What is Ghost?

[ravenous reader]

Just now, Therae said:

I see that Summer is a lot more specific with his headcount (four and one more).

Well, Bran was always more academic than Jon!

Yeah -- but I think that was before the Red Wedding.  So Grey Wind was still alive at this point.

The question we have to answer in Ghost's case is if the 'and one' is Summer or Lady.  No other options!

2 minutes ago, Therae said:

I do adore the direwolves.  

Aren't they marvellous!  

[PCK]

Well, the name is a hint at the identity of Jon's mother.

[Therae]

10 minutes ago, ravenous reader said:

Well, Bran was always more academic than Jon!

Yeah -- but I think that was before the Red Wedding.  So Grey Wind was still alive at this point.

LOL.

Yes, and typical GRRM to use specific language when there really wasn't any ambiguity there anyhow. 

Summer of course was at Winterfell when Lady's bones were returned, so he knows she is gone; only Ghost and Nymeria were away and could potentially be...unencumbered? by that knowledge and so potentially able to still sense her residing in Sansa in a way that maybe Summer et. al. can't?

[OtherFromAnotherMother]

8 hours ago, Therae said:

Summer of course was at Winterfell when Lady's bones were returned, so he knows she is gone; only Ghost and Nymeria were away and could potentially be...unencumbered? by that knowledge and so potentially able to still sense her residing in Sansa in a way that maybe Summer et. al. can't?

I think this is possible. 

Quote

Bran felt all cold inside. “She lost her wolf,” he said, weakly, remembering the day when four of his father’s guardsmen had returned from the south with Lady’s bones. Summer and Grey Wind and Shaggydog had begun to howl before they crossed the drawbridge, in voices drawn and desolate. Beneath the shadow of the First Keep was an ancient lichyard, its headstones spotted with pale lichen, where the old Kings of Winter had laid their faithful servants. It was there they buried Lady, while her brothers stalked between the graves like restless shadows. She had gone south, and only her bones had returned.

While it is impressive that the 3 direwolves in WF know something is wrong when Lady still has not crossed the drawbridge, we do not know that they 'sensed' something was wrong when she died. 

 

[Red Man Racey]

10 hours ago, OtherFromAnotherMother said:

Rule 2. Ellipses can express hesitation, changes of mood, suspense, or thoughts trailing off. Writers also use ellipses to indicate a pause or wavering in an otherwise straightforward sentence.

Examples:
I don't know … I'm not sure.
Pride is one thing, but what happens if she …?
He said, "I … really don't … understand this."

Going along with this rule, I usually read that statement from Ghost as "four remained and one of those he could not sense" with the ellipses indicating a hesitation before clarifying that he's only assuming that four remain because he can't sense one of them. The last time he could sense them all there were four so he assumes there still are, but he's actually not sure once he stops to consider it.

But the use of "and" is still bothersome -- it should be "but." Honestly, I tend to waver on this topic:  Ghost should know that two are gone at this point so it must mean "four remained and one of those he could not sense." But, the use of "and" implies "four remained and there was an extra one that he could not sense." Gaaaahhhhh!

[Sea Dragon]

14 hours ago, PCK said:

Well, the name is a hint at the identity of Jon's mother.

Wow. That is a good one. Jon is the child of two dead people. I like this idea. 

[OtherFromAnotherMother]

On 3/14/2017 at 7:17 AM, Red Man Racey said:

But, the use of "and" implies "four remained and there was an extra one that he could not sense." Gaaaahhhhh!

Welcome to the 'Can't Understand Math in Literature Club'! Glad you want to join our ever suffering group of head-to-wall bangers!

On 3/14/2017 at 7:17 AM, Red Man Racey said:

Going along with this rule, I usually read that statement from Ghost as "four remained and one of those he could not sense" with the ellipses indicating a hesitation before clarifying that he's only assuming that four remain because he can't sense one of them.

This makes sense. Thanks for pointing out that the ellipses probably express hesitation here. I foolishly eliminated this possibility in my earlier post.

On 3/14/2017 at 7:17 AM, Red Man Racey said:

But the use of "and" is still bothersome -- it should be "but." Honestly, I tend to waver on this topic:  Ghost should know that two are gone at this point so it must mean "four remained and one of those he could not sense."

Exactly. As RR mentioned earlier, George seems to be intentionally obtuse here. Mayhaps George wants to keep the door open to the idea that Lady is still alive through Sansa, but cannot be sensed? Or mayhaps not, and Ghost only knows their are four alive and cannot sense Summer anymore? 

The only thing I know for sure is that George could have made this a lot easier to understand,  but did not. And for that we bang our heads against the wall...

[Weirwood Ghost]

https://www.paganspath.com/meta/wolfclas.htm

"The White Wolf:
Known as the phantom, the white wolf lives in the spiritual and physical dimensions simultaneously. They teach the lessons which help to bring both these lives into balance. The help us learn how to build the bridge between the two worlds so that we might learn the underlying purpose of events and issues in our life."

[Cridefea]

Sorry if I come out with this now, but you were talking about the ambiguous math and you were right, but I also find weird this  description:

Quote

In another place, his little sister lifted her head to sing to the moon, and a hundred small grey cousins broke off their hunt to sing with her. 

Why did Ghost call Nymeria "little sister" ? wasn't  Lady the little one? does we know if Nymeria was small too?

[leonardof]

On 10/03/2017 at 9:25 AM, Quellon said:

By now, I think it is clear Ghost is no ordinary direwolf. He's white, he doesn't make the sounds other direwolves make and that excerpt where Jon remarks how he looks like those weirwood faces...this is all meant to allude that Ghost is something supernatural. Or, spawned by something supernatural. So...what may he be really? Or who?

There haven't been any ordinary direwolves in our world for thousands of years now, and they are a rare sight in the Seven Kingdoms, even in the North. Besides, their connection with the Stark kids is so blatant it's there on page.

George Martin likes to let things open for interpretation, but I'm more prone to think of the Stark kids as being supernatural. After all, they warg and one of them is a greenseer!

[ravenous reader]

1 hour ago, Cridefea said:

Sorry if I come out with this now, but you were talking about the ambiguous math and you were right, but I also find weird this  description:

Why did Ghost call Nymeria "little sister" ? wasn't  Lady the little one? does we know if Nymeria was small too?

'Little sister' is Jon's nickname for Arya:

Quote

A Game of Thrones - Arya I

They arrived, flushed and breathless, to find Jon seated on the sill, one leg drawn up languidly to his chin. He was watching the action, so absorbed that he seemed unaware of her approach until his white wolf moved to meet them. Nymeria stalked closer on wary feet. Ghost, already larger than his litter mates, smelled her, gave her ear a careful nip, and settled back down.

Jon gave her a curious look. "Shouldn't you be working on your stitches, little sister?"

Arya made a face at him. "I wanted to see them fight."

 

A Game of Thrones - Arya I

She watched her little brother whack at Tommen. "I could do just as good as Bran," she said. "He's only seven. I'm nine."

Jon looked her over with all his fourteen-year-old wisdom. "You're too skinny," he said. He took her arm to feel her muscle. Then he sighed and shook his head. "I doubt you could even lift a longsword, little sister, never mind swing one."

Arya snatched back her arm and glared at him. Jon messed up her hair again. They watched Bran and Tommen circle each other.

 

A Game of Thrones - Arya I

"The woman is important too!" Arya protested.

Jon chuckled. "Perhaps you should do the same thing, little sister. Wed Tully to Stark in your arms."

"A wolf with a fish in its mouth?" It made her laugh. "That would look silly. Besides, if a girl can't fight, why should she have a coat of arms?"

 

A Game of Thrones - Arya I

"A wolf with a fish in its mouth?" It made her laugh. "That would look silly. Besides, if a girl can't fight, why should she have a coat of arms?"

Jon shrugged. "Girls get the arms but not the swords. Bastards get the swords but not the arms. I did not make the rules, little sister."

 

A Game of Thrones - Arya I

That brought more laughter from the Lannisters, more curses from Robb. Ser Rodrik's face was beet-red with fury under the white of his whiskers. Theon kept Robb locked in an iron grip until the princes and their party were safely away.

Jon watched them leave, and Arya watched Jon. His face had grown as still as the pool at the heart of the godswood. Finally he climbed down off the window. "The show is done," he said. He bent to scratch Ghost behind the ears. The white wolf rose and rubbed against him. "You had best run back to your room, little sister. Septa Mordane will surely be lurking. The longer you hide, the sterner the penance. You'll be sewing all through winter. When the spring thaw comes, they will find your body with a needle still locked tight between your frozen fingers."

Arya didn't think it was funny. "I hate needlework!" she said with passion. "It's not fair!"

 

A Game of Thrones - Jon II

Arya disentangled herself from him and made a face. "Nothing. I was all packed and everything." She gestured at the huge chest, no more than a third full, and at the clothes that were scattered all over the room. "Septa Mordane says I have to do it all over. My things weren't properly folded, she says. A proper southron lady doesn't just throw her clothes inside her chest like old rags, she says."

"Is that what you did, little sister?"

"Well, they're going to get all messed up anyway," she said. "Who cares how they're folded?"

 

A Game of Thrones - Jon II

"… don't … tell … Sansa!"

Jon messed up her hair. "I will miss you, little sister."

Suddenly she looked like she was going to cry. "I wish you were coming with us."

 

A Game of Thrones - Arya II

No one talked to Arya. She didn't care. She liked it that way. She would have eaten her meals alone in her bedchamber if they let her. Sometimes they did, when Father had to dine with the king or some lord or the envoys from this place or that place. The rest of the time, they ate in his solar, just him and her and Sansa. That was when Arya missed her brothers most. She wanted to tease Bran and play with baby Rickon and have Robb smile at her. She wanted Jon to muss up her hair and call her "little sister" and finish her sentences with her. But all of them were gone. She had no one left but Sansa, and Sansa wouldn't even talk to her unless Father made her.

 

A Game of Thrones - Jon IV

 Before long he found himself talking of Winterfell.

"Sometimes I dream about it," he said. "I'm walking down this long empty hall. My voice echoes all around, but no one answers, so I walk faster, opening doors, shouting names. I don't even know who I'm looking for. Most nights it's my father, but sometimes it's Robb instead, or my little sister Arya, or my uncle." 

 

A Game of Thrones - Arya V

A whooping gang of small children went running past, chasing a rolling hoop. Arya stared at them with resentment, remembering the times she'd played at hoops with Bran and Jon and their baby brother Rickon. She wondered how big Rickon had grown, and whether Bran was sad. She would have given anything if Jon had been here to call her "little sister" and muss her hair. Not that it needed mussing. She'd seen her reflection in puddles, and she didn't think hair got any more mussed than hers.

 

A Clash of Kings - Arya I

When at last she slept, she dreamed of home. The kingsroad wound its way past Winterfell on its way to the Wall, and Yoren had promised he'd leave her there with no one any wiser about who she'd been. She yearned to see her mother again, and Robb and Bran and Rickon . . . but it was Jon Snow she thought of most. She wished somehow they could come to the Wall before Winterfell, so Jon might muss up her hair and call her "little sister." She'd tell him, "I missed you," and he'd say it too at the very same moment, the way they always used to say things together. She would have liked that. She would have liked that better than anything.

 

A Clash of Kings - Jon II

As he rode, Jon peeled off his glove to air his burned fingers. Ugly things. He remembered suddenly how he used to muss Arya's hair. His little stick of a sister. He wondered how she was faring. It made him a little sad to think that he might never muss her hair again. He began to flex his hand, opening and closing the fingers. If he let his sword hand stiffen and grow clumsy, it well might be the end of him, he knew. A man needed his sword beyond the Wall.

 

A Storm of Swords - Jon II

"No, a mammoth!" Tormund bellowed. "Har!"

Ygritte trotted beside Jon as he slowed his garron to a walk. She claimed to be three years older than him, though she stood half a foot shorter; however old she might be, the girl was a tough little thing. Stonesnake had called her a "spearwife" when they'd captured her in the Skirling Pass. She wasn't wed and her weapon of choice was a short curved bow of horn and weirwood, but "spearwife" fit her all the same. She reminded him a little of his sister Arya, though Arya was younger and probably skinnier. It was hard to tell how plump or thin Ygritte might be, with all the furs and skins she wore.

 

A Storm of Swords - Jon III

"I never meant to steal you," he said. "I never knew you were a girl until my knife was at your throat."

"If you kill a man, and never mean t', he's just as dead," Ygritte said stubbornly. Jon had never met anyone so stubborn, except maybe for his little sister Arya. Is she still my sister? he wondered. Was she ever? He had never truly been a Stark, only Lord Eddard's motherless bastard, with no more place at Winterfell than Theon Greyjoy. And even that he'd lost. When a man of the Night's Watch said his words, he put aside his old family and joined a new one, but Jon Snow had lost those brothers too.

 

A Storm of Swords - Arya VIII

"My lady?" Ned said at last. "You have a baseborn brother . . . Jon Snow?"

"He's with the Night's Watch on the Wall." Maybe I should go to the Wall instead of Riverrun. Jon wouldn't care who I killed or whether I brushed my hair . . . "Jon looks like me, even though he's bastard-born. He used to muss my hair and call me 'little sister.'" Arya missed Jon most of all. Just saying his name made her sad. "How do you know about Jon?"

"He is my milk brother."

 

A Storm of Swords - Arya VIII

"The fault is mine, my lady." He was very polite.

Jon has a mother. Wylla, her name is Wylla. She would need to remember so she could tell him, the next time she saw him. She wondered if he would still call her "little sister." I'm not so little anymore. He'd have to call me something else. Maybe once she got to Riverrun she could write Jon a letter and tell him what Ned Dayne had said. "There was an Arthur Dayne," she remembered. "The one they called the Sword of the Morning."

 

A Storm of Swords - Jon VII

"I have need of every man who knows which end of the spear to stab into the wildlings."

"The pointy end." Jon had told his little sister something like that once, he remembered.

 

A Storm of Swords - Arya XII

"He's free to try." He turned the spit.

He doesn't talk like he's lost his belly for fighting. "I know where we could go," Arya said. She still had one brother left. Jon will want me, even if no one else does. He'll call me "little sister" and muss my hair. It was a long way, though, and she didn't think she could get there by herself. She hadn't even been able to reach Riverrun. "We could go to the Wall."

Sandor's laugh was half a growl. "The little wolf bitch wants to join the Night's Watch, does she?"

 

A Dance with Dragons - Jon VI

"Lord Snow?" Clydas peered at him closely with his dim pink eyes. "Are you … unwell? You seem …"

"He's to marry Arya Stark. My little sister." Jon could almost see her in that moment, long-faced and gawky, all knobby knees and sharp elbows, with her dirty face and tangled hair. They would wash the one and comb the other, he did not doubt, but he could not imagine Arya in a wedding gown, nor Ramsay Bolton's bed. No matter how afraid she is, she will not show it. If he tries to lay a hand on her, she'll fight him.

"Your sister," Iron Emmett said, "how old is …"

 

A Dance with Dragons - Jon VI

"I have no sister." The words were knives. What do you know of my heart, priestess? What do you know of my sister?

Melisandre seemed amused. "What is her name, this little sister that you do not have?"

"Arya." His voice was hoarse. "My half-sister, truly …"

 

A Dance with Dragons - Jon VII

With their black hoods and thick black cowls, the six might have been carved from shadow. Their voices rose together, small against the vastness of the night. "Night gathers, and now my watch begins," they said, as thousands had said before them. Satin's voice was sweet as song, Horse's hoarse and halting, Arron's a nervous squeak. "It shall not end until my death."

May those deaths be long in coming. Jon Snow sank to one knee in the snow. Gods of my fathers, protect these men. And Arya too, my little sister, wherever she might be. I pray you, let Mance find her and bring her safe to me.

 

A Dance with Dragons - Jon X

"You're not scared?"

The girl smiled in a way that reminded Jon so much of his little sister that it almost broke his heart. "Let him be scared of me." The snowflakes were melting on her cheeks, but her hair was wrapped in a swirl of lace that Satin had found somewhere, and the snow had begun to collect there, giving her a frosty crown. Her cheeks were flushed and red, and her eyes sparkled.

"Winter's lady." Jon squeezed her hand.

 

A Dance with Dragons - Jon XI

Jon walked to the edge of the Wall and gazed down upon the killing ground where Mance Rayder's host had died. He wondered where Mance was now. Did he ever find you, little sister? Or were you just a ploy he used so I would set him free?

It had been so long since he had last seen Arya. What would she look like now? Would he even know her? Arya Underfoot. Her face was always dirty. Would she still have that little sword he'd had Mikken forge for her? Stick them with the pointy end, he'd told her. Wisdom for her wedding night if half of what he heard of Ramsay Snow was true. Bring her home, Mance. I saved your son from Melisandre, and now I am about to save four thousand of your free folk. You owe me this one little girl.

 

[Aline de Gavrillac]

On 3/10/2017 at 7:25 AM, Quellon said:

By now, I think it is clear Ghost is no ordinary direwolf. He's white, he doesn't make the sounds other direwolves make and that excerpt where Jon remarks how he looks like those weirwood faces...this is all meant to allude that Ghost is something supernatural. Or, spawned by something supernatural. So...what may he be really? Or who?

You may find this not to your liking but Ghost reminded me of the white lambs in the bible.  The ones God preferred.  God likes his veal young and white as snow.  The patriarchs sacrificed white lambs to god.

[Unchained]

39 minutes ago, Aline de Gavrillac said:

You may find this not to your liking but Ghost reminded me of the white lambs in the bible.  The ones God preferred.  God likes his veal young and white as snow.  The patriarchs sacrificed white lambs to god.

I for one do not find that to my liking, but I see that as a great find and have already come to believe that Ghost will probly have to die for Jon's soul to return to his body.  Unfortunately, Jon seems to be Mithras with Ghost as his white sacrificial white bull that brings fertility back to the world.  

[Lollygag]

I thought that Ghost has been aware of Lady's death since at least Clash. Jon has this wolf dream right after meeting Ygritte. This was also right before seeing Bran in the weirwood.

ACOK Jon VII: There were five of them when there should have been six, and they were scattered, each apart from the others. He felt a deep ache of emptiness, a sense of incompleteness. The forest was vast and cold, and they were so small, so lost. His brothers were out there somewhere, and his sister, but he had lost their scent. He sat on his haunches and lifted his head to the darkening sky, and his cry echoed through the forest, a long lonely mournful sound. As it died away, he pricked up his ears, listening for an answer, but the only sound was the sigh of blowing snow.

What I'm thoroughly confused about here is that the normally silent Ghost lets out quite a wail. Big continuity error? Am I missing something?

I took the ellipse as Ghost trying to work out Grey Wind's situation. If I’m not missing something somewhere, then this might imply that while Ghost knows that Lady is dead, he can still sense her in a way, either through Sansa or Lady’s bones at Winterfell. He shows no confusion over Lady’s death, but does seem puzzled about Grey Wind implying that something is different concerning Lady and Grey Wind.

As to why Jon can’t sense Ghost for a time, it seems to correspond roughly to the time that Jon begins to really bond with Ygritte and he regains his sense of Ghost not long after her death. Need to double check this, though. If so, this would imply that strong emotional attachments to others can block the connection to their wolves. Jon thinks Mel is Ygritte for a moment right before Ghost fails to recognize him.