The Tolkien Forum
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Welcome to The Tolkien Forum. First published in 1954-5, Tolkien's peerless masterpiece recounts the 'Downfall of the Lord of the Rings, and the Return of the King,' has been declared to be among "the greatest works of imaginative fiction of the 20th century."
The Tolkien Forum
1w ago
Is Frodo likely to have died soon after arriving in Valinor, given that Tolkien suggests mortals age faster there and Frodo sought healing before death?
Doesn't this imply that Frodo's final journey to the West was intended as his end, making it more tragic ..read more
The Tolkien Forum
1w ago
The whole Quest was literally Teetering on the very tip of a knife, more specifically the tip of the blade of Sam, who could have doomed middle-earth by slaying Gollum on the slopes of Mount Doom. Thereby dooming all the world. I know Tolkien made it a point to chide Sam for ruining Gollum's *one* chance of redemption but he also made it a point to congratulate Sam with brisk anxiety for sparing him as Frodo entered the Sammath Naur.
"This dreadful chance!'...
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The Tolkien Forum
2w ago
I was recently listening to a Lord of the Rings audiobook that I found (side note: it's read by Phil Dragash and has Howard Shore's music from the trilogy, making it absolutely epic), and I found something that -- no matter how I spin it -- I cannot seem to explain. We are told throughout the book that "as Mr. Baggins was generous with his money, most people were willing to forgive him his oddities and his good fortune," and that "Mr. Bilbo is free with his money, and there seems no lack of...
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The Tolkien Forum
2w ago
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First page of 'Fog on the Barrow Downs':
'...either in his dreams or out of them, he could not tell which, Frodo heard a sweet singing running in his mind: a song that seemed to come like a pale light behind a grey rain-curtain, and growing stronger to turn the veil all to glass and silver, until at last it was rolled back, and a far green country opened before him under a swift sunrise.'
The last ship...
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The Tolkien Forum
3w ago
This thread is for those like me who have read LotR so many times I have lost count. Why do we keep reading it over and over? I know it is a great book, but there are many great books. I have read many of them, some two or three times, but none like LotR. I have asked myself why for many years. I think for me two reasons. First, Middle Earth itself. The land. The plants. I have been there and want to go back. Second, the characters. They are ny friends and I want to see them...
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The Tolkien Forum
1M ago
Well a certain Lady Elf at least
"the Lady Galadriel is above all the jewels that lie beneath the earth!"
"it is enough for me to have seen the Lady of the Galadhrim, and to have heard her gentle words
and
"to name a single strand of your hair, which surpasses the gold of the earth as the stars surpass the gems of the mine"
He seems to know some good chat up lines!
Was Gimli a bit of a Dwarf Casanova on the quiet ..read more
The Tolkien Forum
1M ago
From The Bridge of Khazad-Dum
The implication is that Balrogs can speak but Durin's Bane may have been the strong silent type. Is there any spoken words recorded for a Balrog in Tolkien's works or in Christopher's Tolkien's writings?
Do we know if Durin's Bane had detected the Ring or was he only acting like the fee fi fo fum giant - objecting to his claimed realm being invaded?
Further, Sauron had sent orcs into Moria. Was he planning to get the orcs to mine for mithril ..read more
The Tolkien Forum
1M ago
1.Both quests led to a mountain
in The Hobbit, the goal is the Lonely Mountain.
In Lotr, the goal is mount doom.
Both are mountains, albeit Orodruin being a Volcano.
2.Both quests had a fire in the mountains
In the case of The Hobbit, it was Smaug.
In Lotr it was the fire of the cracks of doom.
3.Gandalf disappeared and reappeared in both quests.
Funnily Enough. ....
THE HOBBIT = Gandalf starts out with the Company and leaves them in mirkwood. He then reappears...
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The Tolkien Forum
1M ago
I am slower on the uptake than some, so this comment may be old hat, too many of you. Have all of you noticed that Tom Bombadil‘s speeches, even those written in pros, are almost all written in the same meter as his songs? For example, his first speech, if written in verse: whoa! Whoa! Steady there, now my little fellows/where do you are going to, puffing like a pillows?/. What’s the matter here then? Do you know who I am?/ I’m Tom Bombadil. Tell me, what’s your trouble./ Tom’s in a hurry...
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