#tolkien was a coward for changing it and i do believe that

[applegreenrunnerbean]

My hottest Tolkien take is that he should never have stopped calling them Gnomes.

[tossawary]

Regarding "The Hobbit" film trilogy, even if I ended up personally disliking and resenting how much time and focus the elf characters (and others) ended up taking away from the dwarves whom I think deserved more focus as rich internal characters (I know that studio pressures are a factor in that terrible love triangle and so on), I still... vaguely appreciate the effort to create and include named female characters like Tauriel, when the book is sadly lacking in them. I think she's fine, actually. Comparatively, there are many other elements in these adaptations that I think are much, MUCH worse.

But still, if you want to add female characters to this story, the obvious answer to me seems to be to just make half the Company into dwarf women? (With similarly fancy beards and other facial hair! Because I think that's fun.) It's just... so much easier?

Do NOT come at me with that "dwarf women are rare" bullshit. Unreliable narration. Logistically unlikely. Also, if you believe that "men are the warriors and craftsmen, the women stay at home" is how dwarf society strictly functions (boring, honestly, on top of being incredibly sexist), I could argue that the Battle of Azanulbizar and other struggles probably left a significant dent in this dwarf group's male population, leaving behind many widows and mothers without children to pick up the work. The battlefields have come to and TAKEN both Erebor and Moria from the dwarves. I see no good reason why dwarf women would not have equal investment in reclaiming their home and the gold. Many of the Company are not presented to be formally trained warriors, anyway.

Now, ideally, we could do way queerer stuff in terms of both romance and gender here, but we know cowards with veto powers would not let this happen. Still, I feel like basic genderbending would have been a very doable move and is, actually, a very reasonable ask of an adaptation that would have added some depth to the story even if you didn't acknowledge the change at all.

Like, preferably, this would be an adaptational change that would be directly addressed. Maybe all of the Company appear male at first due to traveling that way (and assumptions made by humans and hobbits), then Bilbo might learn that some of the Company are dwarf women when he becomes closer to all of them. We could have a brief scene acknowledging that dwarf women are fighting these battles for their pasts and their futures too. It doesn't have to be a big thing! They can just be there. Existing. Participating.

I even think it would be fun if two of the dwarves were actually an older married couple traveling together, instead of brothers or cousins, because loving married bickering and battle couples are fun. You can have running jokes in the background about how Smaug's invasion ruined their wedding day, and going back and forth with "you never take me anywhere nice" @ each other whenever they're stuck in Goblintown or the Mirkwood dungeons. (I like seeing good marriages & partnerships in fiction and established couples going on fantasy quests together. I just think it's neat.)

But another (sillier) direction is that you could just cast some actresses in beards to play some of the dwarves, then leave the fact that some of these characters are probably dwarf women (traveling as men) as a fun detail for the audience. Bilbo is either too oblivious to notice or much too polite to bring it up at all. It's canonically compliant to the text this way!

Now, obviously some few people would have complained that Tolkien's work was being ruined by "political correctness", but they complained anyway about Tauriel (when there are MANY other bad choices in these movies), and what worthwhile arguments could they have possibly made against genderbending some of the THIRTEEN dwarves? Like, most casual fans I know cannot NAME the entire Company, who get so little character development in the book that the films had to come up with unique designs and backgrounds for most of them anyway. Bro (directed towards someone objecting to the idea of including female dwarves), be real, there's no way that you honestly cared this much about "Nori the Dwarf" before right now.

[outofangband]

My schedule got changed at the last moment so I got up at five for no reason and started the wrong shift. Anyways I sat in the office and did some Tengwar

I absolutely love this quote, it’s one of my favorite scenes in the entire book. There’s this line in the Magnus archives “it feels good to believe there are people in this world who can stare down the Devil without flinching” and it reminds me of this, as well as of course Húrin staring down Morgoth and Morwen scaring Brodda off by looking at him

I also find this scene fascinating because I’ve done a lot of work tracking how it changes throughout Tolkien’s drafts. It was originally Morwen who confronted Glaurung, or, Mavwin as she was called then. She rebukes Glaurung calling Túrin a coward, seems to predict his death by him, before offering herself in Niënor’s place with an almost chilling calm conviction. Ive written a lot about this scene so I won’t go too much here but yeah

Anyways I don’t begrudge that this scene was given to Niënor, it’s simultaneously so powerful and then so deeply sad and horrifying. But I do find the earlier versions interesting too!

Just a fun fact, the images Túrin sees from Glaurung of Morwen and Niënor being tortured are the last time he ever sees Morwen in any way.

Here’s Tengwar of Morwen’s lines in the earlier version. I did not space this properly at all

Foul beast, cease thy evil sayings, said Mavwin, slayer of my son, revile not the dead, lest thine own bane come upon thee

O most accursed lo! I fear thee not. Take me an thou wilt to thy torments and thy bondage for of a truth I desired thy death but suffer only Niënor my daughter to go back to the dwellings of men for she came higher constrained by me and knowing not the purpose of our journey

[tanoraqui]

Tolkien Dragon Lore Headcanons Based on Little More than Vibes:

Much the way Orcs were made from Elves, Dragons were made from Ents. Morgoth never created, he twisted and corrupted. Beautiful lovers of light to ugly loathers of all but darkness...why not wooden-limbed, free-wandering nurturers of all growing things to fire-breathing, poison-spewing, hoarding despoilers? (But still, ironically, being naturally opposed to Dwarves!)

Dragons were made to fight Elves, and Men kind of catch them in a fateful blind spot. I’m actually taking this directly from The Starless Road (an incredible fic), and that may not be its originator. But surely it’s no coincidence that the only known dragon-slayers (Bard, Túrin, Eärendil) were Men or half-Men. It is believed that Morgoth began creating dragons after he gave up on defeating Elves using Orcs in roughly 155 FA. He knew about Men, but in an “already busy seducing them via dreams” way; it would be over 150 years before the first Men came to Beleriand and joined the fight against him.

Elves find it hard to fight Dragons because of the way Dragons are composed (musically-existentially). All of Arda is a piece of Music, right? Everything in it is made of some sort of notes, rhythm, melody? Now, I don’t buy the theory that Men have the Free Will(TM) to change the course of the Music but Elves (much less Maiar, etc) don’t. But I do believe Elves are more aware of and more easily influenced by the Great Song, whereas Men are walking through the world blithely ignorant of everything except maybe sometimes that a place has good or bad vibes. 

So I propose: when Morgoth made Dragons, he included in their Songs some chords of pure going to win this encounter. When Maiar face it, well, they do find it difficult to go against the chords of Eru’s Song...but this isn’t Eru’s, it’s Morgoth’s, and all Maiar are innate enough manipulators of Song to Sing back, no the fuck you won’t! When Men face it, they get a sense of dread and “oh shit, this is a tough one”, and not much more (unless specifically targeted). Hobbits I categorize with Men for this; Dwarves...between Men and Elves, perhaps, and made to be good at ignoring dark Songs when they must. But Elves get hit in this terrible sweet spot of being abruptly, horrendously aware that they Cannot Win This Fight and there’s little they can do about it...and going into anything with that mentality means you’re almost certainly right. You cannot win.

Maybe not, but worth considering: Dragons are made with some of Ungoliant’s Unlight, and it shows in their eyes the way Treelight does in Calaquendi eyes. That plus the above refrain of inevitable victory could be the source of their paralyzing hypnosis...but it requires Morgoth to have done experimental breeding with some of the essence of the spider8itch who nearly killed him, and he might be too much of a coward for that.

[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

I'm reading your LOTR re-write fic, absolutely LOVING it. Especially what you've done with Grima. I also think he deserved better than what he got in the books or movies. I love how the Rohirrim are all 'he is a traitor and a coward, but he is OUR traitor and coward, and we'll have words with anyone who lays a finger on him'. Thank you for sharing the fic with us - can't wait to see what's coming next!

Oh man thank you so much! I’m so glad you’re enjoying it - especially Grima. I was so nervous when I first introduced him for real in the Two Towers/My Land is Bare as I was convinced people would revolt and everyone was so great about it

And yes! He deserved better than what was given him as a story. I think Tolkien lacked imagination when it came to envisioning a future for characters who needed serious work to redeem themselves.

The two criminals with Christ on Cavalry hill died, after all.

And so that mentality is reflected in his work (and Jackson just reflected that reflection; we are getting into refracting light territory now, oh no). Which is a shame! Because I firmly believe it actively undermines his broader message of hope and love and the importance of the average person doing what they can, the good people not remaining silent, how friendship and love can change situations and people for the better.

People are broken and then they die; very few, if any, are saved in Tolkien’s world. Which is a tragedy.

And so! Fanfiction! Which is all to say - thank you and I’m glad you’re in the Grima life raft with me and the other ten of us. We’re having a grand time 💖💖

[fromthemouthofkings]

10 Favorite Characters

Thank you @wisteria-lodge​ for tagging me!!

1. Grand Admiral Thrawn (the Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zahn)

I stan 1 (one) blue alien Sherlock Holmes

[image description: the cover of The Last Command by Timothy Zahn, showing Thrawn as a blue-skinned humanoid with blue-black hair and glowing red eyes, wearing a white Imperial uniform. end id]

So I’m specifically talking about the book character here; I have no idea what’s going on in the Star Wars TV shows. But Thrawn of the Star Wars Legends universe (and the newer canon book, Thrawn) is hands-down one of the best and most interesting characters I’ve ever seen. He’s brilliant, creating battle strategies by studying his opponents’ cultural art to understand their cultural psychology and look for weaknesses in their thinking. And despite being a morally grey character, he’s not unduly arrogant and is actually extremely likeable--he has to work hard to get into the Imperial command structure that heavily discriminates against non-humans, his motivation is the best interest of his people, the Chiss, and he is always willing to explain his thinking to his close allies and friends. And who else would respond to being stabbed by smiling and saying, “But it was so artistically done?”

2. Beren (specifically, from Philosopher-At-Large’s script/screenplay adaptation of Tolkien’s story of Beren and Luthien, A Boy, A Girl, & A Dog: The Lay of Leithian Dramatic Script Project, which can be read in full here: https://rustbucket.net/leithian/index.html)

Do we not all want to yell at the gods about theodicy until they answer our questions to our satisfaction? I specifically pick Beren not from the original Silmarillion, as much as I love Tolkien’s work, but from Philosopher-At-Large’s script retelling, because A Boy, A Girl, & A Dog might just be my favorite work of literature of all time--fanwork, original fiction, or otherwise. I stumbled across it via a fanart of Beren on DeviantArt, like, six or seven years ago that referenced it, and my life has never been the same. It was hard to pick a favorite character, since literally all of the Script’s characters hold a special place in my heart, but I love Beren’s gentle, dry humor and his grim, determined, reckless stubbornness. His relationship with Luthien is of course the driving point of the story, but I thought that his relationships with Finrod and the other members of their company, and his backstory in Dorthonian and his interactions with the Valar were spectacularly done as well. This story is full of the grim determination to at least try and keep loving people, to keep throwing yourself at a problem and refuse to back down until you find a satisfactory solution, and Beren is right there at the heart of that, and I think that makes him pretty hopepunk.

3. Hamlet (Hamlet by William Shakespeare)

What is there to say about Hamlet that hasn’t already been said a thousand times by people significantly more learned and eloquent than me? I love him. He’s a genre-savvy protagonist trapped in a world where nothing! Fucking! Makes! Sense! My poor emo boy. I feel so much for him, being trapped in a situation where he needs to learn the truth in order to move forward and finally act, but there’s no way for him to get at the truth, so instead he just spirals further and further into fey, frustrated, erratic “madness.” Such a disaster bi. Definitely in love with his tired functional gay bf Horatio. Drama queen and Pretentious Asshole TM. In any decent modern au, he loves Hot Topic and gets all his clothes from there. I don’t even really do theater, but I’d love to have a chance to play him onstage.

4. James Dunworthy (the Oxford Time Travel series by Connie Willis)

The Oxford Time Travel series by Connie Willis ranges from hilarious (To Say Nothing of the Dog) to heartbreaking (Doomsday Book) and Mr. Dunworthy is right in the middle of all of it. For those who haven’t read it, the premise of the series is that time travel has been discovered, but we can’t use it to change the past, so instead it’s mainly just used by historians going back in time to study history, and Mr. Dunworthy is the head of the history department at Oxford University in the year 2060. He might be strict, but he has strong dad vibes, and, just, cares so much for all of his historians. He basically adopts Colin when Colin is stranded in Oxford over Christmas during an epidemic, he regularly puts himself in danger to look for lost historians, he helped invent time travel, and he knows that the point of studying the past is caring about the people who lived there. I want him to be my dad.

5. The 9th Doctor (Doctor Who)

Okay, I love 10 and 12 and 13 almost as much as I love 9, but 9 has to be my favorite Doctor. He was my first doctor, and what really got me hooked on the series was his kindness--hard-won and hard-clung to after the trauma of the time war. It isn’t always easy for him--the time war took everything away from him, and you can see how he’s tempted to be angry and bitter and harsh--but even so, he insists on helping people, on atoning for his mistakes, on nonviolence and using kindness and cleverness to fix things instead of violence and hate. He says, guns are bad and bananas are good, and every person is important, and when asked if he’s a coward or a killer, he says, “Coward. Any day.” And that philosophy, that choice, has left a deep impact on me.

[image description: gif of the 9th doctor saying “Who said you’re not important?” from New Who Season 1 episode 8, “Father’s Day.” end id]

6. Eliot Spencer (Leverage)

The whole premise of a group of thieves, criminals and con artists getting together to take down corrupt people in power is great, and Eliot is my favorite. He may have done some seriously bad shit in the past, but now he’s just devoted to taking care of the team, and particularly his hacker and his thief. I don’t know that he believes he’s worthy of their love, but he’s still somehow the most mature and emotionally stable member of the team; he knows how to control his anger and live alongside his regrets, and despite his grumbling, he dives headfirst into protecting the rest of the team and keeping them safe. Bonus points for being in an almost-canon ot3, and for the passion that he brings to his cooking. Also, I headcanon him as gray aro and transmasc, because I can.

[image description: gif of Eliot standing back-to-back with Parker and Hardison. end id]

7. Jon Sims (The Magnus Archives)

I’m only on season 3 of TMA so far, but I love Jon with all my heart. Working at a supernatural research institute, after having had a supernatural encounter of your own, and still choosing not to really believe in the supernatural until it knocks down the door to your office and riddles you with worms? Big mood. He’s a stubborn workaholic disaster ace, and I relate because I too struggle to interact with people and tend to get lost in obscure research projects for hours at a time. Somebody give this boy a hug and then a nap.

8. River Taam (Firefly)

Once again, there are a lot of good characters in Firefly, and I was hard-pressed to pick just one of them to put on this list. But River is a sweet summer child slowly overcoming trauma to find the joy and delight in the world around her that she had before the Academy, and I want all the best things for her. Bonus points go to Simon, who gave up everything he knew to save his sister, and Mal, who stubbornly sticks to his own code of honor even after loosing the war and much of his faith.

9. Lancelot (The Once and Future King by T. H. White)

A splendidly complex and morally grey take on our favorite legendary hero. T. H. White writes a Lancelot who struggles deeply with guilt and pride and imposter syndrome--who struggles desperately to do what is right and to channel the traits he finds in himself--both strengths and flaws--into doing the right thing. His scrupulosity is sadly relatable, and the lines “It is so fatally easy to make young children believe that they are horrible” and “ You could not give up a human heart as you could give up drinking. The drink was yours, and you could give it up: but your lover’s soul was not your own: it was not at your disposal; you had a duty towards it” are both absolutely haunting. It’s only implied in the book, but T. H. White admitted in letters that Lancelot enjoys pain, and is probably bi as well, and a bit in love with Arthur, and that he feels very guilty about it, and I just want a fluffy modern adaptation where Arthur and Guenevere and Lancelot can be in the kinky ployamarous triad that they deserve and just be happy together.

10. Luna Lovegood (Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling)

While I have some problems these days with the Harry Potter series and the transphobia of its author, it’s possible to like something without minimizing its flaws, and this list would not be complete without Luna Lovegood. I spent significant portions of middle school pretending to be her. She taught me how to embrace my own unabashed weirdness, and I wouldn't be the same without her.

@a-nerdy-shade-of-purple @conan-concocting-chaos @one-supportive-august​ @the-lyra-cal-trans​ @the-eleftheria​ @dumpstertrash​

[hsofiyayusef]

Thinking about Tolkien, and how he was an orphan, and came of age just in time to be traumatized for life by the unprecedented horrors of WWI, where he watched most of his friends die, and then returned to a home indelibly changed, and lived to watch it all happen again to his children.

And still he believed in (and taught, and vehemently argued for) eucatastrophe: a sudden and favorable resolution of events in a story; a happy ending.

His stories are full of darkness and danger, fear and sorrow sharp as swords, sacrifice, desperate heroism, loss, hurt.

Theses things are real. He felt them. We all feel them.

But you know what follows those things? Healing, hope, and the sweet dawn that follows the darkest hour. Bonds forged in fire. Fellowship. Learning. Wisdom to overcome. Love that outlasts death and destruction.

This wasn’t wishful thinking or mere escapism. He lived it. He fought for it. He kept on writing for the sake of his friends who didn’t live long enough to write their own stories. He knew death wasn’t the end.

He considered it a sacred duty to tell others. (Do you like C. S. Lewis? Yeah, thank Tolkien.)

And here his stories stand today, waving their banners, rallying the troops, more popular and beloved than ever. Tolkien belonged to what we call the lost generation. Do you realize how many writers WWI produced? Do you realize how countercultural Tolkien was, creating legends of light in the darkness of the trenches, penning the words not all those who wander are lost that we now slap on bumper stickers and emboss on journals and stitch on hoodies and tattoo on our bodies? (Even Lewis was still writing sad, bad poetry at this point.)

This is the power of faith. And Tolkien had it.

So, in summary, I guess… To all the modern nihilist storytellers who’ve never missed a meal and are getting filthy rich by selling their sad and unsatisfying “endings” as somehow truer and braver and more enlightened: You are cowards, everyone can see and sense it, and I sincerely hope you don’t take a single soul with you into that abyss. I pray you take the hand that’s offered you if and when you decide to climb out of the hole you’ve created with your muddled and meaningless worldview. There is warmth and hope and even laughter waiting for you in the light.

And to anyone struggling to keep up the fight today, remember Tolkien.

“There is a place called ‘heaven’ where the good here unfinished is completed; and where the stories unwritten, and the hopes unfulfilled, are continued. We may laugh together yet.”

from @freenarnia

[brieflyhopefulluminary]

Fighting Demons IV.

Part 1  Part 2  Part 3  Part 4

My lil’ Masterpost

Pairings: Thorin Oakenshield x fem!reader

Summary: We all have our demons, but we don’t have to fight them alone.

Inspired by:  imagine by @imaginexhobbit

Word Count: 2 465

Genre: some strong dark stuff and humour

Warning: mentions of blood and death, confusion, loneliness, language

**(A/N): ** This is Part 4 of Fighting Demons. It’s getting quite intesive so watch out; I was almost crying while writing this, both from laughing and sadness tbh.

If you find some mistakes (and you probably will) please let me know. Fetch some tea/coffee, make yourself comfortable and enjoy. Hope you’ll like it!

Note: I don’t own any part of The Hobbit story. Credits to J.R.R. Tolkien. Also gifs not mine.

„Do you think she’s all right?“

„Is she going to wake up?“

„I don’t know, give her time, she’s been through a lot,“ I could hear Gandalf’s voice from the distance.

„She’s been out the whole night, Gandalf!“

My eyelids were heavy and I couldn’t open my eyes. I didn’t know where I was. I tried to move but with little success.

„Wait! I think she moved!“

„Stop it, Kili, you’re only imagining it.“

„No, really, her hand moved!“

I let a low growl as I tried to wake up and move. Finally after much effort I opened my eyes. My vision was blur at first but then I recognized Kili’s face, and next to him Fili’s.

„(Y/N)! Are you all right?“ his eyes widened. I growled again because my head was starting to ache a lot and when I tried to get up, everything started spinning around and I thought I was going to vomit.

„Gandalf! She’s awake!“ shouted Fili which made me groan from pain.

„Where am I? What happened?“ I asked trying to get up again.

„Oh, (Y/N), are you all right? Are you hurt?“ hasted Gandalf to kneel next to me.

„Ugh! My head is killing me!“ I could feel something warm and sticky on the back of my head. That area hurt the most. „What the hell happened? For how long have I been unconscious?“

„The whole night. How much do you remember?“ Gandalf raised his eyebrows in expectation.

„Well…“ I made a grimace when trying to remember. „I remember the bear…then here the house and…Thorin. I remember Thorin. Oh, wait, THORIN!! WHERE IS HE??“ I shouted in anger when I finally remembered our argument. I jumped with the intent to go searching for him, but my legs betrayed me and I fell down on the floor. Fili almost caught me but I was too quick and managed to smash my face against the floor. „Grrrrr!! Argh!!“ I shouted in pain and held my bleeding nose.

„For Valar’s sake, (Y/N), calm down,“ Gandalf shook his head but handed me a piece of cloth he pulled out from his cloak. I took it gratefully and tried to stop the bleeding.

„Now, please, tell me what happened,“ I repeated calmly in a slightly nasal tone as I held my swollen nose.

„Well…“ Gandalf hesitated.

„You and Thorin started fighting and we couldn’t stop you so Gandalf had to separate you from each other with a spell and you flied across the room and hit your head against the wall,“ blurted out Kili to stop me from exploding again.

I stared at him in disbilief as I tried to process what he just said to me. I closed my mouth when I realized I left it open and, as I finally understood the meaning of his words, I slowly turned my head to look at Gandalf. He pretended he was calm but I still noticed the flash of fear in his eyes when he saw how completely enraged I was.

„I…I am sorry, my dear…I tried to warn you but you wouldn’t listen,“ he started babbling.

Well, that was too hilarious and I couldn’t stop myself from bursting in laughter. Now it was his, Fili‘s and Kili’s turn to stare at me with their mouths wide open. I bet they thought I‘d hit myself so hard I have lost my mind. Maybe I have, who knows?

„It’s fine, Gandalf, let it be,“ I managed to say between my laughs and snorts. „Just give me something for that headache and I’ll be all right. Oh, and I’m starving,“ I added when I calmed my giggles.

„Yes, (Y/N), of course,“ frowned Gandalf at my silliness (but I’m sure there was also a little sigh of relief) and got up to bring me some of his medicine.

After Gandalf gave me a dangerously looking luquid with a disgusting odour („Don’t worry, it should help.“ Sure.), they left me with a bucket of some fresh water. I washed myself a bit, changed my clothes, cleaned my wound and face from the blood and went to the kitchen to see the others and hopefully not Thorin.

„Eeyy, (Y/N), you all right? Feeling better?“ yelled the dwarves all at once.

„How are you feeling?“ asked me Fili with concern and helped me to get to the table without stumbling.

„I am better, only a bit dazed from the medicine,“ I smiled vaguely. I wasn’t only ‘dazed‘, I was drugged as hell and I didn’t mind, it was a pleasant change, not feeling pain for once. I heard Gandalf’s chuckle, that old bastard knew what he was doing.

„Here. Eat.“ A huge man set a plate with bread before me. I haven’t noticed he’d been there but I was too indifferent at the moment to let him startle me.

„Thank you,“ I smiled at him and started to eat.

Lately I found out that it was our host, Beorn. He was really tall and intimidating but he seemed distrustful and kind of…broken? He wasn’t fond of dwarves and they knew it so, at start, whenever he made an abrupt move or said something too loud, some of the others almost jumped from fright. It was only funny in Thorin’s case and I had to control myself with every bit I had not to burst in laughter, which would probably lead to another fight. I managed to avoid Thorin that day, or was he avoiding me?

I was sitting outside on a bench, a bit further in the gardens, enjoying the light breeze and a moment of serenity, when Beorn appeared beside me.

„You are a dark and a wild one,“ he sat next to me.

„Excuse me?“

„You didn’t run, you weren’t scared of me. You just sat there and watched me,“ he said

„Why didn’t you attack me?“

„I could feel the dark beings around you. They reminded me of my owns,“ he lowered his head and silenced. I waited for him to say more but he looked like he was immersed in his own thoughts.

„They were much scarier then me in my bear form,“ he broke the silence. „Is that why you didn’t run?“

„Well…“ I was deciding whether to lie or not. It was one of the reasons, that was true, but it wasn’t the main one. I couldn’t tell him, I was too ashamed of it. Only after a moment I realised the meaning behind his words. I felt my cheeks burning from shame. Oh no, how stupid I was!

„Do not worry, I understand,“ he said with a sad smile.

„What do you mean?“ I managed to look at him as well.

„The burden of my past is crushing my bones. I have killed people, (Y/N). I have killed my own kind. I am nothing but a wild beast,“ he frowned when he remembered. „I am dangerous, no one can live with me. I shouldn’t even be here but I’ve been too much of a coward to end my living.“

„Can you call it living? Or is it more like surviving?“ I asked him quietly. He looked at me with confusion.

„Self-pity won’t help you. Maybe you shouldn’t hide anymore. Maybe you should accept your past and start living a full life,“ I looked down and started realizing something. „For what are you trying to punish yourself? Haven’t you suffered enough? Whatever happened, it happened in the past and we can’t change it. And it’s stupid to dwell on it your whole life because in the end it doesn’t matter anymore.“ It finally made sense. I could see what fear of oneself and isolation could make with a person. Beorn was so lonely and damaged he only was a shadow of the strong man he once had been. He let his demons consume him and now this is what was left of him. I didn’t want to end like this; I was young and kind, honest and caring, I deserved to be loved and so did he.

„How could I ever forgive myself?“ he muttered and covered his face with his hands.

„We are not in this world to suffer,“ I looked at him and lightly touched his shoulder to comfort him. „I can’t tell you how to forgive and accept your darkness, that you must find by yourself, but I can tell you that it’s the right thing to do. And you are never alone, believe me.“

„How can you be so sure?“ he looked at me with watery eyes.

„It’s something my friends taught me,“ I smiled when remembering the members of the Company.

„The dwarves?“ he asked in disbilief.

„Yes,“ I said simply.

„Are you sure you can trust them?“

„Yes, they are my friends.“

Our conversation with Beorn was still on my mind when I got to the main room where the others were planning our departure. I found them sitting around a table and talking about Mirkwood and its king.

„He is too stubborn and unpredictable, we need to be cautious not to get caught,“ frowned Gandalf.

„And I heard that he’s such a dildo too!“ shouted Kili.

I could see how Thorin drew his eyebrows together in confusion and opened his mouth to say something, but I quickly blurted out „Well maybe you shouldn’t believe gossip!“ to distract him. It worked and now he was trying to kill me with his glare. I’m sure he had heard the word „dildo“ and many other insults, that I taught the younger Durins, several times before, but he never got the chance to ask what the hell that even meant, mostly because of me distracting him. I don’t need another speech about my incompetence and irresponsibility, as I would get if he found out about me teaching his nephews such obscene and vulgar expressions. So this is how kind of started my little game called „How far can I get without Thorin finding it out and killing me“ or „How many times will my distractions work till he gets pissed and finally asks“. I expected him to scold me now for being late but he didn’t say a word. It looked like I might have taught him a lesson?

We were leaving the next day. Beorn gave us some supplies that we needed and he lended us his horses to reach Mirkwood as soon as possible. He looked more sad than delighted, which was odd considering the fact that he’s been hosting dwarves in his home. Only when realizing he was looking at me I could tell the cause of his sorrow.

„Please, stay. I feel that you are the only one who understands me,“ he tried to convince me.

„No, I’m sorry, Beorn, I can’t stay. I belong with the Company,“ I said with a soothing tone.

„Are you sure you will be safe with them?“

„Yes, I am sure,“ I smiled at him. „And remember, you are not alone. There is someone else that will understand you. You just have to open yourself to them.“

With Gandalf leaving and Thorin leading us we entered Mirkwood. I had to agree with Bilbo, that forest looked sick. And it felt sick, an eerie feeling was crawling up my spine, something was wrong in there.

„Are you sure that Thorin should lead us?“ I asked the others carefully so Thorin wouldn‘t hear me. No one answered me so I looked at Fili. He just shrugged it off and followed the others. Great. I knew that going last wasn‘t the best idea but no one had any objections that I shouldn’t have. We wandered the forest maybe for hours but who could tell, the time wasn’t normal there. I felt dizzy and drowsy and I almost couldn’t walk straight. The others were still before me, walking clumsily and babbling nonsense.

I heard a crack behind me and when I turned around to see what was it, something moved quickly behind the trees. At least I thought I saw something moving so I went to check it. I stepped carefully without any sound to not scare anything that was hidden behind the tree stem. I approached it and leaned to look. There was nothing there. I hummed for myself in confusion but I let it be, who knows what the hell was it. I turned to go back after the others but no one was on the road. I hurried to catch up but I couldn’t see them. I started running faster and faster and calling after them and looking between the trees, but they were nowhere to be found. They were gone. I started to panic and breathing heavily. No, they couldn’t have left without me, they couldn’t have! I saw something moving between the trees somewhere so I hasted and almost sighed with relief when I reached the spot.

There was nothing but gloom. No bird chirping nor branch cracking, everything was in deep silence, and still I felt as though being watched. I have never felt so naked, so hopeless. I was completely lonely and yet not alone. Even though I was a warrior and thus able to protect myself, I felt defenseless. There was something watching me in the shadows, waiting for a wrong move to attack me. I couldn’t even hear nor feel my demons, they abandoned me as well. I fell on my knees, I was paralyzed from terrror in that sick darkness, tears filled my eyes as I screamed in despair. There was a single word that kept me sane and alive, there was a name to which I was holding with everything I had to keep me from falling into the abyss of madness. 

Thorin. I called his name again and again but he never answered. I screamed till my vocal cords started to burn and all I could make were just soft shrieks. Thorin! Thorin. Thorin. I repeated that beautiful word as a mantra over and over again. I needed him to hold me but he never would. I needed to hear that deep voice, that I often dreamt about, soothing me with sweet words, but I never could. I needed him to love me back but he never would. I needed to see him one last time, to see those blue eyes looking back at me, but I never could. I was there alone, lying on the hardest and the coldest ground I have ever laid on. I was staring in the dark that surrounded the trees around me, my whole body shaking from fear and exhaustion. He abandoned me and I haven’t had the chance to say goodbye. I haven’t been able to tell him how I needed him and how I loved him. I would never see him again. Never.

Tag list: @ireallyloveearlgrey @evyiione @aspiringtranslator @nelswp @lillee-nika@letsbeinspiredby @fizzy-custard @abiwim

[stromuprisahat]

minetteskvareninova:

My thoughts exactly! I thought about it a long time and I still can’t fathom how technology can render, for example, squallers irrelevant. These are people who can control winds, for crying out loud. If anything, technology would make them MORE important - invent wind turbines and you have energy just for the price of paying some dudes to use their magic! Even if the grisha aren’t able to conjure matter, their powers can do things that would otherwise require energy, and that is no trifle in a world with increasing energy demand, which the industrializing Grishaverse has to be! If people in this world are any smart, they would work towards integrating the grisha powers into their technology, at least as much as it is feasible - depending on how many grisha there are. Even if there aren’t that many of them, you can still use them in big power plants or rare superweapons.

In general, I am not a fan of the whole “with modern era magic disappears” and “technology is displacing magic�� shtick. How plausible it is depends on the magic system, but in any case, it’s been done by Tolkien and let me tell you, once was enough. M’dudes, this is coward’s talk! Why can’t you have both magic and technology?! Why wouldn’t you make machines that would allow magic users to do more and better things?! Why would magic hinder progress, rather than speed it up?! Just from the worldbuilding perspective, it’s much more exciting to watch your magic system interact with changing world, rather than just uniformly be supressed by it. But some people are lazy, hence when asked about the future of their fantasy world, their answer is “IDK, it’s just like our world, no magic, just technology”. No! I already live in this world, I don’t need your cool fantasy one just turn into that! Use your imagination, dammnit!

(Also, “why won’t they just shoot Voldemort” is a stupid question. The guy has torn his soul to pieces explicitly so that he can be immortal. It probably doesn’t matter whether you use a shotgun or a killing curse on him - untill all horcruxes are destroyed, he can always come back. There are maybe other fantasy villains for whom this question makes sense, but Voldemort is not one of them.)

juneisafantasyaddict:

Exactly! She makes sure to point out that Grisha power isn’t magic, but the ability to manipulate matter. That’s science, that’s not something that just goes away. It’s a different thing if the reason is “Grisha are being killed off so much and the so many keep hiding their powers because of fear of prosecution,” that’s a legitimate reason for the reducing number of Grisha, that’s genocide and population loss. This even adds to the story she’s trying to tell because it raises the stakes for Aleksander if less and less people over his lifetime are able to manipulate matter because of prosecution.

But our author basically wants us to believe that somehow the ability to manipulate matter (which is basically everything) is suddenly going to go away because of modern technology? Isn’t modern technology matter? Like, I know I was shit in science class, but I’m pretty sure matter is anything that has weight and occupies space…… literally everything.

Unless humans, shadow, the sun, water, fire, air, metal, wood, etc suddenly stop existing, there’s actually no way Grisha power can become useless.

keepingmyfandoms:

@juneisafantasyaddict It’s incredibly confusing, because she points out that it is science, but it is not allowed to follow science rules, only magic rules. Which is incredibly strange, because those innate abilities would have propelled scientific progress very much faster than it did in reality, by removing the need to invent the machines to manipulate matter in that way (and having amazing detectors already). Can Alina focus her light like a laser? How much control does she even have over matter? If it is her actually controlling photons, then she should be able to shoot lasers from her fingertips easily. (She should also be able to wipe out entire armies by just going for a gamma ray burst, but that can be argued away with too much energy needed).

It honestly would have been a very interesting premise to have a magic people lose their importance because they can (will) not adapt to a changing environment. Show the struggles of realising that the non-magic people are technologically advanced in a way that magic is not the absolute power anymore. And then make them adapt and integrate into a society where their powers could still be incredibly valuable, if they just manage to work together. No seperate Grisha healers, let them study with the others, learn together, work together, because the magic sometimes is the easy way out and can enhance a medical procedure! There is no reason for magic to not function in a technologically advanced society, except for the fact that the large majority of writers take the easy way out by choosing to not concern themselves with worldbuilding in that way. Which is perfectly fine if that is not the point you’re trying to make, but by specifically calling it a science and making it threatened by technological advance you need to find a good reason!

juneisafantasyaddict:

@keepingmyfandoms It’s all so confusing. You’re so right about LB calling it science and treating it like magic. Like, I understand it being treated like magic in ancient times like when Baghra and Aleksander were younger because people were more ignorant then. But in the time they are currently in, it’s kinda ridiculous.

David is making gloves that can split light in two, and somehow they can’t figure out how to make weapons that are more advanced than Shu Han and Fjerda?? It’s just so odd.

Also, since Alina and Aleksander can condensed their powers enough to make The Cut, they can probably do other things too like Alina focusing her light like a laser. I think she did something like that in episode 6 when she was escaping the Little Palace.

I just find it hard to believe that Heart Renders, Tailors, Healers, Fabrikators, honestly all Grisha powers can ever not be useful. I would actually argue that modern technology will only make them more useful.

You’re right too about the whole “technology makes magic irrelevant” narrative that pretty much every fantasy writer goes for, it’s a major cop out. But at least they have the good sense to make it seem like the magic died out because of prosecution from non magical people, instead of trying to convince us like LB that somehow the ability to manipulate matter will become irrelevant because of modern technology.

stephanythedramaqueen:

I find this interesting bc in truth, with the way Aleksander made East Ravka the (remotely) only place where Grisha can thrive, Ravka should be ahead of technological advancement. Not behind. I can understand Fjerda and Shu Han being ahead in weaponry, but everything else? Even if you want to argue all the Grisha are send to the front lines but we see and we know that there are enough Grisha being spread all over Ravka than just serving in the war so… why is the Grisha age at an end when their abilities are only in the cusp of breaching the vast possibilities that comes with educating and training free Grisha? The advanced technology they could pull if given the time?

With all the corporalki, the medical field should be ahead in Ravka beyond the whole known world there. Improvement in not only medicine, but healthcare, childbirth??? The birth rate in Ravka should be sky high for the time they’re set in (considering how many women and children actually died bc of this in the 19th and early 20th century) and not only Grisha should be having a longer lifespan due to their abilities, but otkazat’sya alike could be healthier and better provided for, exactly by the small science of corporalki that is more available.

Let’s not even start about agriculture? How is Ravka still depending on serfdom when there should be greenhouses all over the place growing food with Grisha science? Food they can grow in the winter, which, if we should compare to Russian winters, is no joke. Grisha gifts, Grisha science could improve and help their society and they should have done so a while ago tbh.

How about infrastructure? The only “road” described in the books is the Vy, but you have all these materialki and alkemi Grisha not improving infrastructure all over Ravka? Fortified settlements across the borders? Hospitals, schools, actual goddamn roads that would help marching soldiers along the same way ancient Romans freaking figured out a few thousands of years ago????

Look how hard technology speeded up in our normie world after the 19th century? Ravka especially should be going twice as fast. The age of Grisha ending? Nah fam, the age of Grisha just started.

#I DON’T BLAME ALEKSANDER OF ONLY THINKING IN TERMS OF WAR WHEN WAR IS ALL HE’S KNOWN IN HIS LIFE #THIS WHY ALINA WAS SO IMPORTANT IF SHE STAYED BY HIS SIDE AND MADE FJERDA AND SHU HAN CEASE ANY OPEN FIRE #BY *ANY* MEANS NECESSARY #ALINA SHOULD’VE KNOWN THIS 😩 #SHE SHOULD HAVE BEEN MOTIVATED AS A WAR-ORPHANED CHILD TO SEE THE WARS TO AN END BUT NOOO PINING FOR MAL WAS MORE IMPORTANT BAH #THIS IS WHY I’M WRITING MY DARKLINA FIC TO ADD EXACTLY ALL OF THIS BC IT’S HONESTLY SO NONSENSICAL OTHERWISE #DARKLINA SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE BEST THING TO EVER HAPPEN TO RAVKA AND ITS TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT WITH ALL THE GRISHA THERE #BUT INSTEAD… WE GOT THAT *HAND WAVES VAGUELY AT THE BOOKS*

sailor-hufflepuff:

I thought the whole “tech brings an end to the age of Grisha” was because now that they have tech, they don’t NEED Grisha anymore. Even if Grisha could almost certainly do it better. Because they’re bigoted jerks who want to get rid of the ONE REASON Grisha are allowed to exist in Ravka.

To sum up, there are two reasons for Ravka’s underdevelopment and Grisha’s precarious position:

LB wants it so, or didn’t think things through (again).

Wide-spread bigotry won’t allow Grisha to work outside of war effort. Average ravkan peasant would rather starve, than eat some infernal salad. Would rather die in childbirth than let some witch curse their unborn child.

I still don’t understand why advancing technology in Fjerda and Shu Han negatively affected the Grisha. Their power is the ability to manipulate all matter, shouldn’t that give them an edge when it comes to what they can do with technology??

Like David for example, he’s supposed to be this extremely brilliant guy. I can’t imagine that better technology in the world will do anything but excite and motivate him because isn’t that just more material for him to work with??

And the Heart Renders, imagine a cardio surgeon who is also a heart render, that seems like it’ll be a good thing. Or a Tailor who is a plastic surgeon? Imagine what a tailor like Genya can do in this field. I literally can see the Corpralki dominating the medical field.

I can imagine a world where squallers will be extremely valuable in the navy or airforce, tidemakers will definitely be great in the navy.

Also, if “scientifically advanced” Shu Han is experimenting on Grisha specifically so that they can harness they power and use it to advance their science, doesn’t that mean Grisha powers are far more valuable?

Am I crazy? Or is this confusing to anyone else? Or am I completely missing something here?

[aroseandquill]

Adventures in Middle-earth pt. 8

Contents Page

Hello fellow Tolkien fans! I know, I’m sorry, I’ve been away for about 2 months, I’m so sorry! Writers block is the worst, but I’m feeling more in the loop again now. This is the second to last chapter. I hope you really enjoy this! - Warnings: Feels, hurt, fluff Pairing: Thorin x reader  Synopsis: You have stumbled into Middle-earth and found yourself among the company of Thorin Oakenshield, you’ve made it to the mountain but Thorin isn’t the same.

Gates had never been so daunting to you before. Your breath was heavy and you felt as though your life was flashing before your eyes with every step you took. Your fears that Thorin may have somehow changed how he felt about you consumed you and you fell into a deep abyss of confusion and sadness until you saw a dull glow shining from the inner depths of the mountain. The glow sent shudders through your body, you felt uneasy about this feeling that was consuming you, and yet you were also excited to get to see Thorin again. You couldn't exactly tell what you were feeling.

His eyes. You had never seen eyes dilated so large before, it was overwhelming. It looked like a thirst deep in his mind that had longed for gold his whole life and finally he was stood among this vastness. You were in all honesty just terrified.

"Thorin?" he hushed you before you could step closer to him, "Isn't it a sight?" he eyed the gold before him with such desperation, it was almost like a deep burning desire filled him to the brim. You kind of wished that he looked at you this way. This look was beautiful on him but also it was scary to you. To see such passion in his eyes which were usually filled with a burning numbness. You were cautious around him, you didn't want to set off something that may be very easy to trigger. Watching Thorin made your anxiety rocket through the roof. You just wanted to hold him, to feel his comforting embrace around you, it was odd, the one thing that could comfort you in this world was the one thing you were afraid of. You tugged on your hair anxiously as you thought of things you could say to catch Thorin's attention for a brief moment to distract him from the gold. "It's no use." a friendly voice uttered from behind you, he sounded sad, "He's sick." You turned to see the familiar face of Bilbo, which relaxed you to an extent. "Balin calls it 'dragon sickness' he says it's what drove his grandfather mad." Although this put a new perspective into your mind it didn't lighten how you felt. You decided not to turn back to Thorin again, you felt as though looking at him would only deepen your misery. It hurt you so much to see him this way.

After the people from Laketown came to the mountain to get their end of the bargain, Thorin's bitter attitude only grew more bitter and even being in his presence became something that left a sour taste in your mouth. You only wished you had the old Thorin back for one minute just so you felt slightly more comfortable. You thought about how close yourself and Thorin had become and you felt a tightness grow in the pit of your stomach as you began to fear the worst for him. It wasn't until you were stood before the great army of King Thranduil that you saw Thorin's true potential at being the most vile king of Middle-earth. You wanted to grab him and shake him violently back to reality. His eyes shone differently now, it shone a dull, painful glow which left a silence among yourself and the others. It had become clear that Bilbo had found the Arkenstone a long while before, perhaps even before Smaug left the mountain. Bilbo had given the Arkenstone to King Thranduil, obviously fuelling Thorin to almost kill Bilbo. A dreadful cold feeling rushed through your veins as you watched Thorin try to throw Bilbo from the rampart. You bolted forward without a second thought and grabbed onto Thorin's arm and pulled at him with all your strength, it was as if you had kept all of your adrenaline bottled up for this moment. Until, Thorin flicked his arm into you harshly making you fall backwards and with a great crack you fell flat on your back at his feet, your vision blurry but still making out Thorin's piercing blue eyes which stared at you with hate. Bilbo climbed down to the safety of Gandalf, you were being held by Ori who was making sure you weren't injured. Bard asked Thorin once more for what Thorin had promised the men of Laketown before a large raven landed in front of Thorin. You couldn't see what was happening too clearly, you felt winded and weak. You wished the old Thorin were here to see what this new Thorin did to you. The old Thorin would have beaten him into the ground without so much as a breath. You didn't think he intentionally meant to hurt you but still you felt so overwhelmed, your eyes began to water. You did not whimper or weep, you simply let hot tears stream down your face as you rested your head in Ori's lap. Thorin is changed. He is no longer the dwarf you came to love. It broke your heart and you knew that if he felt the same way in the slightest, he would probably turn around, hold you and tell you that 'it's all part of the adventure' and kiss you on the forehead or at least just apologise for what he had done. He did neither of the above and instead, "I will have war." his baritone voice rumbled.

By the time you had regained enough strength to stand up and grab your bow and an old pair of daggers from the armory, you heard the princes talking, apparently, Thorin's cousin Dain came to fight off the elves and men when a huge swarm of orcs came marching on the mountain, excellent. Kili was distraught. "We should be out there! We are sons of Durin!" he spoke loudly, "We are not cowards!" his voice began to crack, you could just feel his frustration radiating off of him, "I know, brother." Fili stepped forward and placed a hand on his brother's shoulder, "But until uncle comes to his senses we are forbidden to leave the mountain." You watched as Kili's head sunk, he let out a mighty sigh that must've been to stop tears of anger stream out of him. You thought for a good while about Thorin, how he disregarded you and pushed you to the floor. Thorin would never do such an un-kingly thing. Thorin was respectable, he was honourable and these dwarves followed him for a reason and it wasn't just because he was rightfully their king. It was because they knew they could look up to him as a king and lead them to victory. They believed in something when they were following Thorin, now, they looked heartbroken and lost. You believed in Thorin when you stumbled into Middle-earth, somehow he became your king in the short while that you had known each other. This was entirely down to the dragon sickness and there was no other way to put it. This was not Thorin. Either, Thorin was gone or he was lost. As much as you wanted to help him find himself again, you knew it was a personal experience that he must go through himself. You heard footsteps echo from the halls behind you. Everyone’s eyes were drawn to something and although their spirits still broken, their eyes still burned with the fire of belief that maybe there was some hope still.

"I will not hide behind a wall of stone while others fight out battles for us!" Kili jumped up to face his uncle, "It is not in my blood, Thorin." "No," Thorin replied in his quiet tone which was a rare sound, "It is not." Kili's eyes jumped from his uncle's to around the room and back to his uncle, "We are sons of Durin and Durinsfolk do not flee from a fight." There was an unsettling silence which made it possible for you to hear your own heart beat. Thorin then pressed his forehead against his young nephews and smiled a genuine smile. You felt heat rise to your cheeks. Thorin? Could this really be the old Thorin? "I have no right to ask this of any of you." he stepped towards the rest of you and sounded so genuine it made you hold your breath as you almost didn't believe it. "But, will you follow me one last time?" You all stood in unison and raised your weapons above your head with tears in your eyes and lumps in your throats.

[youngadultlifeasia]

Legalism -vs- Liberalism: Part 1

Jesus described the road that leads to life as a narrow one and"few there be that find it" (Matthew 7:14). The truth of that statement has never been more real to me than in the last decade of my personal journey with God. Not only is that road narrow but there are a lot of traps and pitfalls along the way designed to move us from the road of life into the ditches of bondage. Since Jesus' desire is to break the chains of bondage and set the captives free (Luke 4:18) I believe it is past time to identify the extremist viewpoints in Christianity that are responsible for so much bondage and destruction. So, if you'll permit me, I'd like to spend a little time detailing the two largest ditches of extremism in the church and how to get out of them and back on the road. We'll call these ditches "legalism" and "liberalism". Legalism is the belief that God’s favor (grace), and consequently His salvation, is earned by our thoughts, intents and actions based upon an intellectual understanding of God’s Word; strict legalists attempt to force their beliefs upon others by various means of emotional manipulation (shame, guilt, judgment, etc). Legalism is not a new problem. Jesus battled with the legalists of His day in the form of the Pharisees, Scribes and Sadducees. If you know your Bible, you know these folks were the only people that Jesus had any condemning words for (Matthew 12:34; Matthew 23:33). Unfortunately, mankind has not learned from Biblical history; legalism is alive and well in many forms and flavors within the Body of Christ. Legalism is characterized by many traits. For example, legalists usually come from a very strong fundamentalist background. FUNDAMENTALISTS: believe every jot, dot and tittle of the Word of God is the unedited, perfect Word of God. This, by itself, is not a problem as most true believers in Christ believe this and rightfully so. DEEPLY OPINIONATED: Generally speaking, legalists interpret the Word of God from a more intellectual foundation rather than a Spirit-filled one. Once an opinion is formed on a given subject, the legalist has no problem sharing their opinions (referred to as "convictions") with anyone who will listen to them. Those who disagree are judged and (usually) condemned as ignorant (at best) or hell-bound heretics (at worst). LOVE OF THE (LOGOS) WORD: The legalist has an intense love of the Bible; they know their scriptures. Nothing inherently wrong with that except I've found the legalist usually does not have a very strong relationship with the author of that Word. Case in point, the legalists in Jesus' day knew their Old Testament backwards and forwards but were blinded to the truth of Jesus' identity. The author of their precious Law was standing 5 feet away from them and they were too blinded by their religion and legalism to see him. Loving the Word is good, but not at the expense of loving its author. JEREMIAH COMPLEX: Most legalists see themselves as a modern day watchman/woman. They believe it is their God called duty to bring the truth of God's word to the sinful masses by any means necessary. This may sound spiritual and right but the reality is when you engage in correcting perceived error from an unspiritual (carnal) and intellectual place you tend to do more damage than intended. Romans 14 deals with this issue pretty well. NEED TO BE APPROVED: legalists have an inherent need to be approved by their fellow believers and by God. This approval is completely dependent upon their belief system and their actions (works). In other words, legalists believe their worth or value to God depends on their actions. God won't bless you unless you're doing your faithful duty as a Christian. Of course, that means that other Christians need your approval too and that is only achieved by doing Christiany stuff. This gets into the motive of why we do what we do for God. God wants us to serve Him because we love Him, not because we want Him to love us (He already does). CONFRONTATIONAL COWARDS: Generally speaking, most legalists do not like to directly confront people they disagree with. They would rather condemn and judge from the safety of a pulpit, picket lines, the internet, e-mail, the Philippine Postal Service, etc. Most people do not know they are in the cross-hairs of a legalist until they hear about their "error" from someone else. SELECTIVE INDIGNATION: This trait describes the hypocrisy inherent with legalism. Legalists tend to lighten or ignore their righteous rhetoric when the sin on the table of discussion is one they are guilty of but have no intention of repenting from. It is also not uncommon for "convictions" on the Word to change whenever habitual sins are formed. Like the preacher who preaches against divorced men holding the office of pastor until his wife leaves him or the preacher who rails against Harry Potter books and movies because of the witchcraft plot lines only to be first in line to see the new Lord of the Rings movies because he grew up reading Tolkien and loves these timeless classics. This is hypocrisy and it is one reason Christianity is a laughing stock in the world. Obviously I could go on, but hopefully you can see the dangers inherent in these traits and attitudes. There are a large number of people who are ignorant of the spiritual application of the Word of God and the need for Holy Spirit to fill us in order for us to be able to accomplish the Word, Will and Ways of God in our daily lives. Legalism depends on the intellect and abilities of man, not Holy Spirit. The subtlety of this problem is founded in our proclivity to self-deception. It is easy to believe we're "walking in the Spirit" when we're actually "walking in the flesh". In spite of God telling us not to lean to our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5) I find that the majority of us do just that. God's ways are not our ways, his thoughts are not our thoughts. The desire of God is for us to be completely yielded to Him so we can operate with godly wisdom rather than carnal intelligence. We are to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves (Matthew 10:16). Unfortunately, legalists have that reversed; that is one reason why Jesus constantly referred to the legalists of his day as "vipers". Much damage has been done in the name of Biblical purity and denominational distinctives. Churches have split, families ruined and many millions have vowed never to darken the door of a church again because of the judgmental condemnation from legalism. The enemy of our souls knows what he is doing and it is our responsibility to soberly investigate the motives and intents of our hearts to see if this evil root is present within us and to take the steps necessary to allow God to permanently remove it and set us all free.