Jon is introduced in 1996's
A Game of Thrones as the illegitimate son of
Ned Stark, the honorable lord of
Winterfell, an ancient fortress in
the North of the fictional continent of
Westeros. Knowing his prospects are limited by his status as a bastard, Jon joins the
Night's Watch, who guard the far northern borders from the
wildlings who live beyond
The Wall. As the rest of the Starks face grave adversity, Jon finds himself honor bound to remain with the Watch. In
A Clash of Kings (1998), he joins a scouting party investigating the growing threat from the otherworldly "
Others" beyond the Wall, and manages to infiltrate the wildlings. Jon learns of their plans to invade Westeros in
A Storm of Swords (2000), and begins to fall in love with the fierce wildling woman
Ygritte. He betrays them—and Ygritte—before they can attack, but the Night Watch's victory comes at a heavy price for Jon. Now the Lord Commander of the Watch, he appears briefly in 2005's
A Feast for Crows. Jon returns as a prominent character in a
A Dance with Dragons (2011), working to negotiate an alliance between the Night's Watch and the wildlings. The growing animosity he has attracted from among the Watch finally catches up with him, and he is forced to face the dire consequences.
Description
In
A Game of Thrones, Jon Snow is introduced as the 14-year-old illegitimate son of
Eddard "Ned" Stark, Lord of
Winterfell,
[3][4] and half-brother to
Robb,
Sansa,
Arya,
Bran and
Rickon. Jon is described as having strong Stark features with a lean build, long face, dark brown hair and grey eyes.
[5] Jon has the surname "Snow" (customarily used for illegitimate children in the North) and is resented by Ned's wife
Catelyn, who views him as a constant reminder of Ned's infidelity.
[4] Jon is the same age as Robb and enjoys a warm relationship with his siblings, particularly the tomboy Arya (who resembles Jon and like him does not feel like she fits in). Ned treats Jon as much like his other children as propriety and his honor will allow. Still, as somewhat of an outsider, Jon has learned to be independent and to fend for himself when necessary.
[3] Jon idolizes his father, but is wounded by Ned's refusal to tell him about his mother.
[6] At the beginning of the story, Jon adopts the
albino direwolf that he names Ghost. He later finds that at times he can "inhabit" the wolf and share its experiences.
[4][5][6]
David Orr of
The New York Times describes Jon as "a complex, thoughtful and basically good character".
[1] David Benioff and
D. B. Weiss, the creators and executive producers of the
television adaptation of the series, explain that Jon is one of several characters in the series who must "face hard truths about the world they live in, and adapt themselves to those truths" because "The struggle many of them face is how to do that without losing their grip on who they are."
[7] Ned Stark teaches all his children about leadership, selflessness, duty and honor. Following his father's example becomes more difficult as Jon faces challenges to his identity as a man, a Stark, and a brother of the
Night's Watch.
[3][4] Benioff and Weiss note that "Jon Snow tries to live with honor, while knowing that honor often gets his family members murdered."
[7] Writing for
Variety about the season 6 episode "
Battle of the Bastards", Laura Prudom suggests that Jon "has the same shortcomings" as his father: "he fights with honor against opponents who are all too willing to use that predictable morality against him".
[8]
Jon is a prominent
point of view character in the novels, and has been called one of Martin's "finest creations".
[1] Jon is introduced as the illegitimate son of a Northern lord who, realizing he is an outsider in his own family, follows his uncle to the far north and accepts the honorable duty of serving in the Night's Watch. But as much as he is a second-class Stark at home, initially his fellow recruits and brothers of the Watch set him apart as privileged and aloof. Jon adapts, soon proving himself to be wise, compassionate, and a natural leader. Over the course of the series, Jon's loyalty to the Watch and its vows, his family, and even Westeros itself are tested as he becomes embroiled in the efforts of the
wildlings from
Beyond the Wall to force their way back into the Seven Kingdoms. He lives among them as a spy for the Watch, sympathetic to their cause and becoming romantically involved with the tenacious
Ygritte. However he ultimately betrays them to defend
The Wall. Later, as the newest Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, he pursues an alliance with the wildlings.
[3][4][5][9]
Several reviews of 2011's
A Dance with Dragons noted the return to the narrative of Jon,
Daenerys Targaryen and
Tyrion Lannister, the three popular characters whom fans had missed most from the previous volume,
A Feast for Crows.
[2][10][11] These "favorites" had last been featured 11 years before in Martin's
A Storm of Swords.
[12] In
A Dance with Dragons, Jon's leadership of the Night's Watch is complicated by several unprecedented challenges, including a wildling alliance, the demands of would-be-king
Stannis Baratheon and the conflicting factions developing within the Watch itself.
[12][13][14] The New York Times notes that "Jon’s leadership is the best hope of Westeros, so naturally he’s in imminent danger throughout
A Dance With Dragons."
[1] James Hibberd of
Entertainment Weekly called Jon's final chapter in
A Dance with Dragons "a harsh chapter in terms of fan expectations. You go from this total high of Jon giving this rousing speech about going after the evil
Ramsay Bolton, to this utter low of his men turning against him."
[15] Jon's presence in the forthcoming volume
The Winds of Winter is uncertain.
[15]
Asked what he thought was Jon’s biggest "mistake", Martin replied:
Were they mistakes? I guess they were mistakes in some ways since they led to him losing control of part of his group. But it might have been wise and necessary decisions in terms of protecting the realm and dealing with the threat of the
White Walkers. I'm a huge student of history, and all through history there’s always this question of what's the right decision. You look back with benefit of hindsight at a battle that was lost and say, 'The losing general was such an idiot.' Was
Napoleon a genius for all the battles he won? Or an idiot for
losing at Waterloo? Partly I'm reacting to a lot of the fantasy that has come before this. Ruling is difficult whether you're a Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch or the King of England. These are hard decisions and each have consequences. We're looking at Jon trying to take control of Night's Watch and deal with the wildlings and the threat beyond The Wall.
