Lots of Love

Hello everyone!

I wanted to take my last blog post to say thank you to you all for such an amazing semester. It really was amazing and I'm so grateful for the opportunity I had to meet such wonderful people. I know that everyone in this class is going to go out into the world and do amazing things. 

I also wanted to specifically thank Dr. Donovan for being such an amazing teacher and for showing how much she cares for us during this time of uncertainty.

I do have a few book recommendations for you all. I really enjoyed both the Falconer series by Elizabeth May and the Doon series by Lorie Langdon and Carey Corp. Both are fantasy, involve the Fae, and take place in Scotland. (Also they both have romance because I'm a sucker for men in kilts. What can you do?).

Love you all and hope to see you soon!

- Celeborn (Abby)

On the Blog

I personally really loved the blog and the pseudonymity. For someone who is more shy, this felt like a really safe space for me to share my ideas.

This blog, I think we can all agree, has lead to some really interesting discussions that I'm so glad I could be a part of. I loved that we had prompts we could speak to but also we could talk about something that interested us from the reading. That kind of freedom is a big reason why I like taking honors courses. I think this blog format was the best way to hold these kinds of discussions because it makes it easy to comment on someone's thoughts.

The pseudonymity was really beneficial to me because it gave me the freedom to share my ideas without my social anxiety creeping in. I felt that I could be more open and honest about what I thought than if I had to post under my own name.

The Hands of a Healer

While I was reading the last part of book 5 I was drawn to the point made by Ioreth (a healer); "The hands of the king are the hands of a healer. And so the rightful king could ever be known." (Chapter 8). 

I think it is interesting to look at this in the context of what Tolkien's vision of an ideal ruler is. We have seen how he values kings that ride into battle with their troops in Theoden and Aragorn, and now we see that he associates leadership with the ability to heal. 

Aragorn does a lot of healing throughout the Lord of the Rings; he helps to care for Frodo's wound from the Nazgul when they were traveling to Rivendell, he treats Frodo's bruise from the orcs in the Mines of Moria, and now he basically brings three people back from the dead. 

I also think it is interesting that he seems to heal more than just Eowyn, Faramir, and Merry's bodies' but he also heals their minds. In their unconscious state, he calls to them "each time more faintly to [the observers'] hearing, as if Aragorn himself was removed from them, and walked afar in some dark vale, calling for one that was lost." (chapter 8). Clearly, Aragorn possesses some form of magic. Whether it be from his Numenorean ancestry or from his role as king, I'm not sure. 

This idea could also stem from Tolkien's own religious background. To me, Aragorn is very reminiscent of Jesus Christ in these chapters as he heals. The prophecy is that the people will know the true king by his healing powers and the same was foretold of Christ before He came to earth.

Tolkien and His Art

We were asked in class why we thought it was important to look at Tolkien's art for his stories, and I haven't been able to get that thought out of my head.

Someone mentioned that its interesting to get the author's vision of what the world and the people looked like, and I definitely agree with that. I also think that his art shows important symbolism which might be lost if we didn't have his vision. For instance, the dust jacket for The Return of the King includes the symbol of Aragorn's future throne and crown as well as the magical tree which resides in Minas Tirith. As a reader, seeing these symbols before even reading the book creates a sense of anticipation and magic as the reader thinks about what these symbols could mean. I think Tolkien's art is so important to creating the right mental space and environment for the audience to read his words in.

Gollum and Pronouns

In book four on page 618, Frodo extracts a promise from Gollum to help him and Sam get into Mordor. Frodo asks that Gollum promise by the Ring rather than on it as Gollum had initially wanted to, saying that a direct line of connection to the Ring would be detrimental for Gollum. Eventually, Gollum promises saying, "We promise, yes I promise . . . I will serve the master of the Precious."

This was interesting to me because the quick change from using 'we' to refer to himself to 'I' could be initially seen as a typo, however, later on in the book we see that it is actually a clever way to let the audience know when Gollum was speaking truthfully.
 
On page 643, Frodo notes "that Gollum used I, and that seemed usually to be a sign, on its rare appearances, that some remnants of old truth and sincerity were for the moment on top.

We already know that getting any information out of Gollum is extremely difficult. At the Council of Elrond Gandalf tells how he struggled with Gollum for many days until he got something even remotely helpful out of the creature. Because Frodo and Sam are now relying on Gollum to take them safely into Mordor it is important that we know we, and the characters, can trust him to a certain extent. If the characters couldn't trust him at all then the travel into Mordor would take longer, or they would end up going in through the front gate because they don't trust Gollum has another way, which would lead to their deaths

Living Within History

Yesterday we talked about how events that happened in The Lord of the Rings could become legend later on in Middle Earth and I can't stop thinking about how we are also living in a time that will become a story that future generations will tell.

 I think that most of us on Earth know that we are watching history unfold right before our eyes and I think that the members of the Fellowship knew too. Firstly, they are put into a group where all the free peoples are represented to fulfill a secret quest that the leaders of the world have very obviously put all their hope into. That had to be weird for the people in the group, to be working with people they normally wouldn't even talk to, but they went with it because they understand that this time in their history is extraordinary and that extraordinary measures need to be taken. Secondly, Sam asks Frodo at the end of Two Towers if they'll "ever be put into songs or tales, " which clearly indicates that they are aware of the importance of their task and know that it will affect the rest of the world.

I find it amazing that even in the midst of trials and darkness we have the ability to see the light and talk about how the world will look one day, the stories they will tell.  Tolkien perfectly portrayed this ability, this hope, in his characters. It is a great comfort to me that we have these works to bring us hope at this time. I wonder how the world would have looked without it.

Integrity in Tolkien's work and Sir Gawain poem

When reading Sir Gawain and the Green Knight for the first time I was struck by the differences in my definition of honor to the poem's. As I was reading the poem I found the knights' idea of honor to sometimes be more self-serving than what I think honor to be.

All throughout the poem, Gawain seems to be doing the "right thing" because he knows it will please those around him. He leaves Arthur's castle to find the Green Chapel because people are watching him and expect him to make good on his promise, and later he refuses to stay at the lord's castle, even though he has had such a fun time there because again people expect him to be the perfect knight and go to meet the Green Knight.

My idea of honor is doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do and not because there are people watching, integrity basically. I felt that Gawain didn't have integrity all the time and that there was an ulterior motive of keeping his reputation in front of the courts.

There are some instances in the poem that suggest that Gawain's honor wasn't completely selfish; when he refused the lord's wife and when he refused to run away before entering the Green Chapel even though he could and no one would know that he did. These instances though occur when there is only one person watching, so I think they are a much better example of his honor and integrity than openly claiming he has to leave to make his appointment like he is expected to.

I think Tolkien felt this way too because he only showcases Aragorn's honor through his actions when few are around to see him. We learn early on that he has been quietly protecting the Shire and surrounding area not expecting or wanting a reward for his deeds. There is an instance in Elowyn's halls that he states he will be going through the Paths of the Dead, but by this point, we have all these other examples of Aragorn being selfless and truly honorable that we (or I) don't see this as a call for attention but just him stating something he has to do.

I don't know if anyone else found Gawain as arrogant as I did but that was my impression during certain parts of the poem. Aragorn, though, never seemed arrogant to me because Tolkien built his character off of a foundation of selflessness right from the first meeting.

Grief and Tolkien

In Tolkien's main works he expounds upon the effect that losing loved ones has on a person.

In The Hobbit Bilbo loses dwarves with whom he had been traveling for a long time. Thorin, Fili, and Kili had become his friends and he loses them in battle. In the text it says that Bilbo "turned away, and he went by himself, and sat alone wrapped in a blanket, and, . . .  he wept until his eyes were red and his voice hoarse. . . Indeed it was long before he had the heart to make a joke again" (312).

These descriptions of red eyes and a hoarse voice cause us as the audience to feel an echo of that pain and I can't help but feel that it is an echo of Tolkien's pain. That is one of the greatest parts of writing and reading, you can get to know people who have long since past away. Their writings are a door into their heart and soul which you often can't even get when you've met a person face to face. I never had the opportunity to meet Tolkien or even live on the earth at the same time as him, but through his books I feel like I know him. I can feel a portion of the grief he had for his friends he lost in the war.

His descriptions of grief are relatable to everyone who has lost someone or who has felt profound sorrow. I know the feeling of isolating myself, sobbing and screaming until there is nothing left. Tolkien's words bring that all back for me. I also know the pain that tears at your throat when you watch helplessly as someone you love is carried away in a hearse.

I guess, in a way, authors use the reader's experiences to help them understand the emotion they are trying to convey through their work. If I had never had those experiences then I wouldn't understand the grief Bilbo feels at the end of The Hobbit, I wouldn't understand why the Fellowship is so despondent after they lose Gandalf. I could guess but I wouldn't really know.

Clearly, the act of writing and reading is a two-person activity, the author comes to the table with their experience and we come to the opposite side of the table with our experience and we try to meet somewhere in the middle.

Tom Bombadil = Tolkien?!?!

I recently read a post on tumblr (I know, not a legitimate source) that brought up a really interesting idea. It discussed how Tom Bombadil could be the Tolkien inserting himself into the story and world. The character "is eldest, because he existed before the books" he isn't affected by the Ring and has enough power to fight against the darkness by himself, but he chooses not to for the sake of the readers. The way Tom feels about his wife is also indicative of being drawn from Tolkien's own love for Edith. This all suggests that Tom Bombadil is not originally of Middle Earth.

As a writer, I understand how hard it is to keep yourself out of your characters. It is impossible. Writing is such an emotional experience, for me at least, that I can never leave myself and my feelings on the side while I write in a world of my creation.

Maybe this is Tolkien wanting to actually live in this world and intentionally giving himself a way to be there, or maybe he hadn't intended it at all. Personally, I think he did intend it because you could get rid of the whole Old Forest chapter and it wouldn't ruin the plot line of the story. So either, Tolkien wanted to play around a little in his world, or it has some other meaning which further explains the natures of his characters.

Beowulf Freewrite

"For it is now to us itself ancient; and yet its maker was telling of things already old and weighted with regret, and he expended his art in making keen that touch upon the heart which sorrows have that are both poignant and remote" (pg. 33)

I think Tolkien really enjoyed "old" or "ancient" things because he always writes as though the events of the story have already occurred. In The Lord of the Rings, the book we know as the Hobbit is referred to as the "red book" which Bilbo wrote of his adventure to the Mountain and back. It is also mentioned that Frodo was to keep a record (mentally) of his adventure to tell Bilbo when he got back so it could be recorded. Also, when Bilbo and Frodo leave for the Grey Havens Frodo makes it Sam's responsibility to finish the record. To me, it seems that Tolkien was a fan of record-keeping and I wonder if he had a journal or diary. In "Farmer Giles of Ham" Tolkien, as the narrator, takes on the role of editor and translator of a very old legend. It seems that his experience in studying medieval literature really influenced the way he approached his stories.

Bilbo's Hope

From today's discussion I wanted to talk a little bit more about Bilbo's change from being pretty pessimistic throughout The Hobbit to his sudden hope for opening the hidden door when the company reaches Erebor.

In the text his hope seems to come from nowhere as he continues to wait by the door even though all the others have left and given up hope. It says on page 228 that "he had a queer feeling that he was waiting for something". This relates back to a conversation we had last week about the idea of a higher power manipulating things behind the scenes. My thought is that one of the Middle Earth gods gave Bilbo some hope so that he wouldn't miss the opening of the door. This, to me, indicates that reclaiming Erebor is a huge event for the whole of Middle Earth even though the dwarves think they are only claiming it for themselves.

In the movies, I can't remember if it talks about this in the book, Gandalf explains that Smaug would have been an even bigger problem for much longer if he was around long enough to be recruited by Sauron's forces and that Erebor becomes the main defense against evil in the east. This shows that the quest for the Mountain might have had importance in determining how events in The Lord of the Rings occurred.

Free Write

I didn't get to share my free write in class so I wanted to share some of my favorite points from it here.

The topic I wrote on was the first one in which we talked about why Tolkien made Bilbo initially timid.

Often throughout The Hobbit, we are reminded of the two heritages of which Bilbo is a part, his Took side, and his Baggins side. To me this indicates an internal conflict between his desire to see new places and his need, as a Baggins, to stay at home where it is safe. This makes Bilbo more relatable because I have had that same internal conflict. I want to travel and explore, be the hero but when I think about the logistics of such an adventure I pale at the idea of the danger that inevitably comes along with the adventure.

I think Tolkien himself was a hobbit type of person but he also likes to imagine far off lands where dragons and magic are real things and where good always wins against evil. I can imagine him being very similar to Bilbo. Maybe Bilbo acts as his doorway into this fantastical land, into an adventure, while he can sit safely at home.

I also wanted to talk about how the dwarves song on page 16 of The Hobbit seemed to awaken the Tookish side of Bilbo. The music seemed to carry him off over hills and mountains while he remained sitting in his parlor in Hobbiton. Music seems to have a magical quality in this book as it rouses an unsuspecting Bilbo to the dwarves' cause, distracts spiders, and creates a beat to efficiently clean up the dishes in Bilbo's home.

- Celeborn

I am Celeborn

I am Lord of Lothlorien and husband to the Lady Galadriel. My daughter, Celebrian, married Elrond. I am a grandfather to their child, Arwen. I was around in Middle Earth since the First Age and sailed to Valinor early in the Fourth Age. My kinsman, Thingol was killed by dwarves in the First Age when he refused to give the Silmaril to them. I have had distrust towards dwarves from that moment.
I welcomed The Fellowship of the Ring into Lothlorien despite my mistrust of dwarves and pledged to help them in any way I could.

I don't know enough about Celeborn to have much of an opinion on him. Of what I've seen of him in The Lord of the Rings he seems very laid back, letting Galadriel take charge of major events.