lord Cactus has a good point about Lannisters loosing their power.  I have been picking up on another pattern where GRRM punishes characters indirectly but appropriately for their sins when they have escaped more direct consequences.  Here are a few I found so far...

 

• Ned beheads Gared with Ice.  He heard his final words, but if Gared volunteered any important information about the Other was Ned really listening?  Ned is quickly beheaded by Ser Ilyn with Ice.
• Sansa refers to Jon as their half brother and pities him for being a bastard .  Sansa has to take on the persona of Alayne pretending to be a natural daughter of Littlefinger.
• Jeyne Poole calls Arya "Horseface."  Jeyne is forced to become Arya and
  Spoiler

  looses part of her pretty face to frostbite.

   

• Jorah sells poachers into slavery.  Jorah becomes a slave.
• Cersei is disgusted by Robert's drunkenness and has Robert murdered through wine and the help of a boar.  Cersei develops a taste for wine and boar becoming more like Robert.
• Tywin forced his father's mistress to walk the streets of Lannisport naked.  Tywin's daughter is forced to walk naked through King's Landing.
• Jaime cripples Bran depriving him of the joy of climbing.  Jaime is crippled by the Brave Companions loosing his sword hand and the joy of sword fighting.

So what unpunished crime has Tyrion committed that could make loosing his tongue appropriate.  Tyrion murdered Symon Silver Tongue for being indiscrete.  I think it would fit the pattern for Tyrion to loose his silver tongue. 

[Lord Wraith]

On 6/21/2016 at 5:04 PM, BricksAndSparrows said:

This is a possibility. Al though I don't think Tyrion would find it half so tragic as the loss of his cock.

Perhaps but Tyrion has talked his way out of trouble many times. I have yet to see him fuck his way out  of any situation.

I think the parallels with the Lannisters kids are sound.

Jaime loses his hand, his skill as a knight.

Cersei is losing her beauty, and the walk of atonement crippled her power.

 

[Morgana Lannister]

On 6/22/2016 at 1:18 AM, Scorpion92 said:

If Tyrion loses his tongue, then what good is he in the story? You might just as well go ahead and kill him. That is why I think it is not plausible.

That does not mean his tongue will not get him to near death like situations. But even in ADWD he starts to guard his tongue a little more since he knows there is a shaky ground beneath his feet.

I have to agree here lol  I have to say that despite all the references and the fact that oddest things have happened in ASOIAF this has got me in stitches for some reason (I mean the thought of Tyrion losing his tongue).  I have to say, he is my favourite character, for all his faults, and I think that is because I identify with him in many regards, but talking too much and being a bit smart arse is one of them,, so I would personally feel the pain if that happened lol  To be honest, yes, I much rather George just kills him off because I agree that it just wouldn't be him.  A bit like LSH as opposed to Cat lol Only joking but not completely though.  The thought!