Tywin Lannister is a beast — he effectively served as king for many years under Aerys
and wielded massive influence over Robert and Joffrey.
He would have continued to be the power behind the throne had he not been so horrible to Tyrion —
more on that later — but that's not the point.
In this video, I want to explore why Tywin was able to command so much respect
breaking down everything from his body language to his strategies.
But to start, let's note where Tywin's power does not come from.
I am the king. I will punish you.
Any man who must say, "I am the king," is no true king.
This is the most important sentence that Tywin ever says.
According to Tywin, power does not come from telling other people
that you have it it; comes from showing them.
Tywin does that in many ways and I want to start with some of the sub-communications of power —
meaning the things that Tywin does with his body language and his voice.
And I have to give Charles Dance here massive amounts of credit
because he did a phenomenal job of acting these scenes out.
So let's explore how Tywin enters crowded conversations —
first off, with a boom.
I'm told we still have his sisters—
The first order of business is ransoming Ser Jaime.
No truces; we can't afford to look weak.
We should march at once.
First, we must return to Casterly Rock to raise more—
They have my son!
Now, you may struggle to be heard when there's a lot of people speaking — many of us do.
You might stop and start, try to find your way in politely, and ultimately not get listened to at all
but not Tywin — he startles people by going from silent to booming in an instant.
That grabs attention immediately.
But what's interesting is that he often doesn't stay booming for too long.
Once he has attention, he quiets right back down.
This makes his quiet mode of interaction just as frightening as his booming tone
because you never know when he's going to switch.
They have my son!
Get out — all of you.
You don't need to scream like Tywin does but the lesson of entering with a slightly louder and deeper tone
is one that applies just as well to modern-day interactions.
Pay attention to any group and you'll see that the person who is listened to
when there's a lot of people trying to speak is often the loudest when entering.
Don't stay loud forever though if you're going to use this small piece of advice
because that can just be obnoxious.
You may also have noticed that Tywin is very comfortable with silence.
This is a power move that I discussed in another video so I won't spend too long on it
and I'll link to it here if you want to click the little white button in the corner.
But Tywin likes to use silence right after people have said something to provoke him.
It gives them a few extra seconds to regret their decision to stand up to him
and to sit in fear of what he might do next.
My father won the real war.
He killed Prince Rhaegar. He took the crown while you hid in Casterly Rock.
The king is tired. See him to his chambers.
The silence that Tywin makes creates a stare down like you might see from boxing or UFC promotions.
The first person to flinch or look away loses
which is why fighters go to such great lengths to not give an inch of ground
and this isn't just an arbitrary rule that was made up for boxing.
Flinching and breaking eye contact are built in evolutionary tells that communicate fear
which is why they can sometimes matter even more than raw strength when it comes to a confrontation
because when one animal isn't afraid, that's a good sign that it has an advantage that needs to be respected.
Just watch this charging gorilla back off when a puny little human doesn't flinch
even though the gorilla could obviously tear him limb from limb.
...charged and charged and charged again.
And I think... and I'm sure, if I would have even flinched one—
But Tywin's sub-communications of power go beyond the ape realm.
His word choice is a distinctly human way of using power.
He doesn't ask people what to do or make threats by saying,
"If you do this then I'm going to respond like this."
He tells people what they are going to do using the word "will."
It conveys absolute certainty that they will do as they are told
and again, the certainty that Tywin will be listened to
adds to the sense that he should be listened to. Just watch.
You will go to King's Landing.
And do what?
Rule.
You will serve as hand of the King in my stead.
You'll bring that boy King to heel and his mother too if needs be.
...for one more thing — you will not take that whore to court. Do you understand?
The circular logic of sub-communications is kind of how they work
because when people signal through sub-communications that they have power,
we assume they ought to and respond accordingly which elicits more sub-communications of power.
A similar thing occurs with Tywin's inflection at the end of sentences;
it's always downward emphasizing that this isn't a question — like this.
Listen to Joffrey do the reverse asking Tywin a question with an upward tone
kind of like this — this is great acting which mirrors real life.
When people feel nervous or lacking in power, they will naturally begin to ask questions
and flip their intonation upward like in this scene.
...the council meetings in the Tower of the Hand instead of the small council chamber.
I have, yes.
May I ask why?
Don't get me wrong. There are times when you will want to ask questions and speak with an upward inflection.
For instance, players like Tyrion and Littlefinger
use more subtle lines of questioning to make someone act and feel
like it was their idea to do what Tyrion or Littlefinger wanted.
That strategy tends to work better in modern times as well.
For instance, when speaking to employees, you may prefer to say,
"Could you please do this for me?" rather than demand it of them.
That way, they feel less put upon and happier to help you.
But Tywin doesn't care if people are happy to help. His strategy is to create fear.
...might have been the lowest of the Lannisters but he's one of us.
And every day that he remains a prisoner, the less our name command respect.
So the Lion does concern himself of the opinions of—
No, that's not an opinion; it's a fact.
If another House can seize one of our own and hold him captive
with impunity, we are no longer a House to be feared.
We'll come back to that in a minute but for now,
let's look at how Tywin manipulates situations
to further take the people he interacts with out of a confident state.
First, he often makes people wait before he speaks to them.
This is a tactic that is still used today in negotiations and its purpose is the same.
Making someone wait is a power signal — a circular one.
It says, "We will do things on my time,"
and before the negotiation has even started, both parties have subtly agreed that the person who controls the time that the negotiation begins is more important.
And that has lasting effects on your subconscious which, if you're on the receiving end of this tactic, makes you more likely to negotiate a bad deal.
Dealing with this is a topic for another video
but if you're interested in more techniques to remain confident in situations
where you normally clam up or hesitate or negotiate a bad deal,
you might want to check out our online course, Charisma University.
It covers everything from first impressions to leadership
and of course, there's a hefty chunk on staying confident in those clutch moments.
I've thrown a link in the description if you want to take a look.
Also, it's got a section on body language which is something that Tywin Lannister uses as a weapon.
Check out how he stands over Tyrion when wielding power over him.
You are an ill-made spiteful little creature
full of envy, lust, and low cunning.
Tywin is literally looking down on Tyrion and if you've ever held a conversation while someone stood over you and threatening you,
you know how much more powerful this can make them seem.
But people aren't always sitting and they aren't always dwarves so another way that Tywin makes them feel his domineering presence
is by invading their personal space
and he does this specifically at the exact moment that he's making his big point
so that they're more likely to react to his commands rather than resist them.
Check out how he does it with Jaime here.
The future of our family will be determined in these next few months.
We could establish a dynasty that will last a thousand years.
I need you to become the man you were always meant to be —
not next year, not tomorrow — now.
With regards to changing the scenario, lastly and crucially,
Tywin almost always creates a situation where he gets the last word.
This means that the conversation is closed on his terms.
He does this either by commanding people to leave once he's made his point...
Speak no more of your rights to Casterly Rock.
Go.
...or he does it by leaving the room as soon as he's made his point. He leaves no time or space for argument.
You can drink, you can joke, you can engage in juvenile attempts
to make your father uncomfortable — but you will do your duty.
If you remember last week's video on Littlefinger — link, in the corner right now —
he does the same thing — just more gently.
In either case, the discussion ends on the terms that Tywin and Littlefinger wanted to end on.
So remember, speaking last creates a lot of authority and has tremendous power.
It's also likely to direct the other person's thoughts long after you've left
though, of course, there are advantages to speaking first
in terms of framing a situation so maybe this is a topic that I need to dive deeper in
on another video to uncover all the nuances but for now, remember
that speaking last conveys a lot of power and authority.
So, to wrap this section on body language up, check out this next clip
and see how many of the specific sub-communications of power that you can count.
There are a lot. Here we go.
You're still fertile. You need to marry again and breed.
I am Queen Regent, not some broodmare.
You're my daughter!
You will do as I command and you will marry Loras Tyrell.
And put an end to the disgusting rumors about you once and for all.
Father, dont' make me do this again, plea—
Not another word, my children.
You disgraced the Lannister name for far too long.
Crazy how much is going on, right?
Credit to Charles Dance here for nailing this portrayal but I want to make clear.
Tywin's character is not just about brute force or physical bullying.
He is about strategic shows of force to keep people in line.
And if you look back on the big event of the books,
you'll know that things like the red wedding were brutal
but it left the entire realm in fear of what Tywin would do next should anyone cross him.
Heck, the Martells waited nearly 20 years after Elia's death before enacting their plot for revenge —
that is the power of fear and Tywin knows it.
The northerners will never forget.
Good. Let them remember what happens when they march on the south.
I could go on and on about Tywin's strategic genius
but others have already covered this topic really well
so I'm just going to link to some fascinating theories in the description.
For you Game of Thrones superfans, here are some teasers for what you can see in those videos.
First, Tywin may have covertly planned Aerys' capture at Duskendale way before the books
and planned for his assassination by proxy.
Second, Tywin also likely turned Roose Bolton against Robb Stark
as early as Book 1 which just shows how many steps ahead he was thinking.
If those points meant nothing to you, it's okay; it means
you're just a regular Game of Thrones nerd and not a complete super nerd like me.
Anyway, Tywin is obviously dead at this point which shows his only real flaw
as a player in the Game of Thrones — his blind hatred of Tyrion
which may not be so blind, given the paternity, but leave that aside.
If Tywin had been able to see Tyrion's talents and use them for his own ends,
I think that the Lannisters would still be totally dominating
with Tywin as the power behind Joffrey's throne just as he was with Aerys —
only this time, Tywin probably would have removed the Mad King much sooner.
So I hope that you enjoyed learning why Tywin is such a beast.
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technically, tomorrow if you're watching this video on Monday —
and I will see you in the next video.