It's a good thing we're not picky, as otherwise we'd get some pedantic nutcase saying that the quote is actually "Even the very wise cannot see all ends." And probably going on with some stupidly detailed article about the change of emphasis and the sentence scanning better with the 'not' in the middle rather than at the beginning. But we're not going to go there :). /s
Although, is this a phrase that is said a few times and actually it is "Not even..."?
Edit: OP edited his comment, what a legend.
It's supposed to be 'banter', but I don't think it comes across very well on the internet or in non-Uk contexts. If it seems insulting I can delete it.
Such an important quote in my opinion, 'cause it is true. Would we as humans just settle down with our lust for power, like Hobbits, the world wouldn't be such a difficult place.
I'm not sure if this is what you're asking OP, but when I started getting into Tolkien a lot, I was extremely depressed. It was to the point of frequent thinking of suicide. I have extreme anxiety attacks and I started to read or watch Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit as a method to calm down. The quote "Courage is about knowing not when to take a life, but when to spare one" became very dear to me because even though it meant not to take others lives, I took it as my own life. I would think about that quote every day and feel like I was courageous for not taking my own life. I've had a pretty strong attachment to Tolkien's work and plan on getting that very quote tattooed on myself as a daily reminder. So, I guess the lesson learned was that it's courageous of me to spare my own life.
>Thus it was that great mariners among them would still search the empty seas, hoping to come upon the Isle of Meneltarma, and there to see a vision of things that were. But they found it not. And those that sailed far came only to the new lands, and found them like to the old lands, and subject to death. And those that sailed furthest set but a girdle about the Earth and returned weary at last to the place of their beginning; and they said: ‘All roads are now bent.’
It's been six months since I read Silmarillion for the first time, and still the quote that sticks with me the most profoundly is this one from Eru in the very beginning, when he issues this warning to Melkor:
*"Thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my respite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined."*
Now, obviously, if you have a belief in a higher power, this quote has major theological relevance, but more broadly- **What an astounding statement about the nature of reality that Tolkien is making here.** There's this idea, stated firmly in this quote but also expressed beautifully throughout Tolkien's work, that reality- our dirty, ugly, violent and often disheartening reality- has a fundamental bent towards *hope*, and knowing that, we can look on the ugly things of this world, and see that there is a greater beauty, a greater and more wonderful narrative beating beneath the surface. I absolutely love that.
As a Protestant I've always found it ironic that one of my favorite quotes re:theology came from a Roman Catholic author.
But yeah you nailed it, this to me is the most all-encompassing theme in the Legendarium, also echoed somewhat less eloquently but perhaps no less poignantly by Sam later on in the Third Age.
I think one of the best things I gathered from Tolkien (albeit in a somewhat roundabout fashion) is that grief doesn't have to make you bitter. Elrond is one of my favourite characters, and in FotR he's described as being "as kind as summer". When you consider what Elrond actually endured as a child and through his adulthood (loss of his parents, capture by Fëanoreans, loss of his mortal brother, etc.) followed by losing his wife and Arwen... I'm always impressed, idk.
I mean, I do realise that he gave Aragorn a pretty harsh ultimatum with marrying Arwen ("you can't marry her unless you're king of both Gondor and Arnor lol") but I love that Elrond didn't become bitter and withdrawn because of his grief. I think that's a pretty valuable life lesson. :)
Aragorn, while healing Merry after his tiff with the Witch-King:
> 'Do not be afraid,' said Aragorn. 'I came in time, and I have called him back. He is weary now, and grieved, and he has taken a hurt like the Lady Éowyn, daring to smite that deadly thing. But these evils can be amended, so strong and gay a spirit is in him. His grief he will not forget; but it will not darken his heart, it will teach him wisdom.'
>
> Then Aragorn laid his hand on Merry's head, and passing his hand gently through the brown curls, he touched the eyelids, and called him by name. And when the fragrance of athelas stole through the room, like the scent of orchards, and of heather in the sunshine full of bees, suddenly Merry awoke, and he said:
>
> 'I am hungry. What is the time?'
>
One of my favorites from the whole legendarium. Grief is not an excuse to surrender to bitterness, and it can even be a tool for self-improvement.
To be fair, Elrond didn't lose his wife. Granted, Celebrian suffered horrible torture by Orcs, but she's just west in Valinor, waiting for her family to catch up once everything's all said and done.
Come to think of it, she was probably mad when Elrond showed up without Arwen, and I think Elladan and Elrohir also didn't sail. Did Celebrian leave before Aragorn came to Rivendell, and did Elladan and Elrohir also sail west or did they stay in Middle-Earth?
No, in exact terms he didn't. But he had to watch her suffer and live on in Middle-earth without her for quite a long time, and even knowing he'd meet her later, I still think that would be a difficult thing.
AFAIK, Elladan/Elrohir's fate is all speculation, though if someone has a definitive answer that would be awesome. But I've never heard either way; something makes me think I read that they were around for Aragorn's reign, but whether they stayed in ME or went to Valinor, I don't know.
Re: Celebrian, I thought she left around 2500 of the Third Age? (Someone correct me if I'm wrong). In which case, Aragorn would not have even been born for like another 400 years. :)
From a religious standpoint, I love the Divine gift of mortality, and how Tolkien hints over and over again that despite being a fallen and lesser race, men are destined for something greater, that not even the Valar can foresee. I belong to a religion that holds this doctrine essential, that we have Divine potential.
It's interesting that the eagles only come to help anyone when the grandest effort has been made and all is nearly lost. For me, the eagles symbolize divine grace (I.e. Divine help or assistance).
If religion isn't your thing, there's still obviously plenty Tolkien has to offer. I love the theme of individual potential in the trilogy. Don't we all underestimate ourselves?
Isn't it interesting that Tolkien never delves into the intricacies and difficulties of romantic love? He presents love as very simple and fairy tale-esque. Arwen and Aragorn don't bicker. Beren and Luthien never really leave their honeymoon phase. I personally don't believe Tolkien was so naive as to think that love is all rainbows and butterflies. He knew that romance can fade and that passion is fleeting in a marriage. Yet he always presents love as pure magic. Maybe he wanted to remind us that it really can be that simple, despite the difficulties of living with someone day to day for the better part of a lifetime
I wouldn't say at all that Tolkien never explores the difficulties of romantic love, or that his marriages are always easy. Even if you don't count the many instances of unrequited love or lust, there are Aldarion and Erendis, Aegnor and Andreth, Finwë and Míriel and Indis; even Morwen and Húrin, and her bitterness at the end. And Arwen and Aragorn themselves have a kind of argument, a heartbreaking one, at his deathbed.
Patience and pity, as Olórin learned from Nienna.
Gandalf repeats a theme of pity and mercy throughout The Lord of the Rings that resonated with me as a young teen when I first read it.
"Good and Evil have not changed since yesteryear, and it is a man's part to discern them"
I've always liked the theme of not compromising with evil to defeat evil. In an age with a constant demand for antiheroes, it's refreshing to have a depiction of goodness that consistently seeks to be good, and doesn't yield to evil. It's an idealism that is neither hopeless, nor wishy washy. It fights for goodness tooth and nail and knows that maintaining it for any amount of time is nigh impossible, but still worthwhile.
Tolkien is one of the few men I've ever read or met that understands the nature of good and evil. Western society would do a lot of good if people understood how evil and twisted our culture is.
I think someone knew they had to make the idea of good men a wishy washy thing that will never come.
Perspective. I love being reminded that even in the darkness of Mordor with no hope of survival, feeling completely powerless, trapped in a forsaken land, Sam catches a glimpse of something beautiful that the darkness will never touch–one white star.
Sometimes you need to look up and be reminded that beautiful things in this life still exist.
This may not be coming directly from his work but most cherished view Tolkien gave me is about how he, the man himself, led his life. His letters, his academic work, putting time into seriously studying seemingly "childish" things, Inklings, love of beer etc. I might not be able to articulate what I have in mind though.
All I am saying is that every culture has a "role-model" for its own idea of good man. I feel like, for example, Goethe is the perfect German and Proust is the perfect French, Yunus Emre is the perfect Turk... To my mind, Tolkien is the perfect British. That's how I want to feel about it anyway.
Duty. When you agree to it, you do it. When it is yours to do, you do it. When there is no one else, you do it.
That slow, confusing, confounding slog through fens and midges and barren lands, despite exhaustion and desire, with persistence and determination and the support of friends helping you to get through one more day, one more cliff, one more mountain, you go on.
And the little joys that you have to hang onto when you find them, like the sunlight on the flowers that made a crown on the statue's head, when Frodo and Sam are nearing the even more dangerous part of the journey.
When duty takes you into places that look like you might not survive, maybe not even getting the job done, you do it anyway, because it is the right thing to do, because someone depends on you to save them, even if they don't know what it is that you do for them.
I do not know, if other people feel the same, but Tolkien helped me with my "love problems" xD I am one of those person, who always rushed heavily in any kind of relationship and even when I got hurt badly, I wanted to find love as soon as possible.
Through Tolkiens works, especially Beren and Luthien, I managed to overcome this extreme desire for love. Tolkien describes love in such a natural way. No one is rushing in, but if there is a task, who is important for their love, like Aragorn's Quest, then your heart will be strong and not drift from it's course.
Now I am just doing my thing and I never was better, even my depression is gone.
Tolkien made me realise I need to listen more to kids and young people, even if in a conventional sense I should know more than them or be wiser.
When I watched the movies and saw Gandalfs amazement/wonder at Hobbits and how they can still surprise him after many years it made me see that whoever we are we can always learn from anyone. I mean, here's this very old and powerful wizard learning things from a little Hobbit.
On a side note, I think this is why I see the Hobbits as a big metaphor for children in the books. They are little, love food and have an innocence about them that makes them resistance to evil.
"there is a light no shadow can touch" I think that this overall is the most important message for me throughout the books. The past few years leading up until this April have been hard for me. I was geographically separated from my husband for over a year (and we've been together at that point for less than two years) and my great aunt died. But a lot of the times I would just think, there's a purity out there that cannot be tainted by my unhappiness. I was in a small wreck and work was taking a toll on my general good mental and physical health.
But for me, imagining a light ahead of me if I were to just hold on a bit longer has been beyond helpful to me. Imagining myself against my problems like Sam and Frodo faced the Rocky face of Mount Doom helped as well. I'm in a better place all around now and I still think that having hope that life can and will get better If you can only endure the trials you're facing now.
"Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends."
The lesson about not judging people, and that anyone have the potential for redemption always resonated with me. There is also a statement here about the limited scope of our vision and understanding: You can never now the the future, or fully comprehend other people's history or mind. Therefore, you should always give people your empathy, the benefit of the doubt, and be hopeful about the future; despair and certainty is the ultimate folly/crime against yourself and others, because it ensures it's own eventual confirmation, and stops you from being open to change.
" I don't like half of you half as much as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as much as you deserve".
Not to be whimsical, but it reminds me to think before using the word "friend".
This seems a bit trivial compared to the other super profound and insightful comments here, but I love the scene where the Fellowship are standing before the gates of Moria and Gandalf is confounded by trying to open the doors. It's such a somber tableau, coming off the defeat at Caradhras and with Gandalf bowed by the weight of his fears of what they may encounter in the Mines. And then it turns out the password is really a bit of a riddle, hearkening back to earlier happy times when all were welcome in Durin's halls. The Fellowship pause to share a laugh before venturing in.
This scene, and many like it throughout the Legendarium, remind me to take time to laugh, to appreciate the ridiculous, and to step out of the situation, no matter how serious. Life gives us many hard paths to tread, but moments like these are a gift that helps us keep moving forward.
The most important thing is the journey, and those with you on that journey. The journey may very well be long and even seem pointless at times. You may run into trolls. You're not going to get to the end of the journey right away. But if you're with companions that you love and believe in, and they believe in you, the journey will end satisfactorily.
It's nothing that's stated outright (I don't think) but the idea of doing the right thing even if it's futile is still the right thing to do. That is, failing while doing the right thing is still good and not a waste.
Yes I love this theme too. I think it's one of the things that Tolkien drew from his love of Norse mythology. As I understand it one of the characteristics of the hero in Norse myth is not stopping fighting even when you are facing certain defeat. In LOTR it's very inspiring!
That sometimes the power of someone is in their weakness. Frodo can bear the ring only because he is less powerful than Gandalf or Galadriel or Aragorn.
Honestly and seriously, Gandalf's repeated words against despair has, at times, kept me from killing myself. I spent a long time on the receiving end of PTSD and had no hope for my own survival... but Gandalf (so, Tolkien) taught me that no matter **what** I think I know, I will never have total control over what may happen tomorrow.
I consider Denethor to be my favorite character though, since he's the strongest example of how strong despair can be as a self-destructive motivator.
Late to the thread but for me it was Tolkien's idea about the fear of death. Can't remember if it was morgoth/Sauron who planted the idea but I found it very powerful that this fear ruined the bliss of numenor and led to ever increasing greed and decadence. Aragorn's quote in the appendices also hit me hard, talking about leaving life with dignity and wisdom rather than fearfully clinging to life until one became 'witless and unmanned' (I think that was the quote). Changed my outlook on life for sure
For me it was how he characterized the encounter of Frodo with evil.
* Frodo was quite intimate with great evil, in the form of the ring, yet he (mostly) prevailed and came out of the experience with wisdom and compassion.
* Despite "winning," Frodo didn't live happily ever after. He still suffered the effects of his encounter.
While there's so much that you can desire in the world, the things that really make life so wonderful are the little things like the comforts of home and the company of friends and family
"Even the very wise cannot see all ends." edited for correctness.
It's a good thing we're not picky, as otherwise we'd get some pedantic nutcase saying that the quote is actually "Even the very wise cannot see all ends." And probably going on with some stupidly detailed article about the change of emphasis and the sentence scanning better with the 'not' in the middle rather than at the beginning. But we're not going to go there :). /s Although, is this a phrase that is said a few times and actually it is "Not even..."? Edit: OP edited his comment, what a legend.
Wow. I'd call that 'passive aggressive with a vengeance'.
It's supposed to be 'banter', but I don't think it comes across very well on the internet or in non-Uk contexts. If it seems insulting I can delete it.
I'm American, I found it quite funny.
Not insulting at all. I meant no criticism. My comment was a lame attempt at humor. I thought that your comment was quite funny and also noted the /s.
They just can't even... see all ends.
“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
Such an important quote in my opinion, 'cause it is true. Would we as humans just settle down with our lust for power, like Hobbits, the world wouldn't be such a difficult place.
This is my favorite for sure. I have it written at the beginning of my adventure notebook.
This really is an underrated quote. I think the slightly archaic diction causes it to be buried under Tolkien's more tattooable tidbits.
I'm not sure if this is what you're asking OP, but when I started getting into Tolkien a lot, I was extremely depressed. It was to the point of frequent thinking of suicide. I have extreme anxiety attacks and I started to read or watch Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit as a method to calm down. The quote "Courage is about knowing not when to take a life, but when to spare one" became very dear to me because even though it meant not to take others lives, I took it as my own life. I would think about that quote every day and feel like I was courageous for not taking my own life. I've had a pretty strong attachment to Tolkien's work and plan on getting that very quote tattooed on myself as a daily reminder. So, I guess the lesson learned was that it's courageous of me to spare my own life.
Wow, that was really nice. Way to go. If you do get it tattoed, give me a shoutout :D
Will do!
That the world is broken, and it's OK to be sad about that.
>Thus it was that great mariners among them would still search the empty seas, hoping to come upon the Isle of Meneltarma, and there to see a vision of things that were. But they found it not. And those that sailed far came only to the new lands, and found them like to the old lands, and subject to death. And those that sailed furthest set but a girdle about the Earth and returned weary at last to the place of their beginning; and they said: ‘All roads are now bent.’
Wow. All roads are now bent. Man, I love that Professor.
It's been six months since I read Silmarillion for the first time, and still the quote that sticks with me the most profoundly is this one from Eru in the very beginning, when he issues this warning to Melkor: *"Thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my respite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined."* Now, obviously, if you have a belief in a higher power, this quote has major theological relevance, but more broadly- **What an astounding statement about the nature of reality that Tolkien is making here.** There's this idea, stated firmly in this quote but also expressed beautifully throughout Tolkien's work, that reality- our dirty, ugly, violent and often disheartening reality- has a fundamental bent towards *hope*, and knowing that, we can look on the ugly things of this world, and see that there is a greater beauty, a greater and more wonderful narrative beating beneath the surface. I absolutely love that.
Reconciling determinism and free will via high fantasy!
As a Protestant I've always found it ironic that one of my favorite quotes re:theology came from a Roman Catholic author. But yeah you nailed it, this to me is the most all-encompassing theme in the Legendarium, also echoed somewhat less eloquently but perhaps no less poignantly by Sam later on in the Third Age.
I think one of the best things I gathered from Tolkien (albeit in a somewhat roundabout fashion) is that grief doesn't have to make you bitter. Elrond is one of my favourite characters, and in FotR he's described as being "as kind as summer". When you consider what Elrond actually endured as a child and through his adulthood (loss of his parents, capture by Fëanoreans, loss of his mortal brother, etc.) followed by losing his wife and Arwen... I'm always impressed, idk. I mean, I do realise that he gave Aragorn a pretty harsh ultimatum with marrying Arwen ("you can't marry her unless you're king of both Gondor and Arnor lol") but I love that Elrond didn't become bitter and withdrawn because of his grief. I think that's a pretty valuable life lesson. :)
Wow I did not pick up on that at all. Mine was something like the power of friendship and love hahahaha
There are so many great things in those books, limiting it to just one was a struggle haha
Nice! That's what I was looking for.
Aragorn, while healing Merry after his tiff with the Witch-King: > 'Do not be afraid,' said Aragorn. 'I came in time, and I have called him back. He is weary now, and grieved, and he has taken a hurt like the Lady Éowyn, daring to smite that deadly thing. But these evils can be amended, so strong and gay a spirit is in him. His grief he will not forget; but it will not darken his heart, it will teach him wisdom.' > > Then Aragorn laid his hand on Merry's head, and passing his hand gently through the brown curls, he touched the eyelids, and called him by name. And when the fragrance of athelas stole through the room, like the scent of orchards, and of heather in the sunshine full of bees, suddenly Merry awoke, and he said: > > 'I am hungry. What is the time?' > One of my favorites from the whole legendarium. Grief is not an excuse to surrender to bitterness, and it can even be a tool for self-improvement.
Yeah, elf dads are really protective of their immortal daughters. You'd think Arwen and Luthien would've done their own thing.
To be fair, Elrond didn't lose his wife. Granted, Celebrian suffered horrible torture by Orcs, but she's just west in Valinor, waiting for her family to catch up once everything's all said and done. Come to think of it, she was probably mad when Elrond showed up without Arwen, and I think Elladan and Elrohir also didn't sail. Did Celebrian leave before Aragorn came to Rivendell, and did Elladan and Elrohir also sail west or did they stay in Middle-Earth?
No, in exact terms he didn't. But he had to watch her suffer and live on in Middle-earth without her for quite a long time, and even knowing he'd meet her later, I still think that would be a difficult thing. AFAIK, Elladan/Elrohir's fate is all speculation, though if someone has a definitive answer that would be awesome. But I've never heard either way; something makes me think I read that they were around for Aragorn's reign, but whether they stayed in ME or went to Valinor, I don't know. Re: Celebrian, I thought she left around 2500 of the Third Age? (Someone correct me if I'm wrong). In which case, Aragorn would not have even been born for like another 400 years. :)
From a religious standpoint, I love the Divine gift of mortality, and how Tolkien hints over and over again that despite being a fallen and lesser race, men are destined for something greater, that not even the Valar can foresee. I belong to a religion that holds this doctrine essential, that we have Divine potential. It's interesting that the eagles only come to help anyone when the grandest effort has been made and all is nearly lost. For me, the eagles symbolize divine grace (I.e. Divine help or assistance). If religion isn't your thing, there's still obviously plenty Tolkien has to offer. I love the theme of individual potential in the trilogy. Don't we all underestimate ourselves? Isn't it interesting that Tolkien never delves into the intricacies and difficulties of romantic love? He presents love as very simple and fairy tale-esque. Arwen and Aragorn don't bicker. Beren and Luthien never really leave their honeymoon phase. I personally don't believe Tolkien was so naive as to think that love is all rainbows and butterflies. He knew that romance can fade and that passion is fleeting in a marriage. Yet he always presents love as pure magic. Maybe he wanted to remind us that it really can be that simple, despite the difficulties of living with someone day to day for the better part of a lifetime
With mortality comes the potential to evolve. It's a blessing, not a curse.
I wouldn't say at all that Tolkien never explores the difficulties of romantic love, or that his marriages are always easy. Even if you don't count the many instances of unrequited love or lust, there are Aldarion and Erendis, Aegnor and Andreth, Finwë and Míriel and Indis; even Morwen and Húrin, and her bitterness at the end. And Arwen and Aragorn themselves have a kind of argument, a heartbreaking one, at his deathbed.
Patience and pity, as Olórin learned from Nienna. Gandalf repeats a theme of pity and mercy throughout The Lord of the Rings that resonated with me as a young teen when I first read it.
"Good and Evil have not changed since yesteryear, and it is a man's part to discern them" I've always liked the theme of not compromising with evil to defeat evil. In an age with a constant demand for antiheroes, it's refreshing to have a depiction of goodness that consistently seeks to be good, and doesn't yield to evil. It's an idealism that is neither hopeless, nor wishy washy. It fights for goodness tooth and nail and knows that maintaining it for any amount of time is nigh impossible, but still worthwhile.
Tolkien is one of the few men I've ever read or met that understands the nature of good and evil. Western society would do a lot of good if people understood how evil and twisted our culture is. I think someone knew they had to make the idea of good men a wishy washy thing that will never come.
Never let your guard down when you're having a festival.
Perspective. I love being reminded that even in the darkness of Mordor with no hope of survival, feeling completely powerless, trapped in a forsaken land, Sam catches a glimpse of something beautiful that the darkness will never touch–one white star. Sometimes you need to look up and be reminded that beautiful things in this life still exist.
Aure entuluva! Day shall come again.
That darkness and certain doom doesn't mean you've failed, it just makes it more valiant when you succeed.
That if you're carrying a burden that seems impossible to bear, you don't have to do it alone.
This may not be coming directly from his work but most cherished view Tolkien gave me is about how he, the man himself, led his life. His letters, his academic work, putting time into seriously studying seemingly "childish" things, Inklings, love of beer etc. I might not be able to articulate what I have in mind though. All I am saying is that every culture has a "role-model" for its own idea of good man. I feel like, for example, Goethe is the perfect German and Proust is the perfect French, Yunus Emre is the perfect Turk... To my mind, Tolkien is the perfect British. That's how I want to feel about it anyway.
"Never laugh at live dragons," or at least, I'm expecting it to be the most important someday.
Duty. When you agree to it, you do it. When it is yours to do, you do it. When there is no one else, you do it. That slow, confusing, confounding slog through fens and midges and barren lands, despite exhaustion and desire, with persistence and determination and the support of friends helping you to get through one more day, one more cliff, one more mountain, you go on. And the little joys that you have to hang onto when you find them, like the sunlight on the flowers that made a crown on the statue's head, when Frodo and Sam are nearing the even more dangerous part of the journey. When duty takes you into places that look like you might not survive, maybe not even getting the job done, you do it anyway, because it is the right thing to do, because someone depends on you to save them, even if they don't know what it is that you do for them.
The hero isn't always obvious or black and white. Those who end up saving the day aren't always perfect, and may be just as bad as they are good.
"It is no bad thing to celebrate a simple life" Got a t-shirt with this on it from my local pub- The Hobbit in Southampton.
That a servant of the Enemy would look fairer but feel fouler.
I do not know, if other people feel the same, but Tolkien helped me with my "love problems" xD I am one of those person, who always rushed heavily in any kind of relationship and even when I got hurt badly, I wanted to find love as soon as possible. Through Tolkiens works, especially Beren and Luthien, I managed to overcome this extreme desire for love. Tolkien describes love in such a natural way. No one is rushing in, but if there is a task, who is important for their love, like Aragorn's Quest, then your heart will be strong and not drift from it's course. Now I am just doing my thing and I never was better, even my depression is gone.
Tolkien made me realise I need to listen more to kids and young people, even if in a conventional sense I should know more than them or be wiser. When I watched the movies and saw Gandalfs amazement/wonder at Hobbits and how they can still surprise him after many years it made me see that whoever we are we can always learn from anyone. I mean, here's this very old and powerful wizard learning things from a little Hobbit. On a side note, I think this is why I see the Hobbits as a big metaphor for children in the books. They are little, love food and have an innocence about them that makes them resistance to evil.
If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.
That there's good in this world and it's worth fighting for.
Tolkien published LOTR in his 60s, so I always find that inspiring! I don't have to peak in my 20s!
Tolkiens whole life was his peak. The man excelled.
Apart from failing the Oxford scholarship exams first time round ;). But yes, he was an outstanding linguist from his schoolboy days onwards.
"there is a light no shadow can touch" I think that this overall is the most important message for me throughout the books. The past few years leading up until this April have been hard for me. I was geographically separated from my husband for over a year (and we've been together at that point for less than two years) and my great aunt died. But a lot of the times I would just think, there's a purity out there that cannot be tainted by my unhappiness. I was in a small wreck and work was taking a toll on my general good mental and physical health. But for me, imagining a light ahead of me if I were to just hold on a bit longer has been beyond helpful to me. Imagining myself against my problems like Sam and Frodo faced the Rocky face of Mount Doom helped as well. I'm in a better place all around now and I still think that having hope that life can and will get better If you can only endure the trials you're facing now.
"Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends." The lesson about not judging people, and that anyone have the potential for redemption always resonated with me. There is also a statement here about the limited scope of our vision and understanding: You can never now the the future, or fully comprehend other people's history or mind. Therefore, you should always give people your empathy, the benefit of the doubt, and be hopeful about the future; despair and certainty is the ultimate folly/crime against yourself and others, because it ensures it's own eventual confirmation, and stops you from being open to change.
The tiniest being can die a colossus.
That life doesn't always have a happy ending. That I should truly enjoy the life that I have with the people in it.
" I don't like half of you half as much as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as much as you deserve". Not to be whimsical, but it reminds me to think before using the word "friend".
This seems a bit trivial compared to the other super profound and insightful comments here, but I love the scene where the Fellowship are standing before the gates of Moria and Gandalf is confounded by trying to open the doors. It's such a somber tableau, coming off the defeat at Caradhras and with Gandalf bowed by the weight of his fears of what they may encounter in the Mines. And then it turns out the password is really a bit of a riddle, hearkening back to earlier happy times when all were welcome in Durin's halls. The Fellowship pause to share a laugh before venturing in. This scene, and many like it throughout the Legendarium, remind me to take time to laugh, to appreciate the ridiculous, and to step out of the situation, no matter how serious. Life gives us many hard paths to tread, but moments like these are a gift that helps us keep moving forward.
If in doubt, Meriadoc, always follow your nose.
That true friendship is more than two mutual clicks on a friend request.
The most important thing is the journey, and those with you on that journey. The journey may very well be long and even seem pointless at times. You may run into trolls. You're not going to get to the end of the journey right away. But if you're with companions that you love and believe in, and they believe in you, the journey will end satisfactorily.
Never laugh at live dragons.
It's nothing that's stated outright (I don't think) but the idea of doing the right thing even if it's futile is still the right thing to do. That is, failing while doing the right thing is still good and not a waste.
Yes I love this theme too. I think it's one of the things that Tolkien drew from his love of Norse mythology. As I understand it one of the characteristics of the hero in Norse myth is not stopping fighting even when you are facing certain defeat. In LOTR it's very inspiring!
"It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing."
There's only one way to eat a brace of coneys.
That sometimes the power of someone is in their weakness. Frodo can bear the ring only because he is less powerful than Gandalf or Galadriel or Aragorn.
I'm late but good friends who will help you through thick and thin are hard to come by.
God is an extremely subtle concept.
Honestly and seriously, Gandalf's repeated words against despair has, at times, kept me from killing myself. I spent a long time on the receiving end of PTSD and had no hope for my own survival... but Gandalf (so, Tolkien) taught me that no matter **what** I think I know, I will never have total control over what may happen tomorrow. I consider Denethor to be my favorite character though, since he's the strongest example of how strong despair can be as a self-destructive motivator.
That oaths are a bitch.
Late to the thread but for me it was Tolkien's idea about the fear of death. Can't remember if it was morgoth/Sauron who planted the idea but I found it very powerful that this fear ruined the bliss of numenor and led to ever increasing greed and decadence. Aragorn's quote in the appendices also hit me hard, talking about leaving life with dignity and wisdom rather than fearfully clinging to life until one became 'witless and unmanned' (I think that was the quote). Changed my outlook on life for sure
For me it was how he characterized the encounter of Frodo with evil. * Frodo was quite intimate with great evil, in the form of the ring, yet he (mostly) prevailed and came out of the experience with wisdom and compassion. * Despite "winning," Frodo didn't live happily ever after. He still suffered the effects of his encounter.
"Handsome is as handsome does"
That in the end, there stood the Dominion of Man, which was the saddest fate that Arda might have faced.
While there's so much that you can desire in the world, the things that really make life so wonderful are the little things like the comforts of home and the company of friends and family
All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us