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 Small Paul by Paolo Puggioni | ||||
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| Culture | Westeros | |||
| Born | Westeros[2] | |||
| Died |
299 AC beyond the Wall[3] | |||
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Small Paul is a steward of the Night's Watch.[4] His nickname is ironic, as he is a very big man.[5]
Appearance and Character
Small Paul is a large man, although he weighs less then Samwell Tarly.[6] He has a broad brutal face with a flat, squashed pug nose, and small dark eyes.[3][5] His coarse, thick brown beard covers most of his face.[3][5]
Although he is a simpleton, Paul is the strongest man on the Wall.[5][3] However, he is normally gentle, and does not know his own strength. He dislikes being called stupid.[5] Paul likes animals.[3]
Paul straps a long-hafted axe to his back.[3]
History
Paul once broke the back of a wildling with a hug.[5]
Paul carried a calf so that it could drink milk from its mother.[3]
Recent Events
A Storm of Swords
Small Paul is part of the great ranging which leaves Castle Black in search of the wildlings. His part in Chett's conspiracy is to kill Jeor Mormont, Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, with the help of Softfoot. Paul plans to take Mormont's raven for his own.[5]
After the fight at the Fist, the remnant of the Night's Watch retreat in disorder to the Wall. During the retreat Samwell Tarly tires and wants to be left behind, but Paul carries him. Paul asks Sam for a raven as a pet, but all were released at the Fist. A tiring Paul, Sam, and Grenn are eventually overtaken by one of the Others riding a dead horse that belonged to Mawney. Grenn waves his torch at the Other, which extinguishes the flame. Paul charges in with his axe, but is impaled by the Other's sword. As he dies Paul crashes into the Other, tearing its sword from its hands. This allows Sam to stab the Other in its throat with his dragonglass dagger. The Other melts in seconds from contact with the dagger. Grenn checks if Small Paul is really dead and closes his eyes. He and Samwell then travel on to Craster's Keep.[3]
At Craster's Keep, Craster and Jeor Mormont are killed in a mutiny. Samwell flees again with Gilly, a daughter of Craster's, and her infant son. While making their way to the Wall, Paul, who has been turned into a wight, comes after them at Whitetree. According to Gilly, the wight has come for the baby. Sam tries to talk with the wight, partly because he hopes that the undead Small Paul can remember his life, partly so Gilly has time to flee. The wight does not respond, however, and walks to Gilly and her baby. Sam then uses the obsidian dagger, but it has no effect. The wight begins to strangle Sam, but at the last moment he smashes Paul with a chunk of smoldering wood. The flames burn the wight and, after escaping, Sam notices that the blue glow of a wight has left the eyes of Paul's corpse.[6]
Quotes
—Paul and Chett
Grenn: Can you carry him?
Paul: I carried a calf once was heavier than him. I carried him down to his mother so he could get a drink of milk.[3]—Grenn and Paul
—Paul to the Other
Quotes about Paul
Small Paul was one of his; the strongest man on the Wall, even if he was slower than a dead snail.[5]
—thoughts of Chett
Paul? Small Paul. Do you know me? I'm Sam, fat Sam, Sam the Scared, you saved me in the woods. You carried me when I couldn't walk another step. No one else could have done that, but you did. Don't hurt us, Paul. Please. Why would you want to hurt us?[6]
—Samwell Tarly to Paul's wight
Behind the Scenes
Small Paul may be loosely based on Lennie Small, a character from the novella Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck. The novella was inspired by Robert Burns's poem To a Mouse, which George R. R. Martin often quotes.[7]
References
- ↑ A Storm of Swords, Prologue.
- ↑ George R. R. Martin's A World of Ice and Fire, Paul.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 18, Samwell I.
- ↑ A Storm of Swords, Appendix.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 A Storm of Swords, Prologue.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 46, Samwell III.
- ↑ Not a Blog: Bummer (September 29, 2015)