Everything Game of Thrones Stole from Shakespeare
Photo: HBO

Everything Game of Thrones Stole from Shakespeare

Lisa Waugh
Updated November 5, 2019

Exeunt! If thou dost protest too much over SPOILERS in thisĀ Game of Thrones and Shakespeare connections list!

About the headline:Ā before you get all indignantly puffy-shirted, ā€œstoleā€ could also be translated as ā€œborrow,ā€ ā€œlifted,ā€ or ā€œwasĀ inspired by" - andĀ George R.R. Martin would be the first toĀ tell you that Shakespeare borrowed, lifted, and was inspired by others himself. Martin is quite clear about the sources he used for A Song of Ice and Fire -Ā and the showĀ runners are not shy about sourcing, either.

Youā€™ll get no argument out of them about things Game of Thrones took from Shakespeare:Ā ā€œIdeas are cheap. I have more ideas now than I could ever write up. To my mind, it's the execution that is all-important. I'm proud of my work, but I don't know if I'd ever claim it's enormously original. You look at Shakespeare, who borrowed all of his plots. In A Song of Ice and Fire, I take stuff from the Wars of the Roses and other fantasy things, and all these things work around in my head and somehow they jell into what I hope is uniquely my own,ā€ Martin has said.

Whatā€™s on Martinā€™s shopping list? The Wall in the North was inspired by Hadrianā€™s Wall. Martin was greatly inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien, calling the authorā€™s work ā€œmy great model.ā€ And Martin drew heavily from the Wars of the Roses, three decades of wars between two houses within the same family. Martin has also taken inspiration from his own television writing, as well as popular and classic historical fiction, sci-fi, and fantasy.

But what about the Bard? What are some of the similarities between Game of Thrones and Shakespeare? Well, both authorsĀ love a mass killing at a gathering, tragic love affairs, misunderstood and flawed characters, and bitter ironic twists. Who doesnā€™t? Read on to see all the ways Martin and his showĀ runners "borrowed" these things and more from William Shakespeare...

  • Falstaff - Robert Baratheon

    Falstaff - Robert Baratheon
    Photo: HBO

    Falstaff: A women-chasing drunkard and braggart who has varying means of access to power. The character appeared in three of Shakespeareā€™s plays: Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2, as well as Henry V. Falstaff could be counted upon for humor and irreverence, as well as intense drama and deep sadness.

    Robert Baratheon: A bastard-making, bed-hopping king who loves to laugh, flash his famous temper, and unevenly wields his power before making a messy exit. 

  • Banquo - Eddard Stark

    Banquo - Eddard Stark
    Photo: HBO

    Banquo: The general fought alongside Macbeth and was his friend until Macbeth grew suspicious and paranoid, twisted by the prophecy of the witches. The witches also tell Banquo his sons will be kings. Macbeth grows to distrust Banquo and has him killed. Banquo returns as a ghost to haunt Macbeth.

    Eddard: Ned is a childhood friend and trusted former soldier of King Robert Baratheon. Things begin to turn for Ned once he becomes Robertā€™s Hand. Robert begins to side against his friend, albeit reluctantly. After the kingā€™s death, Ned is betrayed by Littlefinger and King Joffrey has him beheaded with his own sword, Ice. Ned appears to Bran and Rickon in the crypts of Winterfell after his death.
  • Iago - Littlefinger

    Iago - Littlefinger
    Photo: HBO

    Iago: As Othelloā€™s trusted advisor, Iago schemes and plots to bring about Othelloā€™s ruin through a series of manipulations, never directly killing anyone. Iagoā€™s motivation for ruining Othelloā€™s life is because he is slighted by not being promoted up the ranks and given his rightful place in the world.

    Littlefinger: Petyr Baelish comes from humble beginnings and suffered injuries and a deep eternal emotional scarring at the hands of Brandon Stark over Catelyn Tully when they were young. Baelish has mastered the game to gain power and ruin any house or person he needs to in the process. His never-ending manipulation makes him dangerous, but many still underestimate him because they never see the literal or figurative blade in Littlefingerā€™s hand.

  • Portia - Margaery Tyrell

    Portia - Margaery Tyrell
    Photo: HBO

    Portia: A clever and beautiful wealthy woman who knows how to maneuver through society and use the social standards to her advantage. In The Merchant of Venice, sheā€™s at the mercy of her fatherā€™s ambitions and the law of the land, but manages to find something for herself along the way.

    Margaery: She finds herself in the exact same position as Portia, being matched with different men. When sheā€™s betrothed to Joffrey, Margaery finds a way to manipulate the marriage for the good of House Tyrell. She plays the game to a fault and is only thwarted by the overly confident High Sparrow, who doesnā€™t understand the depths of Cerseiā€™s deceit. 

  • Macbeth - Cersei Lannister Baratheon

    Macbeth - Cersei Lannister Baratheon
    Photo: HBO

    Macbeth: The Scottish general is given a prophecy by three witches declaring him the future king of Scotland. Macbeth sets about making the prophecy come true, first by killing King Duncan, before dissolving into murderous paranoia and isolation.

    Cersei: As a young girl, Cersei received a prophecy from the witch Maggy the Frog that foretold Cersei would outlive her children and become queen through bitter circumstances. Even as she tries to escape the prophecy, Cersei comes to embrace it in the end, taking the Iron Throne in the wake of Tommenā€™s suicide and the decimation of her enemies at the Great Sept. Cerseiā€™s reign wonā€™t be far off from Macbethā€™s.

  • Lady Macbeth - Cersei Lannister Baratheon

    Lady Macbeth - Cersei Lannister Baratheon
    Photo: HBO

    Lady Macbeth: She drives her husband toward the Scottish throne with ruthless ambition as she pursues her own title of queen. In the end, Lady Macbeth is driven mad by her part in the murder of King Duncan and commits suicide.

    Cersei: Keeping the Iron Throne for her children appears to be Cersei's initial drive. She plots to have her husband, the king, killed. She revels in her hatred of him and outplays just about everyone. She gains the throne, but at the cost of her children and Jaimeā€™s love and devotion. The major difference between Cersei and Lady Macbeth is that itā€™s hard to imagine Cersei taking her own life unless it involved taking as many people as she possibly could with her.

  • The Wars of the Roses House Badges - The House Tyrell Sigil

    The Wars of the Roses: The wars involved two opposing sides of House Plantagenet, the House of Lancaster and the House of York, fighting for rule of England. Inspired by the sporadic three decades of war between the two houses, Shakespeare wrote Henry VI, Parts 1-3 and Richard III.

    The Lancasters were represented by a red rose; the Yorks, a white rose. The wars were named after the badges of both houses, or so many have come to believe. The white rose was one of many symbols used by the House of York. The Lancasters adopted the red rose toward the end of the wars. It was Shakespeare who perpetuated the idea of the red and white roses as their definitive badges, hence giving the series of conflicts its name. Historians came to call them the Cousinsā€™ Wars.

    House Tyrell: Martin created a sea of sigils for the houses in A Song of Ice and Fire, including the rose of House Tyrell.

  • The Wars of the Roses - The War of the Five Kings

    The Wars of the Roses - The War of the Five Kings
    Photo: HBO

    The Wars of the Roses: AKA The Cousinsā€™ Wars, the Wars of the Roses spanned from 1455 to 1485. Inspired by the three decades of war between the two houses, Shakespeare wrote Henry VI Parts 1-3 and Richard III.

    The War of the Five Kings: GRRMā€™s War of the Five Kings is sparked by conflict between House Lannister and House Stark. Of course, to Shakespeareā€™s depiction of the Wars of the Roses, Martin added sex, dragons, Children of the Forest, giants, and White Walkers, among other things.

  • Richard III - Tyrion Lannister

    Richard III - Tyrion Lannister
    Photo: HBO

    Richard III: The noble-born and afflicted Richard III was perhaps falsely accused of murdering the Princes in the Tower to ascend to the throne (though in Shakespeare's version of the story, Richard was guilty). Richard is a well-read man who is a shrewd strategist and greatly underestimated.

    Tyrion Lannister: Tyrion is a bookish man from a noble house who understands the workings of people, governments, and society. His size is held against him by many; his motherā€™s death in childbirth is held against him by his father and sister. Tyrion is accused of attempting to kill Bran, as well as his nephew Joffrey, out of revenge and lust for power. His counsel is often underestimated, with the exception of Varys, Lady Olenna, and Danaerys, who know better.

  • Gertrude - Sansa Stark

    Gertrude - Sansa Stark
    Photo: HBO

    Gertrude: Hamletā€™s mother is a shallow person who is in her element when holding court. She sees herself through the POV of the men around her while also using them to further her own ambition and station.  

    Sansa: When we first meet Sansa, sheā€™s a girl dreaming of shallow things such as her appearance at court and how sheā€™ll please Joffrey. We see her evolve from a young, naive, silly girl to the calculating strategist who jumps into the game for power.

  • A Play Within a Play - or TV Show

    A Play Within a Play - or TV Show
    Photo: HBO

    The Murder of Gonzago: This play-within-a-play in Hamlet stages a version of the death of Hamletā€™s father, while also accusing his mother the queen of disloyalty. Itā€™s performed by a traveling acting troupe at Hamletā€™s behest.

    The Mummerā€™s Play: The mummers mount a play in Braavos retelling the death of Ned Stark and Joffrey, and other recent events in Westeros, in a one-sided, crown-favoring depiction.

  • Hamlet - Oberyn Martell

    Hamlet - Oberyn Martell
    Photo: HBO

    Hamlet: Tortured by his thoughts of revenge and of justice, Hamlet soliloquies himself into oblivion before dropping Yorickā€™s skull and going for the sword.

    Oberyn Martell: Hell-bent on revenge in the name of his sister and her children, Oberyn makes directly for the Mountain in Tyrionā€™s trial by combat. Oberynā€™s skull-popping death is a reminder to opponents to kill the Mountain as fast as you can. Ditch the soliloquy lest you become Yorickā€™s skull.

  • Henry V - Robb Stark

    Henry V - Robb Stark
    Photo: HBO

    Henry V: A young king inherits a fractured country torn apart by several civil wars. Despite having to live down his wild past, Henry pursues the throne in England as well as France. Against the odds, the English win the Battle of Agincourt. The king marries Princess Katherine of France, forming an alliance.

    Robb Stark: Henry may have been a rough blueprint for Robb. Even if Robb is not based on the young king, there are strong similarities. But before Robb can unite the realm, he breaks an oath he gave to Walder Frey and marries a woman he met on the battlefield instead of one of Freyā€™s many daughters. Robbā€™s story doesnā€™t end with a marriage that unites the realm. He, Catelyn, his pregnant wife Talisa, and the Stark bannerman are all killed in a surprise attack at the Twins by the hand of Walder Freyā€™s men, orchestrated by the Lannisters.

  • Romeo and Juliet - Jon and Ygritte

    Romeo and Juliet - Jon and Ygritte
    Photo: HBO

    Romeo and Juliet: The children of two warring houses pursue a forbidden love which ends in a dramatic tragedy.

    Jon and Ygritte: Two young people from opposing sides of the Wall fall in love, ending in tragedy for Ygritte when sheā€™s struck down by an arrow as she attacks Castle Black along with the wildlings. Because Olly sucks.

  • Julius Caesar - Jon Snow

    Julius Caesar - Jon Snow
    Photo: HBO

    Julius Caesar: Given a seasonal warning ("beware the ides of March"), Caesar ascends to power and is betrayed by those closest to him, Cassius and Brutus. He is stabbed multiple times.

    Jon Snow: Jon is constantly warned that "winter is coming," and his rise to power as Lord Commander is only the beginning of trouble. He aligns himself with the wildlings and Mance Rayder, allowing them to go south of the Wall. He rallies troops in response to Ramsayā€™s threats and finds himself on the sharp end of the many knives of his fellow brothers of the Nightā€™s Watch. He gives Olly an ā€œEt tu, Bruteā€ look before keeling over in the snow. But unlike Caesar, Jon has the benefit of magic and is resurrected, giving him the chance to avenge his own death.