#aj's finwean ladies ask game

[arafinweanappreciation]

Finwëan Ladies Ask game: Finduilas, 1 (before vs after after the events of the Leithian, and how she relates to other Finwëans in Valinor after return8ng from the Halls), 9, 12

Also, when do you think she was born (Valinor or after) and what do you think her mother is like?

I'm gonna answer these a little out of order, since my answer to the last question pretty heavily impacts my answer to the first.

16. Wild card: either ask me a question that's not on here or let me ramble. Up to you.

I go with the idea that her mother is Sindarin, so I definitely think she was born in Beleriand, and is actually pretty young for most of the events of the Silmarillion (by elf standards), though definitely an adult by the time the Dagor Bragollach rolls around.

As for her mother's personality, I've never really settled on anything, but I do think she would be light-hearted and adventurous, kind of rounding out Orodreth's more serious and anxious personality.

What's her general attitude towards the Finwean Family Drama?

Oooh... the before and after Leithian part is very juicy, I think. Generally, I think of her (and Orodreth, to some extent) as being kind of detached from all the insanity of her extended family. Finrod is dealing with most of the between-kings diplomacy, with Orodreth under him, and Finduilas not actively involved in any of the politics. But then the Dagor Bragollach happens, Morgoth lays siege to Minas Tirith, and she's uprooted from the home she's known for most if not all of her life and sent to Nargothrond around the same time as Celegorm and Curufin. Finrod is a) distracted with grieving his brothers and much of the House of Beor for quite a while after the Bragollach, and b) pretty polite and trying to keep family fights to a minimum afterwards. So Finduilas knows there's this kind of tension, but she kind of follows Finrod's lead and politely ignores it.

AFTER Finrod's death though... that would all change very quickly. I actually happen to headcanon that Finduilas and Finrod became very close after she and Orodreth end up in Nargothrond, but I hadn't even considered the extra angst that would be added this period in her life. In light of that, I think she would actually come to loathe the Feanorions, or at least the Oath, afterward. She would be very firmly entrenched on one side in the drama, even though she never got a chance to really participate.

9. Personal headcanons about her that contradict the popular ideas within the fandom (if any)?

I actually don't know much about the fandom perceives her. I feel like she gets overlooked a lot. I have a lot of opinions about her (probably bc she's an Arafinwean). Probably the most radical headcanon I have about her is that she's not a particularly passive, damsel-in-distress type. in fact, I think she's just the opposite. I think she's very stubborn, headstrong, independent, and very much in control of her own life. She was just caught up in a lot of events that were very much beyond her ability to control.

12. What's her reputation among the general populace?

Highly depends on who you're talking to. There are people who have never seen her in any capacity besides a formal, official one, who kind of assume she's very put-together and demure and controlled. There are refugees from Minas Tirith during its siege that were under her leadership and know her as strong and confident and kind and thoughtful. There are people those who live and work near or in whatever lodging the royal family of Nargothrond had who know her as all the same things as the refugees but also stubborn and gentle and very family-oriented.

#i looked at a timeline to see around when she might be born #and ended up realizing that the bragollach the siege of minas tirith the leithian and the lay of the children of hurin #all happen within FORTY YEARS of each other #relatively short time for an elf #and she loses her home her (great-) uncle her fiance her ex-fiance AGAIN her unrequited love her father her second home and her own life #all in the span of forty years #finduilas #aj's finwean ladies ask game

[arafinweanappreciation]

Another ask, if you feel like it: Eärwen: 4, 5, 7 (including: does she have a favourite kid?) and 13.

I have been WAITING for someone to ask about Earwen. I love her so much.

4. Favorite canonical relationship?

Look. You CANNOT make me choose between Finarfin and Anaire. I love both dynamics equally. The fact that Earwen was able to resist her longing to see the rest of the world --- the very same longing that her children inherited from her and fell victim to --- in part because Anaire was staying???? SO much platonic love. I will never get over it.

On the other hand, I am fascinated with the implied development of Earwen and Finarfin's relationship, both leading up to their marriage and after his return from the Helcaraxe. It's just !!!!!!

5. Favorite non-canonical relationship?

I'd have to say with Amarie, definitely. I have a very complicated set of headcanons surrounding Amarie and her story that I won't fully explain here for the sake of length, but I think there was a time when she moved to (or at least spent a lot of time in) Tirion because she found more acceptance and empathy there, since there were many in similar situations. I have a lot of thoughts about Earwen kind of taking her in and feeling somewhat responsible for her, because, like, she wasn't ever technically her mother-in-law, but she was supposed to be, and she does have some quasi-maternal feelings towards her. It's very complicated and if I had more free time/liked writing more, I could write a very long fic about them.

7. Thoughts on her as a mother (if applicable)?

I think she jumps into it with a lot of enthusiasm, she loves having the chance to teach these tiny people all about the world (but especially about the sea) and answer all their questions. Overall, I think she's very encouraging of her children's interests and unique personalities, but maybe takes the "fun parent" role too far and leaves Finarfin to be the strict one. Not perfect, but very good. As for the favorite child, I think it would just be the one she happens to be talking to at the moment. Maybe she has a little bit of a closer relationship with Aegnor and Finrod, but I don't think she actively, consciously, has a favorite.

14. What character do you really wish she had gotten to meet/hope she will someday meet?

Celebrian, actually. I headcanon that their personalities are so similar that it can be almost unsettling for Galadriel at times, and I would love to see them interact and have Earwen show Celebrian her favorite tide pools and Celebrian tell Earwen all about her favorite species of trees. Grandmother-granddaughter bonding time.

#i am extremely weak for platonic love stories btw #and yes i am biased towards the arafinweans being the least dysfunctional ones in the family #what did you expect #earwen #aj's finwean ladies ask game

[arafinweanappreciation]

Finwean Ladies Ask Game

You asked for this. All six of you.

Send in a character(s) and the numbers you'd like to see for them. If you request a character and number combination I've already answered, then I'll link to that post, and all posts related to this will be tagged "aj's finwean ladies ask game". Feel free to send in more than one!

What's her general attitude towards the Finwean Family Drama?

Colors associated with her?

Career or occupation headcanons?

Favorite canonical relationship?

Favorite non-canonical relationship*?

What's her general personality like?

Thoughts on her as a mother (if applicable)?

Does she have any unique quirks?

Personal headcanons about her that contradict the popular ideas within the fandom (if any)?

Relationship with/attitudes towards Feanor?

Thoughts on her name?

What's her reputation among the general populace?

What character do you really wish she had gotten to meet/hope she will someday meet?

In a modern au, what surprising/bizarrely specific and obscure genre of music would she listen to?

Algebra person or geometry person?

Wild card: either ask me a question that's not on here or let me ramble. Up to you.

Some more non-essential info under the cut

*as in it's never mentioned/alluded to on-page. many of the ones i have lots of Thoughts about can be reasonably assumed to have existed, but are never discussed.

Btw, these are the ladies I generally think of as "Finwean":

Miriel

Indis

Findis

Irime (Lalwende)

Nerdanel

Anaire

Earwen

Galadriel

Aredhel

Elenwe

Amarie

Edalote

Idril

Celebrian

Finduilas

Essentially, any female character that was born into the family, married into the family, or could be reasonably speculated to have married into the family off-page.

As for the ladies you might have been expecting but aren't on the list:

Andreth: Since she never had the chance to marry Aegnor and it's unlikely that they will have the chance until the Remaking of Arda, I don't really consider her to be "part of the family" in an official sense, though I'm sure the Arafinweans thought of her that way (the ones who got to meet her, at least).

Maglor, Orodreth, and Curufin's unnamed wives: I simply don't have enough information! While I do have some headcanons as to why they're never named or mentioned in the Silm (separate from the Doylist explanation), I don't have a lot of specific ideas about them.

Elwing: I feel like her identity as a Sindarin princess (and peredhel) overrides her relationship to the Finweans, especially since there were so few of them left to have relationships with by the time she married Earendil. To be honest, I forget Earendil is a Finwean at times.

Arwen: Most of the reasons for Elwing also apply to her. She's just very far removed from the other Finweans, has a lot of Sindarin influence, and her heritage as a peredhel is really the aspect that gets the most focus in the story.

Faniel: With the exception of the Angrod -> Orodreth -> Gil-galad line of descent, I stick to the family trees as presented in the published Silmarillion.

That being said, feel free to ask about any of them! Just be aware that it might take me a little longer to come up with a response, and it might not be as detailed. They're just not where my focus has been lately :)

#aj's finwean ladies ask game #how long will this be open? #idk #maybe forever #we'll see

[arafinweanappreciation]

I don't know if you're still doing the ask game, but if you are then 1, 7, 10 and 12 for Indis?

Hey anon! I'm definitely still doing the ask game. It's open until further notice, essentially :)

What's her general attitude towards the Finwean Family Drama?

I mean, she's kind of at the center of it. I imagine she feels deeply uncomfortable about it most of the time. She would be sick of it but it's difficult when she's so deeply entrenched. There's probably a little guilt attached to the subject, though I don't imagine there's enough regret involved to make her wish she could leave until the very end. I think she avoids it when she can, which kind of leaves it up to Finwe and their kids to defend her. I would totally understand if she just. like. never went back to Tirion, even once all her children and other descendants are reembodied. She deserves a retirement of sorts.

7. Thoughts on her as a mother (if applicable)?

This one is... interesting. I don't blame her for not crossing the Helcaraxe. I don't blame her for her relationship with Feanor. Mostly my thoughts are in the realm of "Fingolfin was her favorite child and apparently that was clear enough to make it into the historical records." I remember seeing a post somewhere talking about what if showing favoritism among children wasn't taboo among the Eldar that had a pretty interesting take on this but I have no idea where to find it. idk. I don't think she was a bad mother, but she might not have been the best. there were a lot of factors playing into this and i haven't read enough of HoME (i.e.: any) to make any judgments, imo.

10. Relationship with/attitudes towards Feanor?

Oh, this is a DIFFICULT one. I think, when he was younger, she wanted him to like her. She knows that she's not his mother and never will be, even that he probably thinks of her as he reason that his mother will never leave the Halls again, but she hopes that they can at least learn to get along. By the time he's an adult, she's given up on that and hopes that they can tolerate each other. After a certain amount of time, I could very much see her giving up on that and avoiding him altogether since it's so uncomfortable for everyone involved. I do think she sympathizes with him, and I don't think she blames him for not liking her, but she kind of draws the line at threatening her son with a sword.

12. What's her reputation among the general populace?

I could see her being kind of a rallying point for the Vanyar, however they might have felt about her before. like, how dare the noldor disrespect their princess! she is a ray of sunshine and they should be glad to have her! i don't know that they would really erase all her flaws but i think that they would be defensive of her, especially after the Flight of the Noldor. I could see her being a very divisive figure among the Noldor themselves, with some aligning themselves with Feanor, others who love her, others who are ambivalent, and others who feel bad for her but aren't quite sure about how they feel about the implications of her marriage. I also think if you mentioned her to all but the most politically aware Teleri you would just get a "whomst?" bc, like, finarfin's a cool guy, his family's crazy tho. they have their own problems to take care of.

I was definitely writing most of this after finishing a paper for my sociology class so, apologies if this is completely incoherent. my brain doesn't feel like mush but it might be.

#aj's finwean ladies ask game #indis

[arafinweanappreciation]

For the Finwean Ladies ask game (which is very fun, I love it):

Can you do Nerdanel please?

1, 7, 12, 13 + 16?

Oooh. Nerdanel can be a difficult on

What's her general attitude towards the Finwean Family Drama?

Okay, so this may not be popular, but. I think she had to be an enabler if not an active participant. She married Feanor. FEANOR. And she didn't separate from him until the Silmaril obsession got unhealthy and caused some marital issues. So while I'm not sure she was actually encouraging contention, I don't think she was stopping Feanor, either. Especially since if she was persistent about it, Feanor might have stopped to listen before Morgoth got involved. She probably has some Opinions about the Staute of Miriel and Finwe that she mostly keeps to herself (except when she's talking to Feanor). Of course, this is all headcanon. Purely my opinion.

7. Thoughts on her as a mother (if applicable)?

Ummm... tbh, not many. I don't spend a lot of time thinking about the Feanorions, for some reason (see my speculation on why here), and that extends to Nerdanel and Feanor's parenting. I don't think she was bad mom. Nor do I think she was a perfect mother. I have... some questions about her naming practices for her sons, but I don't think that necessarily translates over into how she actually treated and raised them. I do think Maedhros probably ended up with some Eldest Daughter syndrome, as tends to happen in large families. She was definitely a VERY busy woman depending on how you view the timeline.

12. What's her reputation among the general populace?

I think that, first and foremost, she's known as The Best Sculptor. Other than that, whatever's going on with the Finweans can spark gossip about her, but it generally fades away relatively quickly. I remember seeing somewhere that the Noldor were kind of surprised that Feanor would marry her because she wasn't that attractive, essentially???? That probably colored people's perceptions of her for a while, and her separation from Feanor and the Flight of the Noldor would have definitely made things pretty awkward for a while. I think people mostly view in her in the two separate capacities, almost as two separate people, but equally famous for each.

13. What character do you really wish she had gotten to meet/hope she will someday meet?

Another difficult one. Like I said in the post about Lalwen, most of these are based on narrative parallels for me, and I can't really think of anyone off the top of my head.

Actually, scratch that. Belladonna Took. Bilbo's mom. They should have a ladies' night.

16. Wild card: either ask me a question that's not on here or let me ramble. Up to you.

I don't think Nerdanel was particularly close to her sisters-in-law before the Flight, but I do think afterwards she occasionally stops by to have lunch with Anaire because suddenly they have a whole lot in common. (Earwen is there, too, but she's not part of the My Husband Is An Idiot And Crossed The Grinding Ice With All Of Our Children And I Don't Know When I'll Be Able To See Him Again But We Will Be Having Words When It Happens club, so she only joins in the conversation sometimes.)

Anyway, glad you're enjoying the game! I am, too.

#aj's finwean ladies ask game #nerdanel

[arafinweanappreciation]

Celebrian 9!

9. Personal headcanons about her that contradict the popular ideas within the fandom (if any)?

I feel like it's difficult to define exactly what popular ideas there are about Celebrian in the fandom, bc every take I've seen characterizes her differently. However, I think this might be an uncommon opinion, at the very least.

Anyway.

There is no way that Celeborn and Galadriel raised a daughter who is any less stubborn and headstrong than either of them. Celebrian seems like a go-with-the-flow, laid back kind of person, but when you really get down to it, she will not let anyone tell her what to do. She's sweet and fun-loving and bubbly but compromise takes every ounce of restraint and strength in her body.

#aj's finwean ladies ask game #celebrian

[arafinweanappreciation]

Soooo idk if the finwean ladies ask game is still open, but on the off chance it is, would you consider Lalwen - 1, 5, 6, 10 & 16?

It is, in fact, still open! I totally didn't forget about it As long as it's pinned, I'll keep accepting asks. One does not simply pass up an excuse to ramble about their blorbos.

What's her general attitude towards the Finwean Family Drama?

Right in the middle of it. She lives for the drama, and is firmly on Fingolfin's side, though she will avoid hurting Finarfin (her baby brother forever) at all costs. I also think she's a little bitter about Fingolfin and Feanor being her parents' favorites, but mature enough not to blame it on them. Also see the answer to 10

5. Favorite non-canonical relationship*?

Aredhel. It can probably be logically extrapolated from canon, but since it's never expounded upon, I'm counting it as non-canonical. I like to think that they were very close when Aredhel was growing up, and that Aredhel used it as a base model to go off of for her own relationship with Idril (who I personally think Aredhel probably had a significant hand in raising for a time). I like to think that Lalwen was the one who taught her a lot of her wilderness survival skills.

6. What's her general personality like?

If you asked someone, they would probably say that she's like a female version of Fingolfin, but Valar help anyone who says that within earshot of her. I generally thinks she's fiercely loyal and independent, determined (stubborn), courageous, and clever, with a decent set of self-preservation instincts (for a Noldo, anyway).

10. Relationship with/attitudes towards Feanor?

Mixed. On one hand he's kind of a jerk to her and her siblings and parents. On the other hand, his wife and kids are pretty cool.

16. Wild card: either ask me a question that's not on here or let me ramble. Up to you.

Nobody ever asks me about 3 (career headcanons) so I'm just gonna put it out there that I think she'd be a large animal veterinarian, or the Valinorean equivalent

#aj's finwean ladies ask game #lalwen #irime

[arafinweanappreciation]

Amarie, 1 and 6? :D

I hope you all know that you're actively contributing to me putting off my research methods homework.

thank you

What's her attitude towards the Finwean Family Drama? I think she's generally aware of it even before she or anyone she knows gets involved and just kind of rolls her eyes because Noldor. After Elenwe marries Turgon and she meets Finrod, she starts getting all the details of who's mad at who and why and who just wants to stay out of the whole mess. And, like, she doesn't want to pick a side, but kind of ends up doing it anyway (she finds Finarfin very sympathetic, even without Finrod's inherently biased version of events). By the time the flight of the Noldor comes around, she's just sick of the whole thing and more than a little angry that they can't just be reasonable about anything.

What's her general personality like? I tend to think of her as being a little soft-spoken and reserved, but also passionate and expressive, if that makes sense? She's also firm in her own mind, but not as stubborn as your run-of-the-mill Finwean. She can admit when she's wrong. I definitely think she's very kind and sensitive, as well as being kind of consistent and stable. Generally very calm. She's good at letting things go and trying to be understanding of others.

#aj's finwean ladies ask game #amarie

[arafinweanappreciation]

For the Finwean ladies ask game, which i absolutely adore btw, what about Lalwen - 5, 10, 13 and 15.

Aww, thanks anon! Sorry it took me a while to get to this, school has been kind of crazy this week. Thankfully, this should be the last heavy workload week until finals.

5. Favorite non-canonical relationship?

Probably with Aredhel, tbh. I've always headcanoned that they have similar (but by no means identical) appearances and personalities. Also, given the fact that Fingolfin is canonically her favorite sibling (iirc), I could see them being rather close. I just think it would be cute!

(Full disclosure, this might be inspired by the fact that my aunt and sister have a similar situation.)

10. Relationship with/attitudes towards Feanor?

Once again, I’m going off of the fact that she’s canonically close to Fingolfin to say that she probably takes a lot of issue with Feanor and his behavior. I actually think she might be more angry at him than Fingolfin is (pre-Flight, anyway). I don’t know that they would have much of a relationship, given that she’s the second-to-last child and by almost all accounts, Feanor would have been an adult for most of if not all of her life.

13. What character do you really wish she had gotten to meet/hope she will someday meet?

Ooh… this is hard, especially given how little we know about her. Maybe Haleth? Or Maeglin? My brain is also producing Elwing, for some reason, though I can’t fathom why. Most of my “I wish they could meet” thoughts are based off of narrative parallels, so I’m kind of drawing a blank here 😅

15. Algebra person or geometry person?

Hmmm. I'd have to say geometry.

#silmarillion #lalwen #irime #aj's finwean ladies ask game #silm

[arafinweanappreciation]

For the ask game: Finduilas, any of the questions that interest you!

(Also, I agree with you on Elwing, I think she would object vociferously to being classified as a Finwëan!)

The whole point of this is that YOU GUYS are supposed to be making the hard decisions.

Anyway.

13. What character do you really wish she had gotten to meet/hope she will someday meet?

This might be weird, but I would honestly love to see her meet Eowyn. I feel like they ended up filling very similar roles in their kingdoms, the princesses who became the pillar of emotional support for the king as his trusted advisor fed him horrible advice (though Turin meant well). Also I feel like there's a kind of parallel in Eowyn being asked to stay with the women and children but choosing to go to war instead, being nearly fatally injured, but then finding healing and hope and the will to go on and meeting Faramir vs. Finduilas who DID stay with the women and children, was captured and eventually killed, and despite her calling out to him, Turin being essentially hypnotized by Glaurung and not coming to her aid (which I read as a result of The Curse(TM) and less as a consequence of her decisions). Also Eowyn being infatuated with Aragorn but moving on as part of her healing and Finduilas falling in love with Turin and that eventually leading to her death.

Idk I just think they would have a lot to talk about.

14. In a modern au, what surprising/bizarrely specific and obscure genre of music would she listen to?

Scandinavian goth metal. Just trust me.

(And thanks for agreeing with me abt Elwing. I forgot to mention it in the original post but I also think that just maybe she might be upset at being placed in the same family as the feanorions. just a hunch)

#aj's finwean ladies ask game #finduilas

[arafinweanappreciation]

I posted 357 times in 2022

That's 357 more posts than 2021!

112 posts created (31%)

245 posts reblogged (69%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@tolkien-feels

@aureentuluva70

@procrastinationonvacation

@arafinweanappreciation

@gil-estel

I tagged 193 of my posts in 2022

Only 46% of my posts had no tags

#silmarillion - 49 posts

#silm - 48 posts

#finrod - 31 posts

#finrod felagund - 27 posts

#turgon - 14 posts

#lotr - 11 posts

#maedhros - 10 posts

#aj's finwean ladies ask game - 9 posts

#elrond - 6 posts

#finarfin - 6 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#elrond internally when they arrive in rivendell: this is a terrible idea but i can't just say that out loud to my great-grand father's face

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

I love that the most prominent trait that Turgon and Finrod have in common is that they physically cannot restrain themselves from assimilating more people into their found families. Leave a child unattended in Turgon’s presence for more than ten minutes? They’re his now, sorry. Made eye contact with Finrod? You’re invited over to his house for dinner on Sundays. They can’t help themselves.

257 notes - Posted June 29, 2022

#4

So I was thinking up domestic fluff for the House of Finarfin (as you do), and I have come to the very important conclusion that Finarfin doesn’t do baby talk. He talks to infants as if they are simply small adults. For example:

Finarfin, walking through the library, running his hands over the spines of books, carrying baby Finrod in a sling: If there’s anything you want to read, just let me know.

Finrod: *happy gurgling*

Finarfin, pulling a book off the shelf: Excellent selection

Finarfin, carrying baby Galadriel on the beach

Galadriel: *points and makes interested noises*

Finarfin: Fascinating observation

Finarfin, holding Orodreth in his lap

Orodreth: *insistent babbling*

Finarfin: Interesting opinion. What lead you to that conclusion?

Angrod, listening in from across the room: Dad???

301 notes - Posted June 28, 2022

#3

I’ve always had this little headcanon that all the sons of Fëanor have necklaces with Fëanorian stars as pendants. Their father made them for them when they were born. Reminders that they were princes of a mighty line, and should carry themselves with that knowledge. They wear them every day. When Amras dies, Amrod takes it and wears it alongside his own, in memory of his fallen twin. When the three C’s are killed, Maedhros takes theirs before they’re buried, and wears them, too. He takes both from Amrod after his death, as well. And in the end, when he decides he can’t go on any more, he leaves them on the last ledge before the lip of the crater, lined up side by side, one by one, just like they used to be. And when Maglor finds them, he knows he’s found his big brother. Far, far too late. So he picks them up, and he dusts them off, and he puts them on, carrying his brothers with him as he mourns.

360 notes - Posted July 23, 2022

#2

LotR fans: Wow, Elrond is so ancient and wise and powerful and truly a relic of times lost and--

Silm fans:

445 notes - Posted July 13, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

One thing that I find interesting in thinking about the Finwean siblings is that Finrod and Maedhros exhibit pretty clear drives to take care of and protect their siblings (or younger cousins/nephews/other relatives or friends that they’ve adopted). But Fingon. Doesn’t do that. He’s not keeping a close eye on his younger siblings like Maedhros and his siblings aren’t recorded as coming to stay with him or confide in him in times of distress like Finrod. Aredhel doesn’t even visit him when she leaves Gondolin. She goes to see Celegorm and Curufin. Turgon, on the other hand, is pretty much defined by his protective nature (see: the entire concept of Gondolin). He’s the one fighting his way to Fingon’s side and risking everything to help him rather than the other way around. Aredhel goes to him for refuge after leaving Eol. I know that the loss of Argon and Gondolin’s secrecy make things a little more complicated and murky than the Arafinwean and Feanorian sibling relationships, but Fingon was never even noted as noticing that his brother and his followers just started disappearing. Turgon seems to have usurped the role of Eldest Brother in his family and I want to know WHY

451 notes - Posted October 7, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

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