Song of Ice and Fire Read-a-long week two

Hi to everyone participating in Bookalicious's Song of Ice and Fire read-a-long. By now, you should be around 50% done with book one, A Game of Thrones. For this week, the discussion topic is the female characters in the book. Even though the series is set in a medieval society where men have all the rights and power, there are many strong female characters in the series who do not just sit there and accept this, but who find ways to fight for some control over their own lives.

What are some of the ways that the female characters in A Game of Thrones gain power, despite living in a society where they are often considered powerless? Which of these characters do you admire?  You can either make your own post on your blog (if you have one), or if you don't, you can share your thoughts in a reply to this post.

Personally, my favorite female character in the series is Arya Stark.

At the start of the book series, Arya is only nine years old, but she has to grow up fast. As the daughter of a noble family, Arya is expected to learn to be a proper lady so she can marry well when she is old enough. But Arya is not interested in being a lady. She would much prefer to learn how to fight, instead of learning how to sew. She has her own sword, Needle, and she's not afraid to learn how to use it.


Another female character who starts out powerless but who becomes much stronger is Daenerys Targaryen.

Daenerys starts out in a very powerless position. Her family, the Targaryens, ruled Westeros for hundreds of years until they lost the throne in a rebellion. She grew up in exile with the only other surviving member of her family, her older brother, and she is forced, when she is only thirteen years old, to marry a stranger from a very different culture to aid her brother's quest to return to Westeros and retake the throne. But rather than being a doormat, she learns how to gain some power in her relationship with her husband, and becomes a much stronger person (and better potential ruler) than her brother is.