Tolkien is frequently accused of being sexist. While most of the main characters in his stories are men, he also wrote some fascinating female characters. Here are a few of the most intriguing. 10. Berúthiel Mentioned in passing in The Fellowship of the Ring, Berúthiel was a crazy cat lady. Seriously. Aragorn assures the rest of the Fellowship that Gandalf is…
Category: Characters
Most Interesting Men in Middle-earth
Tolkien often gets a bad rap for writing one-dimensional characters, but it simply isn’t true. He wrote about many fascinating individuals–here are a few of the male persuasion. 10. Denethor Denethor is a contradiction. He takes great pride in his ancestry–yet he refused to accept much of its wisdom. He wanted to continue his lineage and yet he shamelessly favored…
What Tolkien Thought of Frodo and Bilbo Baggins
September 22 was the birthday of Frodo and Bilbo Baggins. In honor of these two famousest of Hobbits, I thought it would be appropriate to gather some of Tolkien’s thoughts on these characters. On What Made Bilbo Unique Bilbo was in [gift giving] as in other ways an exceptional person, and his Party was a riot of generosity even for a wealthy…
What Does Celebrimbor Mean?
Whether you’re a long-time Tolkien fan or you just heard the name from all the hype around Shadow of Mordor, there’s no denying that “Celebrimbor” is a doozy of a name. What does that even mean? According to The Silmarillion, “Celebrimbor” means “hand of silver.” Is that just a generic name or does it have meaning beyond the translation? Keep in mind…
Celebrimbor: Who is he?
With the recent release of the new Shadow of Mordor trailer, a lot of people are wondering, “Who is Celebrimbor?” The short answer: he’s the Elf who forged the Rings of Power (except the One Ring). He was the only survivor of a powerful house of Elves. To understand the importance, you have to know a little about the history of Middle-earth.…
Morning and Evening: Gimli and Eomer at War
Anyone who is familiar with the story of The Lord of the Rings (book or film) will likely remember Gimli’s love for Galadriel. He constantly defends her to any who speak ill of her or her land. Éomer is the first to feel the brunt of Gimli’s wrath. The quarrel becomes a half-humorous, half-serious bone of contention between the two throughout…
On the Importance of Glorfindel
Glorfindel, like Tom Bombadil, Quickbeam, and Prince Imrahil, is one of those characters who didn’t make it into Peter Jackson’s films. I understand why Jackson made this decision. There are already plenty of characters to follow. Adding yet another character–one who only appears in two or three scenes–simply causes confusion for the viewers. It’s just sad because Glorfindel has a…
Faramir: Tolkien in Lord of the Rings
Lately, a lot of the posts here have been centered more or less around The Silmarillion. While I absolutely love tales of the First Age, I know that’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Thus, I will turn my attention to Lord of the Rings for a time. In a letter to a fan, Tolkien throws in an interesting comment: “As far as…
Half-Elven Bonus: The Forgotten Ones
At length they [Legolas, Gimli, Merry, and Pippin] cam 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 said. ‘It is long since the people of Nimrodel left the woodlands of Lórien, and yet still one may see that not…
Half-Elven Part VII: Concluding Thoughts on Mortality
The Half-Elven are vital to the history of Middle-earth. More than almost any other individuals, they shaped how the world progressed through their deeds. These characters struggle, either blatantly or indirectly, with mortality and immortality. The real theme for me is about something much more permanent and difficult [than power]: Death and Immortality: the mystery of the love of the…