Ned Stark is always seen as the paragon of honour and decency. He even allowed everyone to think he had cheated on his wife in order to protect Jon Snow. But did he really have the boy’s interests at heart? Did Ned do what was best for Jon or what was best for Ned? Did Ned actually try and destroy Jon’s future? It seems clear that Ned actually destroyed Jon’s chance of ever being who he was supposed to be.
When the Stark lord found his sister Lyanna dying, she made him promise to protect her newborn baby. She also revealed the baby was not born of rape and abduction, but that she had actually married Rhaegar Targaryen.
Ned allowed everyone to think Jon was his bastard to keep the secret of his parentage safe. The HBO show implies Ned planned to tell Jon the truth the next time he saw him, but did he really?
Not in the books. In fact, Ned did everything he could to take away Jon’s hopes and chances for the future, to prevent Jon ever becoming who he was supposed to be.
Sending Jon to the Night’s Watch was a masterstroke that would have trapped Jon forever. It took all his choices away from him before he even knew he had any. Jon only accepted his fate at the time because he had lived always believing there was something dishonourable about his existence.
Yes, Ned (and Lyanna) knew that Robert Baratheon hated Rhaegar in his own misguided conviction that Lyanna was destined to be his.
It was safe to expect Robert would only ever see Jon as the result of rape. After the slaughter of every Targaryen left in Westros, it was also safe to assume Jon’s life was in grave danger as the main pretender to the throne.
But Ned wasn’t just loyal to Lyanna. He was also Robert’s best friend and loyal to his throne.
Ned didn’t just send Jon to the Wall to protect him, he did it to make sure Jon would never be a threat to Robert’s rule. It was also a selfish act on Ned’s part.
Ned wasn’t just thinking of Jon’s best interests at all.
He made sure Jon could never claim the Iron Throne. He removed Jon’s birthright. He took everything away from Jon.
Ned did not want a return to Targaryen rule. King Aerys had killed his brother and father and he would never have forgiven Rhaegar even after Lyanna revealed she had married him.
Yes, Ned protected Jon but he also made sure Jon could never fulfil his birthright. It was a clever balancing act by the most honourable of men which served his oaths to his king and his sister, as well as his own personal feelings.
Imagine how Jon would have felt if Ned had lived and told him the truth. He would have been trapped in the Night’s watch forever, knowing he never had the choice to decide who he wanted to be.