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From the moment he started writing his decades-in-the-making saga,A Song of Ice and Fire, George R.R. Martin has taken inspiration from real-world issues every bit as much as the fantasy genre he sought to deconstruct. Maybe the franchise’s clearest inspiration was the Wars of the Roses, a 15th-century succession crisis in England that instigated a series of civil wars over control of the throne. But Martin also uses his fantastical backdrop to explore other fascinating thematic concepts that remain relevant today, including the lack of female agency in a patriarchal society, and the threat of extinction in the face of ecological disaster.
By and large,House of the Dragonhas successfully carried on this series tradition, as its exploration of a polarized society tearing itself apart at the seams feels, let’s just say, very relevant today. Yet the show’s most fascinating allegory comes from House Targaryen’s position in the story, as they’ve ruled over Westeros for centuries unchallenged, thanks to the dragons by their side. Here, the dragon can be seen as a symbol for nuclear weapons — the ultimate source of power, that could doom the world if used improperly, and that can render its wielders complacent.
Control Over the Dragons Is an Illusion
House of the Dragon
In the series premiere ofHouse of the Dragon, King Viserys tells his daughter Rhaenyra, “The idea that we control the dragons is an illusion. They’re a power man never should have trifled with.” Andthis conversation arguably proves the guiding thesis for the entire series. Aegon the Conqueror once used dragons to unite all of Westeros under his rule, but while those dragons let House Targaryen maintain their power for centuries,they ultimately proved their undoing.
ThroughoutA Song of Ice and Fire, George R.R. Martin explores the idea of power, and how the ideal leader is one willing to get his hands dirty when necessary, but who also knows how to show restraint in order to keep his people at his side.Dragons represent the extreme endpoint of unchecked power, as they’ve scared away any challengers to the Iron Throne. But they’ve also rendered the Targaryen leaders complacent due to centuries of holding the throne, and blind to divisions within their own house.
As the first season ofHouse of the Dragonillustrates, Viserys may be a good man,but he’s ineffectual as a leaderand indecisive in times of impending crisis. He’s unable to persuade those dissenting to his decision to name Rhaenyra as his successor, and his death leads said dissatisfaction to erupt into full-blown war. But unlike most of his allies, he at least understands that dragons need to be respected and not treated as another tool in their arsenal (Lady Rhaenys, may she rest in peace, also knew this).
The same sadly cannot be said for his descendants. In Season 1’s climax, Luke Velaryon tries to persuade the major houses to join his mother’s cause, but as he flies across Westeros, he encounters Aemond Targaryen, and a battle between their dragons erupts. Both riders struggle to maintain control over their beasts, and ultimately Vhagar disobeys Aemond’s command and kills both Lucerys and his dragon. Thus, everyone in both Teams Black and Green realizes the hard way what Viserys meant when he asserted that their control over the beasts is an illusion.
House of the Dragon Season 2 Finale Has Already Been Seen by Thousands of Fans
With just a couple of days until House of the Dragon ends its second season, there’s been a leak of the last episode on social media.
Season Two Fully Leans Into the Nuclear Angle
IfHouse of the Dragon’s debut round set the stage for a sort of Cold War to erupt across Westeros, season two fully dives into that allegory. As creator and showrunnerRyan Condal explained, “We really wanted to lean into this idea of an armed nuclear conflict… Nobody wants to make a move that results in their side being annihilated or burning down the big city and the throne they’re fighting for. It has a very James Bond-era, just post-World War II, Cold War feel to it with these hot conflicts that flare up from time to time.”
Season 2 has seen the Dance of the Dragons explode,particularly with the Battle of Rook’s Rest, the first major conflict in which Rhaenyra agreed to send a dragon to defend the outpost. Rhaenys, in particular, is reluctant to make this move,knowing that it could prove a point of no return for them. In an interview,Eve Best stated,“What Rhaenys is trying all through the season to steer them towards, is that when you have that kind of power, you have this enormous responsibility and responsibility to choose a peaceful way.”
Indeed, it does prove a point of no return, as both Rhaenys and her beast are killed in battle, leaving Team Black outnumbered on the dragon front, and, crucially, Rhaenyra is now left without the closest figure she has to a voice of reason. As a result, knowing they’re on the verge of losing the war, Rhaenyra chooses to double down onbuilding their arsenal, enlisting “dragonseeds”(or Targaryen bastards) as their new dragon riders.
But dragons aren’t just weapons, they’re creatures with minds of their own, as illustrated by Lucerys’ accidental death. Therefore,as both sides continue expanding their forces, they risk further accidental casualties and expedite the possibility of losing control over the beasts completely. As long as Houses Black and Green have the ability to unleash untold destruction on each other, it gives them a greater chance of having it reciprocated on them tenfold. Nothing could be a clearer microcosm of mutually assured destruction.
House of the Dragon Star Addresses Her Character’s Fall Into Religious Fanaticism
The actor called Rhaenyra’s latest actions “a massacre”.
House of the Dragon Is Enhanced by its Allegory
All of this lends an extra tragic dimension to the proceedings, as by the timeGame of Thronesbegins, two centuries afterHouse of the Dragon’s pilot,dragons have all but vanished from the world, and House Targaryen is a shell of its former self. As is almost always the case when nuclear weapons are involved,the war has no true victor and such rampant destruction has changed the world for the worse. In other words, when the Targaryens rose to power with help from the dragons, did they start a chain reaction that could (nearly) destroy the entire world? We believe they did.House of the Dragonis streaming on Max.
