As mentioned in the previous post, she was sold to Khal Drogo by her brother for an army. The beginning of her relationship with the Khal was one that you might expect--she was a young woman sold to a hard warrior who did not speak her language. She was afraid and alienated. However, through a series of events in which Daenarys shows her true strength, she gains the respect of her husband as well as the entirety of the Khalasar (the clan/tribe). In an extremely patriarchal society, this was practically unheard of. In being the Khaleesi (queen of the tribe), she was automatically given higher status than the women in the group, but not the men. The warriors of the Khalasar follow physical strength and power and one's prowess as a warrior, and since women were primarily caregivers, they fell much lower on the hierarchical scale. Danaerys however, was granted a great amount of power because the Khal loved and respected her. Although given a status of near equality to men, it was still given to her by the Khal and thus, after the rather tragic death of Drogo, many of the warriors in the Khalasar decide to leave--until Danaerys proves her strength. At the funeral pyre built to send Drogo into a Dothraki version of heaven, Danaerys proves that she has a strength like no other. With three petrified dragon eggs in her arms, she walks unafraid into the fire. Many watch in horror, expecting screams of agony but hear none. As the fire dies down, Danaerys rises from the ashes completely unharmed with three newly hatched dragon eggs draped across her body. It is here that she gains her first unfailingly loyal subjects because she displayed such great strength and bravery.
Danaerys's story is one of struggle and triumph. In the face of an extremely patriarchal society, Danaerys is able to rise above it all and eventually gain thousands of loyal followers. She was a woman and a leader, much like Junia and Phoebe were in the Bible. Our discussion on those two women was particularly interesting for me. When looking at the context through the lens of an egalitarian, it seems as though Junia and Phoebe were prominent women who had achieved leadership roles due to their personal merits. In Rom 16:7, Junia is named by Paul as an apostle of Jesus--a disciple of high rank, if you will. The very possibility of a woman holding such a high position in a society that, many have come to believe, did not allow women in leadership roles is astounding and can be likened directly to Danaerys's own journey. Both attained their level of leadership by displaying some kind of admirable virtue. For Danaerys, it was her bravery and the strength of her blood, for Junia--her faith and witnessing the resurrection of Christ. We also discussed Phoebe and the praise Paul had for her. From this perspective, Phoebe was a deacon of the church, a leader. She was also conceivably a benefactor who had greatly helped Paul's mission. Again, here is more evidence that a woman could have a place of power and though I am not sure exactly how she gained such a position, I am sure it had to happen through some kind of merit given that the society of that day was largely patriarchal and lines of succession passed to the eldest male. There was evidence of other women in prominent roles such as a prophetess, teachers, patrons, and fellow workers with Paul. Thus, like Phoebe, Junia, and the other known female leaders, Danaerys was able to rise above the patriarchal society that ruled and prove that she was capable of true leadership.
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