Day 4 of our Character Summary Countdown to Season 2 of Game of Thrones.
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“Many things are not as they seem. The worst things in life never are.” Jim Butcher said that. And the thought was something that flashed in my mind when Littlefinger betrayed Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell. Okay I will admit that I haven’t read the books but what I gathered from the series which I absolutely love like you all is that life and the people around us surprise at every point and turn of the life’s events. In the beginning of season 1, I was not so sure about Baelish’s intentions, what side he was on. But as they say life is not black or white it has its shades of grey.
Feelings are strange. The ones caused by childhood love and affection and the disappointment arising out of losing one’s love make people to take different course of actions coming up earlier or later in life.Oh I am being so Oprah. What I am saying is one may take the path similar to Professor Snape from the Harry Potter series, protecting the only child of his life’s love Lily even when she chose someone else over him, or take that of Baelish’s. Petyr was hurt when Brandon Stark defeated him and took Catelyn with him. And the scars of the lost love remained deep inside his heart, hidden from everyone ,yes, but still there. And the scars lead him to feign a sort of friendship with Eddard (who later married Catelyn after his brother Brandon’s death) and later betray him when the opportunity presented itself, though there may be other political hidden agendas too.
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He possesses considerable skill in commerce and coin, and is a master of court intrigue, his brilliance matched only by his ambition and his gift for political improvisation. Born in a small insignificant house, he always tried to work his way up the status of higher families, and that he did. His skill with finances resulted in a series of appointments leading to his being named Master of Coin in King’s Landing under King Robert Baratheon. There his influence furnished him with many allies and contacts, including the City Watch. He also bought numerous brothels in the city.
“And thus I clothe my naked villainy
With odd old ends stolen out of holy writ
And seem a saint, when most I play the devil.”
― William Shakespeare, Richard III
Petyr Baelish was a fine manipulator working his way out of all situations and proving himself loyal to all those with powers, and changing sides whenever the tables turned as well as when it suited his purpose. His betrayal of Ned Stark at a time when we expected him to aid The King’s Hand speak volumes of what a man may or may not do when a situation arises. And that ‘We Never Know.’
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The part of Littlefinger is played by Aidan Gillen in the series. Aidan certainly has the look of someone who you think you can trust, but still can seem like someone who has a hidden agenda, though you may not know for sure, so you keep listening to him. Aidan definitely has that quality in his portrayal of Petyr, giving us a sense of conceivability and not something of a caricature that this character could have been done as.
– written in collaboration with artyslife
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