Game of Thrones Season 4 Start Date, Premiere, Release Date: Rape Scene in 'Breaker of Chains' Sparks Controversy
Game of Thrones is known for its dark and unexpected scenes, but what happened on the latest episode, "Breaker of Chains," has many viewers thinking the writers went too far.
Warning, there are spoilers coming.
The show shocked fans this past Sunday with a controversial scene between siblings Cersei and Jaime. The couple are mourning the death of their son Joeffrey (a death, ironically, celebrated by the majority of the fandom) when Jamie all of sudden forces himself upon his sister. They have sex right next to Joeffrey's corpse, but that isn't what alarmed viewers. Neither was the fact that they were committing incest — as this has been a common plot point since day one.
It was the fact that the sex was clearly nonconsensual.
TheWeek.com writes, "In the terrible scene — which takes place in the Great Sept of Baelor, after Jaime sends everyone else away — Cersei tears up as they stand together over Joffrey's body. 'He was our son. Our baby boy.' They kiss, but Cersei pulls away. Jaime becomes enraged. 'You're a hateful woman. Why have the gods made me love a hateful woman?' he says, before pushing her to the ground and beginning to rape her. 'Jaime, not here. Please. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it,' Cersei says. Jaime says no. 'Stop it. It's not right. It's not right. It's not right,' Cersei says. Jaime says, 'I don't care.' The scene ends, disturbingly, as Cersei unsuccessfully begs Jaime to stop one last time."
Rape is not a uncommon occurrence in Game of Thrones, but when it occurs it is treated with the proper weight it deserves. Characters, including Jamie himself, have strongly denounced the act. Another character, Oberyn, vows vengeance on the Mountain for raping his sister.
However, this particular scene was unusual in that it undermined the consensual nature of Cersei and Jamie's relationship and consequently changed the audience's perception Jamie's character (a terrible person, true, but one that spent much of Season 3 on a redemptive path). What made the scene even more jarring was that it was clearly different from the source material. In Storm of Swords (the book from which it is based) Cersei is somewhat reluctant but clearly willing. There is no indication of that in "Breaker of Chains."
When asked about the scene, director Alex Graves in an interview with HitFix said, "Well, it becomes consensual by the end because anything for them ultimately results in a turn-on, especially a power struggle."
Clearly, many people disagree. Whether the scene becomes relevant in terms of Cersei and Jaime's future character development waits to be seen, but if not, there is no doubt that people will be angry at the show's unnecessary alteration of a scene for the purpose of creating drama.