On last week’s episode of Game of Thrones, there was an epic sea battle between the Greyjoy siblings and their Uncle Euron. After eventually overpowering them, Euron held a dagger to Yara’s throat and told Theon: “Come on, you cockless coward. I have her, come and get her.” After viewing his surroundings and seeing men being tortured and killed, it was clear that Theon’s post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from being tortured by Ramsay Bolton was triggered. There's no doubt that the physical and mental duress that he suffered from under Ramsay's captivity was haunting him, thus making him overcome with panic and fear. So in that moment, he did the only thing he felt like he could do: He jumped overboard.
This moment has been the subject of criticism from GoT fans, with many of them stating that Theon was a coward for jumping overboard. They claim that he should've “redeemed himself” for his previous actions by fighting Euron and saving Yara. This argument bewildered me for a couple of reasons. For one, there wasn't much that Theon could have done in that moment. If he chose to attack Euron, he would've been giving him the opportunity to kill both of them. By fleeing, he's able to recuperate and get help to rescue her in the future.
Moreover, this argument fails to consider the life-changing trauma that Theon endured. He spent close to a year in captivity, and in that time was beaten, castrated, humiliated, starved and stripped of his own identity. Judging from how much glee Euron took in murdering the Sand Snakes, it's easy to assert how sadistic and cruel he is. So in Theon’s eyes, Euron is essentially another Ramsay. For obvious reasons, he doesn't want to fall prey to that kind of person again, so it's perfectly understandable why he chose to escape. To suggest that he should've just “fought back” even though his PTSD was triggered is absurd. He can't control his PTSD, and no one hates it more than he does. He probably wishes that he could forget everything that happened to him and move forward, but it's not that simple. That kind of trauma doesn't just go away after a few days. It’s going to stay with him for the rest of his life.
Despite all of the abuse he's endured, Theon’s bravery has been extremely admirable. He was able to find the courage to help Sansa escape from Ramsay, go back to the Iron Islands and help Yara in her bid to become Queen, despite the fact that he knew that the Ironborn would treat him poorly and was still able to fight very well in the sea battle (while fighting his PTSD as well) up until Euron held the knife to Yara’s throat. One moment shouldn't define who he is as a person when there's so many more that show how strong and resilient he is.
No matter how hard he tries to fight it, Theon’s PTSD is always going to be a part of him. But that doesn't make him a coward; it makes him a warrior.
