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Jeremy
Ossiriand
Sun, 10:03pm
Post #26 of 28
(28 views)
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Eärendil's origin as a character
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I don't think it's the move. From what I understand, we'll have to re-register when it's complete. I also expect that the forums will look at least a bit different.
Not reregister, just enter a new password (per Altaira's announcement). In the meantime, the loading seems to have good days and bad days.
Setting aside the issue of how the Silmaril went from Elwing's breast to Eärendil's brow, the other issue that I have is that it went from Elwing to Eärendil at all. The "holy jewel" rightfully passed from Beren and Lúthien to their son Dior (with a detour to his grandfather, Thingol), and then from Dior to his one remaining child, Elwing. Why does she meekly cede the jewel to her husband, Eärendil? Ar-Pharazôn is rightly castigated for usurping the scepter of Númenor from Tar-Míriel, to whom it lawfully belonged; why is Eärendil not equally castigated for usurping the Silmaril from Elwing, to whom it lawfully belonged? I know that the supposed answer is that she willingly allowed it to pass to him because of her great love for him, but the question still may be asked. Tolkien was, of course, a product of his times, but he sometimes broke through the normal prejudices and portrayed genuinely strong and willful women (such as Elwing's grandmother, Lúthien). It is disappointing to me that he did not do so here.
Of course, one of the reasons Eärendil ends up with the Silmaril is simply that he was meant to have it, given the character's origin. Tolkien first wrote his poem Éalá Éarendel Engla Beorhtast (inspired by the Christ I poem). The rest of the story, including Eärendil's role, fell into place after his status as a star or "brightest angel" was determined. But maybe this isn't the most satisfactory explanation since it doesn't answer the question inside the world/story itself.
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Voronwë_the_Faithful
Doriath
3:05pm
Post #27 of 28
(12 views)
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In my paper, I address this very issue. After tracing (in fairly ridiculous detail) the history of the development of Eärendil's story from the point when Tolkien was moved by the line "Hail Earendel, brightest of angels above middle-earth sent unto men” in Cynewulf's poem to write his own poem, I write (in response to the question of why
By rights, the Silmaril belonged to Elwing, not Eärendil, yet when she is rescued by Ulmo after she cast herself in the sea “with the Nauglafring upon her breast” and came to Eärendel returning from his first voyage in Wingelot, she immediately passes the Silmaril to Eärendil. The superficial reason for this is obvious: Eärendil needs to be the bearer of the Silmaril to become the “Earendel the Evening Star” that Tolkien had imagined from before his mythology existed in any form. But I believe that there is more to it than that.
The "more to it than that" turned out to be a lot different than what I thought it would be when I first started this thread.
'But very bright were the stars upon the margin of the world, when at times the clouds about the West were drawn aside.'
The Hall of Fire
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CuriousG
Gondolin
9:30pm
Post #28 of 28
(2 views)
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Actually, that would satisfy me, at least
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Of course, one of the reasons Eärendil ends up with the Silmaril is simply that he was meant to have it, given the character's origin. Tolkien first wrote his poem Éalá Éarendel Engla Beorhtast (inspired by the Christ I poem). The rest of the story, including Eärendil's role, fell into place after his status as a star or "brightest angel" was determined. But maybe this isn't the most satisfactory explanation since it doesn't answer the question inside the world/story itself. I'm normally the first to jump on an opportunity to dissect an issue, hunt for clues, and make tenuous connections. But the other side of my brain can be creative, and sometimes, a creator just wants something a certain way because it looks/feels "right" that way, and maybe Tolkien just wanted Earendil to have the Silmaril on his brow, so that's why, especially given that Earendil existed long before the story itself and wasn't a character who came up later (such as Faramir, whom Tolkien described in Letters as something of a surprise who walked out of nowhere in Ithilien, and he grew from there because Tolkien liked him).
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