The Architectural Protagonist of Kings Landing: A Dynamic Force in the ‘Game of Thrones’ Narrative

Game of Thrones is a dark fantasy TV series based on a book by George R.R. Martin. It’s known for its violent and dark narrative. In the context of Game of Thrones, the architectural design of sets and locations serves as a silent yet powerful protagonist, complementing and enriching the narrative of specific scenes. The study uses a qualitative case study approach to examine four key scenes from the series, including Joffrey and Margaery Tyrell’s wedding, Cersei’s arrest by the High Sparrow, Cersei watching the Great Sept of Baelor explode from the Red Keep, and Cersei’s coronation. By delving into existing literature on the concepts of ‘architectural symbolism’ and ‘architectural protagonist,’ and comprehending the process of translating fictional realms into visual representations on screen, a foundational knowledge has been established. This knowledge serves as the basis for the analysis conducted in the chosen case studies. The case studies involve collecting data, highlighting, and examining the key aspects of the scenes’ narratives through the use of dialogue, narrative summaries, character summaries, and selected frames taken from the key scenes. After collecting the data, the book ‘Reading Architecture: A Visual Lexicon’ is used as a guide to conduct a graphic analysis of the selected scenes, examining how the architecture has used various elements to complement and enrich the specific narratives (Hopkins, 2012).Through the examination of these scenes and a discussion aimed at exploring the findings of each case study in connection with the research question, the study endeavours to substantiate the term “architectural protagonist” as posited by Thomas Honegger (2004). This contributes to an enhanced understanding of how architecture is pivotal in constructing and enhancing the intricate dark fantasy narrative of Game of Thrones.