I do think Tyrion gets judged more harshly than other characters because the narrative positions him differently than other characters, as Dinklage has said in interviews, as āthe good bad guy, the bad good guyā (and even though I am quoting a show interview, this post is about the books. This was an interview Dinklage gave when the show first aired about the book character he was portraying on screen. Similarly, GRRM has described Tyrion as āthe grayest of the gray.ā) And Tyrion fans are not wrong for seeing him as different than the other Lannisters BECAUSE the narrative positions him as different, but at the same time the narrative also acknowledges that Tyrion is still a part of his family and still has obligations towards them. So like, when people talk about Tyrionās run as Hand of the King they either expect him to be the good guy, the noble defector from the bad guy faction with no ties to them whatsoever (forget familial love or duty, right?), or they judge all of his actions harshly because he ISNāT that character.
And one of the things that I most see Tyrion criticized for is his deception in negotiating a trade for Jaime, but I have never seen it acknowledged that Robb was never going to agree to the negotiations anyway, and told Catelyn as much:
āā¦I might have been able to trade the Kingslayer for father, butā¦ā
āā¦but not for the girls?ā [Catelynās] voice was icy quiet. āGirls are not important enough, are they?ā
I think fandom tends to see Robb as righteous here because the Starks are considered the good guys, and if the narrative positions Tyrion as the good bad guy, the one who is different from the other Lannisters, then he should agree with Robb, right?
Except that not only do we know Robb will never agree to the terms through Catelynās POV, what reason does Tyrion have to trust Robb? Robb who treated him with suspicion at Winterfell before he had even done anything and denied him hospitality and treated him rudely when he offered help to Bran. (Which was also a contributing factor in Tyrionās arrest, because Tyrion knew something was going on by the way he was treated at Winterfell and was on the defense when he saw Catelyn at the inn, and confronted her about it.) Then Catelyn arrests him on false charges and heās nearly executed for something he didnāt do. What reason does he have to trust any of these people?
Tyrionās life experiences are not those that have taught him to believe in the best in people (and even then, he does reach out to the Starks and is met with suspicion, scorn, and false accusations. One of the things that is most interesting about Tyrion is that despite his cynicism and awareness that he will always be hated by other people because of what he is, he keeps trying to connect with others), and even though he knows that his family isnāt trustworthy either and siding with them is just as likely to get him killed, and that supporting Joffreyās rule is inherently immoral, at least thatās a threat heās lived with before. The devil you know and all that.
Not that Robb or Catelyn were in the wrong or that blame needs to be deflected on someone else, but itās a complicated situation and statements about what the morally appropriate choice is tend to overlook situations where every choice has moral fallout. (Criticisms of Tyrion here also donāt acknowledge that other characters have to make moral sacrifices. Robb decides that he canāt trade his sisters for Jaime even though he knows itās immoral to let his sisters remain hostages.) Whatās the most moral choice in a hostage negotiation situation, where neither side is willing to agree and human lives are at risk on both sides? Whatās the most moral choice when your best option for survival is to trust in the wrong side, in people who you know are going to hurt you, and have hurt you in the past? Whatās the most moral choice when the āgoodā side also wants to see you and your entire family dead?
The narrative specifically invites us to ask these questions. One of the things I love about asoiaf is that it invites the reader to consider multiple sides of a situation, and thatās a big reason why Tyrion is one of my favorite characters, because his character does exist in that gray area.
















