First impressions are important, and the line quoted in the title of this post is the very first look we get of Eowyn. The line is easy to miss, as it is buried between the description of King Theoden as we see him for the first time and the description of Grima Wormtongue, who is... Continue Reading →
The opening chapters of Book Six, the second part of Return of the King, have got to be some of the most oppressive and depressing pages I have ever read. Chapter Two especially, “The Land of Shadow,” is just overwhelming in the dreariness and bleakness and sameness of the landscape. "Across Gorgoroth" by Ted Nasmith... Continue Reading →
After taking a little break, I have begun reading The Lord of the Rings aloud to my wife and daughter again. We picked up in Fangorn forest, and just this weekend I read to them of the healing of Theoden. It is one of those passages that I am surprised by time and again because... Continue Reading →
In three recent posts, I have been discussing Gandalf's words at the end of The Hobbit: 'You don’t really suppose, do you, that all your adventures and escapes were managed by mere luck, just for your sole benefit?" As I was copying the passage out into my Tolkien Commonplace Book, I thought to myself that... Continue Reading →
One of my absolute favourite passages in Lord of the Rings comes at the end of the chapter “The Siege of Gondor” in Return of the King. It is overwhelming in its darkness until, at the end, light and hope break in. It is a fantastic moment of eucatastrophe within the larger narrative, when all... Continue Reading →
A few weeks back, I wrote about Boromir being my favourite character from Lord of the Rings, and I mentioned that I was curious (and slightly concerned) to learn how my students would receive him, how they would deal with his attempt to take the Ring from Frodo and with his subsequent death. "The Last... Continue Reading →
In my previous post, I discussed a possible interpretation of Gandalf's words to Bilbo at the end of The Hobbit: "You don’t really suppose, do you, that all your adventure and escapes were managed by mere luck, just for your sole benefit?" In that post, I argued that Gandalf was here referring the higher idea... Continue Reading →
On my About page, I describe my wife as the most Melian-esque woman I know. When she read that, my wife asked what exactly that meant. She looked up Melian, but wasn't entirely sure what I was getting at, which or her characteristics I was suggesting flourished in her. I told her that the first... Continue Reading →
Bilbo’s decision to hand over the Arkenstone to Bard and Thranduil in chapter 16 of The Hobbit is momentous, and it is a very wise and courageous act. It reveals a hobbit who has come to think beyond himself, to risk his own safety to help save the lives of his friends. "The Arkenstone" by... Continue Reading →
Sometimes while reading you come across an image that sticks in your minds for days, weeks even. I want to talk about one of those today. It's been lingering in my mind for over two weeks since I read this passage from The Hobbit with my students. Here it is in context: 'The key!' shouted... Continue Reading →
Something Tookish 