Recent content by Matt DeForrest

My reading leans more on the usage of “but” where its synonyms would be “yet” and/or “however”. In these cases, there is a shift from what went before but it is less a negation or reversal and more additive: “If you look at things this way, however, you will see…” = “But if you look at things...

I finally found my point of confusion about the echoes of Irish and English usage of this phrase. But (conjunction) all-the-while (a measure of time ). As such, the phrase all-the-while is a signal that this activity would modify the sit and think to become something capturing the present...

While the Maiar are not explicitly identified in The Lord of the Rings, there are implications of them in Saruman’s death at the end of the book and Gandalf’s reincarnation. There are two things I would note here that may be of interest, as it applies to the Maiar. The first is that the...

When I was thumbing through the section we are about to cover tonight (looking to see if we are likely to hit one of my favorite parts of the entire book), I noticed something — something we are unlikely to catch in class. I think Tolkien has included, via the typesetting, long, pregnant or...

Here are my thoughts, now that I have caught up after falling asleep in class last night. 1) Most readers have no reason to question Elrond (We, I would argue, are a special case.). Elrond’s role is to know things and advise and his fame for this is so great that it eclipses his role — even in...

I got a call from my family last week (a happy, if unexpected, virtual gathering) so missed the class discussion. I did notice one word (emphasis added) we missed in the discussion of the first slide: ”They took me and they set me alone on the pinnacle of Orthanc....” The they here, mentioned...

I’ll quickly state two items before getting to my main point: I think it’s supposed to be Faramir’s mission. I also think that “It would have been different but not better,” might apply to some of the discussion. One thing we should watch out for are moments when Boromir influences the course...

After reading some of the responses here in the forums, I wanted To go back and check something about the implied population of the north. Perhaps I missed something somewhere, but I wanted to call attention to Aragorn’s phrasing here: “But my home, such as I have, is in the North. For here the...

The one thing I would hesitate about is the assumption that everyone treats and looks at Bilbo as a grumpy old man (a description that can equally be applied to Gandalf). in a little bit, we will see Borodin taken aback by how much respect everyone in the Council has of Bilbo when he volunteers...

I’d add one quick observation: One lingers in a doorway at the end of a meeting or a party when waiting to have a quick word with someone before departing. Part of the sense, to my eye, is that the light is waiting and not departing as it should (With the implication, of course, that the...

I wanted to get down a couple thoughts about the poem from last night’s session — the one I logged off with two minutes to go (Had I but known!): 1) We have been referring to this metrical scheme as Elven. Given that this portent comes from the West, would it be more appropriate to think of it...

I was looking at one of the many composite maps online — ones that pulled material from works like Unfinished Tales. The Swanfleet appear on one of Christopher Tolkien’s maps: (http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/File:Christopher_Tolkien_-_The_West_of_Middle-earth.png)

My guess is that a warrior of Gondor searching the region would not have been difficult for elven eyes to spot (considering what Legolas can see when hunting the Uruk Hai). I suspect the equivalent of the Coast Watch of Rivendell came up and challenged him in a scene similar to that found in...

Looking at the maps, Boromir may have crossed the Greyflood to avoid the swamps of Swanfleet. From there, he may have marched north along the western bank of the Greyflood looking for the Last Bridge and/or the road to Amon Sul. That, although likely slower going in places than the Greenway...

First and foremost, of course, is that the readers need to learn all of this somehow. There are also several items that would not have been commonly known that are critical to the wider issue: 1) Sauron has been trying to convince the Dwarves of Erebor to come over to his side. That is...