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02-14-2010, 09:40 AM | #1 |
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UT discussion - 1st Age - Of Tuor and his Coming to Gondolin
Summary
Tuor was born after his father Huor's death in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. His mother heard about the battle, but there were no news of her husband. Then she wandered into the wild and was given aid by some of the Grey-elves (the Sindar), and Tuor was born at their dwelling west of Lake Mithrim. She gave him the name that his father had chosen for him, and begged of the Elves to foster him. And when she finally heard that Huor had fallen, she left her son with the Elves and found the site of the battle, and there laid her down and died. Tuor was fostered by the Elves, and by the age of sixteen he was strong and tall and valiant. He told his foster-father Annael that he wanted to take revenge upon the Orcs and the Easterlings, but Annael wouldn't let him, but told him that they would now leave that area and seek other Elves in the South, hopefully through a secret way called the Gate of the Noldor, made in the days of Turgon. The name Turgon stirred Tuor, without him knowing why. Annael told him that Tuor's father and uncle had helped Turgon escape from the Battle, and Tuor said that he would then try to seek Turgon. Annael said that his abode was unknown, but perhaps they might meet some in the South who could help him. Tuor left with Annael and his people, but they were discovered and separated, and Tuor was taken prisoner by the Easterlings and became a slave for Lorgan, their chieftain. After three years as a slave, Tuor managed to escape, and for four years he lived as an outlaw in the wilderness, slaying many of the Easterlings, but mainly looking for the Gate of the Noldor, never finding it. One day he decided to leave those lands, and as he sang an Elven-song, a spring broke out of the ground at his feet, and a stream ran before him. He followed the stream down from the hills of Mthrim and towards the West into the plain of Dor-lomin. After three days of walking, he came to a wall of rock, and the stream disappeared into it. Tuor thought that he was lost. But the next morning he met two Noldorin Elves who told him that the tunnel where the stream had disappeared, was the Gate of the Noldor, and they showed him where to walk to enter it. When he told them that he wanted to search for Turgon, one of them said that if Ulmo, the Lord of Waters, meant for him to find Turgon's dwelling, he would surely be led there. At the other end of the tunnel there was a great ravine, and he followed it for three days. Then he heard a strange sound, and guessed that it would be some unknown bird, and he followed it up from the ravine towards the South. It turned out to be three great gulls, and as they led him, he came to the coast by Nevrast and saw the Great Sea. Here the sea-longing arose in him for the first time. Tuor rested for a long while in Nevrast, and one day in the late Summer (or rather early Autumn) he saw seven white swans. He loved swans, and rose to greet them, but they made as to drive him away. Tuor took this as a sign that he had stayed for too long, and he began to follow the swans. For seven days they led him towards the South, until they reached Vinyamar, Turgon's old halls in Nevrast. In these halls Tuor found a hauberk and weapons, and decided to take those arms to himself, with whatsoever doom they bore. He arrayed himself in the hauberk and helm, took the sword and shield and went down to the sea. There Ulmo, the Lord of Waters, showed himself to him, and told him that he had chosen him to go to Turgon as his messenger, and that the arms that he had found, had been prepared for him to be a token that he was the chosen one. Tuor said that he was willing to be Ulmo's messenger, and Ulmo told him that the last hope of the Noldor lay in Tuor, and that he was meant to bring a hope and a light into the world. Then he promised him a guide, and gave him a cloak, part of his own mantle, and disappeared. There was a great tumult of the sea, and Tuor fled back to Turgon's halls, and slept there that night. The next morning everything was quiet, and he found an Elf sitting on the beach. This was Voronwë, who had been on one of the ships that Turgon had sent out to try to get across to Valinor to ask for the aid of the Valar. His ship was lost in the storm, but Ulmo had saved him to be Tuor's guide. Voronwë agreed to guide Tuor to the gates of the Hidden Kingdom, but he could make no promise that they would be accepted. Tuor asked for no more than to be led to the gates, though, and said that if Turgon refused to receive him, then his errand would be ended. Voronwë then told Tuor about Turgon's plans and how he himself had gone on one of the ships that Cirdan the Shipwright had helped them build. Then they left Vinyamar, and Voronwë set them off on the long road towards the Hidden Kingdom. (TBC) For the first two or three weeks nothing much happened - they walked by night and rested by day, and Autumn turned to an early Winter. When they reached what had been the pool of Ivren, they saw that the land was defiled and desolate, and they saw tracks of what Voronwë knew must be the "Great Worm of Angband", Glaurung the Dragon. At the same time a Man passed by them in the distance between the trees, crying out in grief, and carrying a black sword. They didn't know that this was Turin, Tuor's cousin, searching for survivors after the fall of Nargothrond. Tuor never saw him again. The next day there was snow and frost, the beginning of what would be the Fell Winter. Tuor was worried that they would have very far to go, but Voronwë told him that Turgon's Hidden Kingdom was here in the North, not in the far South, as was commonly believed. Although they still had far to go, they were going on a fairly straight route. They crossed several streams, and then they had to cross the Highway, running down to Nargothrond. Here they were heard and scented by some Orcs - but they hid in Ulmo's cloak, and escaped unseen. Voronwë did not allow Tuor to attack the Orcs, because no-one was allowed to approach the Gates of the Hidden Kingdom with enemies at their heels, and this rule Voronwë would not break, not even at Ulmo's command. When they were safely away from the Orcs, they approached the River Sirion. Voronwë was worried that the Orcs might still be on their tracks, though, but then the Eagles of Crissaegrim, who were watching the Hidden Kingdom, flew past them, and he knew that the Orcs wouldn't dare to come closer. They found the Ford of Brithiach and crossed Sirion safely. On the other side they came to an empty river bed. This was what Voronwë had been searching for, the Dry River, which led to the Gates of the Hidden Kingdom. They followed it for many miles, and at last, more than a month after they had left Nevrast, they came to a steep mountain. Here an opening led them into a sort of a tunnel, and Voronwë led Tuor through the dark. Then they met with Turgon's guards. Voronwe had been sent out by the King, so he would have had the right to return, but he lost that right by bringing a stranger. Both he and the stranger would be taken to the King as prisoners. But when the guards realised that Tuor was a mortal, they were unsure as to whether they ought to slay him immediately. Tuor then told them that he came on an errand from Ulmo, and that he wanted to speak that errand to Turgon himself. The Captain of the Guard then decided that he couldn't decide on such great matters, and would take them to the Warden of the Great Gate. They were then led as prisoners through all the seven gates of the Hidden Kingdom, until at the last gate, the Gate of Steel, they met Echtelion, Lord of the Fountains, who was at that time Warden of the Great Gate. Tuor claimed the right to enter as the messenger of the Lord of Waters, and Echtelion saw his cloak and was filled with awe, and opened the Gate. Then Tuor passed through, and for the first time he saw Gondolin. For a long time he was just looking at it, and then his cloak fell down, and all around him saw the livery of Nevrast which had been left for Ulmo's messenger centuries ago. Then Echtelion declared that it was clear truth that he came from Ulmo. --- And then Tolkien stopped writing ...
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02-14-2010, 09:42 AM | #2 | |
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Resources and additional reading
Maps: On http://larsen-family.us/~1066/silbattles.html you find http://larsen-family.us/~1066/maps/beleriand.jpg, a large map of Beleriand. At Encyclopedia of Arda you find various small maps with text and comments: Firth of Drengist (where Tuor first reached the Sea, and then went on through Nevrast to Vinyamar) http://www.glyphweb.com/arda/f/firthofdrengist.html Seven Gates of Gondolin (which Tuor was led through as a prisoner, until Echtelion accepted him) http://www.glyphweb.com/arda/s/sevengates.html Gondolin - Turgon’s Hidden Refuge (which Tuor saw from the last gate - and later entered) http://www.glyphweb.com/arda/g/gondolin.html Additional reading: The Silmarillion, chapter 23 (first part) HoME 2 (Book of Lost Tales Part 2), Fall of Gondolin (first part) Textual history: The story of Gondolin and its fall was the first story of the First Age that Tolkien composed. The first version was written in 1916-1917, in the archaic style of writing which Tolkien used then, and has been published in Book of Lost Tales Part 2 (with an extremely complicated textual history). It was read as a paper to the Essay Club of his college in 1920. Some time between 1926 and 1930 Tolkien wrote a compressed version of the story to be used in what he hoped to be The Silmarillion, and Christopher Tolkien says that his father changed it to fit better with the other changes he had made since it was first written. Quote:
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02-14-2010, 09:43 AM | #3 | ||||
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Comments
Here is where I may be personal. The story starts with a tragedy - a mother abandons her newborn son to die from grief on her husband's grave. It's told with very little detail and in fact very little emotion - this is history narrative, not a psychological novel. We can only guess at what it must have meant for Tuor to be an orphan nearly at birth. But he seems to have had a good relationship with his foster-father, Annael, who is the one who first tells him about Turgon. (In the version of the Book of Lost Tales nothing is said about Tuor's parentage, and he's just presented as someone who wanders in the wild until, by Ulmo's will, he stumbles upon the Gate of the Noldor.) It's interesting how the name Turgon immediately stirs something in Tuor's heart. Is Ulmo already at work, influencing him? The House of Hador, of which Tuor was a descendant, had the favour of the mighty Vala, and Tuor's father had predicted before his death that from Turgon and himself there would come a hope for Middle-earth, if only Gondolin could stand a little longer. Ulmo certainly has a connection to the family, "for in his deep counsels he purposed that they should play great part in his design for the succour of the Exiles". There's also a nice touch when Tuor is one of Lorgan's slaves - he is the friend of Lorgan's dogs, and they won't attack him when they hunt for him and find him, but "fawn upon him, and then run homeward at his command". I like how he loves the animals. Then Tuor has his first encounter with the Noldor - which he recognizes by the light of their eyes (I suppose this means that they are come out of Valinor, and not born in Middle-earth). They show him the Gate of the Noldor, and say that "Through darkness you shall come to the light." When they hear that he seeks Turgon, they encourage him because of his family's connection to Ulmo, and say that they don't think their meeting has been by chance. Interesting tidbit: the Fëanorean lamps are here seen in use. Advanced technology! More about animals: He is led by birds, first for a few days by three gulls, and then for a few more days by seven swans - and it's said that he loves swans. It's also said that the gulls are especially loved by the Teleri - but the swans are the inspiration for the Teleri's ships, and in the Third Age we see that Galadriel (whose mother was of the Teleri) also has a ship shaped as a swan. When Tuor comes to the halls of Vinyamar, he has no idea that the arms he finds there, are made for himself. But when he sees the swan's wing emblem, he chooses to take them on and to take upon himself "whatsoever doom they bear". He walks right into what Ulmo has planned for him. The Book of Lost Tales gives a detailed description of the appearance of Ulmo. Quote:
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There's an amazing section during the storm after Ulmo's note on his horn, where Tuor sees "all the waters of the world in a great vision", "with the swift sight of the Valar". And after that, and after his dreams that night, he begins to find Ulmo's predictions beginning to come true. He meets the Elf that Ulmo has sent to help him - and he finds that words are laid in his mouth without his previous knowledge of the facts he speaks, like the name of Voronwë. And Voronwë accepts his claims and accepts his own task as guide for Ulmo's messenger. Where Voronwë tells about his journey, and how he tarries in the lovely land of Nan-tathren in Spring, it seems that Tolkien has transferred to him something of what was given to Tuor in the Book of Lost Tales. Quote:
(TBC) It seems that Ulmo cared more for Gondolin than for Nargothrond - or maybe the reason was that there was a Princess in Gondolin, and the chance of a union of Elf and Man. This would be part of his plan, even though Tuor's primary task should have been to lead the people of Gondolin safely out and probably down to the Sea by the Mouths of Sirion ... I like that little crossing of the paths of the two cousins - once, and Turin probably didn't even notice, and then never again ... Another tidbit: The Fell Winter, to be remembered for years: five months. In my parts of Norway, that's fairly usual ... And even in this Fell Winter, the River Sirion doesn't freeze. Not in this version of Tolkien's story, that is - he had another version, which Christopher believes he rejected, where they crossed on the ice instead of by the Ford. There is racism here - the Guard of the Gate finds that Tuor is a mortal, "for by his eyes I perceive his kin", and names him "one of alien kin". It helps, though, when he claims to be the son of Huor, who with his brother Hurin had been a guest in Gondolin in his youth. All the seven gates are named and described - they are all beautifully made, real works of art - the artisans of Gondolin must have had lots of time to devote to details! It's a moving moment at the end, where Tuor finally sees Gondolin. It's the first time the name is used in the text. And no-one knows why Tolkien, who had made notes for how the story should continue, stopped at that point ...
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02-15-2010, 08:50 AM | #4 | |
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Points of discussion
1. Is there reason to believe that Tuor's life would have been different if his mother had stayed with him in the Grey-elves' dwellings? Was she not able to control and conquer her grief? 2. How much is Ulmo the force behind Tuor's decisions? If not for Ulmo, would Tuor have sought Turgon at all, just for the debt he might have had to Tuor's father? 3. The Sea is a theme that often recurs in Tolkien's writings. Do you see similarities and differences between the rising of Tuor's sea-longing and that of other characters in other stories? 4. Are gulls and swans especially connected to Ulmo, the way Eagles are connected to Manwë? Are they Ulmo's messengers to guide Tuor on his way? 5. Tuor sees the swan's wing emblem as a token to take the "arms unto myself, and upon myself whatsoever doom they bear". Is this out of a sense of duty, or of a sense of adventure - or is he merely following his fate? 6. In what other instances can we see Ulmo opposed to his brethren and helping the Children of Iluvatar? Is even Ulmo bound by fate? 7. Is Tuor likely to understand what Ulmo means by "bring into the world a hope beyond thy sight, and a light that shall pierce the darkness", and "until the rising of the Star"? Is his dream - Quote:
8. Why would Tolkien move the details of tarrying in Nan-tathren from Tuor to Voronwë? Is he afraid of showing Tuor as irresponsible? (TBC) 9. Do you think anything would have happened differently - for either of them - if Tuor had talked to Turin? 10. The Eagles serve as guards for Turgon - and as messengers. Do you see similarities and differences between their role here and the role of other Eagles in other of Tolkien's stories? 11. Elemmakil says that he "should" slay the stranger of alien kin. Why would it be more necessary to slay a mortal who found the secret, than an Elf who did the same thing? 12. Do they see Tuor's position as son of Huor as less important than his task as messenger of Ulmo? 13. Do you agree that Tuor's intended task was to lead the people of Gondolin to safety immediately? What could have been different if Turgon had accepted the message from Ulmo?
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02-15-2010, 03:28 PM | #5 |
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Thank you for the very extensive chapter review, Varna! I'll be reading the chapter tonight (hopefully) so I can refresh my memory and join in the actual discussion.
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02-18-2010, 05:36 PM | #6 | |||||
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Or perhaps Nargothrond had been generally in less danger than Gondolin, without the building of the bridge, they could have stayed unnoticed. Morgoth, too, seems more interested in finding Gondolin than Nargothrond. And even if Ulmo's plan had been fulfilled entirely to his liking, Gondolin too would still have been lost. Ulmo indicated as much in his words to Turgon. He obviously only had been interested in saving the people, not the city itself. Gondolin -like Nevrast- was already destined for abandonment and the ruin of time. Quote:
(I will answer the questions at a later stage.)
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02-18-2010, 06:02 PM | #7 | |||
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On the other hand, he would hardly have had time to lead all the people out of Gondonlin in Summer and still have had time to help his cousin save Nargothrond in Autumn. There's a limit to what can be expected from him ... Quote:
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02-19-2010, 09:03 AM | #8 | |||
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02-24-2010, 12:18 AM | #9 |
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I don't think Turgon leaving Gondolin and joining the other Noldor to lead them would have actually helped things. Help had to eventually come from the West - and the West was not going to help until everything had pretty much gone to pot. If Turgon had brought everyone from Gondolin down to the last refuge of the Beleriand Elves on Balar - it would have only prolonged and protracted the decline.
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02-24-2010, 12:34 AM | #10 | |
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To respond selectively:
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7. Interesting about the star - especially since you take it as 'the Land of the Star' - Numenor, which was first ruled by one of Tuor's grandsons. I take it as a reference to Earendil - who was the son of Tuor and wore a silmaril bound to his forhead, and it gave light as a star - and indeed was subsequently set in the heavens as a star. The hope and the star that was to be born of Huor's and Turgon's seed, I have always taken to be Earendil, who was the last hope of both Elves and Men, for he was able to plead the cause of both races to the Valar. 9. Oh goodness - if Turin and Tuor had stopped to talk - even if it had not come to blows (even maybe a fight to the death for one of them), it would have messed up everything. If they had compared notes, at least one of them and maybe both, would never have completed the tasks they needed to perform. Yet - for their own sakes, they would have each had more peace of mind, and a shared kinship with a cousin who was caught up in the great movings of things just as they were. 13. I think Tuor's great task was to have a son with Idril. Not a very bad lot in life, I would suppose. As a spin-off point to one of yours above, I offer the following: 6A. Bringing up 'fate' in regard to Ulmo is very interesting - because in this story, it makes me think of the role of fate in regard to Tuor. We see in his life the workings of fate - and yet, Men were supposed to be outside of the dictates of fate - at least within the knowledge of the Valar. The Elves were more tied to fate, and Men had more 'free agency', so to speak - at least as I understood things. Maybe it's just as well to examine the role that fate played in Tuor's life, and to ask the questions about whether he was bound to these things, or if he was just generally of a cooperative nature.
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02-24-2010, 12:38 AM | #11 |
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Other observations:
1. I was always quite taken with the progression of the seven gates to Gondolin. In fact - I was quite surprised this time through at how little of the story this consisted of. 2. Oh how I wish JRRT had brought this story to conclusion in this fully fleshed-out form. It would have been interesting to us all. But maybe he felt unequal to the task - that to whatever extent he detailed it, it would have then fallen short of the imagination of the reader. Or maybe he thought it better to leave it as a bit more mysterious - a truly untold story, except in rudimentary form. Or... maybe it just fell by the wayside with all the other things he had going on in his life, his work and this additional obsession of his.
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02-24-2010, 01:57 PM | #12 |
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With respect to comments in Valandil's 2nd section, Christopher Tolkien expressed the view in the foreword to Morgoth's Ring (repeated in The War of the Jewels) that:
'despair of publication, at least in the form that he regarded as essential (i.e. the conjunction of The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings in a single work) was the fundamental cause of the collapse of this new endeavour; and that this break destroyed all prospect that what may be called 'the older Silmarillion' would ever be completed.' Tolkien had hopes that Collins was going to publish both the Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings, but this broke down, and Allen and Unwin agreed only to The Lord of the Rings (at this time). These circumstances with publishers were arguably a large reason why the new Fall of Gondolin, among other works begun after The Lord of the Rings was 'finished' but not published, remained incomplete. Of course Tolkien could have returned to these things later, but soon enough he was overwhelmed by other factors (CJRT notes them), and so on; and as we know, he never did get to complete his updated (long prose) Fall of Gondolin of the early 1950s Although one can dream the rest of it is still hiding somewhere, still somehow hidden from even CJRT. Well, it's a dream |
02-24-2010, 05:41 PM | #13 | |||||
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Some observations of mine:
I quickly glanced through the relevent chapter in The Silmarillion after reading the summery posted, and I was really shocked to see how edited down the chapter was. I mean, within three pages (HarperCollins paperback edition, 1999), the text reaches the point where the draft ends. It's just a shame that some more details couldn't be added in, such as why Tour was left with Annael in the first place, with no mention with what happened to Rian. I mean, I'm not aware of there being any limit of pages or word count, so some of the details from the early account, and the account described here, surely could have been added. Not everthing, of course, but some details. Anyways, to the questions. Quote:
I'm personally not sure how Rian would have affected Tour's life had she still been alive. We don't have much information on her personality, although I suppose she could have recommened some people he could go to if he was stuck (like his uncle, aunt and/or cousin, for example). Quote:
It didn't seem to affect world events that much anyway, except for the destruction of Nargothrond , which seems to be inevitable anyway (as with all the Elven relms and cities). Quote:
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Wow, longest post I've made on this forum yet!
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02-25-2010, 12:57 AM | #14 |
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Hey Jammi!
This is when Turin, instead of going in pursuit of the captives from Nargothrond was on his way to Dor-lomin (by the charms of Glaurung). I wonder if Tuor and Voronwe - if he told them his story - would have tried to persuade him to attempt the rescue of Finduilas. I wonder if it would have done any good. But... Turin ended up killing Glaurung. I would be afraid that messing with any of his prior storyline - even if it might seem for the better - could have kept him from fulfilling that great task. And by that one task - Turin's story went far beyond the personal and affected the rest of Beleriand.
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02-28-2010, 07:57 AM | #15 | ||||||||||
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Even if Turgon had heeded Ulmo's instructions, the Gondolindrim forces could not hope to defeat Morgoth on their own. That much was evident, and there were no strong allies left. But still a number of things could have been different, perhaps not better on the whole. But more Elves might have survived for instance, if the entire population of Gondolin had left the city before its discovery. Quote:
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Perhaps Tolkien was more interested in using Gondolin as a plot device throughout the history of the First Age, a more mythical than real place, that would lose its mystique if explained or described too well. Elements can be spoilt in stories if over-used or over-explained.
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02-28-2010, 07:25 PM | #16 | |||||||||
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The silmaril wasn't set in the heavens, though, was it? I think Eärendil was sailing across the heaven with the silmaril on his ship, and that was why it would look like a star (probably what we would call Venus). Quote:
Hit first and ask questions later, is that what you mean? But it's possible that they might have messed up their duties. Turin needed to find the dragon and kill it. And Tuor needed to find Gondolin. If they had tried to cooperate, they might have left one task unfinished. Quote:
No, I don't think either that he would resent that task ... Quote:
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And even though Turgon gets the offer to escape from Gondolin, I agree that it's less important for him to accept it than to allow his daughter to marry Tuor. And here he did not fail. I think that Turgon might have defended the settlement of Sirion against the Fëanoreans - but you are right that they couldn't have hoped to defeat Morgoth. They needed the Valar for that. Quote:
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02-28-2010, 08:01 PM | #17 |
The Chocoholic Sea Elf Administrator
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I always had the Niebelungen saga pegged as inspiration for Túrin (especially since the final treatment of Glaurung mirrors that of ancient Fafnir pretty closely). Is it one of the stories in the Kalevala? I've heard the Kalevala mentioned as a pretty influential mythical work but I haven't been able to find it in print yet.
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02-28-2010, 08:51 PM | #18 | ||
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No, the Niebelungen saga is Germanic - and closer to an inspiration for LotR, I would say.
You can find Kalevala at the Gutenberg project - http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/5186. Kullervo is the model for Turin. Quote:
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02-28-2010, 10:58 PM | #19 | |
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There is evidence dated after the early 1950s that Tolkien intended his legendarium to include long prose versions of the Great Tales, including in his very late work on Maeglin: 'Thus at this very late date my father was still holding to the hope of an entirely rewritten story of the Fall of Gondolin, of which so little had actually been done (and those parts some twenty years before).' This is in reference to the long prose version (Unfinished Tales), not a Quenta Silmarillion version. This quote is from CJRT's commentary to Maeglin from The War of The Jewels. Last edited by Galin : 02-28-2010 at 11:00 PM. |
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03-04-2010, 04:48 PM | #20 | ||
The Chocoholic Sea Elf Administrator
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