Why Éowyn is the most misunderstood female character in the Lord of the Rings. A thread 🧵 pic.twitter.com/3FaVt2JD9I
2023-06-27 10:38:59Grave and thoughtful was her glance, as she looked on the king with cool pity in her eyes. Very fair was her face and her long hair was like a river of gold. Slender and tall she was in her white robe girt with silver; but strong she seemed and stern as steel, a daughter of kings pic.twitter.com/Lpm5dEcyOp
2023-06-27 10:38:59This is how Tolkien describes Éowyn. "Very fair was her face and her long hair was like a river of gold" "Fair" is a cognate of Old Saxon fagar, meaning beautiful, pretty or peaceful. Tolkien envisioned Éowyn as a truly beautiful daughter of kings. pic.twitter.com/ymKvjTx1jj
2023-06-27 10:39:00Again if you ask most casual fans of the Lord of the Rings, they view Éowyn as more of a comely and masculine figure. A 90s era "I can do anything a man can do" brand of female empowerment figure. Whether you like or dislike that depiction, it is not how Tolkien describes Éowyn. pic.twitter.com/p8y9f0oLbO
2023-06-27 10:39:00A helpful thing to consider with Éowyn is how Tolkien intended to use the character. Originally, Tolkien intended for Éowyn to marry Aragorn. However, he decided against it because Aragorn was "too old and lordly and grim". pic.twitter.com/D2LN933YkA
2023-06-27 10:39:01From this we can surmise that Tolkien viewed Éowyn as youthful, energetic, beautiful and regal. A woman so valuable that she was originally selected to marry the king of kings. pic.twitter.com/OmTjhdYmhz
2023-06-27 10:39:01Tolkien also considered making Éowyn the twin sister of Éomund, and having her die to avenge or save Théoden. He envisioned having Aragorn truly love Éowyn and regret never marrying after her death. pic.twitter.com/G4GODe0QB5
2023-06-27 10:39:02Tolkien goes on to talk about Éowyn. "She was also not really a soldier or 'Amazon', but like many brave women was capable of great military gallantry at a crisis" pic.twitter.com/1SNBtJ5Nvc
2023-06-27 10:39:03Once again, Tolkien explicitly tells us that Éowyn was not a masculine 'Amazon' figure. But rather a brave shield-maiden capable of great military gallantry at a crisis.
2023-06-27 10:39:03No doubt the Éowyn character was influenced by the brave female nurses who he observed in WWI and who tended to him for months in hospital as he recovered from Trench Fever in 1916. pic.twitter.com/IKCEzvxjwG
2023-06-27 10:39:04But perhaps most revealing of all is one of my favorite passages from the Return of the King. "Then the heart of Éowyn changed, or else at last she understood it. And suddenly her winter passed, and the sun shone on her. pic.twitter.com/gtAlkhoaJU
2023-06-27 10:39:04'I stand in Minas Anor, the Tower of the Sun,' she said; 'and behold! the Shadow has departed! I will be a shield-maiden no longer, nor vie with the great Riders, nor take joy only in the songs of slaying. I will be a healer, and love all things that grow and are not barren.'" pic.twitter.com/OabUdnXpRK
2023-06-27 10:39:05What Tolkien is telling us with Éowyn is the despair that results from women rejecting their feminine nature. The common perception is that Éowyn was unhappy because "she was locked up" "caged" all she wanted to do was to go fight with the men, that would make her happy. Wrong!
2023-06-27 10:39:05Éowyn was in despair because the men around her were dying and weak. The men were failing. And when the men fail, women are heavily affected! She was a reluctant shield-maiden. She was resentful that the failure of the men of her house required her to take up arms. pic.twitter.com/igFHpZJqfw
2023-06-27 10:39:06Tolkien describes her time fighting as "her winter", and when the war of the ring is over. She does not choose to join her brother on his continued conquests. She chooses to be a healer, and love all things that grow and are not barren. pic.twitter.com/rt62oHFBVu
2023-06-27 10:39:06Éowyn is a rejection of the idea that women should be strong masculine figures who compete with men in male domains. It's also a lesson in the despair inflicted upon women when men are abject in their duties! The character is a fantastic depiction of a woman's true nature. pic.twitter.com/YlFmHS5RgG
2023-06-27 10:39:07Concept Artist | Aesthetics | History | Chivalry | Fantasy
Look at the sincerity of this scene. Movies suck now because they can’t take themselves seriously enough for 30 seconds to do things like this. The lack of sound production edits on Éowyn’s Lament for Théodred is key. It’s the imperfection of the sound that makes it perfect. pic.twitter.com/F5mB7nTdGF
2023-06-29 21:46:25@SkyerangerNerd Someone would immediately lean over to Gandalf and say something like , “Well that’s a bummer”
2023-06-29 23:07:26歌詞のGoogle翻訳:親愛なるセオドレッドは今、暗闇の中に横たわっています。 戦士の中で最も忠実な戦士。 ハープの音は戦士を目覚めさせません。良い鷹が廊下を飛び回るわけでもないし、 また、その人は金のワインカップを持ってはならない。 中庭の速い馬のスタンプもありません。 邪悪な死が高貴な戦士を立ち上げた 悲しみに暮れる吟遊詩人を歌が歌うだろう メドゥセルド いつも私を大切にしてくれたあの高貴ないとこ 今は暗闇の中に閉じ込められています。