Favourite sections/paragraphs/poems

[the real findorfin]

I've been listening to the silmarillion o tape recently and have found what has to be the best poem/lay/thingy in Tolkiens works.

'The Battle between Sauron and Finrod'

He chanted a song of wizardry
of piercing opening, of treachery
revealing, uncovering, betraying
then sudden Felagund, there swaying
sang in answer, a song of staying

resisting, battling against power
of secrets kept, strength like a tower
and trust unbroken, freedom, escape
of changing, and of shifting shape
of snares alluded, broken, traps
a prison opening, the chain that snaps

Backwards and forwards swayed their song
Reeling and foundering, as ever more strong
The chanting swelled
Felagund fought, and all the magic and might he brought
of elvenesse into his words
softly in the gloom they heard the birds
singing afar in Nargothrond
the sighing of the sea beyond
beyond the western world on sand, on sand of pearl in elvenland

Then the gloom gathered
darkness growing
in Valinor the red blood flowing
beside the sea where the Noldor slew
the foamriders and stealing drew
their white ships with their white sails, from lamplit havens
the wind wails
the wolf howls
the ravens flee
the ice mutters in the mouths of the sea
the captives sad in Angband mourn
thunder rumbles, the fires burn
and Finrod fell before the throne


How cool is that. of course, much has been lost from the tape. martin Shaw reads it so perfectly that none could hope for better.

Are their any thigs like this that spark your imagination etc.

[merlilot]

Do you want me to list all my favourite parts, seriously???

[Arathiriel]

Here's a favorite passage of mie from Lord of the Rings...

Out of doubt, out of dark, to the day's rising
He rode singing in the sun, sword unsheathing.
Hope he rekindled, and in hope ended;
Over death, over dread, over doom lifted
Out of loss, out of life, unto long glory.

Funeral Lament
For King Théoden of the Mark
Many Partings
LOTR: The Return of the King

[Arwen Imladris]

I would say that the oliphant poem was pretty good. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

I also liked the "many who live deserve death, many that die deserve life..." line.

[Fallen King of Angmar]

I love my sig quote and Boromir's lament. Also the whole exchange of words between the Nazghule Lord and Eowyn rocks

[Mithuial]

oooh, I love Eowyn's words to the Witch-King! I also love the part in the Two Towers when the orc is trying to find the ring on them and they're all, "It's not easy to find, myyy precioussss." and being real coy like that. I love that part. don't ask. I love Aragorn's words when Gandalf comes back here: "And this I say also: you are our captain and our banner. The Dark Lord has Nine. But we have One mightier than they: the White Rider. He has passed through the fire and the abyss, and they shall fear him. We will go where he leads." They better not mess up that line in the movie. I also love when Frodo defies the black riders at the ford. (so mad that they changed that in the movie!) k, I think I'm getting carried away, but I also love the Tale of Turin Turambar both in the Silm and in the Unfinished Tales.

[Arathiriel]

'But,' said Sam, and tears started in his eyes, 'I thought you were going to enjoy the Shire, too, for years and years, after all you have done.'

'So I thought too, once. But I have been hurt too deeply, Sam. I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me. It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them...'

Samwise Gamgee and Frodo Baggins
The Grey Havens
LOTR: The Return of the King

[Evisse the Blue]

I love the whole 'story of Aragorn and Arwen' from the appendix. Call me a hopeless romantic, but I thought that was marvelous. And one of my fave lines is WiseAragorn's comforting reply to Arwen who 'tastes the bitterness of the Gift of Men':
In sorrow we must go, but not in despair.
I try to hold that in mind whenever I feel uneasy at the thought of my own departure.

But enough with the morbid thoughts already! My fave song from LOTR is Frodo's 'Man on the Moon' [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

[Fallen King of Angmar]

Well I LOVE my sig quote and I love the ent's marching song and I love Boromir's lament and I love the Balrog/Gandalf scene dialogue and I love the grey havens departure ...

get the message? =)

[merlilot]

There are precious (no pun intended) few parts I do not like....

[Tigerlily Gamgee]

Favorites include:

~The Oliphaunt poem
~Sam's song in the Tower of Cirith Ungol
~The Ents marching song

I love every scene in the book. They are all brilliant in their own ways.

[gayare'dion]

oi!! the mouth of sauron talking to gandalf. i felt like i was actually, there, and i felt the same anger and sadness gandalf felt.

[TolkienGurl]

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

I also like the dwarves song about the Lonely Mountain in The Hobbit and Merry and Pippin's version of it in 'A Conspiracy Unmasked'

~TolkienGurl [img]smilies/cool.gif[/img]

[Glorfinniel the Lost]

This is part of one of my favourite Tolkien poems, taken from "The Last Ship" where a mortal woman called Fìriel witnesses the departure of elves from ME.

To mortal fields say farewell ,
Middle-earth forsaking!
In Elvenhome a clear bell
in the high tower is shaking.
Here grass fades and leaves fall,
and sun and moon wither,
and we have heard the far call
that bids us journey thither.’

The oars were strayed. They turned aside:
‘Do you hear the call, Earth-maiden?
Fíriel! Fíriel!’ they cried.
‘Our ship is not full-laden.
One more only we may bear.
Come! For your days are speeding.
Come! Earth-maiden elven-fair,
our last call heeding.’

Fíriel looked from the river-bank,
one step daring;
then deep in clay her feet sank,
and she halted staring.
Slowly the elven-ship went by
whispering through the water:
‘I cannot come!’ they heard her cry.
‘I was born Earth’s daughter!

[ September 29, 2002: Message edited by: Glorfinniel the Lost ]

[Elenna]

All that is gold does not glitter
Not all those who wander are lost
The old that is strong does not wither
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken
A light from the shadow shall spring
Renewed shall be blade that was broken.
The crownless again shall be king.

That has to be the best one. I tell myself that all that is gold does not glitter whenever I'm having a bad hair day or something.

Also, I love Legolas's sea song, but I don't have that one memorized.

And I love the Lay of Leithian. I'm memorizing that one too, so I can mumble it and freak out non-Tolkien disciples.

[Niluial]

Mine has to be Bilbo’s Song (pg 271-2)

I sit beside the fire and think
of all that I have seen,
of meadow-flowers and butterflies
in summers that have been:

Of yellow leaves and gossamer
in autumns that there were,
with morning mist and silver sun
and wind upon my hair.

I sit beside the fire and think
of how the world will be
when winter comes without a spring
that I shall ever see.

For still there are so many things
that I have never seen:
in every wood in every spring
there is a different green.

I sit beside the fire and think
of people long ago,
and people who will see a world
that I shall never know.

But while I sit and think
of times that were before,
I listen for returning feet
and voices at the door

[GaladrieloftheOlden]

I have quite a few, but... isn't this an NN topic? If I am wrong, please correct me [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

~Menelien

[Arathiriel]

Here are some more favorite passages of mine:

'...There at last when the mallorn-leaves were falling, but spring has not
yet come, she laid herself to rest upon Cerin Amroth; and there is her green grave, until the world is changed, and all the days of her life are utterly forgotten by men that come after, and elanor and nephredil bloom no more east of the Sea...' The Return of the King

'I have a sword,' said Merry, climbing from his seat, and drawing from its black sheath his small bright blade. Filled suddenly with love for this old man, he knelt on one knee, and took his hand and kissed it. 'May I lay the sword of Meriadoc of the Shire on your lap, Théoden King?' he cried, 'Receive my service, if you will!'

'Gladly will I take it,' said the king; and laying his old hands upon the brown hair of the hobbit, he blessed him. 'Rise now, Meriadoc, esquire of Rohan of the household of Meduseld.' he said. 'Take your sword and bear it unto good fortune!'

'As a father you shall be to me,' said Merry.

'For a little while,' said Théoden.

Merry and King Théoden
The Passing of the Grey Company
LOTR: The Return of the King

"It is not despair, for despair is only for those who see the end beyond all doubt."

Gandalf
LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring

Frodo's face was peaceful, the marks of fear and care had left it; but it looked old, old and beautiful, as if the chiseling of the shaping years was now revealed in many fine lines that had before been hidden, though the identity of the face was not changed. Not that Sam Gamgee put it that way to himself. He shook his head, as if finding words useless, and murmured: 'I love him. He's like that, and sometimes it shines through, somehow. But I love him, whether or no.'

Samwise Gamgee
Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit
LOTR: The Two Towers

[Hans Markus Rod]

I really love the words of Hurin when he is taken captive in Angband and is brought forth before Morgoth; 'Blind you are Morgoth Bauglir, and blind shall ever be, seing only the dark. Very strong words.
There is more also, but i don't have the book in front of me.

[Sauron_the_Abhorred]

I loooooooooooove the battle of the Pellenor Fields, and also Gandalf's" You cannot pass. I am a servant of the secret fire, weilder of the flame of Anor.Flame of Udun stuff, the dark fire will not avail you...you cannot pass.....sorry about that , but that was from memory.

*soft humming to self*
[img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] I also ADORE Galadriel's Namarie, im currently memorizing it's Quenya and English forms.....

[Estella Brandybuck]

I love what everyone has already posted! Man, do I have a list for this. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] First of all, without a doubt my favorite song from the books:

In western lands beneath the Sun
The flowers may rise in Spring,
The trees may bud, the waters run,
The merry finches sing.
Or there maybe 'tis cloudless night
And swaying beeches bear
The Elven-stars as jewels white
Amid their branching hair.

Though here at journey's end I lie
In darkness buried deep,
Beyond all towers strong and high,
Beyond all mountains steep,
Above all shadows rides the Sun
And Stars forever dwell:
I will not say the Day is done,
Nor bid the Stars farewell.

And yes, that's from memory. [img]smilies/tongue.gif[/img] And along the Samwise vein:

"Far above the Ephel Dúath in the West the night-sky was still dim and pale. There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach."

Also from RotK:

"I do not know what is happening. The reason of my waking mind tells me that great evil has befallen and we stand at the end of days. But my heart says nay; and all my limbs are light, and a hope and joy are come to me that no reason can deny. Éowyn, Éowyn, White Lady of Rohan, in this hour I do not believe that any darkness will endure!"

A few pages later:

"I stand in Minas Anor, The Tower of the Sun," she said; "and behold! the Shadow has departed! I will be a shieldmaiden 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." And again she looked at Faramir. "No longer do I desire to be a queen."

Almost done, I promise. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] This one is from Of the Voyage of Eärendil in The Silmarillion:

"Now fair and marvellous was that vessel made, and it was filled with a wavering flame, pure and bright; and Eärendil the Mariner sat at the helm, glistening with dust of elven-gems, and the Silmaril was bound upon his brow. Far he journeyed in that ship, even into the starless voids; but most often was he seen at morning or at evening, glimmering in sunrise or sunset, as he came back to Valinor from voyages beyond the confines of the world."

Okay, one more. [img]smilies/tongue.gif[/img] This from The End of the Third Age:

"March the twenty-fifth!" he said. "This day seventeen years ago, Rose wife, I didn't think I should ever see thee again. But I kept on hoping."
"I never hoped at all, Sam," she said, "not until that very day; and then suddenly I did. About noon it was, and I felt so glad that I began singing. And mother said: 'Quiet, lass! There's ruffians about.' And I said: 'Let them come! Their time will soon be over. Sam's coming back.' And you came."
"I did," said Sam. "To the most belovedest place in all the world. To my Rose and my garden."

In case you couldn't tell, I'm a big Samwise fanatic. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] I wish I had my copy of TTT... I love that part where Sam's thinking about one of the Southron (Easterling?) soldiers, like if he had really wanted to be there, or if he had left anyone behind. I'm sure you all remember it.

Wow, this is quite a long post. I should stop now. [img]smilies/tongue.gif[/img]

[Yavanna228]

I personally like the Ainulindale in Silm. Here are some other snippets that I particularly like:

For morning came, morning and a wind from the sea; and darkness was removed, and the hosts of Mordor wailed, and terror took them, and they fled, and died, and the hoofs of wrath rode over them. And then all the host of Rohan burst into song, and they sang as they slew, for the joy of battle was on them, and the sound of their singing that was fair and terrible came even to the City.

I also like the bath song at Crickhollow, especially these verses:

O! Sweet is the sound of falling rain/and the brook that leaps from hill to plain;/but better than rain or rippling streams/is water hot that smokes and steams.
O! Water is fair that leaps on high/in a fountain white beneath the sky;/but never did fountain sound so sweet/as splashing Hot Water with me feet!

Treebeard's Song is another favourite(I even made up a tune for it! [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]), as is Sam's song in the Tower of Cirith Ungol. Anything by Tom Bombadil is very nice, too. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img] I also like this passage from when the story of Frodo and Sam is being told by the minstrel. I think this piece of writing would have to be the best I've ever read.

And all the host laughed and wept, and in the midst of their merriment and tears the clear voice of the minstrel rose like silver and gold, and all men were hushed. And he sang to them, now in the Elven-tongue, now in the speech of the West, until their hearts, wounded with sweet words, overflowed, and their joy was like swords, and they passed in thought out to regions where pain and delight flow together and tears are the very wine of blessedness.

I can truthfully say that there is no part of the books that I do not like, those are just the highlights! [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]
Peace

[ June 03, 2003: Message edited by: Yavanna228 ]

[Arathiriel]

'Frodo, Mr. Frodo!' he called. 'Don't leave me here alone! It's your Sam calling. Don't go where I can't follow! Wake up, Mr. Frodo! O wake up, Frodo, me dear, me dear. Wake up!'

Samwise Gamgee
The Choices of Master Samwise
LOTR: The Two Towers

At the doors of the Houses many were already gathered to see Aragorn, and they followed after him; and when at last he had supped, men came and prayed that he would heal their kinsmen or their friends whose lives were now in peril through hurt or wound, or who lay under the Black Shadow. And Aragorn arose and went out, and he sent for the sons of Elrond, and together they laboured far into the night. And word went throughout the City; 'The King is come again indeed.' And they named him Elfstone, because of the green stone that he wore, and so the name which it was foretold at his birth that he should bear was chosen for him by his own people.

And when he could labour no more, he cast his cloak about him, and slipped out of the City, and went to his tent just ere dawn and slept for a little while. And in the morning the banner of Dol Amroth, a white ship like a swan upon the blue water, floated from the Tower, and men looked up and wondered if the coming of the King had been but a dream.

--Taken from
"The Houses of Healing" about Aragorn
LOTR: The Return of the King

[Elfchick7]

Wow!!! cool topic. i could go on forever but having a great deal less time than forever I will only name the poems and passages that I like. 1. The ringspell 2. Aragorns poem 3. The lay of Beren and Luthien (Silmarilion not Fellowship) 4. The whole story of Arwen and Aragorn in Appendix A(I think [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] ) In Rotk. 6. I also like the littler song that the dwarves sing at the unexpected party you know "Chip the cups and crack the plates, that's what Bilbo Baggins hates..." Whew!!! [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

[Elfchick7]

Sorry about all the mistakes in my previous post. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

[Oricon Ancalime]

I love the Akallabeth... especially the last few paragraphs, talking about how every once in a while sailors will find the Straight Road and get to look upon Valinor once before they die. It's very sad but in a way very happy. What a way to go, huh?

[ArisBoch]

one of my favorites all time is legolas' song of the sea, which i don't have memorized off hand or i'd put it down. it's one of those sad, wistful poems.
second is the road goes ever on and on, which has already been mentioned.

[MLD-Grounds-Keeper-Willie]

~The Bath Song:

Sing hey! for the bath at close of day
that washes the weary mud away!
A loon is he that will not sing:
O! Water Hot is a noble thing!

O! Sweet us the sound of falling rain,
and the brook that leaps from hill to plain;
but better than rain or rippling streams
is Water Hot that smokes and steams.

O! Water cold we may pour at need
down a thirsty throat and be glad indeed;
but better is Beer; if a drink we lack,
and Water Hot poured down the back.

O! Water is fair that leaps on high
in a fountain white beneath the sky;
but never did fountain sound so sweet
as splashing Hot Water with my feet!

~I like Gandalf's conversation with Frodo:

'...What a pity that Bilbo did not stab that vile creature, when he had a chance!'
'Pity? It was Pity that stayed his hand. Pity, and Mercy: not to strike without need. And he has been well rewarded, Frodo. Be sure that he took so little hurt from the evil, and escaped in the end, because he began his ownership of the Ring so. With Pity.'
'...I do not feel any pity for Gollum.'
'You have not seen him,' Gandalf broke in.
'No, and I don't want to,' said Frodo. '...He deserves death.'
'Deserves it! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the wise cannot see all ends...'

~I like Bilbo's poem here, and when Frodo recalls what Bilbo used to say:

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

...."It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door," he used to say. "You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to."

~Boromir's lament, and the conversation after:

Then slowly he began to sing:

Through Rohan over fen and field where the long grass grows
The West Wind comes walking, and about the walls it goes.
'What news from the West, O wandering wind, do you bring to me to night?
Have you seen Boromir the Tall by moon or by starlight?'
'I saw him ride over seven streams, over waters wide and grey;
I saw him walk in empty lands, until he passed away
Into the shadows of the North. I saw him then no more.
The North Wind may have heard the horn of the son of Denethor.'
'O Boromir! From the high walls westward I looked afar,
But you came not from the empty lands where no men are.'

Then Legolas sang:

From the mouths of the Sea the South Wind flies, from the sandhills and the stones;
The wailing of the gulls it bears, and at the gate it moans.
'What news from the South, O sighing wind, do you bring to me at eve?
Where now is Boromir the Fair? He tarries and I grieve.'
'Ask not of me where he doth dwell-so many bones there lie
On the white shores and the dark shores under the stormy sky;
So mand have passed down Anduin to find the flowing Sea.
Ask of the North Wind news of them the North Wind sends to me!'
O Boromir! Beyond the gate the seaward road runs south,
But you came not with the wailing gulls from the grey sea's mouth.'

Then Aragorn sang again:

From the Gate of Kings the North Wind rides, and past the roaring falls;
And clear and cold about the tower its loud horn calls.
What news from the North, O mighty wind, do you bring to me today?
What news of Boromir the Bold? For he is long away.'
'Beneath Amn Hen I heard his cry. There many foes he fought.
His cloven shield, his broken sword, they to the water brought.
His head so pround, his face so fair, his limbs they laid to rest;
And Rauros, golden Rauros-falls, bore him upon its breast.'
'O Boromir! The Tower of Guard shall ever northward gaze
To Rauros, golden Rauros-falls, until the end of days.'

So they ended. Then they turned their boat and drove it with all the speed they could against the stream back to Parth Galen.
'You left the East Wind to me,' said Gimli, 'but I will say naught of it.'
'That is as it should be,' said Aragorn. 'In Minas Tirith they endure teh East Wind, but they do not ask it for tidings. But now Boromir has taken his road, and we must make haste to choose our own.'

~Gandalf's speech to the Balrog:

The Balrog reached the bridge. Gandalf stood in the middle of the span, leaning on the staff in his left hand, but in his other hand Glamdring gleamed, cold and white. His enemy halted again, facing him, and the shadow about it reached out like two vast wings. It raised the whip, and the thongs whined and cracked. Fire came from its nostrils. But Gandalf stood firm.
'You cannot pass,' he said. The orcs stood still, and a dead silence fell. 'I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun. Go back to the Shadow! You cannot pass.'

~I like Bilbo's poem here:

I sit beside the fire and think
of all that I have seen,
of meadow-flowers and butterflies
in summers that have been:

Of yellow leaves and gossamer
in autumns that there were,
with morning mist and silver sun
and wind upon my hair.

I sit beside the fire and think
of how the world will be
when winter comes without a spring
that I shall ever see.

For still there are so many things
that I have never seen:
in every wood in every spring
there is a different green.

I sit beside the fire and think
of people long ago,
and people who will see a world
that I shall never know.

But while I sit and think
of times that were before,
I listen for returning feet
and voices at the door.

~I like all of Tom bombadil's songs, especially this one:

Old Tom Bombadil is a merry fellow;
Bright blue his jacket is, and his boots are yellow.

~I like this one about the one ring, and I like the one in the black speech:

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their Halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to Rule them all,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

~I like these two parts about Gollum:

'Only too true, I fear,' said Gandalf. 'But there was something else in it, I think, which you don't see yet. Even Gollum was not wholly ruined. He had proved tougher than one of the Wise would have guessed-as a hobbit might. There was a little corner of his mind that was still his own, and light came through it, as though a chink in the dark: light out of the past. It was actually pleasent, I think, to hear a kindly voice again, bringing up memories of the wind, and trees and sun on the grass, and such forgotten things.

and:

Gollum looked at them. A strange expression passed over his lean hungry face. The gleam faded from his eyes, and they went dim and grey, old and tired. A spasm of pain seemed to twist him, and he turned away, peering back up towards the pass, shaking his head, as if engaged in some interior debate. Then he came back, and slowly putting out a trembling hand, very cautiously he touched Frodo's knee-but almost the touch was a caress. For a fleeting moment, could one of the sleepers have seen him, they would have thought they beheld an old weary hobbit, shrunken by the years that had carried him far beyond his time, beyond friends and kin, and the fields and streams of youth, an old starved pitiable thing.

~And this might just be my favorite poem in all of Middle-earth. I really like the way they sang it in Bakshi's film, and I like the music to it too. I think it's Tolkien's ME version of the 'Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle' poem (sorry, I can't remember the name of that poem):

There is an inn, a merry old inn
beneath an old grey hill,
And there they brew a beer so brown
That Man in the Moon himself came down
one night to drink his fill.

The ostler has a tipsy cat
that plays a five-stringed fiddle;
And up and down he runs his bow,
Now squeaking high, now purring low,
now sawing in the middle.

The landlord keeps a little dog
that is mighty fond of jokes;
When there's good cheer among the guests,
He cocks an ear at all the jests
and laughs until he chokes.

They also keep a horned cow
as proud as any queen;
But music turns her head like ale,
And makes her wave her tufled tail
and dance upon the green.

And O! the rows of silver dishes
and the store of silver spoons!
For Sunday there's a special pair,
And these they polish up with care
on Saturday afternoons.

The Man in the Moon was drinking deep,
and the cat began to wail;
A dish and a spoon on the table danced,
the cow in the garden madly pranced,
and the little dog chased his tail.

The Man in the Moon took another mug,
and then rolled beneath his chair;
And there he dozed and dreamed of ale,
Till in the sky the stars were pale,
and dawn was in the air.

Then the ostler said to his tipsy cat:
'The white horses of the Moon,
They neigh and champ their silver bits;
But their master's been and drowned his wits,
and the Sun'll be rising soon!'

So the cat on his fiddle played hey-diddle-diddle,
a jig that would wake the dead:
He squeaked and sawed and quikened the tune,
While the land lord shook the Man in the Moon:
'It's after three!' he said.

They rolled the Man slowly up the hill
and bundled him into the Moon,
While his horses galloped up in rear,
And the Cow came capering like a deer,
and a dish ran up with the spoon.

Now quicker the fiddle went deedle-dum-diddle;
the dog began to roar,
The cow and the horses stood on their heads;
The guests all bounded from their beds
and danced upon the floor.

With a ping and a pong the fiddle-strings broke! the cow jumped over the Moon,
And the little dog laughed to see such fun,
And the Saturday dish went of at a run
with the silver Sunday spoon.

The round Moon rolled behind the hill
as the Sun raised up her head.
She hardly believed her fiery eyes;
for though it was day, to her surprise
they all went back to bed.

That's kind of a lot, but all I can think of for the moment.I might come back with some more later.

[ June 05, 2003: Message edited by: MLD-Grounds-Keeper-Willie ]

[Estella Brandybuck]

Ooh! I completely forgot about the Man in the Moon song! You're right, Willie, that's definitely a great one. It's one of my goals to memorize it. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] And the Lament for Boromir is just amazing... "Where now is Boromir the Fair? He tarries and I grieve." That's probably one of my favorite lines (then again, I certainly have a lot of those [img]smilies/tongue.gif[/img] ). And the paragraph from TTT about Gollum... it breaks my heart whenever I read it.

[Lyra Greenleaf]

Seek for the sword that was broken:
In Imladris it dwells;
There shall be counsels taken
Stronger than Morgul spells.
There shall be shown a token
That doom is near at hand,
For Isildur's bane shall waken,
And the Halfling forth shall stand.

I just love it. Prophecy, a poem all in one!

An Elven maid there was of old,
A shining star by day:
Her mantle white was hemmed with gold,
Her shoes of silver grey.

A star was bound upon her brows,
A light was on her hair
As sun upon the golden boughs
In Lorien the fair.

Her hair was long, Her limbs were white,
And fair she was and free;
And in the wind she went as light
As leaf of linden-tree.

Beside the falls of Nimrodel,
By water clear and cool,
Her voice as falling silver fell,
Into the shining pool.

That's my favourite part of the poem, but all of it is nice.

I really like the "Where is the horse and the rider" poem, but can't find my copy of TTT.

[ June 07, 2003: Message edited by: Lyra Greenleaf ]

[mordor136]

I love the standoff at the gates of Minas Tirith between gandalf and the witch king!

[Beren87]

"The Battle between Sauron and Finrod (Felagund)" is also my favorite Tolkien poem.

But, the entire Lay of Leithian is my all-time favorite, and the previously mentioned is in it.

[ June 07, 2003: Message edited by: Beren87 ]

[Arathiriel]

"And far away, as Frodo put on the Ring and claimed it for his own, even in Sammath Naur the very heart of his realm, the Power in Barad-dur was shaken, and the Tower trembeled from its foundations to its proud and bitter crown. The Dark Lord was suddenly aware of him, and his Eye piercing all shadows looked across the plain to the door that he had made; and the magnitude of his own folly was revealed to him in a blinding flash, and all the devices of his enemies were at last laid bare. Then his wrath blazed in consuming flame, but his fear rose like a vast black smoke to choke him. For he knew his deadly peril and the thread upon which his doom now hung.

From all his policies and webs of fear and treachery, from all his stratagems and wars his mind shook free; and throughout his realm a tremor ran, his slaves quailed, and his armies halted, and his captains suddenly steerless, bereft of will, wavered and despaired. For they were forgotten. The whole mind and purpose of the Power that wielded them was now bent with overwhelming force upon the Mountain." -The Return of the King

"The wise speak only of what they know, Grima son of Galmod. A witless worm have you become. Therefore be silent, and keep your forked tongue behind your teeth. I have not passed through fire and death to bandy crooked words with a serving-man till the lightning falls." -Gandalf

"This is the hour of the Shire-folk, when they arise from their quiet fields to shake the towers and the counsels of the Great." -Elrond

"What do you mean? Do you wish me a good morning, or mean that it is a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good on this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?" -Gandalf

"Do not meddle in the affairs of Wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger." -Gildor Inglorion

"'Gandalf!' I said at last, but my voice was only a whisper. Did he say: 'Hullo, Pippin! This is a pleasant surprise!'? No, indeed! He said: 'Get up, you tom-fool of a Took! Where, in the name of wonder, in all this ruin is Treebeard? I want him. Quick!'" -Pippin

"Aragorn threw back his cloak. The elven-sheath glittered as he grasped it, and the bright blade of Anduril shone like a sudden flame as he swept it out. 'Elendil!' he cried. 'I am Aragorn son of Arathorn, and am called Elessar, Dunadan, the heir of Isildur Elendil's son of Gondor. Here is the Sword that was Broken and is forged again! Will you aid me or thwart me? Choose swiftly!" -The Two Towers

[ June 08, 2003: Message edited by: Arathiriel ]

[Orofaniel]

I like this one....

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say

And this:

This song is from LOTR ; when Tom met the Hobbits in the Old Forest

Hey dol! merry dol! ring a dong dillo!
Ring a dong! hop along! fallal the willow!
Tom Bom, jolly Tom, Tom Bombadillo!
Hey! Come merry dol! My darling!
Light goes the weather-wind and the feathered starling.
Down along under Hill, shining in the sunlight,
Waiting on the doorsep for the cold starlight,
There my pretty lady is, River-woman's daughter,
Slender as the willow-wand, clearer then the water.
Old Tom Bombadil water lilies bringing
Comes hopping home again. Can you hear him singing?
Hey! come merry dol! derry dol! and merry-o,
Goldberry, Goldeberry, merry yellow berry-o!
Poor old Willow-man, you tuck your roots away!
Tom's in a hurry now. Evening will follow day.
Tom's going home again water-lilies bringing.
hey! come merry dol! Can you hear him singing?
Hop along , my little friends, up the Withywindle!
Tom's going on ahead candles for the kindle.
Down vest sinks the Sun: soon will you be groping,
When the night-shadows fall, then the door will open,
Out of the window-panes light willtwinkle yellow.
fear no alder black! Heed no hoary willow!
Fear neither root nor bough! Tom goes on before you.
Hey now! merry doll! We'll be waiting for you!
Hey! come merry dol! Hop along, my hearties!
Hobbits! Ponies all! We are fond of parties.
Now let the fun begin! Let us sing together!
Now let the son begin! Let us sing together
Of sun, stars moon and mist, rain and cloudy weather,
Light on the budding lesf, dew on the feather,
Wind on the open hill, bells on the heather,
Reeds by the shady pool, lilies on the water:
Old Tom Bombadil and the river-daughter!

And there are more, but I don't have the time to write them. Oh, well, one more:

Tree rings for the elven kings undere the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

And I've got more.....belive me....Don't have the time though.... [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

~Orofâniel~

[MLD-Grounds-Keeper-Willie]

Here's another:

It was the Arkenstone, the Heart of the Mountain. So Bilbo guessed from Thorin's description; but indeed there could not be two such gems, even in so marvellous a hoard, even in all the world. Ever as he climbed, the same white gleam had shone before him and drawn his feet towards it. Slowly it grew to a little globe a pallid light. Now as he came near, it was tinged with a flickering sparkle of many colours at the surface, reflected and splintered from the wavering light of his torch. At last he looked down upon it, and he caught his breath. The great jewel shone before his feet of its own inner light, and yet, cut and fasioned by the dwarves, who had dug it from the heart of the mountain long ago, it took all light that fell upon it and changed it into ten thousand sparks of white radience shot with glints of the rainbow.

I really like this one. The way Tolkien describes it fills me with wonder and awe.

[FingolfintheBold]

All of it!
Tall ships and Tall Kings, Three times three,
What brought them from the foundered land, over the flowing sea?
Seven stars and seven stones and one white tree.

and Galadriel's song (see my quote!)

[Estella Brandybuck]

But if of ships I now would sing, what ship would come to me,
What ship would bear me ever back across so wide a Sea?

I adore that song. After I read in The Silmarillion about the Noldor's exile, I really came to appreciate that last line, and now it's one of my favorites.

Heck, I love everything that's been posted. It's all wonderful.

From Of the Fifth Battle in The Sil:

But now a cry went up, passing up the wind from the south from vale to vale, and Elves and Men lifted their voices in wonder and joy. For unsummoned and unlooked for Turgon had opened the leaguer of Gondolin, and was come with an army ten thousand strong, with bright mail and long swords and spears like a forest. Then when Fingon heard afar the great trumpet of Turgon his brother, the shadow passed and his heart was uplifted, and he shouted aloud: "Utúlie'n aurë! Aiya Eldalië ar Atanatári, utúlie'n aurë! The day has come! Behold, people of the Eldar and Fathers of Men, the day has come!" And all those who heard his great voice echo in the hills answered crying: "Auta i lómë! The night is passing!"

This is the second version of Sam's song in Cirith Ungol, from The End of the Third Age:

I sit upon the stones alone;
the fire is burning red,
the tower is tall, the mountains dark;
all living things are dead.
In western lands the sun may shine,
there flower and tree in spring
is opening, is blossoming;
and there the finches sing.

But here I sit alone and think
of days when grass was green,
and earth was brown, and I was young;
they might have never been.
For they are gone, for ever lost,
and buried here I lie
and deep beneath the shadows sink
where hope and daylight die.

But still I sit and think of you;
and see you far away
Walking down the homely roads
on a bright and windy day.
It was merry then when I could run
to answer to your call,
could hear your voice or take your hand;
but now the night must fall.
And now beyond the world I sit,
and know not where you lie!
O Master, will you hear my voice
and answer ere we die?

[MYyyPreciousSS]

(Wow, havn't posted in a long time....)

Well I love all parts of Tolkien's works, but here are some of my favorites:

Eowyn it was, and Dernhelm also. For into Merry's mind flashed the memory of the face that he saw at the riding of Dunharrow: the face of one who goes seeking death, having no hope. Pity filled his heart and great wonder, and suddenly the slow-kindled courage of his race awoke. He clenched his hand. She should not die, so fair, so desperate! At least she should not die alone,unaided.

But the helm of her seceracy had fallen from her, and her bright hair, researched from its bonds, gleamed with pale gold upon her shoulders. Her eyes grey as sea were hard and fell, and yet tears were on her cheeck. A sword was in her hand, and she raised her shield against the horror of her enemy's eyes.

But who knows what she spoke to the darkness, alone, in the bitter watches of the night, when all her life seemed shrinking and the walls of her bower closing in about her, a hutch to trammel some wild thing in?

Blackness and stentch and crushing pain came upon Pippin, and his mind fell away in to a great darkness.
'So it ends as i guessed it would' his thought said, even as it fluttered away; and it laughed a little withen him ere it fled, almost gay it seemed to be casting off at last all doubt and care and fear.

'Precious, precious, precious!' Gollum cried. 'My precious! O my Precious!' And with that even as his eyes were lifted up to gloat on his prize, he stepped too far, toppled wavered for a moment on the brink, and then with a shriek he fell. Out of the depths came his last wailprecious, and he was gone.

'Yes,' said Frodo. 'But do you remember Gandalf's words:Even Gollum may have something yet to do? But for him, Sam, I could have destroyed the Ring. The Quest would have been in vain, even at the bitter end. So let us forgive him! For the Quest is achieved, and now all is over. I am glad you are here with me. Here at the end of all things, Sam.

Far above the Ephel Dúath in the West the night-sky was still dim and pale. There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.

and last but not least:

'The deeds of men will outlast us, Gimli.'
'And yet come to naught in the end but have-beens, I guess', said the Dwarf.
'To that the Elves know not the answer', said Legolas.

I like the last one because it just makes me believe that Elves and Dwarfs once exsisted, but have just been forgotten.
I realize that all the quotes are more on a down note(and all from ROTK), but for whatever reasons, it seems that sad ones are the ones that speak to me the most.

[Corwyn Celesil]

There are small lines here and there that I love, such as the description of Aragorn when he died: "Then a great beauty was revealed in him, so that all who after came there looked on him in wonder, for they saw that the grace of his youth, and valour of his manhood, and the wisdom and majesty of his age were blended together. And long there he lay, an image of the splendour of the Kings of Men in glory undimmed before the breaking of the world."

And Legolas' song:
"To the Sea, to the Sea! The white gulls are crying,
The wind is blowing, and the white foam is flying.
West, West away, the round sun is falling,
Gray ship, gray ship, do you hear them calling,
The voices of my people that have gone before me?
I will leave, I will leave the woods that bore me;
For our days are ending and our years failing.
I will pass the wide waters lonely sailing.
Long are the waves on the Last Shore falling,
Sweet are the voices in the Lost Isle calling,
In Eresséa, in Elven home that no man can discover,
Where the leaves fall not: land of my people forever!"

But some of my most favorite parts are from Tolkien's lesser-known books. My very favorite has to be the description of the houses of Gondolin, which is too lengthy to put here, but which you can find in The Fall of Gondolin (unfortunately, I do not remember which book it is from).

I do not like the Narn i-Hin Hurin-the Tale of the Children of Hurin, but I love the story of Beleg Strongbow and how Turin mourned him: "'Twas Turin that towering on the tarn's margin, up high o'er the head of the hushed water now falling faintly, let flare and echo a song of sorrow and sad splendour, the dirge of Beleg's deathless glory. There wondrous wove he words enchanted, the woods and water waked and answered, the rocks were wrung with ruth for Beleg."

Well, I could go on, but to sum up, nearly every word, every line of The Silmarillion and The Lays of Beleriand are full of enchantment.

[Corwyn Celesil]

OK, I simply had to add another bit. Tolkien's poem "Errantry" later became, through many incarnations, the story of Earendil. His invented trisyllabic rhythms are magnificent, and the whole thing is whimsical:

There was a merry passenger,
a messenger, an errander;
he took a tiny porriger
and oranges for provender;
he took a little grasshopper
and harnessed her to carry him;
he chased a little butterfly
that fluttered by to marry him.
He made him wings of taffeta
to laugh at her and catch her with;
he made her shoes of beetle-skin
with needles in to latch them with.
They fell to bitter quarrelling,
and sorrowing he fled away;
and long he studied sorcery
in Ossory a many day.
He made a shield and morion
of coral and of ivory;
he made a spear of emerald
and glimmered all in bravery;
a sword he made of malachite
and stalactite, and brandished it,
he went and fought the dragon-fly
called wag-on-high and vanquished it.
He battled with the Dumbledores,
and bumbles all, and honeybees,
and won the golden honey-comb,
and running home on sunny seas
in ship of leaves and gossamer
with blossom for a canopy,
he polished up and burnished up
and furbished up his panoply.
He tarried for a little while
in little isles, and plundered them;
and webs of all the attercops
he shattered, cut, and sundered them.
And coming home with honey-comb
and money none--remembered it,
his message and his errand too!
His derring-do had hindered it.