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arda-marred · 7 months

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According to letters and previously unpublished manuscripts, J.R.R. Tolkien began writing stories about Middle-earth as far back as 1917 when he was deployed in the First World War. During this time of time of senseless destruction and tragedy, Tolkien created a hero that embodied these fears; Turin Turambar, the self-proclaimed “Master of Doom.” There is no shortage of heroes in Middle-earth; the diverse cast of characters is a primary reason readers are attracted to Tolkien’s books. From the highest order of Elves and Gods to the smallest Hobbit in the Shire, anyone can be a hero. Manwe, Gandalf, Beren and Luthien, Eowyn, Frodo, Sam, and so on. These heroes of Middle-earth are generally positive figures, they show compassion for others, take council in wisdom, and put the needs of the helpless ahead of themselves; standard qualities for an archetypal fantasy protagonist by today’s standards. Turin is different. He is disturbed, melancholic, and vainglorious, though he is capable of compassion and accomplishes much in the name of good; of Turin’s many exploits, the most remarkable is single-handedly slaying Glaurung the dragon, a scene reminiscent of Sigurd and Fafnir from the “Volsunga Saga.” Despite all of Turin’s achievements though, despair follows. His sister Lalaith dies from plague as a child and Turin never recovers emotionally; Turin’s father Hurin is captured in battle, believed to be dead, tortured for decades, and cursed to watch his family suffer from afar through dark magic; Turin’s homeland is overtaken by bandits and subjected to thralldom; Turin is forced to abandon his pregnant mother at the age of nine and the two never meet again; he is exiled from his foster home after murdering an advisor to the king, refusing to return on the one condition that he ask for forgiveness; he kills his best friend Beleg after mistaking him for an orc in the dark; most disturbing of all, he discovers that his pregnant wife, is actually his long lost sister Nienor. Upon realizing their act of incest, Nienor casts herself into the ocean and Turin falls upon his sword, thus ending his miserable life. Turin, a complicated anti-hero that isn’t quite sympathetic, but pitiable, is a jarring departure from the other heroes of Middle-earth. There is never a triumph for Turin; the weight of the world just keeps packing on. While Tolkien was certainly in the headspace to create such a character during the turmoil of World War One, the genesis of Turin and his family is derived from “The Kalevala,” a collection of ancient songs, poems, and folk stories from Finland. Turin’s life was inspired by the rune songs of Kullervo, a deeply troubled youth who experiences many hardships and goes through life inflicting disaster upon himself and his people; sometimes by accident, other times in a fit of rage. Kullervo is a national icon in Finland, not just for his appearance in “The Kalevala,” but as the subject for Finnish composer Jean Sibelius’ first major symphony, “Kullervo. Op. 7.” Through this creation, Sibelius raised the international awareness of this tragic character, as well as the literary and cultural merit of “The Kalevala.” Read more

#Tolkien #J.R.R. Tolkien #Turin Turambar #The Children of Hurin #The Silmarillion #Tolkien's Legendarium #Tolkien studies #Kullervo #Finnish mythology #The Kalevala #Finnish rune songs #The Tale of Kullervo #Tolkien's inspirations #Tolkien's influences #Tolkien and the Great War

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maedictus · 5 months

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Aragorn

#exploring his design finallyyy #i've been so afraid to draw him and mess it up #but i am getting there #let's say thank you to the 2008 movie jodhaa akbar and hrithik roshan for the inspiration #aragorn #lord of the rings #tolkien #lotr #my art #art #fantasy art #artists on tumblr #illustration #artwork

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la-pheacienne · 24 days

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I'm reading the lord of the rings and I'm once again amazed at how... good most characters are. Like, they are genuinely good people. They are a bunch of kindhearted, gracious, caring people, coming together under adverse circumstances and trying to figure things out and find a solution and support each other through it all. Like Frodo and Sam meet Faramir and Faramir is a bit suspicious at first and kind of implies Frodo may be a spy, and then when he hears his story and he's like Frodo, I pressed you so hard at first. Forgive me! It was unwise in such an hour and place. And this blows.my.mind. He wasn't even particularly mean or threatening to him in the beginning, he's just such a kind, considerate man, recognizing the kindness and honesty of another man. And they're all like that. Even Gollum starts slowly changing (for a short while) when he encounters Frodo because that's the thing about kindness and humility and grace, they are contagious. They transform people, even a creature like Gollum cannot be immune to that. Like, you may consider all this simple and basic and I get it but, hear me out. It is quite rare to see that in modern media and it is also pretty difficult to pull off in a way that is not corny and simplistic. It is mind blowing that you actually don't have to present the entire palette of human cruelty and vice in order to tell a compelling story, contrary to popular belief. Lotr does the exact opposite, and it is just beautiful and it warms my heart. Especially taking into consideration tolkien's pretty grim growing-up experience, him being a double orphan without a home, raised between an orphanage and a priest and having no family apart from his brother and then the war and then he almost dies and then he's poor as hell and then a second war and it all makes sense somehow. He writes to his wife who is also an orphan two days before the marriage "the next few years will bring us joy and content and love and sweetness such as could not be if we hadn't first been two homeless children and had found one another after long waiting" and, yes, yes! The love and sweetness just radiate from his work, the entire lotr series is a little radiant bubble of hope and love and grace that he imagined in his head to deal with a dismal reality and then he just gave that to the world, and isn't that what imagination and art is all about after all?

#i literally wrote this because faramir said 'forgive me'#like that was the inspiration here #terminal brain damage don't mind me #BUT #i have a point #i do!#i am cringe but i am free #i love these books so much #i love this man so much #lotr #the two towers #frodo baggins #faramir #gollum #the lord of the rings #aspa rambles #tolkien #aspa reads tolkien

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surqrised · 2 months

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How do you move on? You move on when your heart finally understands that there is no turning back.

J.R.R. Tolkien

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mgcoco · 7 months

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"There is some new devilry here"

#tolkien #lord of the rings #lotr #gandalf #frodo #moria #doors of durin #inspired by a bluesky post hahaha

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the-merry-gnome · 3 months

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#daily inspiration #LOTR #jrr tolkien #tolkien #motivation

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rikebe · 7 months

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i always really loved the scene in the fellowship where legolas realises mid-council that gollum having escaped is Really Bad, Actually, it's one of my favourite moments in the book. stoic movie legolas is fun but nothing beats an elven prince jumping up to confess his people's massive fuck-up to the smartest and best of middle earth

#legolas greenleaf #legolas #legolas thranduilion #the lord of the rings #lotr #the fellowship of the ring #lotr fotr #i love book legolas hes so sillay #and so expressive!!!#ill probably draw more comics while im going through the book im sooo inspired and autistic #art only #tolkien

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stay-close · 3 days

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How do you move on? You move on when your heart finally understands that there is no turning back.

J.R.R. Tolkien

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thoughtkick · 22 days

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Do you remember when we first met? I thought I had wandered into a dream.

J.R.R. Tolkien

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perfectfeelings · 1 year

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How do you move on? You move on when your heart finally understands that there is no turning back.

J.R.R. Tolkien

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thehopefulquotes · 4 months

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How do you move on? You move on when your heart finally understands that there is no turning back.

J.R.R. Tolkien

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arda-marred · 7 months

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The races of Men, Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits, Orcs, Valar, and Ents all have a unique set of customs, but their transmission of lore, history, and magic are unified under sharing songs. People sing when paying respect to the dead, recalling historical events, conjuring magic for battle, and partaking in merriment; the very creation of the universe, referred to as the “Ainulindale” (Music of the Ainur), tells how heavenly bodies sang everything into existence. Put simply, music is a participatory way to engage with the world. These specific functions of music raises questions over the inspiration behind the song cultures in Middle-earth. Examining the established books pertaining to Middle-earth reveals a variety of influences such as Norse mythology and Anglo-Saxon story-telling tradition, cultures discussed in previous posts. Of all the cultures that were weaved into Tolkien’s stories however, the region that arguably had the greatest influence on the musical aspects of Middle-earth was Eastern Finland. For hundreds of years, the Finns that resided in the republic of Karelia recited stories that were passed down only through song. People taught lessons, shared history, invoked magic powers, and celebrated life with these musical stories. Not only are these acts depicted in the cultures of Middle-earth, a number of Finnish folk stories inspired major sections of the legendarium. Read more

#Tolkien #J.R.R. Tolkien #Tolkien studies #The Kalevala #Kalevala #Finnish mythology #Tolkien's legendarium #Tolkien influences #Tolkien's inspirations #finnish rune songs

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maedictus · 5 months

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