Recent content by Christopher Bartlett

I know that we are extremely cautious about asking why Tolkien does the things he does, but I am left wondering why he included the lovely, tragic Earendil poem, or if I want to reframe that question in Professor Olsen's more preferred style, what does it accomplish to include the Earendil poem...

I've had a bit of a change of mind about how to read the interaction between Bilbo and Frodo in the Hall of Fire, when Bilbo asks to "peep" at the Ring. I think we decided that the transformation that Frodo saw was entirely a product of the shadow on his heart that is the influence of the Ring...

First of all, I really think this is an excellent question and way to think about all this. If your thinking is correct, than extending the thought, the thin and stretched feeling is a reflection that the order of things set by the One, in which the ability to depart Arda is the Gift of...

I see the thinking here, but II also see the difference in the character of that resistence. When Gollum's attack on Mt. Doom spurs Frodo's flagging spirit into sudden fury, there is nothing elevated about how he fights. By contrast, at the Ford, Frodo's flickering courage expresses itself...

To add some more evidence that the WK didn't need Frodo to don the Ring to wound him, consider that he was able to wound Eowyn during their climactic battle. We're never told whether the mace he uses has any particular magic though, so it may be a different circumstance, and of course, this...

On a more elevated note, our discussions of the tra-la-la-lally phenomenon lead me to think of elves as a people who are very good at mindfulness, and appreciating the beauty in every moment of life, whether that is the beauty of a gorgeous sunset, the radiance of a star, or the beauty of a...

Wait, did we just say that Elvish poop doesn't stink? *smile*

I think we have also established that, while the scene at the Ford takes place in late afternoon, it's not sunset yet. The description of coming out of the cutting into what looked like a gate of light shows that there is sufficient daylight to create this effect. Had they arrived at or after...