One of the great things about books is you can afford to do anything.
George R. R. MartinRead
It is being common-born that is dangerous, when the great lords play their game of thrones.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Being born into common circumstances can be precarious in a society ruled by powerful elites.
This quote by George R. R. Martin reflects on the perils faced by common people in a world dominated by the ambitious and often ruthless actions of the elite. It suggests that the struggles of the ordinary are heightened when faced with the dangerous pursuits of those in power, particularly in a competitive environment reminiscent of a game, where stakes are high and the outcomes can be severe for those without influence or resources.
Themes
Common-BornDangerousGreat LordsGame Of ThronesEliteSociety
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about social inequality, this quote could illustrate the vulnerabilities of the lower classes.
More from George R. R. Martin
All quotes βI hate outlines. I have a broad sense of where the story is going; I know the end, I know the end of the principal characters, and I know the major turning points and events from the books, the climaxes for each book, but I don't necessarily know each twist and turn along the way. That's something I discover in the course of writing and that's what makes writing enjoyable. I think if I outlined comprehensively and stuck to the outline the actual writing would be boring.
George R. R. MartinRead
There is only one god and his name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to Death: βNot today.
George R. R. MartinRead
I did not do it. Yet now I wish I had.β He turned to face the hall, that sea of pale faces. βI wish I had enough poison for you all. You make me sorry that I am not the monster you would have me be, yet there it is. I am innocent, but I will get no justice here.
George R. R. MartinRead
But a voice inside her whispered, There are no heroes, and she remembered what Lord Petyr had said to her, here in this very hall. 'Life is not a song, sweetling,' he'd told her, 'You may learn that one day to your sorrow.' In life, the monsters win, she told herself.
George R. R. MartinRead
I write from this tight third-person viewpoint, where each chapter is seen through the eyes of one individual character. When I'm writing that character, I become that character and identify with that character.
George R. R. MartinRead
Similar quotes
Your enjoyment of the world is never right, till every morning you awake in Heaven: see yourself in your Father's palace; and look upon the skies, the earth, and the air as celestial joys: having such a reverend esteem of all, as if you were among the angels.
Thomas TraherneRead
I used to tell women graduate students, half-seriously, that the role of slightly rebellious daughter was one of the better roles for women living in patriarchy.
Carol GilliganRead
When you know that everything happens for the best, then everything that happens is okay with you. The irony of this is that when everything that happens is okay with you, you set up an energy field of such equanimity and harmony with the universe that the universal law of attraction draws more equanimity and harmony into your life.
Neale Donald WalschRead
Yet not for a single moment did I have any doubts about my own integrity and honour as a woman. I knew that my profession had been invented by men, and that men were in control of both our worlds, the one on earth, and the one in heaven. That men force women to sell their bodies at a price, and that the lowest paid body is that of a wife. All women are prostitutes of one kind or another.
Nawal El SaadawiRead
The soil out of which such men as he are made is good to be born on, good to live on, good to die for and to be buried in.
James Russell LowellRead
Death is the surcease that comes when the exhausting battle has been lost.
Sherwin B. NulandRead