Why do you keep at it? - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

ninja91 · 09-26-2006, 06:32 PM

For you, what makes you coming back again and again to Middle-Earth? Is it the story? Or is it the aura of the world? Also, what keeps the drive alive for you? To make it easier: What is it about Tolkien's works that keeps you so interested and immersed in his world?

Considering how all my threads fail, maybe there is a good enough question to make this as popular as Lord of the Bible thread...

Legolas · 09-27-2006, 03:04 PM

The aura and the story, dude. Wizards, elves, magic. Struggles with change, uninvited adventure, happy but not completely shiny endings.

The relatively simple fantasy setting of The Hobbit drew me in.

Even if Middle-earth had never been expanded in another novel, The Hobbit would've drawn me in and kept me forever. The hints of depth for the larger - read: humungous - world to be discovered in the later releases would've kept me wondering.

I think what draws me the most is The Fellowship of the Ring, the best part of reading Lord of the Rings. The story and its setting, a perfect combination of the two.

ninja91 · 09-27-2006, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Legolas

The aura and the story, dude. Wizards, elves, magic. Struggles with change, uninvited adventure, happy but not completely shiny endings.

I definitely agree. The story itself just gives off an aura of mystery, and as deep as it is, there is so much more left unsaid.

Saurreg · 09-27-2006, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ninja91

For you, what makes you coming back again and again to Middle-Earth? Is it the story? Or is it the aura of the world? Also, what keeps the drive alive for you?

Two words: Nirnaeth Arnoediad

Enuff said!

09-27-2006, 08:02 PM

To be honest, I left LOTR for a while and just recently I have come back and realised how great the books are. The struggle of Frodo and Sam while the others fight on drew me in. I always found it interesting how everything doesn't always work out (like Frodo not being able to destroy the ring and Gollum doing it for him). I guess the magic of it all really.

Folwren · 09-27-2006, 09:21 PM

I don't know exactly why I keep coming back. Well . . . the funny thing is, and please don't be too shocked, but a year and a half ago, on May 5th, in fact, I put away the LotR books and pictures and have sworn not to open them until May 5th 2007. I have read the Sil. since then, so I have come back to ME. I don't know what is about his works that draw me in. It's. . .it's knowing that when I open the book, my hope to be taken to someplace else (why else would one read a book?), to be amused, to have the pity and emotion drawn out of me towards characters, to not be insulted by things in the books, and lots of other qualities and expectations are going to be fulfilled.

It's the quality of the writing mixed in with the amazing imagination and story and world. His characters so wonderfully painted and yet. . .not painted to the point that you can't come to some conclusion about them yourself. (For instance, did you ever notice that he never entirely explains the looks of his characters? His good ones, anyway. He leaves the construction of their face to the reader, dropping helpful hints along the way.)

I dunno. It's just charming, the way he wrote all this books. They're really moving.

And all that was very not clear, I think. It's too late for me to be writing something like this.

-- Folwren

Legolas · 09-28-2006, 08:56 AM

Quote:

Well . . . the funny thing is, and please don't be too shocked, but a year and a half ago, on May 5th, in fact, I put away the LotR books and pictures and have sworn not to open them until May 5th 2007.

Why? Lent is only 40 days.

Folwren · 09-28-2006, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Legolas

Why? Lent is only 40 days.

Har har. I'm not Catholic.

Why? Well. . .I got too caught up in the books. I could hardly open my mouth without quoting it or talking about it. Also, I'd read them so many times in such a short time span (five times in three years, I think) that I wasn't getting as much excitement and emotion as I had the first few times, so I decided if I waited two years and forgot the exact wording of most of it, I'd enjoy them more when I read them again. It's working quite wonderfully. I can no longer remember exact details as I used to and when someone asks me if Pippin said something, I wouldn't be able to give a definite yes or no, as I used to.

A two year fast won't do me any harm.

I think, though, that's one reason I haven't been talking much in the Books forum. It would take looking things up and even though we do have other copies in the house that are not boxed up, I don't want to do that. Pop really tempted me by giving me a new copy for Christmas last year. . .but I've refrained from reading them thus far.

-- Folwren

Laitoste · 10-02-2006, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Folwren

Pop really tempted me by giving me a new copy for Christmas last year. . .but I've refrained from reading them thus far.

I am impressed by your self-control, my dear. No way would I be able to do that!

I don't think there is a clear reason why I keep coming back. They evoke a sort of painful, melancholy longing in me...it's kind of like when you cut (or bite, as the case may be) your nails too short--it hurts to put pressure on them, but it also feels good. Which actually does not explain anything at all...

Why do we love anything to this extent? Is it simply for escape? To a certain extent, yes, but I shy away from using this explanation. It is an escape, but it's more than that. It's an affirmation that there's something else out there, I think. But I don't know. No one does.

ninja91 · 10-02-2006, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Laitoste

Why do we love anything to this extent? Is it simply for escape? To a certain extent, yes, but I shy away from using this explanation. It is an escape, but it's more than that. It's an affirmation that there's something else out there, I think. But I don't know. No one does.

I will do my best to help explain. I see it also as an affirmation, but also a look into the wonders and fantastic projections and stories the human mind can create. For me, thinking about this really motivates me as I write my own story. Just the thought shared by many that the human mind is, ultimately, boundless, is very deep.

latando angaina · 10-03-2006, 02:08 AM

Haven't reread for years, haven't visited this place for months, but do it (both) now. Can't say why... because it's real? or rather 'very much like real'. So though I abstained for a long time, started rereading the hobbit now, and plan to go on.

ninja91 · 10-03-2006, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by latando angaina

Haven't reread for years, haven't visited this place for months, but do it (both) now. Can't say why... because it's real? or rather 'very much like real'. So though I abstained for a long time, started rereading the hobbit now, and plan to go on.

Welcome back, Latando! Whenever I see the movies or read excerpts from the books, I just get totally immersed in the whole genre again. It is always a good feeling.

The Sixth Wizard · 10-04-2006, 12:26 AM

I thought the answer was obvious, I'm an obsessive nerd!

Aganzir · 10-04-2006, 11:32 AM

It is the world.

The stories - Lotr, The Hobbit, etc; they could be placed anywhere, but were they good stories or not, they wouldn't be this fascinating if they weren't placed in Middle-earth.
No matter how incomplete the world or its ancient legends might be, Eä has the power to draw the reader into it and make him fall in love with it - to live in Eä more than in this world.

I have never loved anything more than I do love Tolkien and his world. Middle-earth is truly a leaf by Niggle. I know we can never see the whole and finished tree in all its glory, but we have the right to admire at least one leaf, and that is a right not for everyone to understand.

HerenIstarion · 10-10-2006, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aganzir

I know we can never see the whole and finished tree in all its glory, but we have the right to admire at least one leaf, and that is a right not for everyone to understand.

You are a bit overly exclusive there ('everyone to undestand' part) to my liking, yet I would agree with an analogy. And keep on secretly hoping that one day, after days here are spent and gone, we would be allowed to see the whole and finished tree, in a place which, maybe, or again maybe not, will be named Niggle's Parish.

mormegil · 10-10-2006, 09:52 PM

While I've read many books, the majority tend to be fantasy, I must state the LOTR and the Silmarillion are unequivocally my favorites. I enjoy the other books and the add to me as a person but LOTR is something more. It is much more special and profound than all others.

There is a depth to LOTR that other books do not contain. There is a sense of purity in that book that I seldom, if ever, find in other books. It is a complete fantasy, so to speak. It is difficult to express in words but it evokes so many positive and good emotions in me that I know it is an uplifting book, and yes Fordim I am a better person for having read it!

.

It perfectly fits my ideals and moral code that I never have any ambiguity in self by reading it (I hope that makes some sense). There is more character depth and more character identification than any other book and I find myself wanting to be a part of the fellowship or to help Beren in his quest.

Mänwe · 10-11-2006, 12:44 PM

The sheer volume of detail is stupendous. It is the detail and the love that Tolkien put into his 'world', has rubbed off on me. I cannot help myself! It is also the debate and the learning from others that makes me return to 'worlds' or Tolkien created on websites like this. In truth as few words possible to describe why is better for me.

"You just do!"

10-13-2006, 05:56 AM

The stories are set in Middle Earth which is both nowhere and everywhere - thus the narrative becomes timeless and unstained by human progress - there is no external reference other than ourselves - it's the reader that is required to complete the circle where the transition from the page takes place within our own world of experiences. Tolkiens weaves his magic in that our own lives provide the warp and weft of the experience that is Middle Earth - it's our own story that is being retold.

09-27-2006, 03:04 PM	#2
Legolas A Northern Soul Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Valinor Posts: 1,847	The aura and the story, dude. Wizards, elves, magic. Struggles with change, uninvited adventure, happy but not completely shiny endings. The relatively simple fantasy setting of The Hobbit drew me in. Even if Middle-earth had never been expanded in another novel, The Hobbit would've drawn me in and kept me forever. The hints of depth for the larger - read: humungous - world to be discovered in the later releases would've kept me wondering. I think what draws me the most is The Fellowship of the Ring, the best part of reading Lord of the Rings. The story and its setting, a perfect combination of the two. __________________ ...take counsel with thyself, and remember who and what thou art.

09-27-2006, 09:21 PM	#6
Folwren Messenger of Hope Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: In a tiny, insignificant little town in one of the many States. Posts: 5,076	I don't know exactly why I keep coming back. Well . . . the funny thing is, and please don't be too shocked, but a year and a half ago, on May 5th, in fact, I put away the LotR books and pictures and have sworn not to open them until May 5th 2007. I have read the Sil. since then, so I have come back to ME. I don't know what is about his works that draw me in. It's. . .it's knowing that when I open the book, my hope to be taken to someplace else (why else would one read a book?), to be amused, to have the pity and emotion drawn out of me towards characters, to not be insulted by things in the books, and lots of other qualities and expectations are going to be fulfilled. It's the quality of the writing mixed in with the amazing imagination and story and world. His characters so wonderfully painted and yet. . .not painted to the point that you can't come to some conclusion about them yourself. (For instance, did you ever notice that he never entirely explains the looks of his characters? His good ones, anyway. He leaves the construction of their face to the reader, dropping helpful hints along the way.) I dunno. It's just charming, the way he wrote all this books. They're really moving. And all that was very not clear, I think. It's too late for me to be writing something like this. -- Folwren __________________ A young man who wishes to remain a sound atheist cannot be too careful of his reading. - C.S. Lewis

10-03-2006, 02:08 AM	#11
latando angaina Pile O'Bones Join Date: Aug 2001 Posts: 22	haven't been, but now do Haven't reread for years, haven't visited this place for months, but do it (both) now. Can't say why... because it's real? or rather 'very much like real'. So though I abstained for a long time, started rereading the hobbit now, and plan to go on.

10-04-2006, 11:32 AM	#14
Aganzir Woman of Secret Shadow Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: in hollow halls beneath the fells Posts: 4,511	It is the world. The stories - Lotr, The Hobbit, etc; they could be placed anywhere, but were they good stories or not, they wouldn't be this fascinating if they weren't placed in Middle-earth. No matter how incomplete the world or its ancient legends might be, Eä has the power to draw the reader into it and make him fall in love with it - to live in Eä more than in this world. I have never loved anything more than I do love Tolkien and his world. Middle-earth is truly a leaf by Niggle. I know we can never see the whole and finished tree in all its glory, but we have the right to admire at least one leaf, and that is a right not for everyone to understand. __________________ He bit me, and I was not gentle.

10-10-2006, 09:52 PM	#16
mormegil Maundering Mage Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 4,648	While I've read many books, the majority tend to be fantasy, I must state the LOTR and the Silmarillion are unequivocally my favorites. I enjoy the other books and the add to me as a person but LOTR is something more. It is much more special and profound than all others. There is a depth to LOTR that other books do not contain. There is a sense of purity in that book that I seldom, if ever, find in other books. It is a complete fantasy, so to speak. It is difficult to express in words but it evokes so many positive and good emotions in me that I know it is an uplifting book, and yes Fordim I am a better person for having read it! . It perfectly fits my ideals and moral code that I never have any ambiguity in self by reading it (I hope that makes some sense). There is more character depth and more character identification than any other book and I find myself wanting to be a part of the fellowship or to help Beren in his quest. __________________ “I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo. "So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

09-27-2006, 08:02 PM	#5
Finrod Guest Posts: n/a	To be honest, I left LOTR for a while and just recently I have come back and realised how great the books are. The struggle of Frodo and Sam while the others fight on drew me in. I always found it interesting how everything doesn't always work out (like Frodo not being able to destroy the ring and Gollum doing it for him). I guess the magic of it all really.

10-04-2006, 12:26 AM	#13
The Sixth Wizard Shade of Carn Dûm Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Stuck under a rock in Valinor with Ar-Pharazon. Posts: 480	I thought the answer was obvious, I'm an obsessive nerd!

10-11-2006, 12:44 PM	#17
Mänwe Shade of Carn Dûm Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: May as well be the Arctic Circle Posts: 283	No doubt... The sheer volume of detail is stupendous. It is the detail and the love that Tolkien put into his 'world', has rubbed off on me. I cannot help myself! It is also the debate and the learning from others that makes me return to 'worlds' or Tolkien created on websites like this. In truth as few words possible to describe why is better for me. "You just do!" __________________ "I am, I fear, a most unsatisfactory person." - (Letter #124 To Sir Stanley Unwin)

10-13-2006, 05:56 AM	#18
wayseer Guest Posts: n/a	Timeless The stories are set in Middle Earth which is both nowhere and everywhere - thus the narrative becomes timeless and unstained by human progress - there is no external reference other than ourselves - it's the reader that is required to complete the circle where the transition from the page takes place within our own world of experiences. Tolkiens weaves his magic in that our own lives provide the warp and weft of the experience that is Middle Earth - it's our own story that is being retold.

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