Episode 83: A CLASH OF KINGS, DAVOS I: "The Stuff of Heroes, Part 2" with Special Guest Frank B SHOW NOTES! (Patreon)

Hello and welcome to the Not A Cast … podcast: the one true chapter-by-chapter podcast going through A Song of Ice and Fire one chapter a week. I’m one of your hosts Jeff better known as BryndenBFish. 

And I’m your other host Emmett, better known as PoorQuentyn.          

Welcome to the eighty-third episode of the Not A Cast, titled: “The Stuff of Heroes, Part 2: An Analysis of ACOK, Davos I,” in which the onion knight gives the freshly crowned King Stannis Baratheon some sensible advice and gets a Shakespeare monologue for his trouble. 

Emmett intros Frank

A wise man on this very podcast once said: “The essence of horror is not that there are monsters at the door, the true horror is that we’re going to let them in.” Thanks for letting me in for two episodes, fellas! 

This episode is brought to you by our Small Council: 

• Hand of the King WolfmanZack 
• Grand Maester Timbob
• Lord Commander of the Kingsguard Mark N. 
• Lord Travis, Master of Ships and Warden of the Waves
• Ser Keith J, Master of Whisperers
• Lord Philip the Merciful, Master of Laws
• Jancy O, Lady Commander of the Night’s Watch
• Lord Gene, Master of Coin
• Archmaester June, Healer of the Lesser Poxes
• Ragged Michael, Warden of the North
• Nelson the Hammer, Prince of Dragonstone
• Scarlett the Other Red Woman and Mistress of Whisperers
• Lord Baby the Onion Baby
• Lord Blackheart the Defiant, Master of Zorse 
• Lord Micah: Warden of the West and the Kraken’s Bane
• Lord James: the Jim that was Promised
• The High Bearded Priest
• The Blue-Ringed Octoling
• Lord Jake, Assistant (to the) Hand of the King
• Lady Xena Valyrian
• Hedrigal, Captain of the Air Ship Arrogance
• His Grace’s High Inquisitor Frank (heyooooo)
• Lord James Stormborn, Warden of the World Wide Weirwood
• Ser Jasper the Cruel, the King’s Justice
• Laurence, Prince of Dorne
• Richard, Sealord of Braavos
• Kelly, Warden of the East and Mistress of (Old) Bay of Crabs
• Steven the Steadfast, Master of Hounds
• The Blue Winter Rose Knight of Highgarden
• Lady Stephanie
• Lord Wryinn
• And our newest member of the small council: Lord Carlos!

Spoiler warning: All published books - 5 novels, 3 Dunk and Egg novellas, histories, interviews, TWOW sample chapters, as well as Game of Thrones the TV show. Anything and everything!

Question

So, last week, we read out the first part of Anthony’s e mail, and we thought appropriate for part 2 of Davos I for this week, we’d do the 2nd half of Anthony’s e mail:

• Even if Stannis lacks a conversion of the heart, by participating in the public rituals, he expects gods or R’hllor to return the benefits for worship offered. Davos does the same to a smaller degree, “he had been known to make offerings to the Warrior before battle, to the Smith when he launched a ship, and to the Mother whenever his wife grew great with child.”
• In the exchange between the two following the burning of the Seven, Davos recounts his debt to the Faith, “The Smith has kept my ships safe, while the Mother has given me seven strong sons." Stannis’ retort could be interpreted as another in a line of misogynistic behavior, or more the like it has to do with his belief that faith in the Seven is without utility, "Your wife has given you seven strong sons. Do you pray to her ? It was wood we burned this morning." The King’s approach to religion is best summed up by the adoption of his new “red hawk” who would return his acts with favors. Again, this is nothing new and I’m sure your analysis on it will be great, but it is interesting to think about this a Roman context or juxtaposed against a full and contemplative prayer life.

If you’d like to ask us questions that we’ll answer here on the NotACast pod-cast, please consider joining us on patreon as a Sworn Sword or higher at patreon.com/NotACastASOIAF where you can ask your questions that we’ll answer here!

And for all $5/above patrons, our next Fevre Dream episode covering chapter 2 is out now! And that takes us to patreon episodes. Wait! Episodes!? Yes, episodes! First, we are excited to announce that in honor of the new HBO Watchmen series, this month’s patreon-only episode will be all about Zack Snyder’s 2009 film Watchmen. We get accused of agreeing too much, and now it’s time to put that notion to bed. We’ll be discussing whether Watchmen is the greatest superhero movie of all time or an objectivist piece of shit. Place your bets on who’s going to take which position.

Hm, I wonder. But that’s for the end of the month! Before we get there, we’re thrilled to announce that next week, we’ll be joined by none other than legend and return guest Kim Renfro to talk about her recently-published book The Unofficial Guide to Game of Thrones. This episode will be available early for our patrons but will also be available to the general public on Friday, October 18!

Emmett says a few words about how awesome Kim and her book are.

But enough about patreon and all the exciting things coming up, let’s now do the thing. Last week on the NotACast, Davos witnessed the Azor Ahai ceremony on the beach, got ribbed by his sons and met Salladhor Saan for a drink and the true story of Azor Ahai. And now we’re onto the synopsis for the 2nd half of ACOK, Davos I

Synopsis

Davos finishes his beer and leaves the inn to go visit his ship. Later that night, Devan comes down to tell him that Stannis needs him up at the Chamber of the Painted Table. And while Davos is plenty proud to see Devan bedecked in the king’s finest clothes, he’s uneasy about this late summons. He wonders if Stannis means to sail. And while Salladhor Saan and other captains wanted to sail, Davos knows the long odds they face.

We have no hope of victory. I said as much to Maester Cressen, the day I returned to Dragonstone, and nothing has changed. We are too few, the foes too many. If we dip our oars, we die.

But he mounts the horse and takes off for Dragonstone, because that’s what heroes do.

When Davos gets there, he sees Lords Celtigar and Velaryon and a dozen knights departing. But then Shit-Knight Axell Florent decides to hem Davos up. Described as thick armed and hairy all over with hair coming out of his long ears, Shit-Knight Axell had been castellan on Dragonstone for ten years. He asks if Davos thought the gods burned with a “merry light”, and Davos, being smart, knows not to trust this guy who fancies himself the Varys of Dragonstone. Spoilers: he ain’t. Davos just tells Axell that the gods burned brightly which leads the Shit-Knight to describe how sometimes people see visions in the flames. And Axell so totally saw a vision in the flames of beautiful dancers in yellow silk dancing before Stannis. It was a so totally true vision, my man. Stannis is going to be gloriously victorious! 

Stannis has no taste for such dancing, Davos thought. 

And right there, Emmett’s thesis that had we gotten a Stannis POV in ASOIAF, it would basically be a Victarion POV is proven correct. (Goddamnit)

Davos says he only saw fire and smoke, but he needs to go see Stannis. He wonders why Axell had stopped him given that Davos was a king’s man, but he pushes these thoughts aside as he goes to Stannis. He finds the king at the Painted Table with Maester Pylos at his side with papers next to him.

“Ser,” the king said when Davos entered, “come have a look at this letter.”

Obediently, Davos selected a paper at random. “It looks handsome enough, Your Grace, but I fear I cannot read the words.”

You see, Davos is illiterate. Sure, he knew how to read a map but reading books is for commies. Still, his three youngest boys could read. 

Irritated as he always is, Stannis orders Pylos to read the letter, and Pylos picks up the paper to read the letter. 

"All men know me for the trueborn son of Steffon Baratheon, Lord of Storm's End, by his lady wife Cassana of House Estermont. I declare upon the honor of my House that my beloved brother Robert, our late king, left no trueborn issue of his body, the boy Joffrey, the boy Tommen, and the girl Myrcella being abominations born of incest between Cersei Lannister and her brother Jaime the Kingslayer. By right of birth and blood, I do this day lay claim to the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. Let all true men declare their loyalty. Done in the Light of the Lord, under the sign and seal of Stannis of House Baratheon, the First of His Name, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms."

Stannis, though, well, he’s got some edits.

“Make it Ser Jaime the Kingslayer henceforth,” Stannis said, frowning. “Whatever else the man may be, he remains a knight. I don’t know that we ought to call Robert my beloved brother either. He loved me no more than he had to, nor I him.”

Sure, Stannis. You’re just Mr. Duty loving Robert as much as he loved you, not caring about the amount of love you received from Robert. Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuure.

Pylos says just y’know go with the flow, man, but it’s a lie to Stannis. Take it out. And they need to make at least one hundred and seventeen copies of this to mount on ravens they’ll send to every corner of Westeros. Maybe one hundred will make it through. Actually, they need more letters. Davos is to go sailing north for Gulltown, the Fingers, the Three Sisters, maybe even to White Harbor. And Dale will go to Dorne and the Arbor. All these letters need to get nailed to every door of every sept.

Davos object saying that few people will read the letters, and Pylos agrees, saying they really need to have the letters read aloud. Stannis, though, thinks this will be dangerous for his men, and doesn’t want to needlessly endanger them. Well, then, send some knights to read them, Davos and Pylos urge. And Stannis agrees. He orders Davos to use his smuggler’s tricks to get in and out of areas quickly, and if he runs out of letters, go capture some septons to make more copies. And Davos’ second son is to take the letters to Braavos and the Free Cities to give to the rulers of those cities too. 

“The world will know of my claim, and of Cersei’s infamy.”

You can tell them, Davos thought, but will they believe?

Stannis realizes that Davos is holding something back and tells Pylos to get lost and get writing, leaving Stannis and Davos alone. And Stannis has a question for Davos:

“What is it you would not say in the presence of my maester, Davos?”

Well, Davos is a bit concerned. He likes Pylos well enough, but he still mourns for Cressen. Stannis thunders that it wasn’t Pylos’ fault Cressen died. He didn’t even want Cressen to come to the feast. And yeah, sure, Stannis was angry at Cressen (at everything and everyone), but he didn’t want Cressen to die. He wanted to, um, give Cressen some years to rest and relax. Is that accurate, Stannis? Ah, whatever. Pylos serves him ably now.

Yeah, all well and good, but what did your lords bannermen make of the letter?

Stannis snorted. “Celtigar pronounced it admirable. If I showed him the contents of my privy, he would declare that admirable as well. The others bobbed their heads up and down like a flock of geese, all but Velaryon, who said that steel would decide the matter, not words on parchment. As if I had never suspected. The Others take my lords, I’ll hear your views.”

Okay, I’m back to loving Stannis again after that miserable business with Cressen from the Prologue.

Davos says that Stannis’ words are blunt, strong and true. But Stannis, my man, you have no proof of this incest you claim. Oh, but Stannis does have proof in the form of Edric Storm, AKA Robert’s bastard. He was fathered on Stannis’ wedding bed, and his mom is Delena Florent. He looks like Robert. If everyone looked at Edric and looked at Joffrey and Tommen, they would definitely wonder.

Yeah, but Edric is at Storm’s End, Davos puts in. How do you solve that? Stannis says it’s a difficulty, one of many. And, Davos, if you have more to say about the letter, spit it out. Stannis didn’t make Davos a knight to “mouth empty courtesies.” He’s got lords for that. Okay, well, Stannis, um, that “done in the Lord of Light” business. That’s a bit much, yeah? Maybe go for “done in the sight of gods and men” or “By the grace of the gods old and new”? That sounds a lot better. People aren’t going to be pissed about that.

Stannis wonders if Davos has gone devout, and Davos has the same question for Stannis. Stannis knows that Davos doesn’t love R’hllor or Pylos. Well, it’s not quite that, Davos says very, very carefully. He doesn’t really know this Lord of Light, but he knows the Seven. They helped him sail the seas and give birth to his children.

“Your wife has given you seven strong sons. Do you pray to her? It was wood we burned this morning.”

“That may be so,” Davos said, “but when I was a boy in Flea Bottom begging for a copper, sometimes the septons would feed me.”

“I feed you now.”

Yes, of course, ur grace. You feed Davos now. And Davos returns the favor by giving Stannis truth. The people aren’t going to love Stannis if he goes around insulting their gods, or y’know burning them. And they’ll love Stannis less for some foreign god whose name they can’t even pronounce. And Frank, now’s your time to shine.

Stannis stood abruptly. “R’hllor. Why is that so hard? They will not love me, you say? When have they ever loved me? How can I lose something I have never owned?” Stannis moved to the south window to gaze out at the moonlit sea. “I stopped believing in the gods the day I saw the Windproud break up across the bay. Any gods so monstrous as to drown my mother and father would never have my worship, I vowed. In King’s Landing, the High Septon would prattle at me of how all justice and goodness flowed from the Seven, but all I ever saw of either was made by men.”

Okay, well, that begs the question: if you’re so much of an atheist, why are bothering with R’hllor? Yeah, good question. Stannis doesn’t care or love any god, but Melisandre’s got real power, man. Davos wonders what kind of power Melisandre possesses, and he interjects that Cressen had wisdom. Stannis, grinding his teeth as always, says that Cressen’s wisdom did fuck-all. No one gave a shit when Davos went begging to the stormlords for their support. They laughed at Stannis and his claim. Well, no one’s going to be begging or laughing now.

“The Iron Throne is mine by rights, but how am I to take it? There are four kings in the realm, and three of them have more men and more gold than I do. I have ships … and I have her. The red woman.”

Stannis says that half of #TeamStannis is scared shitless of Melisandre. So scurred that they won’t even say her name. But that inspiration of fear is powerful. A frightened man is a beaten man. And maybe Melisandre can do more for #TeamStannis.

Take us to the end, Emmett!

"When I was a lad I found an injured goshawk and nursed her back to health. Proudwing, I named her. She would perch on my shoulder and flutter from room to room after me and take food from my hand, but she would not soar. Time and again I would take her hawking, but she never flew higher than the treetops. Robert called her Weakwing. He owned a gyrfalcon named Thunderclap who never missed her strike. One day our great-uncle Ser Harbert told me to try a different bird. I was making a fool of myself with Proudwing, he said, and he was right."

Stannis Baratheon turned away from the window, and the ghosts who moved upon the southern sea. "The Seven have never brought me so much as a sparrow. It is time I tried another hawk, Davos. A red hawk."

And that is ACOK, Davos I! Wheewwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Wow-e-wow. Yes sir. Yes, this is why I love ASOIAF. This chapter. This POV. This is magnificent shit.

What did you all think?

Reading this scene is like spending an hour with a perfectly painted portrait. King Stannis Baratheon, letter exposing the secret hidden throughout book one in his hand, his embodied conscience at his shoulder, painted table of his kingdom at his back, his eyes on the ghosts moving on the southern sea. And then he turns away from them to cast his heart into the fire. Every detail is so finely observed; the politics of the letter reflect the characterization, and the character backstory informs the big picture decisions. It’s all layered together like Valyrian steel. 

You might convince me that there are better written chapters in ASOIAF: Dany X in Dance, for example. And I need no convincing there are chapters more important to ASOIAF as a cultural event: Ned’s death in Arya V, The Red Wedding in Storm. There are chapters that are more emotionally poignant or fraught for me. Brienne on the Quiet Isle in Feast, for example, reduces me to a blubbering mess every time. 

But Davos I, A Clash of Kings? This right here? Favorite chapter in all of fiction. 

If this chapter were just about Davos’ and the parts we covered last week during his introduction: his doubts, his loyalty, his family relationships, watching Mel do her stuff and the Azor Ahai conversation with Salladhor it’d easily be a top 5 chapter in the series.

But then, what we have here: Stannis seeking Davos’ council, Stannis explaining himself to Davos, Stannis opening himself up to Davos about both Proudwing (Emmett’s feathery baby for this here chapter) and the Windproud (my favorite)... and well here we are, with me bouncing in my seat with unrestrained glee. Everything you need to know about Stannis from now until the end of the series, I’d argue, is all right here.

And why does that matter, I mean, Stannis is going to eat it against the Boltons (the wrongs say, covered in filth) or against the Others (the wise men say, garbed in togas of light), isn’t he? First, to borrow one of Emmett’s favorite lines: Men’s lives have meaning, not their deaths.

Second, it matters because Stannis is so utterly compelling in his own right. But even if you loathe Stannis as a character, he still matters for the story at large from both the meta and in-universe side. The latter can and will be explored both in this episode and by Jemmett as the story progresses.  For the meta side he is, as many have pointed out, very similar to our two main endgame characters: Jon and Dany in both characteristics (Mel makes this explicit regarding Jon in Dance) and in many major plot lines (Dany). 

But I also want to shout out Geoff (@thegogglesdo) Many people, including him, have pointed out these similarities between Stannis, Jon and Dany. But he goes further and argues, quite persuasively, that not only is Stannis similar to Jon and Dany, but that Stannis represents GRRMs trial run for Jon and Dany.

In other words, how close can you write someone to the abyss before the audience bails on that character entirely. And, despite the protests of people who think we should have abandoned Stannis a long time ago, I think GRRM has done the best tight rope work of the entire series with Stannis. Which portends great things for later Dany and Jon plot lines.

And if you want to understand Stannis, you come right here: to Dragonstone, to the Painted Table, and Stannis finally baring that hole in his chest to the man he most admires in the world: Davos Seaworth. 

In the past few episodes on Catelyn and Tyrion, I’ve talked about each of them have a pragmatic worldview in achieving their ultimate political ends. And here, I want to talk a bit about Stannis’ pragmatist. I’ve been calling Stannis “the iron pragmatist” for a few years now, and I think we see evidence in this early chapter that he has a certain flexibility. On the more minor side, he’ll bend to Davos and Pylos’ arguments about sending knights to read his proclamation aloud; so as to prevent his people from getting his asses kicked. (Some evidence for the gentler version of Stannis always in the margins since childhood)

But in a more macro sense, Stannis recognizes the weakness of his cause. No, not the legal claim to the Iron Throne. That’s airtight. His actual cause -- Clint’s and Varys’ shadow on a wall idea. He’s the weakest of the claimants on nearly every front. He’s got maybe five thousand soldiers cobbled together from Narrow Sea lords and a few minor Crownlands and Stormlands houses while Renly has one hundred thousand. He’s got a large fleet, sure. But a sizeable minority of the ships he has are captained by sellsails and led by Salladhor Saan. He’s isolated, away from the center of power.

So, what’s Stannis’ answer to this? It’s two parts. I believe we can all agree that Stannis’ story of Proudwing and his abandonment of the Faith of the Seven are powerful, emotive character points that illuminate the sad interiority of King Stannis Baratheon. I’ll save a lot of my thoughts about the story for later, but I think we’re seeing Stannis’ pragmatism at work in his religious expression. He’ll take on the red hawk, because it has real power -- power that the Faith won’t afford him. 

But before Stannis’ tells the stories of the Windproud and Proudwing, he’ll declare his kingship in quite pragmatic lens: via a letter.

Depth

• Stannis’ letter
  • If the Lightbringer ceremony represents the mask Stannis feels he must wear, his open letter to Westeros represents the man he is down to the bones
  • Back we go to that essential ambiguity, as this announcement that he is the one true king of Westeros represents both the best and the worst in Stannis
  • Best: a public declaration of what has led the realm to this state of misrule and war, and a remedy rooted in truth, law, and collective assertion of the same
  • His blunt, no-frills approach in the letter is his way of getting at the unvarnished truth, a rare and prized commodity when the continent is drowning in bullshit
  • Stannis is not simply demanding homage, but asking everyone to bear witness to a treasonous crime committed at the highest levels of government
  • As he tells Davos, now no one can claim ignorance. Tell the truth and shame the devil, let the pieces fall where they may, the singers may do as they like!
  • After all, Stannis is not exactly up his own ass about the likely consequences (or lack thereof) of his letter among the nobility. He knows that “these great lords love Joffrey, or Renly, or Robb Stark.” It is not enough, it will never be enough…
  • That’s why he needs Davos (his one peasant friend) to deliver his message to the people at large, so they too can know and choose for themselves
  • That’s quite forward-thinking! No one else is doing that, cutting past the hierarchy of the lords (and maesters) to communicate directly with the illiterate majority!
  • The letter itself also focuses on public knowledge and recognition: “All men know me for the trueborn son of Steffon Baratheon and Cassana Estermont.”
  • I think this is a side of Stannis that is not as navel-gazing as his rep suggests
  • This is someone who knows that he needs the realm on his side, that it matters what the people think, all the people: he knows that power resides where men believe it resides, that’s exactly what he says about Melisandre in this chapter
  • But that brings us to the worst in him: when this doesn’t work, when some folks believe but others don’t and there’s no mass movement to Stannis’ side, he goes “fine, fuck it: shadow demons! I am *reads smudged note on hand* Azor Ahai!”
  • If the truth on its own won’t defeat the lies and make Stannis king, he’ll turn to apocalyptic religious fear, the scariest shadow he can cast on the wall of power
  • “If they won’t follow the rules, why should I” is where he lands, and while I sympathize with the emotions behind it, that’s an immature and unworthy drive
  • No begging, and no laughing; he sounds an awful lot like Viserys there…
  • Viserys is a good one for the no more begging with Viserys’ “Beggar King” moniker. But is there someone else we know who can’t stand the sound of laughter-but no… No, it can’t be… surely, SURELY there is no connection between His Grace Stannis Baratheon and that loathsome war criminal Tywin Lannister!!
  • So he needs Davos to guide him into port, the heart of their relationship
  • And again, it’s two sided; you could make a case that this dynamic is very dry and procedural, built around ideas and arguments rather than emotions
  • My favorite example is their reunion after the Battle of Blackwater: Stannis immediately launches Davos into yet another thorny debate about treason as though Storm’s End was yesterday, and says nothing about Davos’ dead sons
  • But you could also argue that this is a passionate bond forged in blood, that it’s a frighteningly intense relationship, maybe a little too intense! Salla would agree!
  • His argument to Davos, which is subtext in this chapter and becomes text when they part in ADWD, is that his dedication to his king has become all-consuming
  • Too much light has hurt Davos’ eyes. Those fingerbones are an anchor, a noose.
  • It’s no accident that Davos has seven sons, and his arc begins by him watching the Seven burn, as four of them will. Fire consumes, and there is nothing left…
  • But before we get to any of that, we have Davos evaluating his king’s claim
  • Their first interaction is so precise, establishing their relationship perfectly
  • Stannis tells Davos to look at the letter, and so Davos does, even though he can’t read it; he could’ve just said so, but that would be disobeying a direct order!
  • All because Stannis forgot where Davos came from; he can’t read like the others
  • It instantly conveys both the intimacy and awkwardness inherent to their dynamic
  • Theirs is the only relationship that works the way Stannis’ worldview says it should; there is an undercurrent of gratitude and respect running through all their scenes, Stannis’ understanding of Davos as the One Good Man in Westeros
  • And that involves not just obedience, but honesty. Stannis knows he can’t count on the rest of the lords to give him blunt opinions worth a damn
  • This is classic Stannis in that he’s backing his way into a forward-thinking take
  • He cuts through the boundaries of class, but not so much because he’s trying to raise up the peasants like Beric Dondarrion--more because he despises his own class and enjoys pissing them off, in contrast to prom kings Robert and Renly
  • As you say, this letter is significant not just for its uses as an analytical tool for the Davos-Stannis relationship, but for its implications for the key moment of that relationship: when Davos puts his life on the line by saving Edric and telling Stannis his duty: to protect HIS people. Not raising the peasants up, like Beric, but the fact that he has an almost idealized notion of the feudal system. He won’t raise them up but he’s going to do right by them within that system. 
  • This letter is a recognition by Stannis that he is King of all the people of Westeros. Even those who can’t read or aren’t “worthy” of a maester. But right now, he’s doing--as we’ll discuss later– what the regular, non-Stannis nobles of Westeros do: attempting to only impose obligations upon the the people hearing the letter, with no reciprocal duties back on him. But Davos helps elevate Stannis here and then in Storm by saying they ARE your subjects and that means you are just as bound to them as they are to you. And you can prove it by acting for them, even before they act for you. 
  • Yet when Davos irks him, he promptly starts calling him “smuggler” as an insult
  • Consider the prologue to the scene this weird-ass conversation between Davos and Axell Florent about what Ser Shit-Knight sees in the flames and how he’s watching Davos
    • I think this is helping illuminate the duality of Stannis: he raises smugglers high and also shit-knights high.
      • And sure, he’ll call Davos a smuggler when he gets irritated, but he’ll also calls Axell and his plan to sack Claw Isle “evil” in ASOS.
      • Duality!
  • So while we get this core of justice (to borrow Attewell’s phrasing) to Stannis Baratheon, everything he’s built on top of it is getting in the way
  • Stannis brings Davos into the room specifically to hear criticisms of his letter. Good! But then he doesn’t actually heed those criticisms! Bad!
  • Worth pointing out here that Davos gets Stannis to dismiss Pylos with a look. Which, perhaps I’m reading too much into this, but I think that says a lot about their relationship. This shows that Stannis: First, trusts Davos not just to speak with him on his letter, but to speak with him alone. Access to the King is one thing, access to the King in private is another. Second, Stannis is clearly paying attention to Davos. He’s not doing a frequent sin of my own: not listening but just waiting for your turn to talk. Stannis is focused on Davos to the point that a poignant look is enough for Stannis to wave Pylos off. 
  • That’s not to say he’s ignoring Davos; instead, they engage in philosophical debate, as they do in all five scenes they share together so far in the series
  • As with Tyrion and Janos Slynt, Davos is being very lawyerly here, starting in calm waters (“I miss Cressen, don’t you?”) before tactfully moving, step by step, into the more dangerous waters he needs to go to be of service to Stannis
    • Something we’ll see in ACOK, Davos II where Davos asks Stannis if he’ll bring justice for Renly’s “murder.”
  • Stannis is fixated on details, Davos like Cressen before him is trying to focus on the big picture...which is where Stannis can’t compete with his rivals, as Jeff said
  • He has no proof of his central claim to power, namely that Cersei’s kids aren’t Robert’s; without that, he needs reason to give people to believe in him
  • Davos has reason to believe in him, of course, but that’s rooted in their very personal relationship, and as we said last week, Davos is not most men
  • Renly, Joffrey, and Robb have powerful narratives holding their coalitions together. So too do Dany, Mance, Beric, and even Balon Greyjoy, bless him
  • Stannis knows that. His problem isn’t complete ignorance of the realities of power, it’s that the narrative he’s chosen is Melisandre’s, and Davos is spooked
  • That’s why he objects to the phrasing of “done in the Light of the Lord.” It’s not devotion to the Seven, nor even (primarily) dislike of Melisandre and her god
  • It’s Davos’ more informed understanding of the cultural politics of Westeros, rooted in his position as the speaker for the smallfolk, that allows him to say this:
    • "You have given me an honored place at your table. And in return I give you truth. Your people will not love you if you take from them the gods they have always worshiped, and give them one whose very name sounds queer on their tongues."
  • What he is saying without saying is no one likes you, and this will guarantee that they never will. You are already an outsider; you are making yourself an alien.
  • Stannis’ rebuttal to this core objection to his claim is the most Stannis thing imaginable:
    • "R'hllor. Why is that so hard? They will not love me, you say? When have they ever loved me? How can I lose something I have never owned?"
  • This is both relatable and infuriating!
  • Stannis is right that a campaign rooted in getting people to like him was never going to work--fear was always his more sure route to power, given his rep
  • He’s convinced that no one will ever love him, that his losses and rejections have left him permanently isolated, and that’s tragic...but he’s leaning so hard into it
  • He’s guaranteeing that his rep will persist and dog his chances for the throne
  • This deeply held assumption that he is doomed to be hated is what led him to keep the truth about the twincest from Robert, which not only doomed Bobby B, it ultimately allowed Renly to steal Stannis’ thunder and declare himself king first
  • It’s self-fulfilling self-sabotage, and Davos (as the man who believes in the best in Stannis) is trying to drag him away from the edge and be a king worth following
  • Stannis is also being aggressively materialist here--hence his comment about how they were only burning wood, and how he feeds Davos now, not the priests
  • It’s literal-minded to the extent of ignoring Davos’ deeper implications
    • The irony, of course, is that Stannis switches to metaphor (not complex, of course, but metaphor) to describe his conversion to R’hllor.
  • Stannis is attempting a religious transformation without wanting to acknowledge what a big deal that is; he has doubts, he’s half-assing it, and it shows
  • He ultimately agrees with what Davos said to Salla: King Stannis is your god! His red hawk is just an instrument in service of that cause, like Davos himself
  • That’s what matters, that’s the source of power and meaning and war. Who cares which fake face on a painted statue he prays to before he deals with it?
  • Stannis’ atheism does, however, open him up to the question Davos poses…
    • "If you do not believe in gods—"

"—why trouble with this new one?"

• ...and that leads to the full exposure of the heart of Stannis’ character
• Windproud 
  • Here at last, we arrive at the point of all this, emotionally speaking--the explanation of how Stannis got this way and what we can take away from it
  • *Giddy squealing*
  • As I said out of the synopsis, I think if you want to understand Stannis Baratheon as both a character and his purpose in ASOIAF, the Windproud, both as event and how Stannis recollects it to Davos, is the cornerstone. I’d argue that it’s just as, if not more, important than the Siege of Storm’s End because it’s really what puts Stannis on the path to Storm’s End. And it’s only like a line and a half! Only 4 lines in the paperback. But there are three issues I think that form the triumvirate of issues on the Windproud I want to explore. 
  • The first is the issue of trauma:
  • The Windproud represents an enormously traumatic event and kinda gets papered over by fans when discussing Stannis and for good reason! Because Stannis, himself, has papered over that trauma and buried it deep beneath an exterior of an iron man ‘strong, able and just.’ I’m sure all of us have either been or know someone who has faced a traumatic situation and thrown themselves into their work rather than face it. For just one example, Stannis is said to know the strengths of every house in Westeros. 
  • Think how long that would take you, listener, sitting right here with every single ASOIAF book and the internet at your fingertips. Stannis has done it in a largely illiterate society using BIRDS. Because if he focuses on figuring out just how many troops some dune prince in Dorne has, well, then maybe he won’t hear the snap of a wooden mast in the churning sea that has become his memory, threatening to drag him down at any moment
  • In keeping with Emmett’s entirely-accurate-thanks-I-hate-it comparisons of Stannis to the Greyjoys, this is Stannis as Aeron. Fitting, in that Stannis’ flagship Fury destroys Aeron’s Golden Storm at the Battle of Fair Isle and begins Aeron on the path to becoming the Damphair. Aeron uses religion to drown, almost literally, his trauma at the hands of Euron. Stannis drowns the trauma of his parents’ deaths in his work, his role as the dutiful younger brother to Robert, and his rejection of the Seven. 
  • Further, you guys in earlier episodes and especially Chloe and Eliana from the Girls Gone Canon podcast did a magnificent job in their first Ned episode (Nedisode?) talking about how Ned and Robert haven’t really dealt with their trauma from Robert’s Rebellion. Then, in their second Nedisode, they say how Robert is frozen in time from his own trauma (both the Windproud and the Rebellion) as an exuberant, irresponsible but gregarious frat-boy jock… Stannis is stuck in time as a moody goth. So it’s NOT a phase, Dadvos, leave me alone. *slams door, plays Adam’s Song*. 
  • The second issue ties into Robert and Stannis’s respective inability to grow beyond the moment of the Windproud and what that does to their relationship:
  • How well is a moody goth going to get along with Robert of all people… turns out… GREAT! Ned does just fine. It could be something as simple as what you hate in your family, you like in your friends, but my argument is that there’s something more:
  • There was probably a chance for a healthy relationship between Stannis and Robert after this (if Robert had given him his due ya know… like EVER, but especially after Storm’s End.) But Robert associates Stannis too much with the trauma of watching the Windproud break up in Shipbreaker Bay. This is not explicit but what do we know about Robert? If he can’t drink, eat, fuck or fight it, it bored him. Understandable but not commendable. 
  • But more than that, even his best friend Ned recognizes that Robert oft closes his eyes to problems he can’t solve with his warhammer or his dick. 
  • So Robert buries HIS trauma and doesn’t want to remember, let alone process, this painful event. And Stannis is a walking, talking reminder of that event which he can’t avoid. Thus, I think it’s a reasonable inference to draw that the Windproud, was really just further poisoning an already fraught relationship. You combine that with Stannis’ age (at 13 to Robert’s 15) Renly as infant (and boy does that age gap put things in perspective) already showing the vast gulf of personalities means this relationship was already doomed with dire consequences for the realm.
  • This is something we touched on a lot in AGOT, especially with Ned and Robert: how the Rebellion generation is stunted in their growth, drawn back like boats in the current to the traumatic moments that made them who they are now
  • We’ll see that play out in various ways with Jaime, Barbrey, Jon Connington, etc.
  • This inevitably factors into how they shape the next generation, and it’s also a poisoned gift from the previous generation: Southron Ambitions moved them around like pieces on a board, and Stannis was transformed by the loss of his parents on a mission in service of that same game. Back and back and back…
  • This is where Stannis’ alienation from humanity (and his own class in particular) comes from, and it establishes how deep his connection to others once ran
  • So much so that the loss of his parents completely changed his worldview
  • And the world view that he adopts centers around notions of JUSTICE and DUTY. Does he always meet those? Of course not, few people do. Pride and envy, as Emmett has said and will expound on, can and do prevent him from reaching those heights. But justice and duty remain his goals:
  • And here it’s worth repeating the two lines I’m referring to if for no other reason than it’s my favorite quote in the entire series, if not all of fiction: 
    • “I stopped believing in gods the day I saw the Windproud break up across the bay. Any gods so monstrous as to drown my mother and father would never have my worship, I vowed.”
  • Many have taken this line as indication that Stannis is an atheist. And that’s a fair inference to draw and, regardless of what term we apply to his belief structure, very relevant for how he views Mel and how Mel has to work on him to move him toward his Nissa Nissa moment and fully become the Azor Ahai she believes him to be. 
  • But I don’t think he’s an atheist. Note he uses the word “ANY” not “there could NOT POSSIBLY BE gods so monstrous…” He says “ANY gods so monstrous.” So the gods might exist, but if so, they’re dicks! And, as we talked about with the noble class compared to Davos last week, the gods are bad at their jobs. They’re bad at justice. And therefore Stannis owes them no duty.  
  • Because for Stannis, justice flows from interlocking relationships of duty. And it, apparently, cannot come from gods:
    • “In King's Landing, the High Septon would prattle at me of how all justice and goodness flowed from the Seven, but all I ever saw of either was made by men." 
  • And thus it’s my job, Stannis says, as younger brother, as Master of Ships, as Lord of Dragonstone then as KING to make justice. 
  • It’s almost Batman-esque. Crime Alley is Shipbreaker Bay, where our character had to watch, helpless, as their parents died. Which leads to a broody goth aesthetic: Dragonstone is a gloomy batcave. Davos (and then Jon) become his respective Robins (with Jon getting Jason Todded at the end of Dance, with a probable Red Hood-esque violent return). And then there comes the key facet: the obsession with justice. And not only justice but forcing an unjust world to become just. This line from arguably the best Batman comic, The Dark Knight Returns, ...Could easily come from Stannis.:
    • “My parents taught me a different lesson... lying on this street... shaking in deep shock... dying for no reason at all. They showed me that the world only makes sense when you force it to.”...
  • And Stannis is going to FORCE the world to make sense, damnit. If Superman is a God pretending to be a man, and Batman is a man pretending to be a god… guess where Stannis fits?
  • So ANY gods who exist and let this happen or caused it? So what if they exist? They are not JUST and then I, Stannis, do not owe them any duty, let alone worship. 
  • This is important because Stannis believes so firmly not just in duty but reciprocal duty. He becomes one of the few lords, along with Daenerys, Eddard, and poor, damn Edmure, to view Westerosi feudalism as something more than an exploitative racket. So many nobles in Westeros view law as something that protects them but does not bind them, and binds the smallfolk but does not protect them, as we see during the War of the Five Kings. 
  • Now obviously, as a King, Stannis benefits and is protected by Westerosi feudalism. But he is one of the few people, again, who believes that the law binds him. He also sees not just the protections and benefits but the obligations and acts upon them. Davos is an expression of that. Davos is able to pull Stannis back from the abyss of embracing his Tywin-esque impulses (the poster boy for the Westerosi system protecting but not binding nobles) and not sacrifice, for the moment, Edric Storm by appealing to that duty.
  • “I know that a king protects his people, or he is no king at all,” Davos tells Stannis. That is LAW. That’s a king’s PRIMARY duty. And Davos invokes it to save himself, the Night’s Watch, arguably the realm and, for the moment, Stannis himself.
  • But, Martin is not just critiquing fantasy as a genre with ASOIAF. He’s also critiquing fantasy readers. Obviously Sansa is a species of that. But we see Martin doing this when he shows us the opposite side of a coin we say we want. We SAY we want Theon to suffer for his role in bringing down the Starks, well… okay, let’s see what that looks like. We SAY we want Dany to enact terrible vengeance on the slavers. We got a taste of that in Meereen with the crucifixions, the meal is still to come with fire and blood across Essos. 
  • With Stannis, we SAY we want rulers who view their DUTY as putting the good of their subjects above themselves and no nepotistic exceptions for their family. And Stannis does that in sailing north. But in Winds that very same notion of duty for even Gods and Kings, regardless of personal desires, means that this king is going to do a horrific act and sacrifice Shireen.
  • He can get out of sacrificing Edric Storm because he still has options. But when the Others come, the cold winds rise and the mist that’s like a knife in your chest hits, all of those options will freeze. And when there’s no other way he’ll do what Aemon said the one man in 10,000 would do: He’ll show us what Varys, in turn, described as the terror of a truly just man and try to save the realm at the cost of Shireen. And there’s Martin, standing next to the ashes, asking us if we like what we see?
  • When Stannis says that all he ever saw of goodness or justice was made by men, he’s both donning his heroic mantle and sealing his villainous doom
  • On the one hand, he’s taking ownership: the world is the way it is because we make it that way, and so we have the potential to make it better
  • On the other, he’s acknowledging the blood on his hands, which lays bare the contradiction at the heart of his deal with R’hllor
  • He wants a fair deal, a just outcome, a world saved, but he takes the means as a given: sacrifice is how you save the world, murdering an innocent serves the greater good, Melisandre’s visions should be taken at face value, etc.
  • He fails to interrogate those principles, just as the example of the Mad King didn’t prompt him to disavow the power structure he seeks to control
  • If swapping Aerys out for Robert didn’t fix Westeros, why would swapping out the Seven for R’hllor? Stannis ultimately ends up no closer to the truth than when he started--but not because he was just following the crown like a bloodhound. He tried to make sense of the world, and that often leads you to terrible places.
  • And speaking of terrible places, so much of your and your guests’ amazing analysis here on the NotACast has been about the terrible places: terrible fantasy places crafted by lesser hands and the terrible places Martin puts his characters, and how they react to being put into that kind of literary bind. In other words, what tropes are George reacting to when he writes, and what do the characters he writes do when the pillars and structures of their lives fail.
  • When the songs fail Littlefinger he becomes a jobless prick with a pedophilic streak. When those same songs fail Sansa, she becomes even more determined that she'll make the people love her. 
  • And this gets to my third point on the Windproud: What does Stannis do in reaction to the Windproud and the other pillars of his life falling? When the pillars of Stannis’ life fall: first his parents, then Robert even before the former's death, Stannis decides that JUSTICE OUT OF DUTY is the central pillar he will rebuild his life around. Stannis has a fragile core at heart after years of neglect from Robert (and really everyone else), and has become convinced that not only is he unlovable but that people are right to not love him, as Emmett said.
  • The duty of his supporters and the realm to him and his duty, in turn, is how he will shield that fragile core, wrapping it in iron.
  • But how can he have such a loyal following: both Davos in-universe and amongst the fandom for such a fragile, blatantly if not aggressively flawed character? 
  • It is in a world of decidedly one-sided duties imposed by the nobles upon everyone else, often with the cruelest of means, that we fly Stannis’ banner. Atop those walls of reciprocal duty, we loyal Stannermen proudly plant the flags of not only Stannis at HIS best but against ANY character or leader at their best: 
  • Despite what Emmett said last week that “the best stuff Stannis does is because Davos tells him to,” Stannis had Proudwing before Davos, he held Storm’s End before Davos’ arrival. Stannis works against the slow-motion Lannister coup without Davos. Stannis listens to Jon without Davos, recruits the Mountain Clans without him, marches on Winterfell without Davos and is going to stomp the Boltons without him. Hell, even the best moment of Stannis, rejecting Claw Isle not just tactically but morally, the text shows that Stannis was going to reject that plan even before Davos gives his take on it.
    • "Battle will set their hearts ablaze once more, Your Grace," Ser Axell said. "Defeat is a disease, and victory is the cure."
    • "Victory." The king's mouth twisted. "There are victories and victories, ser. But tell your plan to Ser Davos. I would hear his views on what you propose."
  • And then Stannis names Davos his Hand because Davos’ take lines up with Stannis own. 
  • But even if Emmett, or you listener, truly believe that Stannis’ only good works are done with Davos say-so, then Stannis lifting Davos up is still Stannis’ choice. No matter how you spin it, there Stannis is, an implacable beacon fire of justice in a truly unjust world.   
  • But just as those are Stannis’ finest acts, and justice is Stannis greatest virtue, so too does Martin’s best work come when the brightest flames of his characters cast the longest shadows. And so by the time Winds ends we will look around at the flags and the castle Stannis has built out of duty, all his proud accomplishments streaming in a wind… 
  • But then there’s a sharp, cold bite to the wind, like a knife in our chests. And only then will we see that Stannis’ fortress is made of wood: hollow with a hole that cannot be filled in time, just like our doomed sovereign. And now winter has come and the wood won't keep the cold out, (as the stone of the Starks can and will). And only then will we look at the wooden ramparts Stannis has constructed and realize that what Stannis has built is not a mighty castle… it's a pyre.
  • Duty won't save Stannis, or Shireen. That sense of duty is the tinder upon which they burn.
• Proudwing
  • The Proudwing story is where Stannis exposes his heart to the judge and jury, and where George hints at his closing case for both prosecution and defense
  • Just like Euron in “The Reaver,” Stannis is staring out a window at the sea, drawn back to childhood as he hunts for the origin story to inform this decision point
  • As in ASOS, it all comes back to childhood, Robert, and the theme of mercy
  • It turns out that when Stannis was a boy, he was secretly the kindest of the Baratheon brothers, the one who would stop and care for a wounded animal, the outcast, the one who needed him...sound like a certain bastard we know?
  • You can imagine young Stan’s long solemn face softening as Proudwing ate from his hands, fluttered to his shoulder; the Grinch’s heart grew three times that day
  • He had found that which otherwise eluded him all his life: love! The truth that to love and be loved is all there is! For one shining moment, he did not feel broken
  • And he called it proud. I’ll cry. Right there is the man who would lift up Davos Seaworth and tell the other lords to deal with it. 
  • If Stannis’ cardinal sin is pride (along with envy, but bear with me), then Proudwing represents that vice transformed briefly into virtue
  • Pride is not something to be hoarded, but something to be extended to the least fortunate among us; in this moment, Stannis understood and embodied mercy
  • Then he gave it up. His love was not taken from him, nor did he lose it in a moment of carelessness. He deliberately pulled out his heart and set it on fire.
  • Stannis doesn’t finish the Proudwing story, but he heavily implies he (at best) abandoned Proudwing to die, or worse killed the bird like Ned and Lady
  • And as with Ned and Lady, it’s because of the true protagonist of Stannis’ life:
    • “Robert called her Weakwing. He owned a gyrfalcon named Thunderclap who never missed her strike.”
  • All to keep up with Robert. Anything to keep up with Robert. I’ll sell my soul to be as good as my brother, to be as beloved as my brother, to get my brother to notice me. It is not enough. It has never been enough. I will never be the hero.
  • Yet it wasn’t even Robert who directly pushed Stannis into the abyss; it was their great-uncle Harbert, the guy who urged a “merciful” death for Patchface
  • This is to establish that the problem we’re witnessing here goes beyond the particularly dysfunctional relationship between these Baratheon brother kings
  • It’s an entire class, an entire society, trained to think of Proudwings as Weakwings. It’s a mindset that sees a creature loving and being loved and thinks only of how it can’t keep up, rather than of mercy, of how to help it keep up
  • Or accept that it can’t keep up, and help anyway! As Meera says in the show: some people will always need help. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t help them.
  • That’s what Cressen said about Stannis himself in the Prologue, after all:
    • Stannis, my lord, my sad sullen boy, son I never had, you must not do this, don't you know how I have cared for you, lived for you, loved you despite all? Yes, loved you, better than Robert even, or Renly, for you were the one unloved, the one who needed me most. 
  • This is a really great time to just sit back in awe of the details GRRM layers into things which only get a few lines. Let’s take, for example, just his choice of a Goshawk for Proudwing. First, the fact that it’s a female “I nursed her back to health” is obviously the Shireen allusion. But let’s look at what Goshawks are as a species, as birds of prey.
  • I can’t remember the thread but a while back on Twitter, someone pointed out that goshawks aren’t soaring birds of prey! Remembering that for this episode, I did some quick wiki research on Goshawks and whooo boy. 
  • Goshawks don’t actually soar above their prey and then come down on them with a thunderous strike, which gyrfalcons are so renowned for. Gyrfalcons were considered “royal” birds in medieval falconry. Kings and Sultans would pay exorbitant prices for them! 
  • But what Goshawks do is perch hunting, cooly observing their prey and then ambushing them. (Fitting, given some of the tactics in Stannis’ many victories). 
  • But look at this line: “while pursuing prey, [...] goshawks has been described as both “reckless” and “fearless”, able to pursue their prey through nearly any conditions.” That quote is on wikipedia but the citation is from a book from 1986. I can’t read that description and honestly think GRRM had a dartboard of bird species and just randomly hit on Goshawk for the man he eventually writes: 
    • “This is Stannis Baratheon. The man will fight to the bitter end and then some.”
  • So while Wikipedia didn’t exist when GRRM was writing Clash, the hunting behavior of Goshawks was definitely well known. This is staggering and conveys just how many levels GRRM was operating on, for a few lines of dialogue for a character that isn’t even a PoV and probably isn’t making it to the end game!
  • But character wise, look at what the goshawk’s hunting behavior says about Robert and Ser Harbert! They’re not only being an ass to Stannis for daring to be emotionally invested in something, they’re faulting Proudwing for something out of its control, against its very nature and thus has no reflection on its nor Stannis’ abilities! They are demanding Proudwing pull itself up by its bootstraps when it doesn’t have any fucking boots. 
  • To bring things back to Davos, just as Jeff said. It’s not difficult to conceive of Proudwing as a stand-in for Davos himself. Proudwing is the “lesser” that Stannis lifts up, Stannis is… himself… and Robert and Great Uncle Harbert are stand-ins for the regular Westerosi nobles going “dude, what are you doing? You can’t raise birds/people up like this! They’re not elite, they’re not one of us, don’t even bother.”
  • But they’re saying that and they’re faulting Stannis, telling him he’s embarrassing himself because he can’t make Proudwing soar. It’s not his fault that she can’t, but it doesn’t matter, he keeps trying, not recognizing that he has an amazing predator, as implaccable as he himself will one day become, perfect for falconry. But this isn’t happening in a vacuum. Succeeding at falconry isn’t the point, the point is measuring up to ROBERT. And what happens when he can’t…
  • Buuuut the Democrats are trying to pass welfare reform to look tough and appease the Republicans, so squash your bleeding heart and get on board!
  • But the Republicans, I mean the nobility, will never be appeased where Stannis is concerned, and Robert never loved him. It was for nothing, and now he is alone.
  • Yet even with the thin wages of trying to keep up with his big bro staring him in the face, Stannis still concludes that Robert and Great-Nuncle Harbert were right
  • He turns away from the ghosts, from Proudwing and the Windproud, and declares that he must give up that which has made him vulnerable and weak
  • These formative events convinced Stannis that since life is gonna set your heart on fire, you might as well strike the match yourself. Hence his new sigil.
  • It’s tragic because we see a glimpse of who Stannis could’ve been, and how and why he didn’t go that way. Always, always, the child is the father of the man
  • All of this is what leads him to Melisandre, his red hawk with her red god
  • It’s not just Renly stealing his armies, or the Lannisters stealing his throne, or even Ned Stark stealing Robert’s brotherly love. It’s all of that, but it’s more.
  • It’s a conviction that nothing works like it should and he’s tired of pretending 
  • Melisandre comes with glamours and half-truths, and Stannis never completely trusts her, but paradoxically he thinks she’s offering the one true bargain
  • Power for power; blood for fire. There is no love for me here. Let it be fear. 
  • If you don’t see the sacrifice of Shireen coming at this point, look harder! Once more Stannis will be left with nothing, sacrificing his heart for ash and dust…
  • So knowing all of that, how on Earth can I possibly support such a character whose flaws almost lead him to and will lead him to burn a child alive, regardless of the ends such horrific means are directed. Let alone to support him in a way that even leal supporters of him look at me the way Jeff and Emmett did during my ranting?
  • Because Stannis knows he’s going to burn. But he continues on anyway.
  • "I know the cost! Last night, gazing into that hearth, I saw things in the flames as well. I saw a king, a crown of fire on his brows, burning . . . burning, Davos. His own crown consumed his flesh and turned him into ash. Do you think I need Melisandre to tell me what that means? Or you?"
  • Stannis believes his quest to protect the people of the Seven Kingdoms will consume him. He believes that to protect a Kingdom that never loved him, didn’t support him and will leave him broken and besieged against impossible odds will turn him to ash. Doesn’t matter, try to save them anyway.
  • And that’s really, one of if not THE main takeaways from ASOIAF: Sometimes fighting against evil doesn’t give you the rewards you deserve: doesn’t matter, do it anyway.
  • But what if your BODY isn’t enough? Few enough characters are willing to hazard their positions in life (COUGH BARRISTAN COUGH) let alone their lives, to face down evil. We can, should, and do extoll the ones who do. Syrio Forel’s last stand, Ned trying to protect Daenerys and Sansa. Yoren with his charges. All of them willingly used their bodies as shields.
  • But how many are willing to sacrifice their souls? Stannis won’t cast his body into the flames, he flings – as his banners show right here in this chapter – his heart, his soul.
  • Stannis isn’t Aemon’s one-man-in-10,000. He’s the only one in this entire series who’s willing to sacrifice his soul to end the coming darkness, to save people who, regardless of how understandable it is, still don’t give a shit about him. The tragedy is the price he’ll pay to do it and it will, ultimately, probably be for naught. But he doesn’t know that. The nobility comes in the attempt.
  • And that is why he is, in spite of everything, a righteous man. 

Foreshadowing/Groundwork

Edric Storm gets his first mention by name: Stannis claims he needs the boy to cast doubt on Joffrey’s claim (which Catelyn will also assume is his purpose), but the truth will wait for ASOS…

I don’t know that it’s not true when Stannis says it. Mel probably knows she wants Edric for the flames all along, but in keeping with her bringing Stannis along slowly through obfuscation, I think Stannis does genuinely want to use Edric as a comparison shot for the Lannister kids. 

Davos will realize in ADWD that him saving Edric Storm was a two-sided sword. On one hand, yes, save the innocents. On the other, he recognizes in the Merman’s court that he has no proof of Cersei’s incest -- calling back to the same argument Stannis makes in Davos I

Theory/Discussion

In honor of the first Stannis-Davos scene: will there ever be another, or have they met for the last time in the books?

Conclusion

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