Game of Thrones Psychology: The Mind is Dark and Full of Terrors

by Travis Langley (Editor), Kyle Maddock (Foreword)

Insight is coming!
This thought-provoking anthology offers a close examination of the psychology behind the intricate narrative and compelling characters in author George R.R. Martin's bestselling work, A Song of Ice and Fire , and the the popular HBO TV series based upon his books,  Game of Thrones.
In Martin's richly detailed world, deceit, manipulation, and greed rule the day, and almost everyone fights for power over the realm or simply over their own lives. How do love and hate, good evil, need and greed, altruism and narcissism drive the very best and very worst human behaviors? With no moral boundaries honored, the psychological games played by the series' conniving protagonists are seemingly limitless. Game of Thrones The Mind is Dark and Full of Terrors  explores motivations, relations, personality disorders, psychopathy, trauma, and much more. What kind of person can survive the game of thrones, much less hope to win? Contributors Colt J. Blunt * Jenna Busch *  Josué Cardona *  Erin Currie * William Blake Erickson * Wind Goodfriend * Jonathan Hetterly * Stephen Hupp * Mark Caldwell Jones * Lara Taylor Kester * Dana Klisanin* Travis Langley * Jordan Gaines Lewis * Martin Lloyd  *  Kyle Maddock *  P atrick O'Connor * Janina Scarlet * Jay Scarlet * Laura Vecchiolla * Dave Verhaagen * Dawn R. Weatherford

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Pop Culture, Science, Audiobook, Tv, Essays

304 pages, Paperback

First published June 16, 2016

About the author

Dr. Travis Langley, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Henderson State University, is best-known as the author of the acclaimed book BATMAN AND PSYCHOLOGY: A DARK AND STORMY KNIGHT. He is also editor and lead writer for the Popular Culture Psychology series of 12 books looking at the psychology of characters and stories such as THE WALKING DEAD PSYCHOLOGY: PSYCH OF THE LIVING DEAD, CAPTAIN AMERICA VS. IRON MAN: FREEDOM, SECURITY, PSYCHOLOGY, and most recently THE JOKER PSYCHOLOGY: EVIL CLOWNS AND THE WOMEN WHO LOVE THEM. PsychologyToday.com features his blog, “Beyond Heroes and Villains.” A popular speaker internationally, he has given talks at universities and has led or joined hundreds of convention panels (especially at Wizard World shows) and on the Comic Con-Fusion YouTube channel. He also happened to be an undefeated champion on the Wheel of Fortune game show. As Stan Lee described him, “This man is a genius!”

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deep-dive look at the psychology of Games of Thrones, and not only the characters, but also why we watched it. Essentially a book that looks at personality types of people with seemingly psychotic tendencies like Bolton, Joffrey, Cersei etc.; at parenting and relationship styles, Ned Stark, Baratheon, Lysa etc. and the impact on their children and their partners; how people respond to trauma in different ways such as Theon, Sansa, DAenerys etc. amongst numerous other areas.

More a very accessible text book using the Game of Thrones reality as examples and reference points this works remarkably well. It also offers up as overview guide on how to not only survive the Game of Thrones, but how to survive life itself for us viewers and readers! 8 out of 12.

2022 read

[Sarah Sherrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book on a Goodreads giveaway and I entered in to see how the author was really going to break down the psychology of the characters in the books and the series. I was very impressed. There are enough opinions and facts to let the reader understand the mind of not only the characters but the reader as well and it made the reader think about people in the world today. I would highly recommend this book!

[Buck Wilde · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was fun!
An easy read that discusses a handful of psychological theories of self, morality, and pathology (with a somewhat lazy tendency to revisit Maslow's hierarchy of needs over and over again) as applied to Game of Thrones characters. A nice terminology refresher. I appreciate these pop culture philosophy/psychology books because they always italicize the technical concepts so you don't need to devote conscious attention to retaining them as specialized vocabulary. It also explored what must be a new development, the study of what makes a hero, which, while trending a little too heavily toward positive psychology for my tastes, the avid fiction consumer, aspiring novelist, and tremendous high-fantasy dweeb in me all find irresistible.

I'ma wikipedia it like, right now.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book in the series yet! I've enjoyed them all (The Walking Dead Psychology, Star Wars Psychology, Captain America vs. Iron Man), and this is the most thought-provoking entry. Somehow it manages to go even more in-depth into the psychology and cover a wider variety of psych concepts while remaining very readable for the general audience member who never studied psychology. Excellently written and highest production value. This is one good-looking book.

[Craig Ranallo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun, easily-accessible collection of essays examining the psychology of Game of Thrones and how that might relate to the viewer/reader. All of the essays are relatively short and require only a basic understanding of psychology to understand and enjoy. I found the essays on postraumatic growth, torture as transformation, marriage, parenting styles, motherhood, sexism, heroism, self-control, and the psychological effects of complex storytelling to be the most fascinating, though each essay and topic contained some nuggets. There's an interesting reflection on participatory media that I also thought was well-presented and insightful. A worthy read for fans of the series.

[Stephanie Dique · Rating 2 out of 5]

A good idea in theory... just not for a book. Maybe a blog or a paper. I liked the part about serial killer traits and parenting types as they relate to Game of Thrones characters but the rest just seemed like puffed up repetitive psychology babble stretched into 270 pages.

[Shawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deeper level into the mind of Kings and Princes of the 7 kingdoms.

[Jack Bagnall · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read, though many of the topics were based on psychology which is already well known. There were a few interesting facts, though they were not consistently intriguing (perhaps this is because I am a Psychology student). I felt as though more characters could've been explored and in more exciting ways, working backwards for individual characters, rather than searching for characters to attribute assigned psychological phenomena.

Having said that I did have fun reading it, though it wasn't gripping enough. Certainly worth a read if you're interested in Psychology and want to make learning that little bit more engaging and enjoyable through referencing the epic (mostly TV show references).

[Cassandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The premises is very interesting and the author does a great job using examples from the show and how certain characters embody certain psychological studies. My favorite chapter dealt with why certain characters had a better grip on their leadership and what characters make the best leaders. Langley's view on sexism and the 2 main types really spoke with clear examples of both while allowing for readers without degrees to about social and psychological disorders that can be clearly seen in the book.

[Beatrice · Rating 2 out of 5]

Being a Game of Thrones lover into psychology, I had to have high high hopes for this book, but I completed it feelings utterly disappointed. The references to the universe created by George R.R Martin were too few and too superficial.
I did enjoy the essay about the different way to raise children, the one about women fighting sexism and - of course - the one about Theon.

[Bookwarrior · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a easy to read and understand. It explains basic psychology ideas and theories in an easy to understand matter and in context with both Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire. (acknowledging the difference between the two, which is awesome).

[Liam Walker · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is so bad. I am not reading it. This is a book of psychology loosely referencing game of thrones. Not my bag.

[Aspasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We keep reading George R.R. Martin's stories and watching their onscreen depictions because we hope enough and believe enough of the characters will gain enough insight into their own natures and enough understanding of what really matters in time to save their world. Letting ourselves hope and believe in them helps us practice hoping and believing in ourselves and the future before us all" (p.3).



If you are looking for a book to compliment the Game of Thrones TV show now that the series has ended, I would like to recommend Game of Thrones Psychology. This anthology was published in 2016, so if you are one of the few people that hasn’t watched the final season, this book will give nothing away. Each chapter is written by a different psychologist who explains a psychological theory, model, or personality trait and then applies to a specific character in the show or to the overall world of Westeros. Thankfully, the theories and models are explained in layman’s terms and in short chapters, so a non-psychologist will not be overwhelmed by psychological jargon. General topics covered include: freedom versus security, safety versus security, love and marriage, parenting styles, death and mourning, love and belonging, leadership, sexism, self-esteem, problem solving, self-control, and story complexity and the brain (the complex nature of the GoT universe makes you think and is good for you!). Chapters that focus on a psychological trait within a specific character focus on: greed (ahem, Cersei), psychopathy (Ramsay Bolton), overcoming abuse (Danerys Targaryen), trauma and posttraumatic growth (Arya, Sansa, Dany), rape (Sansa), torture (Theon), The Great Mother Archetype (Cersei versus Dany), phobias (The Hound), serial killers (Ramsay again), heroism (Jon Snow, The Hound), and self-actualization (Master Aemon).

You can read more of my reviews at https://thesouthernbookworm.blogspot....

[James]

Insight is coming!This thought-provoking anthology offers a close examination of the psychology behind the intricate narrative and compelling characters in author George R.R. Martin's bestselling work, A Song of Ice and Fire, and the the popular HBO TV series based upon his books, Game of Thrones. In Martin's richly detailed world, deceit, manipulation, and greed rule the day, and almost everyone fights for power over the realm or simply over their own lives. How do love and hate, good evil, need and greed, altruism and narcissism drive the very best and very worst human behaviors? With no moral boundaries honored, the psychological games played by the series' conniving protagonists are seemingly limitless. Game of Thrones Psychology: The Mind is Dark and Full of Terrors explores motivations, relations, personality disorders, psychopathy, trauma, and much more. What kind of person can survive the game of thrones, much less hope to win?Contributors include:Colt J. Blunt * Jenna Busch * Josué Cardona * Erin Currie * William Blake Erickson * Wind Goodfriend * Jonathan Hetterly * Stephen Hupp * Mark Caldwell Jones * Lara Taylor Kester * Dana Klisanin* Travis Langley * Jordan Gaines Lewis * Martin Lloyd * Kyle Maddock * Patrick O'Connor * Janina Scarlet * Jay Scarlet * Laura Vecchiolla * Dave Verhaagen * Dawn R. Weatherford

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

With it's diverse set of complex characters, Game of Thrones must be the most interesting TV-show to be viewed from a psychological point of view - that's why I grabbed this book from the local library minute after I laid my eyes on it.

In this book, the author dives deep into characters and how and why the hardships they've faced have molded their characteristics, what we can learn from a character by observing their actions or choices they make, all this and more while explaining some basic psychological concepts along the way. In all honesty, I'm not into psychology that much, but it was certainly very easy and pleasant to get a good grab of it, when they're presented in this kind of context. Definitely got me interested in reading authors other works as well!

So whether you're interested in psychology or not, I'd say any fan of GoT will find this an interesting read.

[Kelli Santistevan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here’s what this book is about:”In George R.R. Martin's richly detailed world, deceit, manipulation, and greed rule the day, and almost everyone fights for power over the realm or simply over their own lives. How do love and hate, good and evil, need and greed, altruism and narcissism drive the very best and very worst human behaviors? With no moral boundaries honored, the psychological games played by the series' conniving protagonists are seemingly limitless. Game of Thrones Psychology: The Mind is Dark and Full of Terrors explores motivations, relations, personality disorders, psychopathy, trauma, and much more. What kind of person can survive the game of thrones, much less hope to win?”

As a fan of the A Song Of Ice And Fire series and the tv show Game Of Thrones and also as someone who likes the subject of psychology, this book was interesting to me. I enjoyed this book.

[David Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great way to look at the TV series, through the lens of real life psychological theory. It gets straight to the most important themes and plots that made the show arguably the best series on the small screen (last season excluded). To be honest, this topic deserves as many volumes as GRRM has written of his original novels. Very worthwhile read for those analysing Game of Thrones and trying to ponder what drove its success.

[Katie Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the book raised some interesting applications of modern psychology to the fictional world of Westeros, the essays were rather short and limited. I was hoping for perhaps more in-depth analysis and comparison of characters, instead of these rather brief, surface-level essays. That aside, the book was enjoyable and included a range of interesting topics.

[Miriam Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was an amazing idea. I literally could not put it down for hours on end. Travis Langley and his co-writers brought about new ideas and explanations that I never considered about the Game of Thrones universe. I truly cannot express how much enjoyment this book has brought me. No, I am not exaggerating.

[SarahKat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing. I like psychology and Game of Thrones so you'd think this would be great. But no. Instead of some super-cool in-depth analysis of a character or two, or even the psychology of the story itself and its effect on the reader, it's just basic psychology lessons with examples from the GoT world.

This would be a great book for first-year students of psychology.

[Brittany Cavness · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so interesting. I especially loved the chapter where they analyze if Joffrey was a certifiable psychopath. P.S. I am going through Game of Thrones withdrawals and this is the only way I can deal. #Don'tjudgeme

[JSH Placie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is part of an entire series of pop culture related psychology books written in a fun way by serious researchers. In particular I enjoyed the section on parenting. Turns out that I fall into the Ned Stark-like Authoritative style of parenting. So yay, me.

[Maria Tag · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very interesting and insightful read, and I would recommend this book to any serious Game of Thrones or A Song of Ice and Fire fans. Some of the essays were more relevant/interesting than others, but all of them were meaningful and perceptive. Dracarys!

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like I’d like this more if it wasn’t a condensed and dumbed down version of my psychology degree. If you don’t have a background in this research then you’d probably like it. Just felt repetitive for me with my back ground

[Chicokc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un libro dividido en ensayos, que analiza los casos psicológicos de los personajes de GoT. Podemos ver los análisis de un personaje como Joffrey, o casos severos, como Ramsay.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great introduction to psychological themes in bite-sized pieces with examples from the Game of Thrones show and the Song of Ice & Fire books.

[Marty · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book would have benefited by tightening focus. It goes into alot of different things, but never very deeply.

[Ked Dixon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basic pych. The best chapters are about the traumatic growth of Sonsa Stark and the self actualization of Maester Aemon

[Whitney Stanfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book could have gone much more in-depth on many of the topics presented. It was still a nice listen for GOT fans but it will leave you wanting more.

[Daisy · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was quite an interesting reading