#this is MY world now Jirt

[melhekhelmurkun]

What is the point of fanfiction if not to manipulate canon to your will like an evil little guy spinning a web of lies

#this is MY world now Jirt #you can’t do shit #(I say this with utmost respect for the brilliant mind that made this universe) #but also YOU CANT DO SHIT JIRT #none of these characters will ever know what is going on #one moment they’re in their world living out an au where everyone lives #the next they’re in the modern world in which I pretend all of their names are completely normal for where they’re living #I change their backgrounds like I change my phone wallpaper (wildly and with little concern of how it looks to other people) #basically this is all a commentary on how I find my own writing to be hilarious #especially considering I change my mind like the days change weather #which is why I actually (fun fact) have only fully completed one work ever #and I had to force myself to do it #I just keep writing until I can’t think of anything else and then I switch to another one and do the same thing #it’s a big cycle #and that’s how I ended up with nearly 300 WIPs for LOTR just sitting in my notes app #:) #for reference I first started writing fanfiction for the MCU yeaaaaars ago and only have 73 works for that one #I cannot stop myself with LOTR #I cannot #it’s my Roman Empire fr

[cornerful]

'It is true that if these hobbits understood the danger, they would not dare to go. But they would still wish to go, or wish that they dared, and be shamed and unhappy. I think, Elrond, that in this matter it would be well to trust rather to their friendship than to great wisdom.'

If I had a copy of lotr I was in the business of hilighting I would hilight and underline this a hundred times. This is it, this is the thesis statement of the whole dang story

Plus the first part of this gives me a whole lot of emotions about the nature of heroism in this story and about Gandalf especially, none of which i can properly put my finger on right now--

Something about how the way this quest gets started...Frodo is all "I am pretty sure this is gonna suck and we are gonna die" even Elrond basically admits he has No Clue how or if their goal is even achievable. But they go anyway. And from an internal-but-also-fabley-meta perspective, that is the right thing.

They let the baby hobbit tag along on the world's most Evil Recycling Run because whether he really is brave or just desperately wants to be doesn't really matter, he loves his cousin and he's going, damn it

I'm internally dissolving into a pile of tears and I can't explain why lol? Characters who try with no guarantee of success, in jirt-world, are met with such grace. It underpins every word and this is just one example.

#lotrn1218 #lotr newsletter #i have such love for all these characters i think ive been possessed by the spirit of gandalf in this chilis #lotr #idk idk i just can never imagine jirt looking at his own characters and going 'lol well THAT didnt work out #'what losers' you know? #its so evident in the way he talks abt frodo in letters and the way boromir is written #its just so nice and its driving me nuts that i can't articulate it properly #ah well

[izzyspussy]

About Me!

Hi, I'm Jack! I'm 29 and I use he/him pronouns. You might know me as @/calicojackofficial - which still exists as a writing and art sideblog, now @calicoy. On this blog you'll find fandom and personal posts. Everything is tagged for easy filtering.

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#ofmd #ted lasso #it #watcher #leverage #dc #marvel #star trek #jirt #taz #black sails #holmes #music #hc #otplus #gen #my fic #my art #reading process #fic rec #horror tag #tragedy tag #cowboy tag #jack facts #jack chats #ft. jack #soc #children are people tag #infinite diversity

[ode-to-fury]

I have not watched the show and I also don’t plan to, but I do hear a lot about it through second hand sources and articles and posts, and I think the worst thing that Rings of Power has done isn’t any of the lore changes or even the story changes (though I detest both of these deep down to the core of who I am) but the fact that I’ve now heard from multiple people that Galadriel and even some of the other characters are unlikeable.

Because I think at its core, any piece of Tolkien writing is about the fact that humans (or other races, if we’re being pedantic with wording) are good and kind and honourable, when given the chance to be. Even characters who aren’t “good” (Boromir, Denethor, Feanor, Túrin come to mind) are not evil. They mainly do bad things out of a desire to make things better, or an inflated sense of self, or grief. Human flaws that anyone can relate to, but this does not make them evil, because at the end of the day they still fight against the BBEG (Sauron/Morgoth).

What I’ve heard so far from Rings of Power reviews and friends who’ve watched it, is that Galadriel is cynical and harsh and plain mean. And that isn’t a Tolkien Character. The writers and cast and producers hace talked a lot about the series “representing the modern day” or something like that in interviews ive seen, and I just… is that what you think of people now? That at their core they’re harsh and mean? That they would leave each other behind when given the chance to? That they would discount their friend’s feelings of dread instead of listening to someone they trust? That women need to be able to wield a sword in order to be seen as powerful?

Tolkien lived through two world wars, fought in one of them, lost a best friend in that same war, could have lost two sons in the next… and he still managed to write a story that said yes everything is bad but at our core we’re good. At our core there is hope and love and friendship and kindness.

These writers… the worst part is I don’t even think they jilted his themes intentionally. I think they just don’t care. They know some of the heartfelt moments in the peter jackson films are really good cinema, but they have no idea why. Like there is just a baseline dissatisfaction with the source material, the core message of the source material, and it almost feels disrespectful. I’ve heard really good things about the portrayal of Elrond, though, which I’m glad about. He deserves all the love in the world, even in a bad show like this.

Now I’m not saying that there’s no unlikeable Tolkien characters. There’s a whole bunch in the Silmarillion that I destest, and everyone hates Denethor, but this is because Jirt is using these characters to show how bad behaviours and bad attitudes reflect on people’s perception of you. And most importantly These Are Not The Main Characters. This is not Game of Thrones, where main characters can be bad people because Grrm is trying to teach us a lesson using them, this is Tolkien, this is Middle Earth, where good wins. Good wins because good will always win, because again and again that’s the story Tolkien tells. Even with monumental losses, good will still win.

Very long rambling post and I don’t know if I made my point clearly, but I really do believe you can’t modernise Tolkien. Not in the way these writers want to, because modern storytelling is all about moral greyness, and cynicism, and sarcasm and that just… isn’t Tolkien. Though, like I said, I haven’t watched the show, only small clips and reviews, but I still think I’m right.

#lotr #tolkien #anti rop #anti rings of power #and i wish theyd just make another generic fantasy series instead of slapping tolkiens name on this #i hate the modern film and television industry

[buggreawlthys]

'I will not say farewell, my lord,' said Pippin.

- almost word-for-word echo of sam's song in the tower. brb crying over hobbits again.

Now silently the host of Rohan moved forward into the field of Gondor, pouring in slowly but steadily, like the rising tide through breaches in a dike that men have thought secure.

- this is the point where i started vibrating too quickly for the human eye to perceive

And straightway all the horns in the host were lifted up in music, and the blowing of the horns of Rohan in that hour was like a storm upon the plain and a thunder in the mountains.

- there is not enough "fuck yeah" in this world and middle earth combined

And never in after years could he hear a horn blown in the distance without tears starting in his eyes.

- you & me both mate

Denethor started as one waking from a trance, and the flame died in his eyes, and he wept; and he said: 'Do not take my son from me! He calls for me.' ... Denethor followed him, and stood trembling, looking with longing on the face of his son.

- on the one hand, genuinely sympathetic. on the other hand, all this parental affection would've been a bit more useful before you Sent Him To His Death, Arsehole

'Go then and labour in healing! Go forth and fight! Vanity.'

- this isn't even "pot calling the kettle black", it's just straight-up hypocrisy.

Yet one stood there still: Dernhelm the young, faithful beyond fear; and he wept, for he had loved his lord as a father.

- ... so we're still playing this game, jirt? even now? really? *sigh* ok, fine. """dernhelm""" loved """his""" lord, got it

'Do what you will; but I will hinder it, if I may.'

- one of, if not the, all-time "fuck around & find out"s

'And I would send word to Éowyn. She, she would not have me leave her, and now I shall not see her again, dearer than daughter.'

- how many times will the sheer & shining amount of LOVE in this stories rip my heart into confetti???

'Are you going to bury me?' said Merry.

- 🥺🥺🥺

...and out of Far Harad black men like half-trolls with white eyes and red tongues.

- jfc. for every "fair for its day" moment there's one of these, whether it's enemies on the battlefield or allies like ghan-buri-ghan. repugnant actually.

'Thus we meet again, though all the hosts of Mordor lay between us,' said Aragorn. 'Did I not say so at the Hornburg?'

- yeah yeah smartarse, no-one likes an "i told you so"

...red fell the dew in Rammas Echor.

- sad but also metal af

'I have been too busy with this and that to heed all the crying and shouting,' she answered.

- Ioreth my giiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrrl so good to see you sis love your life love your choices

'Not a beggar,' said Aragorn. 'Say a captain of the Rangers, who are unused to cities and houses of stone.'

- *snort*

...said Aragorn. 'One thing also is short, time for speech.'

- TAKE A FUCKEN HINT BABES (not that it does any good. ioreth will not be contained)

'My friend,' said Gandalf, 'you had horses, and deeds of arms, and the free fields; but she, born in the body of a maid, had a spirit and courage at least the match of yours. Yet she was doomed to wait upon an old man...'

- gandalf pointing out the mûmakil in the room: bigotry

'Master Meriadoc,' said Aragorn, 'if you think that I have passed through the mountains and yhe realm of Gondor with fire and sword to bring herbs to a careless soldier who throws away his gear, you are mistaken. ...he will leave you to reflect on the history of tongues. And so now must I.'

- i am howling

For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach. His song in the Tower had been defiance rather than hope; for then he was thinking of himself. Now, for a moment, his own fate, and even his master's, ceased to trouble him. He crawled back into the brambles and laid himself by Frodo's side, and putting away all fear he cast himself into a deep untroubled sleep.

- everyone say thank you to the nice star for letting sam get some decent bloody rest for a change (grumbles about hobbits with no self-care practice)

#lotr newsletter #what a day #what a read #wtf are emotions #aragorn's Extremely Long Day #sass king of sassdor

[moorishflower]

@softest-punk tagged me in this like 2 days ago I am here late to the party

rules: List five things you never get tired of writing. It can be tropes, themes, characters, phrases, whatever brings you joy. Then tag five people!

Eldritch, inhuman, or otherwise incomprehensible creatures falling in love with Just Some Person. Like this is the High Tier Queer trope, right? So many of us watched beauty and the beast as kids and were like "but...why does he have to turn back? why is Belle not allowed to love him the way he is?" and this trope has to do with the Other and how you can connect queer love to monstrosity, to danger, to defying convention and conventional beauty, but also I am just in love with the idea of something so intensely beyond human finding simple humanity beautiful. finding joy and fascination in things like idk groceries or playing the guitar really badly. the tempering influence of humanity on something that has no morals and does not understand them. the satisfaction you feel when the human lover is allowed to say "okay darling, go Absolute Apeshit" and you get to see how far something that far from human would do if it just went completely off the chain.

Language! I am in love with language, how it changes, its different forms and functions. If I have the chance to research slang or a dialect or something for a fic, I'll do so wholeheartedly. I absolutely love trying to find the connections between where we're at today with our words and where we were 300 or 500 or 800 years ago. (I'm also really into conlangs, shout out to my boy Jirt)

Weird esoteric sex. What it says on the tin. I like writing weird sex. Writing smut comes easily to me for the most part, and I'm mostly ace so I don't come at fucking from a perspective of having experienced it, which I think lets me go absolutely hogwild in terms of writing it how I want it to be experienced, metaphors included.

Folklore and mythology. I'm a classics nerd, and one of my majors was world literature with a focus on folklore and mythology. If I can shove a bunch of Hades/Persephone or Tale of Genji references in there I will.

Blur and Smear. Idk right now I'm really into these two words. Sorry if you see them 5000 times until I get tired of them lol.

I am bad at tagging people because I don't want anyone to feel obligated but uh I will tag some people I admire!!! : @wordsinhaled @avelera @fishfingersandscarves (art or writing or BOTH) @arialerendeair @xx-vergil-xx

#writing meme

[rachelillustrates]

Gnomish Faerie thoughts!!

I had a thought today about where I’m at, and a moment of divine-flow inspiration about the direction I’m going, with the Gnomes of "Tock the Gnome" – particularly that I’m working on the surface Gnome stuff for upcoming world building posts, and I’m still eyelids-deep in Tolkien fangirling for my self-care lately.

I was thinking this morning (as I was preparing my morning Faerie offering, no less) that I need to be careful there, since – being so aware of Hobbits right now – I might pull in some of their stuff without meaning to. But, then it occurred to me, like a thought that was given, that there is some overlap there anyway, AND since Jirt almost put the term “Gnomes” upon some of his Elves, there is a pathway from Arda already into the idea of Gnomishness – the word itself, their love of knowledge, in addition to the parts of Hobbits that overlap with what traits we commonly associate with Gnomes (on a mainstream level, I mean).

So, in interest of following that path and building some course-corrective tone work with the Gnomes of the plateau’s surface, here’s my initial thoughts about what makes a Gnome a Gnome, to build up from, for those that are more connected to surface nature:

Connected to nature

Caring in general, but especially toward animals

Heralds/stewards of both these things

Funny – great sense of humor, take things in stride

Take things moment to moment (or Gnoment 😁)

Care about home and food and community, the comforts, heart-resonance, of life

Hear and respect all

Earth creatures – earth magic, soil and plants (current “Tock the Gnome” magical status notwithstanding)

Additions from my Gnomish brother Mark (creator of Maarten the Gnome):

Vegetarian (covered already in “Tock the Gnome” by these Gnomes being dietarily vegan)

Even help their enemies if in trouble

Basically their only enemies are Trolls (covered already in “Tock the Gnome” in Gnomish folklore)

What do you all think? 🦋

#inspiration #world building #tock the gnome #faerie #gnomecore #gnomes #indie comics #personal

[marta-bee]

Marta Rereads: The Valaquenta Part Deux

I thought I was done with the Valaquenta, but apparently not.

It’s pretty well known that Tolkien’s not a big fan of fire. The RIng (rings, really) was made with molten fire, and it’s the only evil strong enough to destroy it. Isengard is turned from a beautiful grove of trees to a barren wasteland so Saruman can feed the constant fires of his forges. I could write a whole treatise on Denethor’s pyre and immolation as something for the “heathen kings of old.” And if we want to stay focused on the Valaquenta: “Dreadful among these spirits were the Valaraukar, the scourges of fire that in Middle-earth were called the Balrogs, demons of terror.” (my emphasis) And so many of the corrupted Maiar were from Aule’s sphere originally, and what is he if not the master of fire and forgecrafts?

A lot of this comes down to Tolkien not being a great fan of science and technology. I feel like I’ll come back to this a fair bit, but for now, I can’t help remembering how the Birmingham of his childhood was changed from a relatively idyllic quiet place into a clamoring noisy street by cars that burned fuel and belched smoke. (I know, I know, allegory vs. symbolism and all, but those early formative experiences do have an impact.)

But some of it at least is more philosophical. Fire is the element that’s usually the opposite of water, the thing Tolkien said carried the imprint of the Great Song more than anything. It’s also probably not a coincidence that Eru called Ea into existence with a light he created himself, which first inspired Melkor to want creative power of his own. Fire in the context of the created world is a poor copy of that first light, the Flame Imperishable. Of course it’s the Flame Imperishable which is itself fire! But I think the fires Tolkien’s so critical of are created fires, created by people other than Eru. It’s so basic, so tied to the root and start of reality itself, or at least reality within the cosmos; who dares mimic that fundamentally creative act. It’s chutzpah.

Which is what makes Jirt’s description of Melkor/Morgoth so interesting. Emphasis mine:

Last of all is set the name of Melkor, He who arises in Might. But that name he has forfeited; and the Noldor, who among the Elves suffered most from his malice, will not utter it, and they name him Morgoth, the Dark Enemy of the World. Great might was given to him by Iluvatar, and he was coeval with Manwe. In the powers and knowledge of all the other Valar he had part, but he turned them to evil purposes, and squandered his strength in violence and tyranny. For he coveted Arda and all that was in it, desiring the kingship of Manwe and dominion over the realms of his peers.

From splendour he fell through arrogance to contempt for all things save himself, a spirit wasteful and pitiless. Understanding he turned to subtlety in perverting to his own will all that he would use, until he became a liar without shame. He began with the desire of Light, but when he could not possess it for himself alone, he descended through fire and wrath into a great burning, down into Darkness. And darkness he used most in his evil works upon Arda, and filled it with fear for all living things.

This distinction between Fire and Light is fascinating to me. Is it just that fire burns itself out leaving only darkness? Is it that fire is a destructive thing, and it’s smoke and other residues blind us to the true Light? And what do we make of the good light used by the Valar in these early chapters? An argument could be made I guess that Telperion and Laurelin emanated light from something other than fire, and maybe the vessels Arien and Tillion were pulling shined through some other process (utterly scientifically untrue, of course, but at the level of myth I can roll with that), but what of the great lamps that Melkor destroyed in their first war? What was lighting them if not fire?

I’m probably getting ahead of myself, though. More once I get into the QS proper.

#tolkien #the silmarillion #marta rereads #tolkien meta

[absynthe--minded]

so what is Up with jirt's math

short answer is it's incomprehensible, because our boy is a proud entry in the long tradition of science fiction and fantasy authors not being able to do fucking math

now, I am not a mathematician, but Carl Hostetter, NASA Engineer, might as well be, and I am eternally grateful that he got to trial run this insanity before unleashing it onto the rest of us, but since I am not a mathematician I will try instead to explain some context for things like "why this happened" and "why Tolkien took this approach to his work", because that's something I've not seen a lot of conversation about and I think it's important.

Tolkien wrote the fragments and passages we see in The Nature of Middle-Earth largely at the very end of his life. These were some of the last things he was actively working on in terms of worldbuilding. (if anyone was curious, the last thing narratively that he was working on seems to be the specifics of Aredhel and Maeglin's flight from Nan Elmoth, particularly travel time and how far Eöl would have gone and how long it would have taken him to get to specific places.) the thing that's relevant here imo is that Tolkien at this point is hardcore into a phase that I sort of informally call 'Retcon Everything To Make It Realistic'. he's rewriting the cosmology of his world, he's reworking timelines, he's adding in additional details and doing math on population tables and growth rates.

why is he doing this?

there are a lot of factors, but the one that seems most relevant is that the critical reception to The Lord of the Rings was... not great, when it came out. It was a massive commercial success, and had a following of counterculture and hippie types, and garnered fans who grew up with The Hobbit, and wasn't a failure at all? but as a work of literature, the only seriously positive critical response at first was W.H. Auden, who loved the story and praised it often. Tolkien says in the foreword to the second edition that there were several critics who disliked his books, and he answers them sassily and snappily in the same quick-witted fashion we all know and love, but despite that, he was deeply sensitive to criticism. He was forever doubting the viability of his own work, and at one point he apologized to his publishers both for writing The Lord of the Rings the way he had and for the fact that the Silmarillion probably wouldn't be publishable. He wrote first and foremost for himself, and much of what he wrote he didn't expect anyone to ever want to read.

but by the 60s, LotR was a solid success, and he was tasked with working on the Silm, and it was hard going. The earlier drafts of the story, while they maintain a lot of their integrity (the Quenta, as preserved in The Shaping of Middle-Earth, is drawn from heavily in the published Silm, and that's quite early), have magical or fantastical elements that don't have rational explanations, and there's a lot of whimsy and innocence and fairytale vibes to the stuff that's earliest of all. this is a problem because the criticisms of LotR were usually (not universally! but often) centered around failure to understand fantasy as a genre and to engage with it on its own terms, largely because, well, this was the first time it had been done, you know? and I want to say that I can't prove this, but my best guess is that the criticism and the frustration with what would become high fantasy genre conventions and the inability to understand what Tolkien was doing - an inability that contemporary audiences don't understand because we live in a world shaped by him - are part of what sparked this frantic series of revisions and reconsiderations. The other part, of course, is Catholicism.

Tolkien of course could never make up his mind about anything, that's the nature of the beast when dealing with his drafts, but the direction things take after LotR was published tends to emphasize two things. The first is realism - the Sun and Moon are astronomical bodies, the world has always been round, here are the exact details and explanations of these various people groups and places and how often they reproduced - and the second is that he wanted to be clear about his own personal beliefs. There were IRL people who worshiped the Valar as gods, and even while Tolkien was alive he was engaging with the fact that the audiences who read his books were assuming he 100% believed or endorsed things based on their presence in the text. So his retcons and reframings tend to emphasize both plausibility and his own Catholic worldview, in the attempt to make it clear to critics and fans both who he is and what he believes, and to control the perceptions of his stories.

At the same time, he's very deliberately writing things distinct from Catholicism, and in at least one letter to his priest he says that he knows some story elements go against Catholic doctrine but he finds them fictionally interesting - he's not doing a C.S. Lewis and insisting that it's all allegorical. And I tend to think that if the critical and popular responses to LotR had been both kinder and a little bit less unhinged in their nature (keep in mind there were people calling him up on the phone at like four AM because his number was public) we would have gotten a very different look at the latter part of his writing career.

tl;dr why is his math bad? because people were mean to him, and because hippies.

#absynthe's meta #tolkien #the nature of middle-earth #replies #bioluminescent-fungus

[tolkien-feels]

Double Silmblogging: Quenta 6: Of Fëanor and the Unchaining of Melkor || Quenta 7: Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor

When I was a kid and Tolkien said in the Hobbit “Now it is a strange thing, but things that are good to have and days that are good to spend are soon told about, and not much to listen to; while things that are uncomfortable, palpitating, and even gruesome, may make a good tale, and take a deal of telling anyway.” I was disappointed because I wanted to know more the Last Homely House. And now as an adult I want to scream every time I read “This was the Noontide of the Blessed Realm, the fullness of its glory and its bliss, long in tale of years, but in memory too brief.” TELL ME ABOUT THE NOONTIDE TOLKIEN!!!!!

Miriel being too tired to weep is very narratively interesting in the context of “tears unnumbered ye shall shed” isn’t it?

I don’t think I need to stress how much I wish we’d gotten more about Mahtan and Nerdanel in the published Silm, right? I bring up Nerdanel like once a week here. For the record, I’m also interested in Feanor’s relationship with Mahtan. Like. A lot.

This is also the chapter that introduces the eternal question of “What if Finwe had never remarried?” Together with “What if the elves had never been taken to Aman?” that’s probably a pointless question. It amounts to “What would this book be if it was a completely different book?” There are probably no right answers here. But god!!! Thinking about it drives me crazy!! I have many thoughts about it that I’ll probably share one day - I’ve been so busy lately that whenever I have enough free time to write meta I realize I have no brainpower left

Let me say the most arrogant sentence ever: I’m full of compassion for the Ainur. I know it’s not my place since Tolkien worked so hard to make them superior to us mere mortals but sorry, I’m packbonding with your godlike beings, Jirt. Anyway, I understand that they do their very best to do right by Arda and the Children, and it’s a pet peeve of mine when people are too harsh to them. They’re good, they’re just not perfect. But. I take so much issue with their view that they’re not hindering the elves if they want to depart. “You came here guided by several Ainur ensuring your safety. We have encouraged you when you were afraid and found ways to help you cross mountain and sea alike. When you arrived, we provided places for your dwelling according to each of your needs.” is WORLDS away from “You can go but you won’t get even boats from us.” I understand not wanting to encourage folly, but do you want to make an entire people resent the Valar? Because that’s how you do it!!!

Congratulations Melkor on daydreaming about taking over the world and not listening to the Third Theme. I am sure this will not impact your evil plans in any way! Men will not in any way challenge you, it’ll be alright!

Also. Melkor being like “O Firstborn of Iluvatar, the Aftercomers shall usurp your inheritance!” and “O Firstborn of Finwe, the sons of Indis shall usurp your inheritance!” is so funny. Projecting much, Melkor? Does it irk you to see Manwe King of Arda when you fancy yourself King of the World?

(But on a serious note, do note how Fingolfin comes to rule the Noldor through Feanor’s own mistakes, as Tolkien draws attention to. This is exactly what happens to Melkor. It’s only one of many, many ways Feanor and Melkor are alike and it breaks my heart. Or at least it does when I’m not laughing wondering which of them would hate this comparison more)

Hi, hello, has anyone got any headcanons about the swords Feanor made for himself and his sons?

It’s lowkey funny that the elves are all stockpiling weapons while pretending they just happen to suddenly have taken a fancy for shields

I have so many complicated feelings about Finwe. I won’t say much about him because if I begin I’ll never shut up. The next time my brain decides to be nice to me, I’ll make a whole Finwe post

Shout out to Tulkas for wasting no time in trying to get his hands on Melkor. He’s been trying since 1919. I believe you, Tulkas! One day you will get to beat up Melkor as much as you want!!

#silmblogging

[nyenyerle]

!!! First of all, @catadromously thank you for blessing my blog with this amazing ask! It was the last push I needed to fall into Siron Family Grief, and I basically went mad as I was trying to answer. Then tumblr deleted my draft instead of saving it, so. I’m giving up on any pretence of coherency

Sometimes the underworld is above you. (aaaaaaaaaa)

I definitely see it, principally in Earendil’s journeying beyond the confines of the world, as much as “up” and “down” are applicable to the void.

Elwing? I feel like she has a two-part story. First, falling into the sea: a submersion. If the sea is an underworld of some sort, a representation of, idk, the primordial waters of tohu wa-bohu, then perhaps this part can be viewed as proper katabasis?

Secondly, her temporary metamorphosis into a bird: theJourney to Vingilót. (If/when the sea acts as some sort of holy water of transformative qualities.) Being lifted into the air, being turned into a celestial bride/divine wife/etc, now this can be “anabasis,” maybe? I’ve read exactly one Elwing-centered fic in my life (shame!!) and written none so far, but it feels like this flight over the sea would be the dramatic point where she has to make sense of her marriage. (Earendil embraced her, but which did he recognize, the bird or the stone? There is a whole feminine tragedy buried here, jirt, you bastard.)

What they end up as, though: eternal “ship’s captain'' and eternal “lady in the tower,” these states don’t have a function of self-discovery, so I wouldn’t call them reverse katabasis (unless.)

(Unless it’s regarding that part of Earendil's motivations that is running from his "normal" roles and responsibilities? He has to face, very young, in quick succession, the challenges of orphanhood, rulership, and being a paterfamilias - and immediately fucks off to sea on a quest to Intercede For Elvendom And Humanity Because It's End Times… Then he wins it all. The world is saved. He will be a distant father, unattainable husband, eternal mariner of the celestial waters. Then the aeons on the sky he can no longer turn back from, might just be a descent into hell every night.)

Hmmm I wish I could still somehow turn this into proper literary analysis but this is all I'm capable of right now

#ask #catadromously #elwing #earendil #havens of sirion family grief #i wasn't exaggerating when i said this ask pushed me into madness people #i have sticky notes on my wall now #i brought two anthropology books with real money about ships and water #and now i cant formulate the bazillion half-formed thoughts i have #partly because im still sick and can't even think straight in my mother tongue #re: elwing and earendil's jurneys i just remembered mybfavourite quote to misuse: #What is not caused but results is fate #What is not intended but happens is heaven. #i cackled at 'destiny bling' for 2 minutes

[uglierdaikon]

Books!

Friends, Romans, countrymen, please, beg no more! For all two of you who have asked, here is my list of my favorite books from my Goodreads of the past year or so (rated, because I have some free time and love having opinions)

·        The Passion of Dolssa by Julia Berry

Rated: 8.5/10

This books has everything!

Peasants

Unreliable narrators

Prostitutes

Ugly people as main characters and romantic leads

A girl who bangs our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in her dreams

o   Actual summary: This book is split between multiple perspectives (mainly the titular Dolssa and a young woman named Botille), as well as (fictional) written accounts or interrogations conducted by clergymen into the issue of Dolssa, a young mystic being pursued for heresy during the time of the Inquisition. The story follows Dolssa’s journey of faith and attempts to avoid capture, a clergyman’s attempts to find her and execute her, and the experiences of a young woman who finds and protects Dolssa from her pursuers. It’s cool as hell, and it talks about one of my favorite aspects of religious history, female mystics (women who had dreams of speaking to Jesus, or even being in relationships with him. Some people saw them as prophets and holy women, others saw them as blasphemers. It’s a really interesting and complicated topic and this book covers it in such a cool way!)

YA, so she doesn’t bang Jesus on screen. Sorry to disappoint

·        The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring by J R R Tolkien (Jirt)

Rated: 9/10

One of the most bangin’ books of all time. You know it. You love it. If you haven’t seen the movies, go watch them. Or read the books (which I myself am only just beginning). Although personally I’d recommend seeing the movies first because the writing is a little complicated at times and it helps to have a point of reference to fully understand what’s going on, if I’m being completely honest. Once you get used to the writing style though, it's so immersive and the world it creates is simultaneously beautiful, homey/familiar, otherworldly, and frightening. God tier shit

·        The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner

Rated: 7.5/10

Not my FAVORITE thing I’ve read all year, but overall a super interesting mix of historical fiction and contemporary fiction. This book has two timelines: one of an apothecary in the late 1700s who dispenses poisons to women who wish to kill the men in their lives, and one of an amateur historian trying to solve the mystery of these snippets of information she keeps finding about a possibly murderous apothecary who lived centuries before. It’s very cool, and the only reason I put it lower on the list is because I thought the ending dragged on too long. Big fan!

·        The Song of the Jade Lily by Kirsty Manning

Rated: 10/10

Okay so I’m realizing as I write this list that this was just the year of me reading historical fiction like a maniac. Anyways, this is also a split timeline, historical fiction and contemporary fiction novel. The first timeline covers the experiences of a young Jewish refugee whose family fled to Shanghai following Kristellnacht, but are unable to avoid the war entirely as tension and violence builds in China. The other timeline covers the granddaughter of this refugee, who returns to China to try to learn more about her deceased mother’s birth family (as the mother was adopted by her grandparents, the Jewish refugees). It’s less complicated than it sounds, I swear. I’ve been telling everyone I know to read this one, and now I’m telling you guys to read it. It made me cry, which is a big recommendation imo.

·        Circe by Madeline Miller

Rated: 500/10

THIS IS IT. THIS IS THE BEST BOOK I HAVE READ IN THE PAST YEAR

I don’t know if I’ve expressed this enough on here but I am a MASSIVE mythology nerd, and Madeline Miller my beloved is a classical historian and writer. This book delves into the life of the witch Circe (of Odyssey, and turning men into pigs, fame), reimagining her from a black and white villain into someone more sympathetic, someone you actually root for. I will say this book has themes of violence against women and sexual assault, so skip it if that’s not something you want to read about. I absolutely adored this book though.

·        The Song of Achilles, also by Madeline Miller

Rated: 8/10

This is less good than Circe but it’s still good! It’s also YA rather than adult fiction so it’s tamer

This is a love story about the Greek hero Achilles and his friend Patroclus, taking place from the time that they’re children to when they go off to fight in the Trojan War. If you’re familiar with the Iliad, you know these guys. If you’re not… well, I won’t spoil it. But I read this book in one sitting. The writing is amazing, I loved the characters, it’s well-paced. You’ll love it. Give it a shot.

·        Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King

Rated: 9.5/10

This whole book is written as a monologue, which is so damn cool. The whole thing is told as a woman in her 60s confessing to two murders: one that she was actually arrested for, and the other from about thirty years earlier. C’mon, guys, it’s Stephen King. I don’t need to tell you that it’s damn good. You KNOW it’s damn good. I listened to this as an audiobook in my car and I used to think of places to go just for an excuse to drive somewhere and listen to it.

·        Honorable mentions

(aka, I can’t tell you if these books are ACTUALLY good, or if I’m just obsessed with them. I love them though, and that’s enough for them to make the list) (These are both by the same author, and friends who have listened to me clown about these books are probably already laughing at me)

o   Mo Dao Zu Shi, or “The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation” by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Rated: you would ask me to rate my blorbos?? On this, a blorbo blog?

Oh god. How the fuck do I explain this book. Okay so it’s about magical ghost/demon-fighting warriors in Ancient China. That’s important to know right off the bat. The main character, Wei Wuxian, was one of the most powerful members of his generation, but he was killed for his crimes after essentially becoming a necromancer to get revenge on his enemies and win a war. However, years after his death, he wakes up in the body of somebody who sold his soul in exchange for Wei Wuxian to come back and take revenge on his behalf. So now Wei Wuxian is back, and getting dragged into mysteries and intrigue and the like, all while trying to hide who he actually is. Also he falls in love and it’s great, so happy for him.

This book is rated 17+ and has smut in the back half, so skip this if that’s not your thing

If that’s NOT your thing, I still recommend the animated series or the live action adaptation (The Untamed), both of which have no smut. However, they also leave out the romance in general because of Chinese censorship laws, so you win some you lose some in that regard. They’re both great adaptations otherwise

o   The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System, also by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Rated: the main character is not a blorbo, but truly just feels like a personal friend of mine who happens to be a messy bitch. Still morally obligated not to rate it. Shen Yuan, you stupid whore, I love you

Okay, so there’s this guy named Shen Yuan who is a hater, an anti, an internet troll. He just goes online and leave mean reviews on this popular web novel called Proud Immortal Demon Way. He hates this book so much that it’s like, all he has energy for. All he does is read this book and get mad about it. Terrible. Anyways he hates it so much that he chokes and dies while reading the last chapter, and he wakes up as the “scum villain” of the novel. There is a System that communicates with him (kind of like the instructions of a video game, but sentient). This System basically tells him that he can either make the story better himself since he hates it so much, or he can sit down and shut up. So he has to change the novel from the inside as a character, and if he fails to he’ll die in the same brutal, torturous way that the original character does.

Somebody please read this it’s taken over my life

This is actually my favorite book that I’ve read in the last year, and the hardest one to actually recommend to people because like… read at your own risk.

Warnings for violence, toxic relationship dynamics, internalized homophobia, and uh. Dubious consent in the back half. You’ll know when it’s coming, just skip it if you need to

#tumblr deleted the whole post and I had to redo it #which was not very cool of tumblr #book recs #book recommendations #not jshk #this was so fun though #cmon guys I wouldn't recommend you anything but the best! #if you end up reading any of these please let me know so we can chat about it! #mini book club! #also thank you to Cat and Mac for showing interest in hearing my book recs love you guys

[cornerful]

March 1st

'There is no malice near us; but there is watchfulness, and anger.'

'Well, it has no cause to be angry with me,' said Gimli. 'I have done it no harm.'

'That is just as well,' said Legolas. 'But nonetheless it has suffered harm.'

Love some real underlying awareness of how emotions work with my lord of the rings 🍻 lasting pain is inevitably shared with the people around you who had nothing to do with it, and sensitivity without culpability is important to practice.

'A treacherous weapon is ever a danger to the hand.'

Gandalf says this of Saruman but I should really start saying it about blunt kitchen knives 😒

'Dangerous!' cried Gandalf. 'And so am I, very dangerous: more dangerous than anything you will ever meet, unless you are brought alive before the seat of the Dark Lord.'

Go flex, girl 💗💯💥💫

The others looked at him. A gleam of sun through fleeting clouds fell on his hands, which lay now upturned on his lap: they seemed to be filled with light as a cup is with water. At last he looked up and gazed straight at the sun.

*_* I'm so beguiled by this. Hm. Hm. *shuffles it away for later* Thoughts, anyone, about this part?

'It is a long way for a man to walk, young or old,' said Aragorn. 'I fear the battle will be over long ere I come there.'

'We shall see, we shall see,' said Gandalf. 'Will you come now with me?'

Just like earlier when Gandalf did not reveal his identity for a hot minute, here again is the theme of characters taking leaps of faith. Gandalf could have told them that the return of their horses was likely, but he didn't. It's important that they agree to go even without knowing.

Far, far below the deepest delvings of the Dwarves, the world is gnawed by nameless things. Even Sauron knows them not. They are older than he. Now I have walked there, but I will bring no report to darken the light of day. In that despair my enemy was my only hope, and I pursued him, clutching at his heel.

If there's some epic fanfic out there about the nameless things and/or Gandalf's harrowing time among them I'd love to read it.

Also, --I know this is probably very un-tolkienian-- I wonder if Gandalf was stuck down there how he would get out of it. Could he...to put it delicately, abandon his body by his own hand? What would then happen to him? The story would be different I guess, I mean it would never have been written that way. The idea of Gandalf having video game respawn skills through suicide is I think not a concept jirt would have entertained and I agree that's way too lazy for a story like this--nevermind the way it would undermine the Sacredness of Life and Importance of Noble Choices stuff going on all the time...I just wonder though, within the rules of lotr, what would have happened if Gandalf missed his chance of escape from the deep places. And say he did expire alone in the dark and desperate, what would then be? Anyway. Just a rambling thought...

'"A burden you have been," he answered, "but not so now. Light as a swan's feather in my claw you are. The Sun shines through you. Indeed I do not think you need me any more: were I to let you fall, you would float upon the wind."

I love this i love it i love it. And it reminds me of what Gandalf thought about Frodo that morning in Rivendell after the danger of the morgul shard had passed.

Which is double interesting, thinking of Gandalf's story from the Balrog to Lothlórien, and the end of the tale. Hm.

'What then?' said Legolas. 'Would you have her speak openly to you of your death?'

'Yes, if she had naught else to say.'

Sgdjhfkhfk 💚

It was dreary and wearisome. Cold clammy winter still held sway in this forsaken country. The only green was the scum of livid weed on the dark greasy surfaces of the sullen waters. Dead grasses and rotting reeds loomed up in the mists like ragged shadows of long-forgotten summers.

Going in the imagery tag, the way with words extends to unpleasantness, too 😔

Often the grass was so high that it reached above the knees of the riders, and their steeds seemed to be swimming in a grey-green sea.

This too!

#suicide mention #sharpen your knives if you want me to cook with them oh my godddd 😭 #food for thought #lotrn301 #lotr newsletter #imagery

[skyeventide]

hi, if you are planning on writing the embalmed M.E. post, I'd be extremely interested! amazing topic

oh man okay I'll try to put it together. I'm gonna stick mostly to one single text for this one because, as a topic, memory-embalming is really large and I think you can construct a lot on like, solely the concept of memory and fading and preservation in the legendarium. and I’m not gonna try that lol

the quote where Tolkien uses the "embalming" word is letter 131. I should preface this by saying that more often than not I take great issue with the way jirt talks about his theology-adjacent Goodness and Good Choices, and I think it's pr... pro... pronghhh I don't wanna write that word lmao, please take it as me intending "it has non-straightforward issues that are worth a second look", not as anything else. it’s problematic, there I put it down lol academic gremlin brain won, for anyone who doesn’t wholly align with him philosophically. so I suppose anyone who generally agrees with jirt's own reckons will disagree with my takeaway here, but so are things. anyway, I'll try to explain why I called it a value judgement.

screenshots first:

I know this is a lot of text, but it's needed. so there's kind of a lot to unpack there but to strip it down to the relevant basics:

part of the reason why some of the exiles do not return is that they don't want to return as exiles, but remain where they have power and stand at the top of the hierarchy (this to me feels like, specifically, a very Galadriel motive — but that's yet another post lmao); they also want peace and bliss, and that is another motive, the same peace and bliss that exist in Valinor (and while the first motive I list, I believe, is directly consequential to the status of the first age's survivors, this second motive, having the peace and bliss of Valinor outside of Valinor, has been present and thematic since the speech of Feanor to the Noldor, and likely before that); they can't therefore abide the "fading" of the land, the way it changes with time, and endeavour to preserve it — embalm it (this becomes emblematic in one of the various versions of the creation of the Elessar, or one of the them: a stone that, if someone looks through it, shows things as they would be when healed, whole, and beautiful. in one of said versions, Celebrimbor gives this stone to Galadriel, who is saddened by the change of time. this is Celebrimbor of Gondolin, or perhaps Telerin Celebrimbor, but no matter the origin, the theme persists)(second parenthesis to point out how third-age Lothlórien, preserved by Nenya, is in all effects a land out of time, where ancient things aren't simply echoed but continue living, and where trees literally don't die. leaves change colour during autumn and winter, then fall down in spring when immediately new buds start growing); fourth motive is the healing of the land's hurts and its adornment.

the difference between healing the land and “embalming” it, I suppose, is the acceptance of its change under the sun, so the acceptance of time's passing, while healing and adorning it work in unison with said passing. of course the matter here is, the absence of decay is kind of Valinor’s whole thing. but we know, both from letter 156 and the Akallabêth, that Valinor isn’t inherently a blessed land and it doesn’t give immortality by virtue of being Valinor. in fact: “'for it is not the land of Manwe that makes its people deathless, but the Deathless that dwell therein have hallowed the land; and there you would but wither and grow weary the sooner, as moths in a light too strong and steadfast.” and letter 156: “for as emissaries from the Valar clearly inform him, the Blessed Realm does not confer immortality. The land is blessed because the Blessed live there, not vice versa, and the Valar are immortal by right and nature [...]”

so, really, it’s not the where that counts. jirt, I believe, makes it pretty obvious that it’s the why and how, and through whose counsel. what I think is identified here as the fault isn’t that preservation of the land isn’t possible and therefore should not be attempted (clearly it is), rather it’s the wish to create a paradise of their own, a desire that Sauron identifies and exploits. now, obviously I’m not trying to argue that Sauron is right or anything the like (even at early stages, and despite the partial overlap of motives, Sauron’s goals can’t really be called good, even though you might argue that they gain some form of internal conflict), or that in pursuit of a challenge to the divine harm becomes justifiable — this isn’t really about characters and more about jirt the man himself and his production. 

I just generally take issue with the idea that wanting a heaven of sorts, made with your own skills, which is within the realm of possibility, and by no one’s leave but your own, is inherently a bad thing, or that it must come with harm and corruption, and compromised motives. but in the narrative of these books, from an outside-of-text perspective, it doesn’t seem to be possible to issue the challenge that letter 131 talks about without also giving aid to evil (Sauron, earlier Morgoth) willingly ot unwillingly, without getting closer to “magic” and “machinery”, without it being written and interpreted under a lens of “embalming”, of refusal to let the world live its course. it isn’t possible to have that cake and eat it (yeah jirt kind of wrote that saying wrong lmao), which is identified as a corruptible weak point. 

it isn’t possible because this discontent, or this wish for independence, is in itself a seed that the story connects to evil and lies (Morgoth’s work in Valinor, and possibly earlier than that his discord); because it’s inherently linked to wanting the top-of-the-hierarchy authority granted by Middle Earth. and because the legendarium doesn’t truly leave room for any gods-challenging story that isn’t some form of taint and mistake, a Fall™ (challenges to Morgoth here don’t count, he is the fall; this is about Eru and the Valar).

(I think here it’s relevant to note that the elves not being in ME is elsewhere called out as a loss for Men, who do not have the “elder siblings” at hand who were supposed to teach them and guide them; as well as the fact that Eru in morgoth’s ring mentions, himself, that the elves have been “removed to Aman from the Middle Earth in which I set them”. so it’s not necessarily so straightforward in all aspects — but I think a discussion on that would be going a little too much beyond the scope of this tbh)

I believe my point is exemplified by a note in this same letter:

“preservation in reverent memory” here is not negatively judged, despite being effectively an antiquarian lore memorial to (”good”) tradition. Elrond also rebukes Sauron, and is not at all subjected to the same Ring-related test as Galadriel in LotR. and I think this is sort of the narrative point of the story, part of the greater (in good measure theological) thesis underlying it. and why I called it a value judgement. 

#quenta noldorinwa #ingoblingo #anyway... death of the author or lack thereof #not tagging any of this with them characters cause like #I don't particularly care to catch anyone who'd get offended by it #shrug emoji #answered. #JRR Tolkien

[saurons-pr-department]

Hi! 14, 18 and 23 for the ask game?

14. Saddest moment in The Silmarillion? Probably Fingon's death. Just moments before (for the reader anyway) he's so hopeful and then he ends up getting one of the more graphic deaths in the book. Like, I don't think anyone else's death is really described, so Fingon's death always really stands out to me.

(Actually, the other death that really stands out to me is Beleg's death. Not because it's his friend who he's trying to rescue who accidentally kills him. Oh no. It's because the first time I was reading the book I remember looking up from my page and saying to myself "I really like this Beleg guy" and then I looked back down, turned the page and straight away he died! T_T)

18. What is the hardest name or word for you to pronounce? Cuiviénen is the first thing that springs to mind. There's probably plenty more, but this one definitely is a big "Why so many vowels in one place Jirt? Why??". Though, I think I've gotten the hang of this one now, thanks to The Prancing Pony Podcast, but if I had never heard them say it, I'd still be completely lost!

23. Do you have pity for Melkor? Oh yes! And it's probably come through in some of the posts I make about him from time to time. I'll admit, I'm not a big "His daddy was so mean to him! He just wanted to sing his own song!" type person. I'm very much aware that Melkor's intentions were not pure. It wasn't really a case of him wanting to be an individual and not being allowed to. We're told that he changed what he was singing because he wanted to make himself more important. We're told he wanted to go to Arda and be it's King because he wanted people to serve him and call him lord. It's not really a case of a misunderstanding.

At the same time, I feel for him in that Eru is the one who made him so powerful and gave him some of the talents and knowledge of each of the others, yet at no point do we really see Eru directing him in how to use this or what this might mean. Also, seeing as he doesn't seem to be capable of making things from scratch like the other Valar, but instead can alter what's already there, I often think that that was his purpose, that he's there to bring in variation, diversify things, to build on what the others make. He also seems to have brought cycles to the world. The Valar were making things to stay the same all the time, which would be great for Elves, but everyone else would probably be bored out of their minds! He created rain, which anyone who has ever lived through a sudden lack of it will tell you, is very very important to life on Earth. Volcanos appear to be his 'fault', and while potentially deadly, they also give greatly fertile land, a variety of types of rocks/glass and they create more land as they go! (Volcanos are very cool and we respect them in this house).

Okay, I think I'm getting a bit rambley, but yeah, I think Melkor had a lot of potential to genuinely be a very important force for good, but Eru never seemed to properly instruct him, nor was his talent for altering ever understood for the usefulness it could have had (admittedly, he did use it to corrupt things out of spite which really wasn't helping his case....).

I'm also someone who gets really annoyed with Eru's whole "At the end of the world you'll all understand your position in the music better. Yeah, you'll all suffer horribly in the meantime due to your lack of understanding, but that's just something I personally I'm willing to sit through" thing...

Silm Asks

#answered asks #ask games #niphredilien #silmarillion #fingon #beleg #melkor #morgoth #you will always find eru salt on this blog #*always*

[unicyclehippo]

I saw your last post (different anon, hi!) and now am very curious about what stories you recommend? I love your writing as well and would love to see what you think is good writing/what inspires you! If it isn’t too much trouble!

i just reblogged that post with the last two books i read but here are some i love & look to for inspiration whether that be for story or style or pace. basically i pick a couple books i think would be Inspiring or nice to have in my work space & plop then on the table beside me. some books i have had in my general vicinity as i write:

- earthsea quartet, ursula k. leguin

- green rider & series, kristen britain (i haven’t finished the series yet)

- the name of the wind, patrick rothfuss (haven’t started the second book, pls do Not spoil for me)

- eye of the world, the wheel of time series, robert jordan (again not finished the series but I’m close pls don’t spoil)

- skulduggery pleasant, derek landy (this is rote by now but no spoilers i haven’t finished)

- spooks apprentice, joseph delaney (it’s been many many years since i read this but i still have the first book in the series to thumb through now & again)

- sometimes i put a tamora pierce on the table

- sabriel, garth nix (no i haven’t finished the series)

- gideon the ninth, tamsin muir

- fireborn, toby forward

- fellowship of the ring, mister jirt tolkien (a series i have finished!)

im sure there are more but off the top of my head this is my most recent dance partners