biology

Missandei

Missandei is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Missandei rather than just read about it. In short: Missandei, also known as Missandei of Naath, is a fictional character in the American television series Game of Thrones and the fantasy novel series A Song of Ice and Fire by American author George R. R.

Key takeaways

Missandei belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Missandei to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Missandei from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Missandei, also known as Missandei of Naath, is a fictional character in the American television series Game of Thrones and the fantasy novel series A Song of Ice and Fire by American author George R. R. Martin. Missandei is a former slave who comes into the service of Daenerys Targaryen during the latter's conquest of Essos. She serves as Daenerys' interpreter and is one of her most trusted counselors throughout the series. Missandei is portrayed by Nathalie Emmanuel in the HBO television adaptation, where her role is greatly expanded from that in the books.

Character

Background As children, Missandei and her three brothers were captured by raiders from the Basilisk Isles and sold into slavery in Astapor. Missandei's talent for learning languages was noticed by the masters of Astapor, who trained her as a scribe. Missandei's brothers Marselen and Mossador were made into Unsullied (the third brother is also made into an Unsullied but dies during his training). Missandei is an interpreter who becomes a close confidante and trusted advisor to Daenerys Targaryen. She is from the island of Naath, off the coast of Sothoryos. She is also a polyglot who speaks nineteen languages.

Overview Missandei first appears in the book series at the age of 10 in 2000's A Storm of Swords. In the television series, she was introduced in the third season, already an adult in the role of a slave interpreter. She eventually dies near the end of the television series, while Grey Worm and Daenerys look on.

Storylines

A Storm of Swords

Missandei is working as an interpreter for Astapori slaver Kraznys mo Nakloz when Daenerys Targaryen comes to inspect his army of Unsullied. After Daenerys strikes a bargain with the Good Masters of Astapor concerning payment for the Unsullied, Kraznys gives Missandei to Daenerys as an interpreter to give them commands. To Missandei's surprise, Daenerys frees her; having nowhere else to go, Missandei accepts Daenerys' offer to stay as her interpreter and handmaiden. Missandei subsequently accompanies Daenerys as she liberates the neighbouring cities of Yunkai and Meereen.

A Dance With Dragons

Missandei becomes Daenerys' herald, announcing her entry when she meets with the people of Meereen. After Mossador is killed by the Sons of the Harpy, Daenerys offers to let Missandei return to Naath; Missandei refuses, noting that she would be an easy target for slavers. Following the reopening of the fighting pits and Daenerys' flight from Meereen with her dragon Drogon, Daenerys' new husband Hizdhar zo Loraq removes Missandei from her position as herald. With Daenerys' other servants Irri and Jhiqui joining the Dothraki in their search for Daenerys in the Dothraki Sea, Missandei is left as the only occupant in the Great Pyramid's royal apartments. When Barristan Selmy seizes control of Meereen, he has Missandei tend to the mortally wounded Quentyn Martell.

TV adaptation

Missandei was played by the British actress Nathalie Emmanuel in the television adaptation. Her performance was nominated for multiple Screen Actors Guild Awards, as well as an Empire Award. Her portrayal of Missandei had many loyal fans, who would later react negatively to the character's death in Season 8. Emmanuel has discussed the importance of her character to fans, noting in particular the importance of portraying a strong woman of color in a successful television show. She has also discussed Missandei's romance with Grey Worm, calling it "endearing" and remarking on the pleasure of working with co-star Jacob Anderson.

Season 3 The story of Missandei in the third season of Game of Thrones closely tracks her story in A Storm of Swords. However, when Daenerys agrees to purchase Kraznys's Unsullied soldiers, she demands Missandei's services as part of the exchange; in the book, Kraznys gave her to Daenerys of his own accord.

Season 4 In season 4, Missandei befriends Grey Worm, the commander of the Unsullied, and gives him lessons in the Common Tongue. While bathing in a stream she witnesses Grey Worm watching her; although she covers herself, she later admits to Grey Worm that she is glad he saw her. She expresses sorrow that Grey Worm was castrated during his training, though Grey Worm notes that if he had not become an Unsullied soldier he never would have met her.

Season 5 In season 5, Grey Worm is gravely wounded in a skirmish with the Sons of the Harpy, and Missandei stands vigil by his side. When Grey Worm wakes he reveals to her that, in battle, he felt fear for the first time, fear that he would never see Missandei again; Missandei is clearly moved by his sentiment. When the Sons of the Harpy launch an attack at the reopening of the fighting pits, one of the Sons nearly kills Missandei before he is killed by Tyrion Lannister. Daenerys subsequently flies away on Drogon, and Daario Naharis decrees that Tyrion, Missandei, and Grey Worm should govern Meereen in her absence.

Season 6 To keep the peace with the slavers, Tyrion grants them seven years to transition from slavery. Although Missandei helps defend Tyrion's decision to the outraged Meereenese freedman, in private she warns Tyrion that the masters will betray him. She is eventually vindicated, when the slavers send a fleet to lay siege to Meereen. She accompanies Daenerys to a parley with the slavers' representatives. When Daenerys leaves on Drogon to destroy the fleet, Missandei tells the masters that Daenerys has ordered one of their deaths as punishment for their treachery, though when two of them offer up the third Grey Worm kills those two instead. Missandei later accompanies Daenerys and her forces as they sail to Westeros.

Season 7 Missandei is present throughout Daenerys's reclamation of her ancestral stronghold of Dragonstone. She presides over Jon Snow and Davos Seaworth's arrival at the island. Davos is quite taken with Missandei and inquires about her background, but she remains mysterious. Later, as the Unsullied prepare to leave for the seizure of Casterly Rock, Missandei goes to Grey Worm to talk about their feelings and the pair consummate their relationship. Missandei eventually reveals her entire backstory to Jon and Davos in an attempt to impress Daenerys' character upon them, though Jon remains openly skeptical and implies that Daenerys will not free Missandei from her service should she request it.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Missandei

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Missandei claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Missandei before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Missandei ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Missandei

In research: Missandei appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Missandei in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Missandei is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics A Song of Ice and Fire characters, Deceased fictional characters, Female characters in literature, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Missandei outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Missandei in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Missandei means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Missandei out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Missandei in simple terms?

Why does Missandei matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Missandei?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Missandei.