A Song of Ice & Fire Fans discussion
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A Game of Thrones
Who's Who in Game of Thrones
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I don't remember for certain but I think i had the same problem at first read. But by the time of the first re-read that was over. Funny thing is I had most problems keeping danys allies and enemies sorted.
Jonathan wrote: "How in the world do you guys keep track of all the character names, relations, and allegiances that this guy throws at you in the first book? Some are easy--the memorable ones, like Sandor Clegane,..."I agree Jonathan that there are many characters but that's because Martine likes to kill many people as u probably found out after reading GoT...
And FYI, since u have already read the 1st book, the leader of the Kingsguard was Barriston Selmy until the new child king, Joffrey with his mother, Cersei as regent decide to relieve Sir 'Barriston the bold' & place the Hound as Kingsguard & place Jamie Lannister as the Commander of the Kingsguard even though he is not in Kings Landing when they tell Barriston, that's when Selmy takes off his white cape & throws his sword at Joffreys feet. It was an insult because not only was Sir Barriston one of the more known knights in the kingdom but that position is suppose to be lifelong.
I know it can be overwhelming, I've read all five as many others have & we all make mistakes at times. Amb's suggested a great site 'www.Westeros.org' its awesome & it will explain every person alive or dead in history on the website so u can start making ur own theories :)
http://awoiaf.westeros.org/Anytime you forget who someone is, or don't know, or are wondering how they fit into the mix type there name in the search. Viola
Most even include family trees, which is actually my favorite part and its has a cool timeline of important events that happened and what year which I love to read.
Honestly, Dany is easy until you get to Slavers Bay and all there names are ridiculous. Those guys cloud together for me ALL the time.
Amber wrote: "http://awoiaf.westeros.org/Anytime you forget who someone is, or don't know, or are wondering how they fit into the mix type there name in the search. Viola
Most even include family trees, whic..."
U mean u can't tell the diff. between Hizzo da'izzo, & Mo' jigga nitmo, etc... LMAO, she's totally right even when u think u know the names are who they are u have to double check
I know ASOIAF characters and where they live/what they do, etc better than I know my own family and relatives. That's what being addicted to a book will do to you:D
LOL, that is so true Nermin.Sometimes I think I know the history of Westeros better than the history of my own real life country. *sigh*
Probably shouldn't admit that, but whatever.
I use a half sheet of paper as a book mark and write the characters down as I go along with arrows and phrases to remember. I do it with all big books especially Dickens and Russian ones as it's usually those little back story characters come into the main story and you are like WTF?
Amber wrote: "LOL, that is so true Nermin.Sometimes I think I know the history of Westeros better than the history of my own real life country. *sigh*
Probably shouldn't admit that, but whatever."
Haha, I definitely know the history of Westeros better :D
Jonathan wrote: "How in the world do you guys keep track of all the character names, relations, and allegiances that this guy throws at you in the first book? Some are easy--the memorable ones, like Sandor Clegane,..."I had to refer to the index at the back of the first book where they give you a who is who by house. I had to refer to it constantly.
I just listen to the entire series when a new book comes out. Finishing with a paper version of the new release. But I spent a lot of my time doing things during which I can listen to audiobooks. Check the dates on my read list and you get my point.But one thiny I do to keep track is, when someone is named by a new name in a book. f.e. Selmy for example is named the bold by sansa on the road to kings landing. When his full name and titel was mentioned I repeated 'Barristan Selmy, the bold, lord capt. comm. of the kingsguard' to myself. Linking them in my head. When someone refers to him in a new name I just repeat barristan the bold with the new name. Adding that again. You can also link events or acts this way and help you keep track of meetings. Or maybe thats just how my mind works...
I agree that keeping track of the vast number of characters, their names, their allegiances, their personalities, etc. can be pretty overwhelming. There are two strategies I myself adopt for this purpose:1) Look through the lists of houses, their members, their allied houses, and various other people associated with them mentioned in the back of every book at regular intervals, especially after a whole bunch of new characters have been introduced, so that you get a good idea of where they fit into the picture. You can also search online for more information on the characters if you have trouble placing them. A Wiki of Ice and Fire is particularly good. Do be careful of unmarked spoilers, though.
2) Don’t bother trying to remember every character – it’s just a waste of time and effort! In most cases, you’ll find a number of very similar people associated with a main character. For example, Dany has her whole bunch of Dothraki followers; Jon has a huge number of colleagues in the Night’s Watch; there are dozens of named characters associated with the court at King’s Landing, etc. In most cases, you don’t really need to differentiate between many of these characters, so just try to remember their names and the group they’re associated with. For example, Irri and Jhiqui are Dany’s handmaidens, but there is very little difference between the two, so I simply don’t bother to differentiate between them. In my mind, they’re essentially just one character named Irri/Jhiqui. The same goes for Jon’s minor friends in the Night’s Watch, such as Pyp and Grenn. The characters who do have individual personalities, or more of a backstory, like Doreah in Dany’s group or Sam in Jon’s group, wind up standing out easily enough on their own. Sometimes, the nondescript characters do start gaining a personality in later books – for example, the White Cloaks are a mostly undifferentiated group (except Jaime and Ser Barristan) until the middle of Book 2, but later on they all gain individual personalities. That’s when you need to mentally recalibrate them. But such cases are the exception, not the rule.
Some excellent advice from all of you. I appreciate it.I especially like the idea of using a mnemonic device, which is what Jenny is essentially doing. That might flow better for me than keeping notes. That would interrupt my reading of the book too much :)
is that what it's called?? haha have to remember that one.
A mnemonic device is a good idea.
I finally had to underline names....and make notes in the margins.....doh!
Be CAREFUL using a wiki or a website to look characters up. FULL OF SPOILERS!
Hahaha. I never knew that what i did had a name... I've always done that with everything not only reading. Been reading up on
whoah sorry wasn't finished yet.. Been reading up on mnemonic devices since coming across the term here. Very interesting!!
Scannerdarkly wrote: "Be CAREFUL using a wiki or a website to look characters up. FULL OF SPOILERS!"Yes do be careful, but it's not outrageous. Just don't read the stuff past the book you are on. All the character information is listed in book order and under the title of the novel so it shouldn't be too hard really.
Yes, I've had to be extremely careful using a wiki.
Amber wrote: "Yes do be careful, but it's not outrageous. Just don't read the stuff past the book you are on. All the character information is listed in book order and under the title of the novel so it shouldn't be too hard really. "But it's still too easy to stumble across spoilers inadvertently. For example, when I was still on the second book, I found some interesting Stark and Lannister family trees on one site. Unfortunately, the trees clearly marked who was dead by the end of the fifth book, so I inadvertently read several mega-spoilers, like (view spoiler)
They are not overtly marked on the Wiki, however there is indication if you pay close attention, it's very subtle though.I agree it's definitely a matter of preference, but this has worked for me excellently and I've managed to avoid spoilers by simply not reading the text or past the text that applied to the novel I was on.
So let me rephrase just to be on the safe side, the wiki is a good resource to help you remember, but you need to be selective about which portions you read if you haven't already finished the series. You should be safe reading anything out of the portions listed from a book you've read, the apperance and personality, as well as the first blurb. Other sections may pose risks. Another recommendation I have is to just run through ASOIAF without remembering, then do a more indepth reread where you won't have to worry about spoilers and can use the internet resources to their full extent to increase your comprehension of the text.
I'll give you examples: I totally spaced on the fact that Renly was Robert's brother. I lost track of Barratheon being Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. The various Maesters blend together, too.
I find it easiest to keep on-target whenever we're shown the ever-fascinating Dany, Drogo and their supporters, simply because there are less names to swirl around in my mental saliva.
I like this book, but I'm somewhat overwhelmed.