151 ASOS 8 Jon I: A Kind Apart

False among the wildlings, Jon notices how vulnerable and undisciplined a military camp they keep without realizing that the overwhelming number of families suggests it's a people, not an army. Preparing lies and expecting to be killed if unconvincing, Jon feels dead already. But Mance shares his table, tells Jon he's protected by guest right, and accepts him.

Mended Cloak

The song, "The Dornishman's Wife," about a life worth dying for, introduces the appeal of wildling freedom. The song depicts pleasure as dangerous and danger as worth risk. It echoes Ygritte's words: "It's dangerous being free, but most come to like the taste o' it." 93

Since he's the singer, the song introduces Mance Rayder and seems to describe his reason for deserting the Night's Watch. However, when Mance tells his story, it's clear he deserted because the order required him to discard his mended cloak, which represented a strong social fabric based on care and kindness. It's a far cry from deserting for the pleasures of dangerous freedom and speaks to Mance's desire to cultivate community.

The idea that a cloak mended with red silk should be discarded for the sake of uniformity is questionable. If Night's Watch men wore many colors of cloak, it would undermine the idea of it as a brotherhood, but then, we see Jeremy Rykker's fine cloak adopted with pride by Thoren Smallwood in an earlier Jon chapter, despite it bearing the Rykker house sigil. That house sigils are allowed suggests that the uniformity of black cloaks is only a surface layer. Mance's story suggests The Shadow Tower to be a colder, more regimented place than Castle Black, where the recruits are trained. Likely, Mance had learned he preferred wildling society and was close to deserting out of personal preference before the rejection of his mended cloak made the decision easy. He chose a life of mutual care over one of cold duty.

In contrast, Jon found the Night's Watch to be a society of mutual care at Castle Black. It's a major reason for his ongoing loyalty that he feels like a brother. It was the Seven Kingdoms Jon deserted and with a similar attitude of rejecting a society of exclusivity. He tells Mance his reason for deserting was his exclusion from the Great Hall at the feast for King Robert. It's true, but is the reason he joined the Night's Watch.

Reveal: Jon is Arrogant

Jon feels himself among the wildlings as being like a direwolf among dogs. It now seems Qhorin may have believed Jon could survive among the wildlings because of his pride as much as for his high status as Stark and warg. Jon's issue with his bastardy, which has seemed entirely about Catelyn's abuse, now seems also attributable to feelings of entitlement.

Mnemonic device "A Kind Apart" refers to

1) Jon's sense of himself as nothing like a wilding because still secretly loyal to the Night's Watch. Identifying by his cloak is a crutch Jon will be required to transcend.

2) Jon's being seated apart at the feast for King Robert, for being a bastard.

Ironies

Mance guided Jon to the perfect lie.

Jon thought he had a low position at Winterfell when it was among the very highest.

Constructions

Jon's lie to hide Mormont's three hundred from Mance

foreshadowing that Ygritte will attempt to seduce Jon

Setup for Jon to be sent to kill Mance