Becoming No One: Re-reading Arya

[Lyanna Stark]

I recall darkness being a theme with Bran too, but don't remember it being so clear with Jon or Sansa.

Darkness and descent into the underworld seems to generally be more a theme of Arya's chapters in comparison to Sansa, who instead seems to reside a lot in high places (and she is often about to fall off: whether she wants to push Joffrey, has period pains causing loss of balance, or Lysa trying to push her out the Moon Door, and then the land saddle in the Vale).

This goes more metaphorically as well, since Arya's travel in the Riverlands and posing as a commoner puts her at the bottom of society, among the "dark dregs". And her trip through the Lannister/Gregor Clegane's prison camps certainly is a strong metaphor for passing through the darkest recesses of Hell. Sansa insted gets stuck in KL: the "lofty heights" of court life where she is constantly threatened with taking "a step wrong" and "falling" (more "falling from grace" with Joffrey and Cersei and of saying the wrong thing to the wrong person).

[Blisscraft]

Arya is progressing from a "fighter" to a "martial artist." Syrio is a part of that progression. He teaches her that there is a difference between learning to "fight," (which doesn't seem to require Arya training very much as she naturally fights as an after born daughter) and learning to "water dance." This parallels with Sansa's ability to sew. Sansa is an artist with her needles and thread mentored by Septa Mordane. Arya is becoming an artist with a different kind of needle and a different kind of mentor.

After the attack at Arya's "dancing lesson," Arya escapes toward the Hand's Tower. As she is heading to the Tower, she keeps thinking of all of the things Syrio taught her. "Swift as a deer. Quiet as a shadow. . . Fear cuts deeper than swords." It's like a prayer and forshadows her later "prayers" in the series.

Arya reaches a point where she must chose a way to go at the turret stair. "Up or down?" she thinks. She doesn't chose to go up. She doesn't the cross bridge to the Tower. She doesn't take the "high road," rather she takes the "low road" and heads down. She descends as far as she can go and finds herself in "a cavernous vaulted cellar." It's a dead end. She can't go back the way she came. She must climb up ale casks to a "narrow slanting window" and "wriggle" through. Arya's choice suggests a rebirth, going down to climb back up and out of the dark cellar and into the daylight.

Once in the daylight, Arya sees the destruction of her father's men. She has been reborn into an unsafe and frightening world. She is "alone and afraid." She pretends she is chasing cats, but now she is the cat and not the hunter. She is the prey, hiding in shadows going from shadow to shadow.

She goes to the stables. There, she finds the master of horse, Hullen. He is dying, he calls her, "Arya Underfoot," one of her WF nicknames. There is death all around her in the stable. She seeks her Needle, her instrument which will protect her now that everything appears lost.

Needle is under the clothes stack as it was before, but this time its use will "unstitch" the stable boy. Arya's "first blood" is in the stable. She returns to her "wild" nature when she kills the boy. She forgets everything Syrio taught her and uses to her first lesson with Jon as her guide and sticks the stable boy with the pointy end.

Her mare will not save her this time. She cannot ride out ahorse without being caught as a "wolf girl." She must proceed on foot. First, she goes to the Sept, steals two candles, and then she proceeds downward again and to find the dragons. She has changed since she last hid among the dragons. She no longer fears them. Now they are "old friends." She remember's Robb and Jon's prank in the WF Crypts. Her past comforts her, her present, in the dark with the dragons holds "no more terrors" for her and her future will "plunge her deeper into darkness."

[Ragnorak]

What about the two candles in the Sept? Is she taking two aspects of the Seven on her journey? Is she mourning the loss of two aspects and carrying that loss with her?

Cupping her fingers around the flickering candle, she went out the window as they were coming in the door, without ever getting a glimpse of who it was

The Stranger?

Arya held the candle over her head. With each step she took, the shadows moved against the walls, as if they were turning to watch her pass. “Dragons,” she whispered.

She held Needle in her left hand, her sword hand, the candle in her right fist (the warrior?)

Part of her wanted to run, but she was afraid of snuffing out her candle

He would see her candle coming a long way off. Maybe she would be better off without the light…

Her brother Robb had taken them down, her and Sansa and baby Bran, who’d been no bigger than Rickon was now. They’d only had one candle between them (back then the family shared one candle-- she takes two)

Sansa kept looking at the stubby little candle, anxious that it might go out.

Her footsteps sent soft echoes hurrying ahead of her as Arya plunged deeper into the darkness.

I'll have to think about this some more, but it seems like there's more meaning there.

It is also interesting that she thinks of the godswood in KL and the "little godswood."

[Lummel]

...I actually don't have a good explanation for my impression of a similarity between the North and Braavos. When I've tried to analyze it, it seems that Braavos should be closer to the Dornish but it never had that feel for me. Sandor is easier to find examples for with things like a strong sense of honor without knights up North...

I suppose my concern is that I fear taking a bunch of positive traits and associating them with the north rather than saying that they are found in different individuals and places. We see increasingly duplicitious, ploting, scheming and backstabbing northerners.

While I agree that there is an austerity to part of the society of Braavos like the banker, there is also an extravagent, extrovert side in the Braavos and the mummers and the dock side people. But I am way ahead of where we are...

...Sorry Lummel, I've stolen this quote of yours from another thread because I thought it was relevant here in connection to what I was trying to say about the depiction of the stable boy Arya kills. Only as usual you said it much better than me!

You're Welcome Rapsie, I was saving that idea for later because I feel in the context of the chapter the murder of the stable boy doesn't stand out as having shock value - maybe you all disagree and still feel it like a blast of cold air? Technically since we have Sandor dogging it up 'I killed a man when I was twelve' in Arya I, Arya murdering somebody should really shake us. This is somebody forced into an adult role at a frighteningly young age. I would be interested to see how you (plural, anybody somebody) respond to her act. But this is precisely why GRRM pulled out the stops, he has won our sympathy for the little girl, we're on her side, now he can see just how far he can go before we are appalled and horrified. Although in narrative terms GRRM has his cake and eats it, unlike say Tyrion breaking Marrillion's fingers Arya doesn't have much choice in that situation given her age, skills and lack of help.

Darkness and descent into the underworld seems to generally be more a theme of Arya's chapters in comparison to Sansa...

Two siblings go down and two up. I'm think Arya and Bran down with associations with death and the underworld down socially, Jon and Sansa up in the world in those ways you mention.

Mind you that model is a little simplistic Sansa also gets to die and has her spell in the underworld, Jon has the temptation of life in the caves with Ygritte...

[Ragnorak]

I suppose my concern is that I fear taking a bunch of positive traits and associating them with the north rather than saying that they are found in different individuals and places. We see increasingly duplicitious, ploting, scheming and backstabbing northerners.

While I agree that there is an austerity to part of the society of Braavos like the banker, there is also an extravagent, extrovert side in the Braavos and the mummers and the dock side people. But I am way ahead of where we are...

<snip>

Your religious commitment to objectivity as resident High Seton is most admirable in spite of your indiscretions with oysters and food eating youtube links.

Lyanna, I like that distinction between ascent and descent even though as Lummel points out it can be a bit mixed at times. Your balance reference with Sansa struck me since balance came up multiple times in Arya's training including in Sansa's POV though I don't have any insights yet.

It has come up before in the Sansa thread but it is probably worth mentioning here. Despite her physical resemblence to her father, Arya is still her mother's daughter. Her mother is nicknamed "Cat" and cats continue to show up throughout Arya's story. We've had Arya chasing cats and now in this chapter that cat chase is reversed. Arya will chase after Cat and then be chased by her through Brienne.

[The Sleeper]

You're Welcome Rapsie, I was saving that idea for later because I feel in the context of the chapter the murder of the stable boy doesn't stand out as having shock value - maybe you all disagree and still feel it like a blast of cold air? Technically since we have Sandor dogging it up 'I killed a man when I was twelve' in Arya I, Arya murdering somebody should really shake us. This is somebody forced into an adult role at a frighteningly young age. I would be interested to see how you (plural, anybody somebody) respond to her act. But this is precisely why GRRM pulled out the stops, he has won our sympathy for the little girl, we're on her side, now he can see just how far he can go before we are appalled and horrified. Although in narrative terms GRRM has his cake and eats it, unlike say Tyrion breaking Marrillion's fingers Arya doesn't have much choice in that situation given her age, skills and lack of help.

Personally, I got my blast of cold air with the cool efficiency the guard at Harrenhal was dispatced. While Martin does play with our perceptions, I think there are some necessities dictated by character development. Arya is capable of great rage and she is being trained in arms. Her first kill would be a crime of passion, opportunity or necessity. Considering the previous chapter's and the deaths of Mycah, Jory and the guardsmen which she has taken to heart, Martin could certainly make up a situation where she kiiled in a fit of rage. In this case however her future development would have been completely different and I don't think she would have been able to put her guilt aside that easily. This whole chapter was a shock. And Ned's chapter where he is being betrayed by LF had not immediately preceded it, it would have been a far greater one. This way Arya found herself a breath away form being captured in a state wher she saw her whole world tumbling down and people she knew being slaughterd mercilessly. Killing proved to be a means of survival.

I would like to stand on the phrase "stick' em with the pointy end". Jon taught it to her as her first lesson about swordfighting and Ned jokingly agreed that it is the essence of it. While this statement is made with levity it is perefectly accurate. She lived in a world where the men carried swords and practised with them consistently and she wanted to be included. All the training, the practice and the water dancing aims at sticking someone with the pointy end. She is the daughter of the head of the warrior caste and her brothers were traing and dreaming of being warriors. Her father excersized his authority with a sword. Arya knew about the context and where violence was expected and to whom it was supposed to be directed at, but only superficially as she was never expected to make these distinctions herself. Instead she found herself in a position where all this was reduced to its core: kill before someone else gets you.

[Daenerys is my queen]

Arya is progressing from a "fighter" to a "martial artist." Syrio is a part of that progression. He teaches her that there is a difference between learning to "fight," (which doesn't seem to require Arya training very much as she naturally fights as an after born daughter) and learning to "water dance." This parallels with Sansa's ability to sew. Sansa is an artist with her needles and thread mentored by Septa Mordane. Arya is becoming an artist with a different kind of needle and a different kind of mentor.

After the attack at Arya's "dancing lesson," Arya escapes toward the Hand's Tower. As she is heading to the Tower, she keeps thinking of all of the things Syrio taught her. "Swift as a deer. Quiet as a shadow. . . Fear cuts deeper than swords." It's like a prayer and forshadows her later "prayers" in the series.

Arya reaches a point where she must chose a way to go at the turret stair. "Up or down?" she thinks. She doesn't chose to go up. She doesn't the cross bridge to the Tower. She doesn't take the "high road," rather she takes the "low road" and heads down. She descends as far as she can go and finds herself in "a cavernous vaulted cellar." It's a dead end. She can't go back the way she came. She must climb up ale casks to a "narrow slanting window" and "wriggle" through. Arya's choice suggests a rebirth, going down to climb back up and out of the dark cellar and into the daylight.

Once in the daylight, Arya sees the destruction of her father's men. She has been reborn into an unsafe and frightening world. She is "alone and afraid." She pretends she is chasing cats, but now she is the cat and not the hunter. She is the prey, hiding in shadows going from shadow to shadow.

She goes to the stables. There, she finds the master of horse, Hullen. He is dying, he calls her, "Arya Underfoot," one of her WF nicknames. There is death all around her in the stable. She seeks her Needle, her instrument which will protect her now that everything appears lost.

Needle is under the clothes stack as it was before, but this time its use will "unstitch" the stable boy. Arya's "first blood" is in the stable. She returns to her "wild" nature when she kills the boy. She forgets everything Syrio taught her and uses to her first lesson with Jon as her guide and sticks the stable boy with the pointy end.

Her mare will not save her this time. She cannot ride out ahorse without being caught as a "wolf girl." She must proceed on foot. First, she goes to the Sept, steals two candles, and then she proceeds downward again and to find the dragons. She has changed since she last hid among the dragons. She no longer fears them. Now they are "old friends." She remember's Robb and Jon's prank in the WF Crypts. Her past comforts her, her present, in the dark with the dragons holds "no more terrors" for her and her future will "plunge her deeper into darkness."

Awesome post! :)

What about the two candles in the Sept? Is she taking two aspects of the Seven on her journey? Is she mourning the loss of two aspects and carrying that loss with her?

The Stranger?

I'll have to think about this some more, but it seems like there's more meaning there.

It is also interesting that she thinks of the godswood in KL and the "little godswood."

If it's the Stranger and the Warrior perhaps it could have something to do with the FM?

And why do you think it's interesting that she calls the gods wood in KL the "little godswood"? Just wondering. :)

I suppose my concern is that I fear taking a bunch of positive traits and associating them with the north rather than saying that they are found in different individuals and places. We see increasingly duplicitious, ploting, scheming and backstabbing northerners.

While I agree that there is an austerity to part of the society of Braavos like the banker, there is also an extravagent, extrovert side in the Braavos and the mummers and the dock side people. But I am way ahead of where we are...

You're Welcome Rapsie, I was saving that idea for later because I feel in the context of the chapter the murder of the stable boy doesn't stand out as having shock value - maybe you all disagree and still feel it like a blast of cold air? Technically since we have Sandor dogging it up 'I killed a man when I was twelve' in Arya I, Arya murdering somebody should really shake us. This is somebody forced into an adult role at a frighteningly young age. I would be interested to see how you (plural, anybody somebody) respond to her act. But this is precisely why GRRM pulled out the stops, he has won our sympathy for the little girl, we're on her side, now he can see just how far he can go before we are appalled and horrified. Although in narrative terms GRRM has his cake and eats it, unlike say Tyrion breaking Marrillion's fingers Arya doesn't have much choice in that situation given her age, skills and lack of help.

Two siblings go down and two up. I'm think Arya and Bran down with associations with death and the underworld down socially, Jon and Sansa up in the world in those ways you mention.

Mind you that model is a little simplistic Sansa also gets to die and has her spell in the underworld, Jon has the temptation of life in the caves with Ygritte...

There definitely are some scheming northerners. But I think that most of them are pretty honorable.

As for Arya killing the stable boy, I was pretty shocked that Arya killed someone but it was in self defense so I didn't really feel that it meant anything bad for her character.

[1234567]

You're Welcome Rapsie, I was saving that idea for later because I feel in the context of the chapter the murder of the stable boy doesn't stand out as having shock value - maybe you all disagree and still feel it like a blast of cold air? Technically since we have Sandor dogging it up 'I killed a man when I was twelve' in Arya I, Arya murdering somebody should really shake us. This is somebody forced into an adult role at a frighteningly young age. I would be interested to see how you (plural, anybody somebody) respond to her act. But this is precisely why GRRM pulled out the stops, he has won our sympathy for the little girl, we're on her side, now he can see just how far he can go before we are appalled and horrified. Although in narrative terms GRRM has his cake and eats it, unlike say Tyrion breaking Marrillion's fingers Arya doesn't have much choice in that situation given her age, skills and lack of help.

Oh Lummel, sorry. We can certainly leave more I depth discussion until later. But to answer your question, I guess I am thinking about things that didn't even cross my mind the first time I read the books. This actually goes back to the fight on the Trident. It was only during the Sansa re-read that it actually occurred to me a) how incredibly violent the fight was and that B) Arya had contributed to the escalation of the situation and that her reaction was not completely normal and more aggressive than called for. The way it is written, I had even missed the fact that Arya hits Joff first (I know he held a sword to Mycah, but in terms of them fighting she attacked Joff, not the other way round.) Equally the death of the stable boy never bothered me. His portrayal makes him instantly dislikable. The worrying thing though is that it still to an extent doesn't bother me. She had no choice in killing him and it was purely self-defence, but it is written in a way that seems to ensure the reader does sides with Arya. He is written to "deserve" his fate.

Similar to the Tyrion breaking Marillion's fingers, is the incident where Arya knocks Sansa to the ground and starts kicking her: we I first read the books both incidents skipped my notice entirely. Why? Partly because the idea that the "good guys" don't do these things is so ingrained in our psyche that they literally get overlooked and also because they are very quickly mentioned in high impact scenes.

[The Sleeper]

Oh Lummel, sorry. We can certainly leave more I depth discussion until later. But to answer your question, I guess I am thinking about things that didn't even cross my mind the first time I read the books. This actually goes back to the fight on the Trident. It was only during the Sansa re-read that it actually occurred to me a) how incredibly violent the fight was and that B) Arya had contributed to the escalation of the situation and that her reaction was not completely normal and more aggressive than called for. The way it is written, I had even missed the fact that Arya hits Joff first (I know he held a sword to Mycah, but in terms of them fighting she attacked Joff, not the other way round.) Equally the death of the stable boy never bothered me. His portrayal makes him instantly dislikable. The worrying thing though is that it still to an extent doesn't bother me. She had no choice in killing him and it was purely self-defence, but it is written in a way that seems to ensure the reader does sides with Arya. He is written to "deserve" his fate.

Similar to the Tyrion breaking Marillion's fingers, is the incident where Arya knocks Sansa to the ground and starts kicking her: we I first read the books both incidents skipped my notice entirely. Why? Partly because the idea that the "good guys" don't do these things is so ingrained in our psyche that they literally get overlooked and also because they are very quickly mentioned in high impact scenes.

Which reaction do you think is appropriate when someone is cutting a friend's face in front of you?

[1234567]

Which reaction do you think is appropriate when someone is cutting a friend's face in front of you?

Not attacking them, but trying to talk to them.

Although that is another point, the immediate defence of Arya's action here as if there was no other way to deal with the situation. However we did discuss this earlier in the thread, when dealing with that chapter.

[1234567]

Okay just another quick thought tying into the crypt memory as foreshadowing.

Jon is in the Crypt as someone risen from the dead.

Arya punching him, could then also foreshadow Jon as the Nightking and Arya having to stop him.......god that would be a downer of an ending.

[The Sleeper]

Not attacking them, but trying to talk to them.

Although that is another point, the immediate defence of Arya's action here as if there was no other way to deal with the situation. However we did discuss this earlier in the thread, when dealing with that chapter.

Well, since it came up.

I suppose one could try explaining the situation to Joffrey that it was playing and that the butcher's boy had no intention of harming Arya. This, however, does not seem to me that it would have much effect, considering thatt Joffrey was drunk apart from being a sadistic little shit (he had put his sword on Mycah's face and had already drawn blood). I, also think, we need to consider the fact that the situation was very intense and the participants were children. Reactions are bound to be instinctive and visceral. Most adults would find it hard to keep their cool in that situation.

Perhaps the right word isn't "appropriate" but rather "natural".

[1234567]

Well, since it came up.

I suppose one could try explaining the situation to Joffrey that it was playing and that the butcher's boy had no intention of harming Arya. This, however, does not seem to me that it would have much effect, considering thatt Joffrey was drunk apart from being a sadistic little shit (he had put his sword on Mycah's face and had already drawn blood). I, also think, we need to consider the fact that the situation was very intense and the participants were children. Reactions are bound to be instinctive and visceral. Most adults would find it hard to keep their cool in that situation.

Perhaps the right word isn't "appropriate" but rather "natural".

The point is not that Joff would not have listened (at this point no one knew Joff was a psycho and Arya didn't know he was drunk). It's Arya's initial reaction after screaming at him. No explanation, no agreeing that she had asked etc. He's the Crown Prince. You do not hit the Crown Prince.

The natural reaction is verbal first IMHO, not hitting someone so hard with a stick that it splits the back of their head open and then trying to hit them again.

[Lummel]

Your religious commitment to objectivity as resident High Seton is most admirable in spite of your indiscretions with oysters and food eating youtube links...

You are promoting me my friend, I am but a begging brother, wandering these lands ravaged by argument and dissention, offering enlightenment through rereading :laugh: (don't forget that some of us have our oyster related sins that we need to atone for!)

I like the cats point, one of GRRM's direjokes I feel. I also think there is something in the up and down, high and low paths that the children take. Perhaps it is simply to emphase that they are taking, or rather being forced along, very different paths through life towards adulthood.

Oh Lummel, sorry. We can certainly leave more I depth discussion until later...Similar to the Tyrion breaking Marillion's fingers, is the incident where Arya knocks Sansa to the ground and starts kicking her: we I first read the books both incidents skipped my notice entirely. Why? Partly because the idea that the "good guys" don't do these things is so ingrained in our psyche that they literally get overlooked and also because they are very quickly mentioned in high impact scenes.

oh don't worry about it, you are one of the Hosts of this thread, it is your call to introduce themes or ask us to save them for later. Since it is my big idea I'm happy to bring it up as we go on. :)

There are a couple of points I'll make. The first is that Arya like Rickon is described as being wilder and fiercer from the start or at least from early on, in juxtaposition to Bran and possibly Sansa who are sweeter, Bran in particular is a very good natured soul (apart from when Freys are involved admittedly) and often described as being sweet (sweet prince etc).

Next there is something like a process of socialisation (possibly not exactly the term I'm looking for but never mind) in which recourse to violence becomes normal for Arya, but - and this I think is the clever bit by GRRM - it also becomes normal and acceptable to us as readers too. There is something similar going on with Tyrion, but with him it is already learnt behaviour and not something we see him learning. So I am not so sure that it is the case that because good guys don't do bad things that leads us to ignore it, so much as that a good guy can't do a bad deed therefore what a good guy does must be good - or maybe this works differently for us readers? I don't know, please tell me if you (plural, anybody , join in!) feel differently about this.

The first stage in this is that the victim 'deserves' the violence because we know they are not nice, sympathetic characters. Joffrey is a (insert whatever term you feel best) only his mother could love him the little... The stableboy is smirking at her, even knowing that her father is dead - what an illegetimate person! So GRRM makes it easy to be on Arya's side as she beats up Joffrey and kills the stableboy, it can come across as righteous and justifable.

But I think the point of this is for GRRM to lead us to a point like Tyrion's murder of Shae where we realise something profound about the character and something about how we have been (mis)reading the character and maybe something about ourselves and our attitudes towards violence too (aye, repent ye sinners for the holy festival of Sevenmass lies ahead of us :) ).

[1234567]

(don't forget that some of us have our oyster related sins that we need to atone for!)

Oyster related sin eh? Did you jump the barriers in the Underground.

I like the cats point, one of GRRM's direjokes I feel. I also think there is something in the up and down, high and low paths that the children take. Perhaps it is simply to emphase that they are taking, or rather being forced along, very different paths through life towards adulthood.

Fantastic points as always. I'd just like to add to the above one that Arya's escape initially had me thinking of a game of Cat and Mouse, where Arya is more like the mouse (which ties in with the wet rat analogy from the Trident). However Cat and Mouse is one stalker and one victim, so in her escape she is more like a cat that it being hunted by even bigger cats (a pride of Lions to be exact).

I would also theorise that the chase cats game has not only taught her how to chase cats, but also escape like a cat. She has picked up evasion techniques etc.

Also I wonder if chasing cats and finally catching Balerion foreshadows that Arya will eventually catch an important "cat", namely Cersei.

[Lyanna Stark]

One thing that struck me while reading this chapter again was that Syrio may have laid out som exposition on Arya's development and story arc (and all the Stark sibling's development really, but mostly Arya and Sansa who were placed in the middle of southern politics).

"Just so. Opening your eyes is all that is needing. The heart lies and the head plays tricks with us, but the eyes see true. Look with your eyes. Hear with your ears. Taste with your mouth. Smell with your nose. Feel with your skin. Then comes the thinking, afterward, and in that way knowing the truth."

This is both good advice on how to judge situations (take in all the information before making a judgement, don't let yourself be fooled by appearances), but also perhaps describes Arya's, and also Sansa's, story lines. Both start out being dumped lots of info on, and will need to learn to take in the correct information, and to read people first before making judgements. As of AFFC and ADWD, they can make some conclusions, and have both learnt to read people, learn information and to think on it.

The last bit "...and in that way knowing the truth." is also interesting since if this is foreshadowing, it means Arya will be a person to unearth the truth about situations and people.

[Lyanna Stark]

Just a short note to people interested in keeping up with the reread, I will be posting the next Arya Chapter, Arya V (and from what the chapter summary tells us is the last Arya chapter of AGOT) tomorrow Thursday.

Then there's going to be a recap of Arya through AGOT with some follow up discussion of various aspects of Arya's arc so far, before we go on to re-reding Arya's ACOK chapters.

If you have not yet had a chance to post, or you're a bit behind, that means you have a little while longer to catch up and join in the recap Arya AGOT discussion. As always, everyone is welcome to post their impressions, thoughts and interpretations, just please keep in mind to try and stick to the chapters we've finished. :)

[Blisscraft]

About the two candles - I suspect they are symbols of tuition and intuition, respectively. Tuition as in what Arya has learned from her teachers and education. Intuition, as in what her still, small voice is telling her. "Fear cuts deeper than swords," is a great example of something she has learned from Syrio, part of her tuition. However, she has taken it to heart and her heart or soul, (whatever you want to call it), transforms this bit of training into a means of survival. Both serve to light the darkness within her.

[Zacker]

The point is not that Joff would not have listened (at this point no one knew Joff was a psycho and Arya didn't know he was drunk). It's Arya's initial reaction after screaming at him. No explanation, no agreeing that she had asked etc. He's the Crown Prince. You do not hit the Crown Prince.

The natural reaction is verbal first IMHO, not hitting someone so hard with a stick that it splits the back of their head open and then trying to hit them again.

Disagreeing here.

And Arya's reaction was already* verbal. Joffrey then told her that he would hurt the boy. Arya, who is presented as the likeable outsider, advances here slight stereotype to the likeable outsider that takes actions in her own hands and whacks him good! An altogether common hero type character, but one that is nevertheless seen as extraordinary. Considering the future consequences of this act she also couldn't have just wrestled him to the ground or calmed him with soothing words, the scene had to escalate to the point where Nymeria interferes.

It might also be important to keep in mind that the scene is given to us by Sansa's pov. POVs are unreliable sources of other peoples behaviour and motives, and even actions and interactions. This scene from Arya's perspective might have sounded differently. Though in the end it doesn't give me grounds for concerns about Arya's mental health.

IMHO.

*word added for clarity.

[Ragnorak]

...

If it's the Stranger and the Warrior perhaps it could have something to do with the FM?

And why do you think it's interesting that she calls the gods wood in KL the "little godswood"? Just wondering. :)

...

The Warrior and the Stranger would fit with her future but I pointed to those two because of the stranger around the corner and her holding the candle in her fist. My personal preference for the metaphor would be carrying the Mother and the Father with her but they seemed less connected than those two immediate references surrounding the candles. Cat does see her face in the Warrior so that fits with the Warrior/Strnger take.

Godswoods are known for the huge tree in the center. Ned described this one as an acre with a great oak in the center yet Arya calls it "little." I assume this is in comparison to Winterfell's which both Tyrion and Theon comment on with a degree of awe. She also passing through the houses of the Old and New Gods on her escape route so the religious places seem like they ought to be meaningful and "little" may matter in this context. She does end up in a religious place too. I also think this is the only time anyone calls a godswood "little" so it stood out.

I think Lummel is correct in that the Up or Down paths is a something. Bran has me tied in a cognitive knot on this one because he is always descending (Winterfell Crypts, under the Nightfort, the cave with Bloodraven) but is learning to fly through warging which is the ultimate ascent. The caves with Ygritte was a hypothetical path under the Wall and a temptation to stay underground that Jon rejects and takes the ascent over the Wall. I'm certain there's a plethora of other examples. Jon and Sansa are also in public positions exercising public power while Bran and Arya seem destined to exercise power from the shadows. Very nice catch, Lyanna. I think you've pointed out a major Stark family theme.

It also occured to me that this might just be true:

She was going home. Everything would be better once she was home again, safe behind Winterfell’s grey granite walls.

Made me think of this line.

“Different roads sometimes lead to the same castle. Who knows?”

The stableboy was definitely written as a deserving recipient. He even hisses that evil snake. Personally if Arya told him to be quiet and he just yelled in panic for fear of being seen with her and caught up in the Game I wouldn't have blinked if she ran him through. I'm probably a bad example because I didn't blink when she started asking the Tickler questions. You reap what you sow and one ought not to interfere with a harvest with Winter coming (of course it could be that I'm just a cold hearted bastard.)