through means of compulsive behavior such as drug, alcohol, or sex addiction. Detached from a world that has come to terrify them, they may engage in suicidal levels of risk-taking or push away loved ones who try to help.
Theon Greyjoy, on the surface, has a similar upbringing to Arya’s, with its attached illusions of safety. But there is one key difference: Theon lives as a hostage—but ostensibly a member—of the Stark family in exchange for the good behavior of his own kinsmen, the Greyjoys of the Iron Isles.
While Arya is coaxed into Condition Yellow by a wary and loving family, Theon is ripped from his warlike kin and thrust into a setting that is soft by comparison. The Starks are certainly warlike, but life in Winterfell is a far cry from life on the Iron Isles, where every aspect of existence from birth on is imbued with the trappings of war. Yet Theon is mistrusted by the people who hold him hostage. He is given no succor, no gentle coaxing into preparedness against the slings and arrows of life. He lacks the cushion of a gift like Needle and a patient and gentle fencing master. For Theon, the slide to Condition Black begins early.
Theon’s life in Winterfell is framed by constant reminders that he lives at the mercy of his captors, contingent upon the good behavior of his own clan. He is treated even worse than the bastard Jon Snow, who lacks even his noble blood. Robb Stark reinforces his outcast status after Theon bravely saves Bran’s life. “Jon always said you were an ass, Greyjoy,” Robb says of Theon’s decision to use his bow to fell Bran’s assailant, even though the shot was perfect and the boy was unharmed. “I ought to chain you up in the yard and let Bran take a few practice shots at you ” ( A Game of Thrones ).
The signs of Condition Black manifest early in Theon’s narrative. Many who suffer from PTSD engage in addictive, self-destructive behavior. Martin represents this with sex, in Greyjoy’s case, painting him as a whoremonger of some renown. Like an addict, Greyjoy uses sex not so much as a source of pleasure but to assuage a compulsion. He recalls tumbling the miller’s wife “a time or two” in A Clash of Kings and that there was “nothing special” about her, displaying a lack of satisfaction in the act. Sex also appears to be a way for Theon to grasp some shred of personal power when, as a hostage, so much has been stripped from him. This is reflected in the adulterous nature of some of Theon’s conquests, and in the way he takes pleasure in demeaning his former paramours, such as Kyra. After embarrassing her publicly, he confides to Robb Stark, “She squirms like a weasel in bed, but say a word to her on the street, and she blushes pink as a maid” ( A Game of Thrones ). He then tries to launch into a detailed tale of a sexual encounter before Robb cuts him off.
The self-destructive nature of Greyjoy’s sex addiction is further expanded on when his sister Asha seduces him as a means to humiliate him. When Theon is sent on embassy to his former home, he doesn’t recognize his sister, and so attempts to court her. Asha, who recognizes Theon and his weakness, plays along and only later reveals herself as his sister. Her deceit is also the final blow in a string of rejections by his own family, rebuffs that leave him utterly adrift: his Ironborn kin declare him soft and weak from too many years in Winterfell. They despise him. The Starks, in turn, have shown they will never fully trust him and are all too willing to use him for their own political ends. Ned Stark reminds readers of this when he warns his wife that a close watch be kept on Theon because, “If there is war, we shall have sore need of his father’s fleet” ( A Game of Thrones ). The goal is not to keep him safe, but to keep him secure as a bargaining chip.
After his rejection by his biological family, Greyjoy’s self-destructive impulses spill their banks. Some may argue that Theon’s seizure of
Theon Greyjoy, on the surface, has a similar upbringing to Arya’s, with its attached illusions of safety. But there is one key difference: Theon lives as a hostage—but ostensibly a member—of the Stark family in exchange for the good behavior of his own kinsmen, the Greyjoys of the Iron Isles.
While Arya is coaxed into Condition Yellow by a wary and loving family, Theon is ripped from his warlike kin and thrust into a setting that is soft by comparison. The Starks are certainly warlike, but life in Winterfell is a far cry from life on the Iron Isles, where every aspect of existence from birth on is imbued with the trappings of war. Yet Theon is mistrusted by the people who hold him hostage. He is given no succor, no gentle coaxing into preparedness against the slings and arrows of life. He lacks the cushion of a gift like Needle and a patient and gentle fencing master. For Theon, the slide to Condition Black begins early.
Theon’s life in Winterfell is framed by constant reminders that he lives at the mercy of his captors, contingent upon the good behavior of his own clan. He is treated even worse than the bastard Jon Snow, who lacks even his noble blood. Robb Stark reinforces his outcast status after Theon bravely saves Bran’s life. “Jon always said you were an ass, Greyjoy,” Robb says of Theon’s decision to use his bow to fell Bran’s assailant, even though the shot was perfect and the boy was unharmed. “I ought to chain you up in the yard and let Bran take a few practice shots at you ” ( A Game of Thrones ).
The signs of Condition Black manifest early in Theon’s narrative. Many who suffer from PTSD engage in addictive, self-destructive behavior. Martin represents this with sex, in Greyjoy’s case, painting him as a whoremonger of some renown. Like an addict, Greyjoy uses sex not so much as a source of pleasure but to assuage a compulsion. He recalls tumbling the miller’s wife “a time or two” in A Clash of Kings and that there was “nothing special” about her, displaying a lack of satisfaction in the act. Sex also appears to be a way for Theon to grasp some shred of personal power when, as a hostage, so much has been stripped from him. This is reflected in the adulterous nature of some of Theon’s conquests, and in the way he takes pleasure in demeaning his former paramours, such as Kyra. After embarrassing her publicly, he confides to Robb Stark, “She squirms like a weasel in bed, but say a word to her on the street, and she blushes pink as a maid” ( A Game of Thrones ). He then tries to launch into a detailed tale of a sexual encounter before Robb cuts him off.
The self-destructive nature of Greyjoy’s sex addiction is further expanded on when his sister Asha seduces him as a means to humiliate him. When Theon is sent on embassy to his former home, he doesn’t recognize his sister, and so attempts to court her. Asha, who recognizes Theon and his weakness, plays along and only later reveals herself as his sister. Her deceit is also the final blow in a string of rejections by his own family, rebuffs that leave him utterly adrift: his Ironborn kin declare him soft and weak from too many years in Winterfell. They despise him. The Starks, in turn, have shown they will never fully trust him and are all too willing to use him for their own political ends. Ned Stark reminds readers of this when he warns his wife that a close watch be kept on Theon because, “If there is war, we shall have sore need of his father’s fleet” ( A Game of Thrones ). The goal is not to keep him safe, but to keep him secure as a bargaining chip.
After his rejection by his biological family, Greyjoy’s self-destructive impulses spill their banks. Some may argue that Theon’s seizure of
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