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Modtheow
Menegroth
May 10 2009, 4:58pm
Post #1 of 11
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Preliminary Kalamazoo report
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I thought I'd post some impressions of the Tolkien conference sessions that have just finished here at the International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo. N.E. Brigand, legendary in his note-taking abilities, promises to post full accounts of all the sessions at some point, but in the meantime I thought that people in the Reading Room would like to know, among other things, how TORn came into the discussions and events.
One of the presenters in the "Teaching Tolkien" roundtable discussion was Chris Vaccaro from University of Vermont, whose students post here. Chris recommended the Reading Room as one of his online teaching aids, praising the RR for giving very full, precise, and interesting answers to his students' questions. Go, RR! He also said that he asks his students to memorize about a dozen lines of Tolkien that they have to recite, so I was wondering: have any of you memorized lines from Tolkien? Which ones? I've memorized "Upon the hearth the fire is red" which I recite to myself (in my head) as I walk to work.
In the Children of Hurin panel, there were three interesting papers, and I don't have time to try to report on all of them, but I can tell you about one idea that came out of Victoria Wodzack's paper on Tolkien's women in Children of Hurin, in which she talked about Tolkien's writing about his mother's death, about Edith as a war bride left behind while Tolkien went to war, and about Tolkien's own frustrations during WWII at not being able to do much -- all of these experiences possibly echoing in Eowyn in LotR and Morwen in CH. I guess I'm so used to thinking of Tolkien's experiences in the war, that I sometimes forget the experiences of those outside the war as being part of his life too.
In the On Fairy-Stories panel, we had a lot of interesting approaches to the essay, from Tolkien's complex relationship to science and technology, his possible belief in real elves and fairies, his citation (or not) of contemporary authors, his impact in the classroom, the way he writes himself into the essay, and on the concept of stain and recovery. That last paper on stain and recovery, by Jennifer Culver, applied ideas from a book by Rene Girard called Violence and the Sacred, which discusses the stain of violence and how it needs to be purged. It was an interesting way to approach Tolkien's idea of recovery. How would you apply the idea of stain to Tolkien's writings?
But I'm leaving the best part of the conference for last. Every year at this conference there is a session called "Tolkien Unbound" which usually features performances, some comic, some serious. This year, we had performances of parts of Songs for the Philologists, which was wonderful. We had songs in Old English, Old Icelandic, and modern English. Then there was an original play, "Baldor's Saga" featuring as Baldor our very own N.E. Brigand! He gave the most spirited, most dramatic performance of the evening (he even memorized his lines!) and when he stomped out of the room --er, mead hall -- after delivering his final speech, the audience burst into spontaneous applause, even though the play wasn't finished. So, Bravo! N.E. Brigand!
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Dreamdeer
Doriath
May 11 2009, 12:03am
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Yes, I confess! I have indeed memorized parts of Tolkien, particularly songs, which I have put to tunes of my own imagining and hum to myself when nobody's listening. Other parts I think that I have memorized, only to learn in the Reading Room that I've gotten it all wrong.
Thank you, Modtheow! That was fascinating. (I'm glad I'm not the only one who strongly suspects Tolkien of believing in fairies.) Every last bit of it.
Go Brigand! May he find his virtual dressing-room filled with virtual roses!
Life is beautiful and dangerous! Beware! Enjoy!
(This post was edited by Dreamdeer on May 11 2009, 12:05am)
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squire
Gondolin
May 11 2009, 1:22am
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WNEBCCTSFY! Why, N.E. Brigand can chant that saga for you!
From the blog Sacnoth's Scriptorium, which listed all the "Tolkien-related" presentations at Kalamazoo this year:
Fr. 5/8, Evening Session (7:30 p.m.)
Tolkien Unbound: Readers' Theater Performance
Sponsor: Tolkien at Kalamazoo
Organizer: Robin Anne Reid, Texas A&M Univ.-Commerce
Presider: Robin Anne Reid
Songs for the Philologists
Douglas A. Anderson, Independent Scholar; Sandra Ballif Straubhaar, Univ. of Texas-Austin; Faye Ringel, United States Coast Guard Academy; Bradford Lee Eden, Univ. of California-Santa Barbara; [N. E. Brigand], Independent Scholar; Deirdre Dawson, Michigan State Univ.; Michael Wodzak, Viterbo Univ.; Jennifer Culver, Univ. of Texas-Dallas; and Amy Amendt-Raduege, Independent Scholar.
Baldor's Saga
John Wm Houghton, Hill School; Sandra Ballif Staubhaar; Faye Ringel; Bradford Lee Eden; [N. E. Brigand]; Edward L. Risden, Univ. of California-Santa Barbara; Robert F. Tredray, Independent Scholar; Dean Easton, Choate Rosemary Hall School.
A cash bar will be available.
Note that "independent scholar" is academicese for "doesn't work for a university, but still knows where his towel is". Congratulations to our N.E.B.!
squire online:
RR Discussions: The Valaquenta, A Shortcut to Mushrooms, and Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit
Lights! Action! Discuss on the Movie board!: 'A Journey in the Dark'. and 'Designing The Two Towers'.
Footeramas: The 3rd TORn Reading Room LotR Discussion; and "Tolkien would have LOVED it!"
squiretalk introduces the J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: A Reader's Diary
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 11 2009, 1:33am
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Like Sam, NEB has unexpected talents: he's been a poetry-maker, a wizard (at finding old posts), and now he's a warrior! 
Do you know, if anybody filmed that?
Thank you for the report, Modtheow!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?"
-Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915
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N.E. Brigand
Gondolin
May 11 2009, 2:08am
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I didn't participate in the "Songs for the Philologists" portion of the program; the K'zoo program was mistaken there.
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We're discussing The Hobbit in the Reading Room, Mar. 23 - Aug. 9. Everyone is welcome!
Join us May 4-10 for "Queer Lodgings".
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How to find old Reading Room discussions.
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Altaira
Superuser
May 11 2009, 3:34am
Post #6 of 11
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Great report, Modtheow, thanks!
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Then there was an original play, Baldor's Saga" featuring as Baldor our very own N.E. Brigand! He gave the most spirited, most dramatic performance of the evening (he even memorized his lines!) and when he stomped out of the room --er, mead hall -- after delivering his final speech, the audience burst into spontaneous applause,
Bravo and congrats on such an auspicious acting debu, N.E.B!!  (assuming it *was* your debut  ).
Who was the author of the saga, we wonders?
It sounds like SO much fun. Sorry I had to miss it, but so glad some TORnsibs got to attend.
Koru: Maori symbol representing a fern frond as it opens. The koru reaches towards the light, striving for perfection, encouraging new, positive beginnings.
"Life can't be all work and no TORn" -- jflower
"I take a moment to fervently hope that the camaradarie and just plain old fun I found at TORn will never end" -- LOTR_nutcase
TORn Calendar
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a.s.
Doriath
May 11 2009, 11:00am
Post #7 of 11
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How does one say "cool" in Old Norse?
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I'm sure I'll never get the diacriticals right, anyway!
Very [insert Old Norse word for "cool"], NEB. A starring role, no less.
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"If any one had begun to rehearse a History, say not I know it well; and if he relate it not right and fully, shake not thine head, twinkle not thine eyes, and snigger not thereat; much less maist thou say, 'It is not so; you deceive yourself.'"
From: Youth's Behaviour, or, Decency in Conversation amongst Men, composed in French by Grave Persons, for the use and benefit of their Youth. The tenth impression. London, 1672
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sador
Gondolin
May 11 2009, 11:48am
Post #8 of 11
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I thought I'd post some impressions of the Tolkien conference sessions that have just finished here at the International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo.
Any reason/occasion for you to post here is more than welcome!
N.E. Brigand, legendary in his note-taking abilities, promises to post full accounts of all the sessions at some point.
I'll wait for that. The fore-taste is very appetizing.
Chris recommended the Reading Room as one of his online teaching aids, praising the RR for giving very full, precise, and interesting answers to his students' questions. Go, RR!
Nice! But his direct experience with the RR was before my time.
have any of you memorized lines from Tolkien?
No, not intentionally. Perhaps I could carry on quoting from soome places.
I guess I'm so used to thinking of Tolkien's experiences in the war, that I sometimes forget the experiences of those outside the war as being part of his life too.
Yes, I remember fondly your discussion of 'The Dead Marshes'.
But your point about overlooking the experiences of those outside the war - we forget it all the time. How many people thought of Rosie? Or pondered seriously the truth in Aragorn's answer to Eowyn, or her fear of Faramir's thinking her "a child that has not the firmness of mind to go on with a dull task to the end"?
How would you apply the idea of stain to Tolkien's writings? Tolkien described Lothlorien as a land on which no stain lied.
As I've mentioned a few times before, I see the description of the Desolation before Mordor as a diametric opposite to Lorien (even more than Dol Guldur, which Haldir contarsts with Caras Galadhon) - and that is a clear case of a stained land. Note that Tolkien calls it (the stain) "a tribute" to the labours of Sauron's servants.
He gave the most spirited, most dramatic performance of the evening (he even memorized his lines!) and when he stomped out of the room --er, mead hall -- after delivering his final speech, the audience burst into spontaneous applause, even though the play wasn't finished. So, Bravo! N.E. Brigand!
Encore!
But note that NEB does have some first-hand experience of the theater, so he is far likely to do better than I would.
Well, most people are. 
Thanks, Modtheow!
If you ever visit us again, then indeed the feast shall be splendid!
"Don't start grumbling against orders, or something bad will happen to you." - Thorin
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Luthien Rising
Menegroth
May 11 2009, 1:30pm
Post #9 of 11
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And an extra congrats to N.E. :)
Lúthien Rising
All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us. / We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.
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visualweasel
Nargothrond
May 11 2009, 6:36pm
Post #10 of 11
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Thanks for the report ... and yes
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I had the dwarves' song from The Hobbit ("Far over the Misty Mountains cold") memorized, in full, for years and years. I used to sing it to the tune from the Rankin/Bass animated film version. That melody was one of the better things about that rank 'n' base old cartoon, hahae. Nowadays, I still remember most of the song, when put to it, but probably not quite all of it. Apart from that, there are a number of other snatches of poems, lines of dialog, and descriptive passages that I suppose you could say I've memorized — not intentionally, but through sheer familiarity.
Jason Fisher
Lingwë - Musings of a Fish
The Lord of the Rings discussion 2007-2008 – The Two Towers – III.4 “Treebeard” – Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
“On Fairy-stories” discussion 2008 – “Origins” – Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
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a.s.
Doriath
May 11 2009, 8:20pm
Post #11 of 11
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Chris recommended the Reading Room as one of his online teaching aids, praising the RR for giving very full, precise, and interesting answers to his students' questions. Go, RR!
Nice! But his direct experience with the RR was before my time.
See here, for instance.
Always interesting, when his students are here.
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"If any one had begun to rehearse a History, say not I know it well; and if he relate it not right and fully, shake not thine head, twinkle not thine eyes, and snigger not thereat; much less maist thou say, 'It is not so; you deceive yourself.'"
From: Youth's Behaviour, or, Decency in Conversation amongst Men, composed in French by Grave Persons, for the use and benefit of their Youth. The tenth impression. London, 1672
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