Castles and Dreams

[swiftsnowmane]

Yesterday I posted a song that related to my musings on Sandor's character arc, so today I thought I'd a song that has always reminded me of Sansa. I don't  have as deep an analysis to go with this one, because it is fairly straightforward.....

I've been listening to Blackmore's Night for years, and even from the first time I heard 'Castles and Dreams' (back when ASoS was the latest book in the series), it brought to mind the 'sad story' of Sansa Stark. I went looking on YouTube for a decent version to post, and I came across this lovely video with clips from a film (I am unsure which film, so if anyone knows, please inform me!). It shows a beautiful young maiden playing in a forest with her little bird. Fitting, no? :)

Castles and Dreams
by Blackmore's Night

Solitaire with a song in her heart
but what a sad song to sing
Turned her back on all that she knew
In the hope of a golden ring....

And the rains come down
And the stars fell from the sky
Oh, how dark the night...
It always seems those castles and dreams
Fade with the morning light

Such a sad story
that time loves to tell
Copper coins shine for the Sun
from the floor of the wishing well

And the rains come down
And the stars fell from the sky
Oh, how dark the night...
It always seems those castles and dreams
Fade with the morning light

So the jewel of jeopardy
shines with each dangerous step
So unsure of what we've become
What we have and what we have left...

And the rains come down
And the stars fell from the sky
Oh, how dark the night...
It always seems those castles and dreams
Fade with the morning light...x2

It always seems those castles and dreams
Fade with the morning light....

The first part of the song describes a lonely girl who had the hope of romantic love (the 'golden ring' brings Joffrey to mind insantly) and who is now sorely disappointed. It goes on to say that this girl, while disappointed, still making wishes at a well. This reminds me of Sansa in ASoS, disillusioned with the idea of true knights, but still wistfully dreaming of living as lady of Highgarden. And then talking about 'each dangerous' step, makes me think of Sansa disguised as Alayne, being forced into a game she has no wish to play, speaking 'lies and Arbor Gold', and losing herself somewhat into Alayne's identity.

The imagery in the chorus is very ASoIaF-y, with the 'rains' literally being the autumn storms in the riverlands, leading up to the Red Wedding, which caused so much added pain to Sansa (and also being symbolically a reference to the Rains of Castamere, a story of Lannister pride and arrogant power at the destruction of an entire House).  The stars falling from the sky bring to mind both the red comet flashing across the sky in ACoK, and also more figuratively, Sansa's dreams falling like stars with each moment following her father's execution. The 'dark night' then brings to mind the approaching Winter, and with it the possibility of another Long Night, and how Sansa really is, deep down, a girl with Winter in her heart. She started off as a sweet summer child, but now she draws strength from the snow and the cold. Also, some memorable moments in her storyline have occurred during the night, from her meetings in the godswood, to her back and forth with Sandor, lurking in the nighttime shadows of KL, to the scene where she stands up for the women in Maegor's keep, and finally, flees to her room in the green-flame filled darkness, only to discover the Hound in her bed. ;)

Now, the 'castles and dreams' that  'fade with the morning light': Sansa seems to be associated strongly with castles that are rather fleeting. She sees a castle in the clouds from her bedroom in KL, in a scene that contrasts her with Shae. She only sees the twin golden castles (possibly foreshadowing the Twins and the RW) in the sky only fleetingly before they shift and fade away. And of course, Sansa builds the beautiful snow-castle version of Winterfell in the Eyrie. It is interesting that she spends so much time building something that is ultimately so fleeting (like a sand castle as well), as since it is made of snow, it would have melted sooner or later, even if it hadn't been stomped upon by Sweetrobin. I've always thought that these two scenes (along with many others) show that despite her disillusionment with her own life in general, Sansa remains very much a Romantic (with a capital 'R'), able to see the beauty of the Sublime in her surroundings (and in other people).



Finally, Sansa starts out with many dreams, in the sense that she has hopes and wishes for the future, most of which seem entirely dashed at this point in her storyline (see her lament that 'no one will want me for myself, only my claim'). But she also has had a number of literal dreams, some of which disturb her, and which may or may not 'fade with the morning light'. Most interestingly, is her semi-erotic dream of the Hound 'taking a song' from her on her wedding night. She later claims that 'that day was done and so was Sansa', but perhaps not all of her dreams fade away entirely. It is interesting that Sandor/the Hound seems relegated to her nighttime thoughts and dreams, just as he lurked in the shadows back in KL.

Once again, I am not trying to say that this song has any actual bearing on GRRM or the novels themselves, but rather I'm using these songs as almost a meditation on these characters, to help myself better understand and appreciate them. :)

Comments

[megs0226.livejournal.com]

Wow, awesome!! And they're a great band! I listen to them at work a lot. :-)

[swiftsnowmane]

Yay, another Blackmore's Night fan, thanks for commenting. :D I hope I wasn't stretching it too much with this one... :D

[megs0226.livejournal.com]

I've got my Clannad station playing on my Pandora internet radio and this song is playing right now. So perfect!!

[dk65.livejournal.com]

She only sees the twin golden castles (possibly foreshadowing the Twins and the RW) in the sky only fleetingly before they shift and fade away.

The RW is already done and over when Sansa sees the castles in the cloud. Of course, this highlights her response to nature--Jon sees dew frozen into crystal on the plants and leaves beyond the wall and Sansa's response to this beauty is what he thinks of first. And yes, this, along with her quest for the perfect life, does tie her in with the Romantics, who were also suckers for songs and stories. The Romantic movement, remember, was fuelled by a fascination with medieval minstrelsy and poesy--the Germans and Walter Scott--as well as Wordsworth's love of nature and Byron's love of the exotic. In fact, Byron's relationship with his sister is very similar to Jaime's relationship with Cersei, the only difference being that Byron and Augusta were half-brother and half-sister, and not twins. And then, there is the club-foot...

[swiftsnowmane]

Thanks for your reply! Good point about the castles being seen after the RW, I keep getting it mixed up, but yes if it foreshadows anything it would be the downfall of the Twins, *due* to the RW, not the RW itself. I definitely agree about the Romantic movement, I'm glad I'm not the only who sees the connection. :)