Objective:
Students will analyze how rulers overcome the principal-agent problem when governing
large organizations and empires. They will apply the concepts of the principal-agent
problem, credible commitment, and incentive alignment to understand how Daenerys
secures loyalty from her followers. Students will compare Daenerys’s solution to historical
methods used by rulers in feudal Europe to ensure agents acted in their interests.
Materials Needed:
- Clip from Game of Thrones where Daenerys arrives on Drogon and asks the Dothraki to
become her Blood Riders. - Handout explaining the principal-agent problem and credible commitment problem.
Lesson Steps:
- Introduction (10 minutes):
- Provide an overview of the principal-agent problem.
- Explain:
- Principal: ruler or leader.
- Agent: individual acting on behalf of the ruler.
- Discuss why rulers often struggle to ensure agents act in their interests.
- Introduce the concept of credible commitment and why followers must believe a ruler’s
promises.
- Viewing Clip (3 minutes):
- Show the clip where Daenerys arrives on Drogon and asks the Dothraki warriors to
become her Blood Riders. - Ask students to identify why the Dothraki choose to follow Daenerys.
- Group Discussion (10 minutes):
- Divide students into small groups to discuss:
- What incentives do Daenerys’s followers have to remain loyal?
- Why might followers refuse to support a ruler?
- How does the dragon affect the relationship between Daenerys and her followers?
- How might rulers solve similar problems without dragons?
- Concept Application (15 minutes):
- Principal-Agent Model
- Explain that Daenerys relies on soldiers, generals, and Blood Riders to carry out
her goals. - Explain that rulers must align agent incentives with their own interests.
- Credible Commitment Problem
- Explain that followers must believe a ruler can deliver on promises.
- Discuss Daenerys’s promises:
- Victory.
- Wealth.
- Conquest of Westeros.
- Explain that Drogon makes these promises more believable.
- Historical Comparison
- Explain that rulers in feudal Europe faced similar principal-agent problems.
- Discuss how rulers established credibility through:
- Religion.
- Tradition.
- Military reputation.
- Compare these methods to Daenerys’s use of dragons.
- Wrap-Up and Reflection (10 minutes):
- Recap the principal-agent problem and credible commitment problem.
- Discuss how Daenerys uses dragons to make her promises credible and encourage
loyalty. - Reflect on why modern governments rely more on institutions than personal power.
- Homework/Activity (20 minutes):
- Students write a short memorandum advising Daenerys on how to maintain
loyalty after conquering Westeros. - Students must address:
- The principal-agent problem.
- How dragons help solve it.
- One solution that could replace reliance on dragons.