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[Oberstein]

In the books I think it's just an insignia.

I've heard some adoptions or theories that claim Barad Dur is the actual body of Sauron.

From memory, it seems to me that Sauron can still have a "physical" body - in fact, he tortures Gollum personally. Moreover, it's mentioned that Sauron only has four fingers during the torture scene.

However, I don't mind certain "visual" liberties, given that there's no choice when it comes to adaptation - you have to fill in the blanks.

By the way, Weta did an absolutely remarkable job, and it's a good thing they're going to work on the films. Even if they did give plate armor to the soldiers of Gondor and Tolkien never mentioned it... oh well.

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

- Faramir doesnt try to take Frodo to Gondor

- Frodo doesnt turn on Sam before Shelob's cave.

I hated these two changes in the movies. These absolutely destroyed the mood of those scenes, and completely betrayed the characters. Faramir’s actions soured me on The Two Towers the first time I saw the movie. It took me years to want to see it again, while I could watch Fellowship just anytime.

 

[gaming_again]

My mom read it to me and my brother when we were kids, there's no better version than that.
I remember vividly being in the car going to Spain on holidays, my dad driving, my mom singing the elf song that Legolas sang while sending Boromir remains towards the waterfalls. She'd always stop halfway through to prevent herself from crying (unsuccessfully).
There's two things im pretty sure i'll keep with me to the grave, this memory and Sonic up down left right A+START level select code.

That being said, even with my experience i cannot even begin to fathom the degree of autistic love OP has for LOTR, and i love it !
I hope you read it 20 times more and still enjoy it as much as you do

What an amazing memory.

 

[NecrosaroIII]

I was reading the Letters of JRR Tolkien and one caught my attention that really reframed the elves for me. I had never thought about it like that before.

The Noldor elves in Middle earth during the Third Age are sad because they know their time is passing and that they need to return to Valinor. Tolkien in his letter frames this sorrow as steaming from pride. In Middle-earth, they are at the top of the hierarchy. They're exhaulted, viewed as higher and honored. But in Valinor, they'd be at the bottom of the totem pole, below the Maiar and Valar. And so the Valar are saddened from their pending loss of privilege.

 

[Oberstein]

I was reading the Letters of JRR Tolkien and one caught my attention that really reframed the elves for me. I had never thought about it like that before.

The Noldor elves in Middle earth during the Third Age are sad because they know their time is passing and that they need to return to Valinor. Tolkien in his letter frames this sorrow as steaming from pride. In Middle-earth, they are at the top of the hierarchy. They're exhaulted, viewed as higher and honored. But in Valinor, they'd be at the bottom of the totem pole, below the Maiar and Valar. And so the Valar are saddened from their pending loss of privilege.

Is this from the new edition of the letters? I haven't read them all yet, but I need to catch up.

Reading The Fall of Gondolin at the moment, there are passages where the Noldor (in Gondlin) are haunted both by their old home of Valinor but also the desire to explore new lands. I guess in the Third Age, they learned to love this position of privilege.

 

[NecrosaroIII]

Is this from the new edition of the letters? I haven't read them all yet, but I need to catch up.

Reading The Fall of Gondolin at the moment, there are passages where the Noldor (in Gondlin) are haunted both by their old home of Valinor but also the desire to explore new lands. I guess in the Third Age, they learned to love this position of privilege.

Yeah, I have the updated edition. I cant remember if the letter was one of the added ones though (which there is a lot). The new letters are indicated by letters.

 

[NecrosaroIII]

I recently completed "The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien," a collection of over 300 letters written between 1910 and 1973. The collection has a somber tone. Early letters reflect Tolkien's youthful vibrancy and idealism, which fade following the deaths of his childhood friends in WWI, leading to a growing bitterness.

The 1940s letters stand out, written during the time he was creating most of "The Lord of the Rings." These letters reveal the challenges he faced, including the fears over his son Christopher’s safety during WWII. They depict a highly intelligent, articulate man, steadfast in his beliefs yet tinged with insecurity. Despite this, there is a playful and humorous side to some of his letters.

Tolkien's devout Catholicism profoundly influenced both his life and work. It shaped his moral outlook, the themes of good versus evil in his stories, and his belief in providence. He viewed his creative work as a reflection of divine creation, a concept he called sub-creation. His faith guided his personal decisions, relationships, and sense of duty. In his letters, he often discussed the significance of faith. Some of the best letters are with other Catholics in which he tries to reconcile the pagan elements of LotR with his faith.

A notable flaw in the collection is the scarcity of letters to his close friend, C.S. Lewis. There is only one, an unsent draft offering criticism of a Lewis book. More insight into their relationship would have been valuable, especially since it became strained towards the end. Tolkien expressed regret over their estrangement, and after Lewis's death, he likened it to an axe blow to the roots of a tree, acknowledging that he might not have finished "The Lord of the Rings" without Lewis.

From the 1960s onwards, the letters take on a more depressing tone. Tolkien appears increasingly unhappy, dealing with health issues and resenting the fame "The Lord of the Rings" brought him, especially the counterculture's embrace of his work and the sudden admiration from former colleagues who had previously mocked him. He viewed his fame as a hindrance to completing "The Silmarillion," leading to fear, panic, and eventually a grim acceptance that he wouldn't finish it. His writing became more direct and lifeless.

 

[jason10mm]

There is a 3 volume collection of poetry coming next.

 

[NecrosaroIII]

That's a lot of poems. The best one is this one from the hobbit:

Fifteen birds in five fir-trees,
their feathers were fanned in a fiery breeze!
what funny little birds, they had no wings!
Oh what shall we do with the funny little things?
Roast 'em alive, or stew them in a pot;
fry them, boil them and eat them hot?

Burn, burn tree and fern!
Shrivel and scorch! A fizzling torch
To light the night for our delight,
Ya hey!

Bake and toast 'em, fry and roast ’em!
till beards blaze, and eyes glaze;
till hair smells and skins crack,
fat melts, and bones black
in cinders lie
beneath the sky!
So dwarves shall die,
and light the night for our delight,
Ya hey!
Ya-harri-hey!
Ya hoy!

 

[jason10mm]

That's a lot of poems. The best one is this one from the hobbit:

Yeah, JRR was nothing if not prolific. Thankfulky he and others kept all those letters and his son devoted himself to archiving all the work. I'm not sure JRR would be nearly as revered today had his son not been an AMAZING steward of his legacy.

The letter thing is such a look back in time, we only have those views on a few authors that were either big time writers or hoarders of correspondence. I've no doubt we will see books of just emails, and increasingly tweets, as the replacement for the long form hand written letter for certain authors. Or transcripts from podcasts, there are already some.

 

[NecrosaroIII]

Yeah, JRR was nothing if not prolific. Thankfulky he and others kept all those letters and his son devoted himself to archiving all the work. I'm not sure JRR would be nearly as revered today had his son not been an AMAZING steward of his legacy.

Christopher was indeed a gift that we did not deserve. "Letters" really provides a keen insight into how important a role he had, not just as an archivist and editor. He was heavily involved in the writing of LotR itself, being a sounding board for his father's ideas as well as map artist.