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In certain parts of the fandom, there's a real push back against the notion that Eowyn was left behind first and foremost because she was a woman. That Eowyn was denied the right to ride to battle, or was forced into a domestic role, because she was a woman. Or indeed, that her depression was directly caused by the choices other people made regarding her because she was a woman.

Fans will accept generally that countries like Rohan and Gondor were patriarchal (although they might avoid using the word "sexist"), and will acknowledge that gender roles were at play, but when presented with specific acts of sexism from characters they admire, like Theoden or Aragorn, they shy away from it, they try to find alternative explanations, they try to remove sexism from the narrative. Actually pin pointing moments of sexism from heroic characters is something they resist, even though they wouldn't necessarily deny that the characters exist in sexist cultures.

It seems that they are unwilling to fully acknowledge that sexist societies are sexist because of the choices and conduct of those living within the societies, that agents within those societies perpetuate sexism by making choices that reinforce it. They'd rather shrug the sexism off with a vague "it's just what it was like back then".

"It's just what it was like back then" comes up if you look critically at a character's sexist actions. We're told we can't "judge them through a modern lens", as though everyday sexism only causes harm in modern day, as though the book itself doesn't examine the role gender and gendered expectations have on women like Eowyn.

And of course, much of it comes down to wanting to defend Theoden or Aragorn or whatever character is coming under critique. They would rather look for alternative interpretations, focus entirely on the non-sexist reasoning for their decisions and pretend that gender never comes into it, point out the times characters treated Eowyn with something approaching respect or recognition (which should be enough to dispel accusations of sexism, even when it is nowhere equal to what a male peer would receive) or use the traditions of their culture to exculpate the characters of all responsibility for their actions.

The result of this is that Eowyn ends up being re-written as a misguided woman whose sense of oppression was all in her head, that she was misguided and selfish (tragically so, because we can accept she is Grima's victim, just no one else's), that she was "redeemed" at the end of the narrative by "embracing her feminine role", and that her conflict with gender and gendered expectations are for herself to resolve, with no alterations of concessions made by others.

This, even though Gandalf spells out to Eomer that sexism played a hugely significant part in Eowyn's ultimate despair, and that Eomer himself, after hearing Gandalf, accepted this and reconsidered their entire lives together.

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Some unposted Tolkien art I've been collecting over the years 💫

Huan and Lúthien | Yavanna and Aulë | Celeborn and Galadriel | Fingon | Galadriel but Art Nouveau | Vairë, the Weaver | Lórien and Mandos | Some Hobbiteses

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»swofehuper« by richard tipping (+)

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Why are you lgbtq+? wrong answers only GO

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Every time Sean Astin makes a statement on whether or not Sam and Frodo were indeed gay for each other in lord of the rings he’s always like “well we have to acknowledge that attitudes around sexuality have changed dramatically over the past several decades and since authorial intent is only up to speculation, the story is open to multiple readings, some of which might have different significances for different groups of people also they kiss on the lips because I said so”

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i got into star trek as a bit and now unfortunately ive realized its one of the most beautiful shows ever. its about love and family and exploration and warmth and possibilities and a hopeful and wonderful future. and its also so so fucking stupid

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thinking about that TNG episode where Riker says he never feels rested after sleeping and Dr Crusher tells him to just drink warm milk about it and then later it turns out he's been abducted by aliens 6 times and had his arm cut off. most accurate portrayal of dealing with the medical profession ever seen on screen

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Just gonna start using this excuse IRL.

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765874 Unification - Short Film from The Roddenberry Archive, OTOY, William Shatner and the Nimoy estate, in commemoration of 30th anniversary of Generation being released.

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ok wait, reblog if you’ve cried at least once because of math, doesn’t matter which grade i’m trying to prove something 

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Imagine being imprisoned and tortured in an orb for weeks after having died and served the god of death for decades only to suddenly come to consciousness and seeing that one of your closest friends is inexplicably a centaur now

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Scanlan used a 9th-level counterspell to defeat Vecna and, in doing so, was unable to save Vax, in campaign 1 episode 114. In campaign 3 episode 114, he was able to free the beacon from the machine keeping Vax imprisoned and finally save him

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Dagger dagger dagger? In this economy?

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do you ever think about the fact that essek is probably a million times nicer to verin now than he ever was before?? and that verin, for the first time, gets the really meet his brother???

do you think about the fact that the cold mantle of the shadowhand is gone and withered, replaced by the warmth of the nein and caleb's love, and verin, for the first time in his life, gets to have a real relationship with his big brother that's not a facsimile of den politics or social standards??

the scene where verin and essek (in disguise) meet with vox machina is SO important, because essek--the former shadowhand to the bright queen, traitor to the entire dynasty, fugitive to two nations--smacks his brother on the arm and chides him for being embarrassing in front of people of high station. he doesn't try to hide himself AT ALL. he's just... open. warm. at peace.

there's no more cold smiles, there's no more polite aloofness, no more haughty attitude or snide remarks... essek's just a big brother again. a big brother whose little brother came to work with him one day, walked up to the president of the country and asked her to sign his pamphlet with a shit-eating grin, while essek tried not to burst a blood vessel in the corner.

no matter what verin's opinions are on the dynasty and the beacons and essek's crimes, i'm willing to bet that there was a part of him that wouldn't have changed a goddamn thing. because without essek having stolen the beacons and handing them over to the empire, and without him meeting the nein, verin would've never gotten the chance to have his brother back.