#Men in Middle-earth

[courseyoulovemeyoudontknowme]

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014, Peter Jackson)

03/07/2024

[mmelolabelle]

Adar had to die because if he, Gil-Galad and Elendil were all in Middle Earth at the same time there would have simply been too much Dad Energy ™️ for the populace to handle. They would have defeated Sauron through sheer “I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed” force alone.

[theworldsoftolkein]

[eloquentsisyphianturmoil]

Gandalf said ‘do not offer me that’, Galadriel said ‘I would be a queen, great and terrible,’ but Elrond said ‘get that the fuck away from me’ and this is nonsensical.

The other keepers of the elven rings were most challenged by the One, why not Elrond? Is his struggle merely hidden? Is it his Maia blood? Is it simply his mixed blood? Is that why Aragorn withstood, too?

Canonically the race of men are most easily corrupted, yet Elrond half-elven, who is almost 40% man, doesn’t notably bat an eyelash. Why?

[from-the-coffee-shop-in-edoras]

*Whiniest voice* Why can’t I be someone who only looks hotter the sweatier and less showered I am?

[fag4arabs]

Look at you! On your knees, waiting for cock. Such a pathetic fag, aren’t you? Nothing more then a whore! Hungry for Cum. You want Cock? Let me fuck your throat. Need to empty my balls now. Deep in your throat. Come here fag! Smell my balls first! Take the real masculinity deep in. Let me fuck you after that! And don’t forget to thank me

[izel-scribbles]

perhaps oscar and/or noel in a dress to match john and arthur ?

(hope you're having a great day btw !! love your work <3)

thank you!!! here's noel in a dress

i can't draw oscar for shit 👍

[mightnotfeelrealbutitsok]

all of Aragorn and Arwen's love story in the ROTK appendices is so beautiful... first meeting in the woods of Rivendell at sunset?? Aragorn singing the Lay of Luthien and Arwen looking just like Luthien and him crying Tinuviel just as Beren did???? meeting years later in Lothlorien and Aragorn dressing up nice enough to make Arwen fall in love this time?? (Galadriel the wingwoman. she so set that up.) walking together barefoot in the elanor and niphredil?????? Arwen making the standard as a symbol of her faith that Aragorn will become king???? (and having this sent to him as a gift/message during the course of LOTR) Once Aragorn dies Arwen going to live alone in the waning Lothlorien (where they fell in love, remember) until she dies on the hill where she chose their love over immortality?????

[velvet4510]

Despite the conservative sides of his viewpoints that have been written about time and again, we really must give Tolkien some credit for the unique embrace of diversity that he does provide at the heart of LOTR.

Three times across history (four if the legend of the ancestors of Dol Amroth’s princes is true), a Man and an Elf fall in love and break the rules of Elven culture to be together.

Four Hobbits, two Men, an Elf, a Dwarf, and a Maia - a total of five different races - come together from completely different walks of life, form a Fellowship, and become a family. They each share pieces of their own culture with the others, and the others embrace those pieces.

When a Dwarf is treated with discrimination by Elves, the rest of the Fellowship stand up for him and insist on being treated the same way he is (i.e. blindfolded), and he and the Elf of the Fellowship break through the barriers of cultural prejudice and build an unbreakable friendship.

A Man sacrifices his life to save two Hobbits.

A Man, an Elf, and a Dwarf forsake all other possible tasks and run on foot for hundreds and hundreds of miles on a rescue mission for two Hobbits.

The teamwork of two Hobbits and a group of Ents overpower their mutual enemy and turn the tide of a war.

A Man provides two Hobbits with encouragement as well as extra supplies which end up helping them survive the rest of their journey.

A Hobbit finds a father figure in an elderly Man.

The teamwork of a Woman and a Hobbit brings about the death of an evil it was said could never be killed.

The teamwork of a Maia and a Hobbit save a Man’s life.

An Elf and a Dwarf do not hesitate to follow a Man down a dark and dangerous pathway.

The combined forces of Men, an Elf, a Dwarf, and a Hobbit take on a hopeless battle merely to buy time for two other Hobbits to complete their mission.

A Man bows to two Hobbits at his own coronation.

A lost kingdom is restored by a dynasty begun by a Man/Elf couple.

A Maia offers a special gift to two wounded Hobbits and personally escorts them to a place where they will finally find peace.

Two Hobbits, eventually followed by a third, leave their homeland behind and build a new, beautiful life among Elven culture, into which they are accepted with open arms.

An Elf resists the “irresistible” call of the Sea to stand by his mortal friend, a Man, for as long as his friend lives.

A Hobbit names his son after a Man whom he has befriended.

A young Hobbit girl is honored by an Elf queen and later names her children after honorable figures of Elven history.

Two elderly Hobbits are warmly welcomed into a city of Men to live out their last years, and the ruler of these Men requests to be buried beside them.

The Elf/Dwarf odd-couple duo break the rules one last time and sail off together to a place where Dwarves are usually not allowed to be … a place where they can reunite with their other surviving friends, two Hobbits and a Maia.

Middle-Earth is a melting pot of love and acceptance across cultures and races. Tolkien may not have covered all the bases in his exploration of diversity, but by golly, did he cover a lot of them. He wrote a story in which people of completely different backgrounds form unbreakable bonds that change the fate of the world for the better.

[anghraine]

Hi! Can you explain what really the power of foresight was with Faramir? I read the books earlier this year and I don't really quite understand it. He could predict the future? Like he would see it in his dreams? But how did he found out from Gollum that he was taking frodo and sam to cirith ungol and that he had committed murder before?

No problem, it's one of my favorite topics!

The concise explanation: I think Faramir's foresight/aftersight in terms of visions is a largely separate "power" from his ability to bring his strength of mind and will to bear on other people and animals, and to resist outside influence. The visions seem more a matter of broad sensitivity, something Faramir doesn't appear to have much if any control over. The second power is (in our terms) essentially a form of direct telepathy, limited in some ways but still very powerful, and I think this second ability is what Faramir is using with Gollum.

The really long version:

In my opinion, Faramir (or Denethor, Aragorn, etc) doesn't necessarily read thoughts like a book, particularly not with a mind as resistant as Gollum's. Faramir describes Gollum's mind in particular as dark and closed, it seems unusually so—

"There are locked doors and closed windows in your mind, and dark rooms behind them," said Faramir.

Still, Gollum is unable to entirely block Faramir's abilities. In LOTR, it does not seem that Gollum can fully block powerful mental abilities such as Faramir's, though his toughness and hostility does limit what Faramir can see. (Unfinished Tales, incidentally, suggests iirc that Denethor's combination of "great mental powers" and his right to use the Anor-stone allowed him to telepathically get the better of Saruman through their palantíri, a similar but greater feat.) I imagine that this is roughly similar to, but scaled down from, Galadriel's telepathic inquiries of even someone as reluctant to have her in his mind as Boromir, given that Faramir is able to still see some things in Gollum's mind, if with more difficulty than usual.

(WRT Boromir ... ngl, if I was the human buffer between Denethor and Faramir, I would also not be thrilled about sudden telepathic intrusions from basically anyone, much less someone I had little reason to trust.)

Disclaimer: a few years after LOTR's publication, Tolkien tried to systematize how this vague mystical telepathy stuff really works. One idea he had among many, iirc, was that no unwilling person's mind could be "read" the ways that Gollum's is throughout LOTR. IMO that can't really be reconciled w/ numerous significant interactions in LOTR where resistance to mental intrusion or domination is clearly variable between individuals and affected by personal qualities like strength of will, basic resilience, the effort put into opposition, supernatural powers, etc. And these attempts at resistance are unsuccessful or only partially successful on many occasions in LOTR (the Mouth of Sauron, for one example, is a Númenórean sorcerer in the book who can't really contend with Aragorn on a telepathic level). So I, personally, tend to avoid using the terminology and rationales from that later systematized explanation when discussing LOTR. And in general, I think Tolkien's later attempts to convert the mystical, mysterious wonder of Middle-earth into something more "hard magic" or even scientific was a failed idea on a par with Teleporno. Others differ!

In any case, when Gollum "unwillingly" looks at Faramir while being questioned, the creepy light drains from his eyes and he shrinks back while Faramir concludes he's being honest on that specific occasion. Gollum experiences physical pain when he does try to lie to Faramir—

"It is called Cirith Ungol." Gollum hissed sharply and began muttering to himself. "Is not that its name?" said Faramir turning to him. "No!" said Gollum, and then he squealed, as if something had stabbed him.

I don't think this is a deliberate punishment from Faramir—that wouldn't be like him at all—and I don't think it's the Ring, but simply a natural consequence of what Faramir is. Later, Gandalf says of Faramir's father:

"He can perceive, if he bends his will thither, much of what is passing in the minds of men ... It is difficult to deceive him, and dangerous to try."

So, IMO, Faramir's quick realization that Gollum is a murderer doesn't come from any vision of the future or past involving Gollum—that is, it's not a deduction from some event he's seen. Faramir does not literally foresee Gollum's trick at Cirith Ungol. His warning would be more specific in that case, I think. What he sees seems to be less detailed but more direct and, well, mystical. Faramir likely doesn't know who exactly Gollum murdered or why or what any of the circumstances were. Rather, Gollum's murderousness and malice are visible conditions of his soul to Faramir's sight. Faramir doesn't foresee the particulars of Gollum's betrayal—but he can see in Gollum's mind that he is keeping something back. Faramir says of Gollum:

"I do not think you are holden to go to Cirith Ungol, of which he has told you less than he knows. That much I perceived clearly in his mind."

Meanwhile, in a letter written shortly before the publication of LOTR, Tolkien said of Faramir's ancestors:

They became thus in appearance, and even in powers of mind, hardly distinguishable from the Elves

So these abilities aren't that strange in that context. Faramir by chance (or "chance") is, like his father, almost purely an ancient Númenórean type despite living millennia after the destruction of Númenor (that destruction is the main reason "Númenóreanness" is fading throughout the age Faramir lives in). Even less ultra-Númenórean members of Denethor's family are still consistently inheriting characteristics from their distant ancestor Elros, Elrond's brother, while Faramir and Denethor independently strike Sam and Pippin as peculiarly akin to Gandalf, a literal Maia like their ancestress Melian:

“Ah well, sir,” said Sam, “you [Faramir] said my master had an elvish air; and that was good and true. But I can say this: you have an air too, sir, that reminds me of, of—well, Gandalf, of wizards.”

He [Denethor] turned his dark eyes on Gandalf, and now Pippin saw a likeness between the two, and he felt the strain between them, almost as if he saw a line of smouldering fire drawn from eye to eye, that might suddenly burst into flame.

Meanwhile, Faramir's mother's family is believed to be part Elvish, a belief immediately confirmed when Legolas meets Faramir's maternal uncle:

At length they came to the Prince Imrahil, and Legolas looked at him and bowed low; for he saw that here indeed was one who had elven-blood in his veins. "Hail, lord!" he [Legolas] said. "It is long since the people of Nimrodel left the woodlands of Lórien, and yet still one may see that not all sailed from Amroth’s haven west over water."

In addition to that, Faramir's men believe he's under some specific personal blessing or charm as well as the Númenórean/Elvish/Maia throwback qualities. It's also mentioned by different groups of soldiers that Faramir can exercise some power of command over animals as well as people. Beregond describes Faramir getting his horse to run towards five Nazgûl in real time:

"They will make the Gate. No! the horses are running mad. Look! the men are thrown; they are running on foot. No, one is still up, but he rides back to the others. That will be the Captain [Faramir]: he can master both beasts and men."

Then, during the later retreat of Faramir's men across the Pelennor:

At last, less than a mile from the City, a more ordered mass of men came into view, marching not running, still holding together. The watchers held their breath. "Faramir must be there," they said. "He can govern man and beast."

Tolkien said of the ancient Númenóreans:

But nearly all women could ride horses, treating them honourably, and housing them more nobly than any other of their domestic animals. The stables of a great man were often as large and as fair to look upon as his own house. Both men and women rode horses for pleasure … and in ceremony of state both men and women of rank, even queens, would ride, on horseback amid their escorts or retinues … The Númenóreans trained their horses to hear and understand calls (by voice or whistling) from great distances; and also, where there was great love between men or women and their favorite steeds, they could (or so it is said in ancient tales) summon them at need by their thought alone. So it was also with their dogs.

Likely the same Númenórean abilities were used for evil by Queen Berúthiel against her cats. In an interview with Daphne Castell, Tolkien said:

She [Berúthiel] was one of these people who loathe cats, but cats will jump on them and follow them about—you know how sometimes they pursue people who hate them? I have a friend like that. I’m afraid she took to torturing them for amusement, but she kept some and used them—trained them to go on evil errands by night, to spy on her enemies or terrify them.

The more formal version of the Berúthiel lore recurs in Unfinished Tales:

She had nine black cats and one white, her slaves, with whom she conversed, or read their memories, setting them to discover all the dark secrets of Gondor, so that she knew those things "that men wish most to keep hidden," setting the white cat to spy upon the black, and tormenting them.

Faramir, by contrast, has a strong aversion to harming/killing animals for any reason other than genuine need, but apparently quite similar basic abilities. He typically uses these abilities to try to compassionately understand other people or gather necessary information, rather than for domination or provoking fear. Even so, Faramir does seem to use his mental powers pretty much all the time with no attempt to conceal what he's doing—he says some pretty outlandish things to Frodo and Sam as if they're very ordinary, but it doesn't seem that most people he knows can do all these things. This stuff is ordinary to him because it flows out of his fundamental being, not because it's common.

It's not clear how much fine control he has, interestingly. This is more headcanon perhaps, but I don't feel like it's completely under his control, even while it's much more controlled than things like Faramir's vision of Boromir's funeral boat, his frequent, repeated dreams of Númenor's destruction, the Ring riddle dream he received multiple times, or even his suspiciously specific "guess" of what passed between Galadriel and Boromir in Lothlórien. Yet his more everyday mental powers do seem to involve some measure of deliberate effort in a lot of the instances we see, given the differing degrees of difficulty and strain we see with the powers he and Denethor exhibit more frequently and consistently.

This is is also interesting wrt Éowyn, because Tolkien describes Faramir's perception of her as "clear sight" (which I suspect is just Tolkien's preferred parlance for "clairvoyance"). Faramir perceives a lot more of what's going on with Éowyn than I think he had materially observable evidence for—but does not see everything that's going on with her by any means. He seems to understand basically everything about her feelings for Aragorn, more than Éowyn herself does, but does not know if she loves him [Faramir].

I'm guessing that it's more difficult to "see" this way when it's directly personal (one of the tragedies of his and Denethor's relationship is that their shared mental powers do not enable either to realize how much they love each other). But it also doesn't seem like he's trying to overcome Éowyn's mental resistance the way he was with Gollum, and possibly Frodo and Sam—he does handle it a bit differently when it's not a matter of critical military urgency. With Éowyn, he sees what his abilities make clear to him, is interested enough to seek out Merry (and also perceive more than Merry says, because Faramir has never been a normal person one day in his life) but doesn't seem to really push either of them.

So I tend to imagine that with someone like Faramir, Denethor, Aragorn etc, we're usually seeing a relatively passive, natural form of low-grade telepathy that simply derives from their fundamental nature and personalities (as we see in Faramir with Éowyn, possibly Faramir with Aragorn). That can be kicked up to more powerful, forceful telepathy via active exertion of the will (as described by Gandalf wrt Denethor's ability to "bend[] his will thither" to see what passes in others' minds, and seen with Faramir vs Gollum, Aragorn vs the Mouth of Sauron, more subtly Faramir vs Denethor). At a high point of strain this can be done very aggressively or defensively (Denethor vs Gandalf, Denethor vs Saruman, Denethor vs Sauron seriously is there a Maia that man won't fight, Faramir vs the Black Breath given his completely unique symptoms that Aragorn attributes to his "staunch will", possibly Aragorn vs the Black Breath in a healing capacity...).

Anyway, I hope these massive walls of text are helpful or interesting! Thanks for the ask :)

[musingsinmiddleearth]

Let us speak momentarily of an obscure character whose appearance in the Silmarillion was brief and short: Amlach son of Imlach, who argued among the Edain as to the merit of their alliance with the Eldar as part of the leaguer against Morgoth.

In the opening of his appearance to us (the audience), we see him as a skeptical figure. Amlach rightfully questions the relevance of the Valar to the race of Men; they have not seen the Valar, have not seen the West, have no proof of Aman but the hearsay of the Eldar. Frankly the Eldar themselves could have afforded to be a little more skeptical, rather than marching across the world at the whims of a big guy with a big horn and a big horse.

The underlying question that Amlach argues is whether or not the Edain can take faith in the word of the Eldar without proof. He takes some pride in the confidence that he can only decisively believe what he sees with his own eyes and in doing so he trusts his vision to be absolute.

But a perceptive counter is immediately proposed to this: that to have been distrustful of the words of the Eldar is alone proof that a Great Foe exists. If there was no evil in the world, and there was no dishonesty, there would be absolutely no reason not to believe hearsay. That hearsay is at all unreliable or untrustworthy, ever, demands the existence of a Great Foe.

And Amlach, to his credit, agrees! And dissents from his opening doubt, recognising that there must be some evil at play, and leaves and searches for a place where he may do some service in the combat of this evil.

Wondrously, he finds Maedhros: sentimental, tormented Maedhros who perhaps of all the Eldar (and all the living things in the world at that time) had seen evil, had experienced evil done to him personally, and knew the cost of deception. Amlach searching for the identity of evil would have seen it upon Maedhros' victimhood and been contented that Morgoth lived up to his name, Dark Foe of the World.

[onesizedgirl]

Naur because why the costumes in r*p are so horrendous good god what was the budget? Three peas and a leather boot?😭

[the-daily-male]

Today's daily male is Thorin Oakenshield from The Hobbit!

for @the-saddest-clown

[theworldsoftolkein]

Aragorn - by Fatharani Yasmin

[lamemaster]

Matters of Stamina (Glorfindel x Reader)

Pairing: Glofindel x Reader

Genre: fluff

AN: I have human pride, sue me idc :)

"We elves have always been known for our faithfulness. Consider the story of Luthien who defied fate for the sake of Beren," you mused, inwardly struggling to recall the name of the elf seated before you. You were quite certain he had some connection to Anaire, Nolofinwë's wife, but the name eluded your memory no matter how hard you tried.

If only you could remember the name, you would have reminded the elf that even among the elves, there were instances where individuals prioritized their own desires over the happiness of others. Thingol, for instance, had subjected Beren to a daunting quest driven by his own greed, endangering the happiness of his own daughter. However, you chose to exercise restraint, not wanting to offend another of your beloved's kin. By Eru, Glorfindel had shit ton of kin!

Marrying the renowned Balrog slayer, you had come to expect such bouts of elven pride. Elves did have a tendency to take boasting to another level when it came to their lineage. But your love for Glorfindel was unwavering, and you held him in the highest regard. Love came with respect and honor, and you did not require anyone to remind you of the magnificence of your beloved.

What puzzled you, though, was why showing respect for elvenkind seemed to necessitate belittling your own kind. Did men need to be diminished for elves to shine brightly? But what good would an argument during such joyous times yield? You wouldn't want Glorfindel to bear the weight of your choices.

Resigned to your fate, you nodded in agreement to the huffing Noldor before you. "Yes, indeed, it is a great honor," you replied, scanning the room for Glorfindel who had promised to bring you a drink. It had been a good thirty minutes, and since then, you had been stuck with the elf whose name continued to elude you which barred you from politely excusing yourself in hopes of escaping the awkward conversation.

"Although," the elf began, "I must say, it must be challenging for your kind to commit like us firstborn, for men do not bond in the same way as elves do." You stared directly at the elf in front of you, incredulous at his earlier statement. "It is understandable that your love is more fickle than ours. I just fear for Glorfindel..." The smug smile on his face made you contemplate throwing a punch, but you refrained from doing so. Mustering a pleasant smile on your face, the kind that your loved ones dreaded you acknowledged the duel of words the elf initiated.

"I agree there is indeed a lot Glrofindel and I must work on for our marriage to work," the Noldo beamed at your admission.

Leaning in close, your voice took on a sincere tone, and the elf mirrored your actions, eagerly anticipating the gossip you were about to deliver. Seizing the moment, you waited for him to take a sip of his drink, creating a perfect atmosphere of dramatic anticipation. And then, you dropped the bombshell, struggling to contain your laughter. "I wonder if your kind can keep up. We men… we have more stamina, and well, you know how elves are," you gestured vaguely, pretending to understand their limitations.

The Noldor's reaction was priceless, his drink spewing forth as he choked in surprise, caught off guard by your audacity. The hall fell into a stunned silence, the heightened elven senses ensuring that everyone had heard your revelation. Ignoring the disapproving gazes fixed upon you, you feigned a morose sigh, pretending to be engrossed in the embroidery of your gown. You were fairly certain one of those glares belonged to your seamstress somewhere in the crowd.

To your surprise, the Noldo remained rooted to his spot, rather than storming away in a fit of rage. "How much?" he managed to ask, his eyes widening with surprise and disbelief.

"Five to seven times a day," you whispered, using your fingers to motion the number, relishing the sight of the elf's eyes losing focus as his mind struggled to process the information.

"But it is all right, a small price to pay for love, isn't it?" you leaned back, breaking away from the trance you had cast upon the entire room. The elf sitting across from you nodded stupidly, and you restrained your laughter. Well, this was the price Glorfindel would pay for subjecting you to the painful conversation for the past half an hour.

The Noldor, still recovering from his momentary shock, stared at you with a mixture of disbelief and bewilderment. The smugness had vanished from his face, replaced by an expression of wide-eyed surprise. The room buzzed with stunned silence and hushed whispers as everyone struggled to process the audacious revelation you had just made.

Unable to contain your mischievous smile, you savored the victory in this playful battle of wits. Gradually regaining his composure, the Noldor managed to speak, his voice tinged with disbelief. "But… but that's… quite impressive," he stammered, his eyes still slightly glazed over.

You shrugged nonchalantly, maintaining an air of innocence. "Well, it's a matter of stamina, as I mentioned. We humans are renowned for our endurance, after all."

A few chuckles and snickers rippled through the room, with some onlookers struggling to contain their laughter. Glorfindel, finally returning with your drink, shot you an amused glance, clearly relishing the unexpected turn of events.

Rising from your seat, you took the drink from Glorfindel, intertwining your arm with his as you leaned your head on his shoulder. "Oh, my beloved, rest assured, I will always love you, no matter what," you said, evading the obvious question written on Glorfindel's face, and steered him away from the bewildered Noldor.

[mrkida-art]

Human and dwarrow