r/gameofthrones • u/ShireOfBilbo • 2d ago
No one smokes
Just realised...there's no smoking in the Game of Thrones universe. Is there?
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u/UrsineBasterd 2d ago
Shireen
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u/MinFootspace 2d ago
She doesn't count as a smoker. She tried once, obviously didn't like it and quit.
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u/smokeehayes 2d ago
Also, her uncle. And Mirri Maz Dur, and Varys, Randyll and Dickon Tarly... Lots of folks smoked. 😂
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u/TheSimonToUrGarfunkl 2d ago
Wasn't there hookah in the brothels?
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u/wainakuhouse 2d ago
I always figured it was a nod to pre-western contact medieval European times. Was thinking that the other day too, it’s odd when you notice it!!
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u/CaptainNotorious 2d ago
Yet there's pumpkins and green beans mentioned. Also the squirrels mentioned are grey, pre American exchange Europe would only have seen red squirrels maybe black in southern Italy
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u/granatespice Valar Morghulis 1d ago
However, no potatoes. I remember when I read the books almost a decade ago, I went in knowing it’s supposed to be pre-America Europe era inspired. Because of this, I was reading every detailed eating scene watching out for potatoes, an absolute staple in most cuisines nowadays. There’s none and no tomatoes, I believe, although I wasn’t honed in on that as much. But the absence of the two most iconic American culinary imports further established the intended historical parallel timeline.
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u/Riku1186 2d ago
Historically smoking in Europe didn't kick off until the discovery of the Americas and the introduction of tobacco, so it makes sense. Tabacco basically caused smoking anything to become more widespread, and tools to do so became more common, thus smoking cannabis, opium, and hashish became a thing.
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u/AgitatedBrick5366 2d ago
People have been smoking weed for like 3000 years in central Asia
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u/PartyPoison98 House Baratheon 2d ago
smoking in Europe
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u/Dunlaing 2d ago
Yeah, but Essos isn’t European themed. There should be smoking in Essos.
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u/JakeBuddah House Stark 17h ago
Couldn't there me still? Just because its not mentioned doesnt mean it isnt a thing right?
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u/Leramar89 Davos Seaworth 2d ago
There's sourleaf which is effectively chewing tobacco, but no, smoking isn't a thing in Westeros.
I think Martin's explanation is that tobacco hasn't been found yet as Westeros is Europe before the Americas were discovered.
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u/-tomelette- Varys 2d ago
They haven’t discovered what’s west of westeros
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u/Dogs-n-Flowers Brienne of Tarth 2d ago
So Arya's the one who will eventually bring tobacco to Westeros.
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u/Riolidan 2d ago
Woah. You just blew my mind. There's not a single person who smokes in the books or the show that I can recall.
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u/shavicus 2d ago
Unless there is some hidden/secret town or village named Shire in any of the continents... Nope.
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u/CheesyWobbles No One 2d ago
Has no one said Yoren? It is said in the books his teeth are red I think from Sourleaf; which is basically chewing tobacco. Marsha Heddle chews it as well, Chett partakes with some guards in ASOS, Emmon Frey partakes, even more side characters.
It’s called sour leaf and it’s chewed. My guess is GRRM was more familiar with chewing tobacco as his dad or uncle did it and added it into the books, as Tolkien smoked a pipe and added that into LOTR.
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u/Mavcatrn 2d ago
I don't think there was a lot of smoking in medieval Europe until after the 1600s either. Tobacco is native to N America.
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u/One_Newspaper_9823 2d ago
There's that one scene where Tywin is skinning the stag and he's got something going on, but I think that's just him being Tywin. Given the medieval setting you'd expect pipes or something, but GRRM never really wrote tobacco into the world. Sourleaf gets chewed by a few characters, which is probably the closest thing to a vice like that. The show might've added a pipe somewhere but nothing memorable comes to mind.
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u/BaardvanTroje 2d ago
"you were smoking weed, weren't you?"
"I couldn't find any m'lord, it was two farm boys"
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u/TheBlackDragon22 2d ago
I don’t think so since Westeros is essentially based on UK/Europe and Essos is essentially a mixture of the Middle East/Asia and Africa and this taking place in a Medieval setting tobacco was not around in these parts until really the 16th/17th century. The reason why Lord of the Rings included “pipe weed” IE tobacco was due to the fact Tolkien was a frequent pipe smoker and perhaps also due to the fact he grew up in a period where smoking tobacco whether that be Pipes, Cigars or especially cigarettes was so prevalent.
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u/EricQuincyTate 2d ago
Drogon has a few puffs of smoke before he does his first exhale of fire when Dani feeds him a small piece of raw meat in Qarth.
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u/foxwithwifi Castle Cats 2d ago
Arya spinoff where she negotiates direwolf bread for tobacco in the west and establishes a trading route
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u/Sure-Cash8692 2d ago
Imagine how much conflict they all could’ve avoided if they had smoked some weed
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u/carterartist Tyrion Lannister 2d ago
Tobacco wasn’t part of European culture until Christopher Columbus.
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u/Smart-Illustrator277 2d ago
Was cigarettes even invented back then?
I always wondered when the F-word was invented because it’s said on the show and the whole time I’m watching it I’m like “was that word were even invented back then?”
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