Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Some thoughts about Lord of the Rings

Pastor Petersen asks who your favorite character from Lord of the Rings is. This is, to me, a bizarre question because I tend to think of my favorite scenes or phrases from Lord of the Rings.

So, that is the question I will ask here - what is your favorite scene or favorite line from Lord of the Rings?

I will give two scenes. My favorite scene is the confrontation between Eowyn, Merry, and the Lord of the Nazgul. Just a fantastic scene with Macbethean twist - the fact that the majority of the point of view is if anything from Merry's perspective. Just, such a well written scene.

Theologically, my favorite scene is from the Two Towers when Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas run into Gandalf again. They say to Gandalf that they thought he was Saruman - and Gandalf replies, "Indeed, I am Saruman, one moght say, Saruman as he should have been." The simple fact that suddenly there is an explanation of Recapitulation - Old Adam/New Adam right in the middle of the Two Towers.

In terms of phrase - both come from "The Battle of the Pelennor Fields.

- "So passed the sword of the Barrow-downs, work of Westernesse. But glad would have have been to know its fate who wrought it slowly long ago in the North-kingdom when the Dunedain were young, and chief among their foes was the dread realm of Angmar and its sorcerer king. No other blade, though mightier hands had wielded it, would have dealt that foe a wound so bitter, cleaving the undead flesh, breaking the spell that knit his unseen sinews to his will."

- "These staves he spoke, yet he laughed as he said them. For once more lust of battle was upon him: and he was still unscathed, and he was young, and he was king: the lord of a fell people."

Read Tolkien and you will have a better command of the English language.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

My favorite scene (from the movies) is when Gandalf arrives from the east, riding Shadowfax over the crest of a ridge to save those besieged at Helm's Deep. It is the parousia, with the Church utterly besieged, the tiny, faithful remnant having plunged into its last gasp of battle. The White Rider storms down with His hosts to save His beloved people. I weep every time I see it.

Anonymous said...

My favorite line (lines) is Samwise's speech at Osgiliath at the end of TT. I find especially memorable, "But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer." and, "Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn't. Because they were holding on to something."

Rev. Eric J Brown said...

You realize I view the movies almost in the same way that Scaer views "The Living Bible"?

Well, not quite. . . I enjoyed the movies, but I just thought that would be a fun line.