Rhaenyra Targaryen says she doesn’t know the difference between a “hilt” and a “foible” on a sword. Neither do I. Let’s learn!
Every week on House of the Dragon seems to introduce some new word people are curious about. In one episode Rhaenyra Targaryen said she hoped people weren’t mistaking her temperance for “pliancy,” and everyone’s vocabulary expanded. This week, Rhaenyra bemoaned that, in her youth, she wasn’t taught the difference between a “hilt” and a “foible”? She was talking about how, as a woman, she wasn’t given training in combat and military matters the way men were. But I was just wondering what a “foible” was?
I feel like most people know what the hilt of a sword is. It’s the part you hold so your hand doesn’t cut the blade. According to the website for Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a foible is the part of the blade between the middle and the tip, so say the back half of the blade. Apparently it’s the weakest part of the blade, so if you ever find yourself in a swordfight and want to break the other person’s blade, aim for the foible.
If you’re interested, the base of the blade is called the ricasso, so far as I can tell. I hope you’ve enjoyed this sword vocabulary lesson. And it’s okay, Rhaenyra, I didn’t know the difference between a hilt and a foible either.
Rhaenyra has been having trouble getting her all-male council to listen to her, which is even harder now that Rhaenys Targaryen isn’t around. She’s determined to aggressively pursue her claim on the Iron Throne even though there are a good number of people who don’t think she should be queen, many of them because they don’t think it appropriate that a woman should rule. Will she break through? New episodes of House of the Dragon air Sunday nights on HBO and Max.
