The New Hobbit Hole

[2Jedismom]

Clothes are dry. I'm going to bed. Here's a night light. The Orion Nebula. Night all!

[HairOfTheDog]

It certainly is a cool part of the story that the blade was made by the Westernesse, and I hope they include the history of the blade, but it may be another part of the story that works OK without knowing, and at the same time works at a deeper level for those that do know where the blades came from and what they mean.

I have now read it again, and I am still not certain that it was actually Merry's stab that killed the witch king. He distracted it by stabbing in the leg, causing him to miss Eowyn, and she drove her sword beween crown and mantle. I always saw it as a joint effort where Merry and Eowyn's bravery, not so much the sword, slay the witch king.

[HairOfTheDog]

I use it for everything! It is a really cool cart. Much cooler than a wheelbarrow.

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

It certainly is a cool part of the story that the blade was made by the Westernesse, and I hope they include the history of the blade, but it may be another part of the story that works OK without knowing, and at the same time works at a deeper level for those that do know where the blades came from and what they mean.

It seems to me that explaining the background of the Witch King, and the Westernesse heroes who defeated him, would be at least as complicated as telling the story of Isildur was, with far less impact on interpretting the story of the War of the Ring! I think that this will be another part of the story understood by the long time fans only.

[DonnerT]

Agree LCS. The impact of the scene will be the same for both us and the neo's. Merry's courage is what shines for both audiences. Just hope PJ doesn't let Eowyn overpower it.

Good Morning Hobbitses! Are we going to SNEAK or boldly charge for the precious 20K this weekend?

[JenB]

Good morning all! I will be out for most of the day, but back in the evening. I'm sure the precious will be gone by then.

Take a look at this: FotR...er - novelization

[Overtaxed]

Good Morning! I'll be in and out today. Planting turnips and such today. Yeah, I know it's the middle of a drought but to garden is to hope! It did rain last night.

[Overtaxed]

Take a look at this: FotR...er - novelization

Wow! They're making FotR into a novel. What a concept! < /smart aleck >

[DonnerT]

How about this for first breakfast?

Cinnamon raisin bagles sliced, toasted, buttered and covered with jalepeno jelly.

Mmmmmmmmmannn that's good!

[DonnerT]

I'll have a second please.

[DonnerT]

It's mowerdegras time here after a week of on and off rain. Will prolly take me all morning. May be in and out.

[Rocko]

On this land, there dwelt the noble elves, pointed of ear and brave of heart. And there dwelt the hobbits, happy little people who were hirsute of foot. There were also dwarves, who were small like the hobbits, but upon whose feet there was a comparatively regular amount of hair. And there dwelt the humans, who were normal.

Good stuff, Maynard!

[HairOfTheDog]

Hullo! Good Morning! morning hobbits and any I missed!

If I am a good hobbit I should weed-wack today before it gets too hot. There is a lot of tall weedy stuff in the pasture that is only the foul things the horses won't eat. I should cut it down. Wouldn't want it to be there when the photographers from Better Farms and Pastures show up.

[htur_75]

Cinnamon raisin bagles sliced, toasted, buttered and covered with jalepeno jelly.

Sounds good minus the jalepeno jelly. I prefer cream cheese and grape jelly.

[HairOfTheDog]

Weed wacking I go! - See- y'all in a bit!

[Scott from the Left Coast]

I believe they were "enchanted" by some means (I'll go back and look it up), since the Westernesse were men, it is possible that it was some strange form of craftsmanship. They were made specifically to be able to defeat the witch-king's magic and destroy him and his cohorts.

One of the neat little underlying themes Tolkien puts in this (and all others of his that I've read so far) book is how the swords of all of our heroes are special, with a lore all their own. Their weapons almost take on the form of characters themselves. Which is why I thought the manner in which Merry and Pippin obtained these swords was particularly ingenious.

There are little hints (strong in some cases) throughout the books that there is something about these weapons that no one knows or is paying attention to. Such as the Orcs revulsion to these "knives" when Merry and Pippin were captured. (They didn't want the souveniers for anything).

And then there is Pippin on the walls of Minas Tirith, watching in terror of the Nazgul as Faramir attempts to get to the city, and wondering something to this effect: "Who can defeat such a foe?" And the answer, of course, is: Either you or Merry, who have the weapons made just for the purpose!

[Overtaxed]

Hello! I'm in from tending my dirt farm. If anyone is looking for a drought tolerant deer-proof flower to grow, I recommend zinnias. My zinnias are doing great! And not a single deer nibble on them. Just thought I'd pass that along.

[Scott from the Left Coast]

Well, it's a warm sunny Saturday morning, and here I am coursing through the tome(s) for nuggets about "the blades"!

I gotta get a life.

I don't think I can answer the enchantment vs. craft issue from what I've found so far. Yet the "no other blade...cleaving the undead flesh, breaking the spell that knit his unseen sinews to his will" quote that Overtaxed posted seems to imply some ability to break the witch-king's magic, which would seem to be a magical quality itself.

When the blades were found (in the tomb that Frodo was imprisoned in, which according to the appendix is "thought to be" the tomb of the last Prince of Cardolan) this is what was said of them:

"For each of the Hobbits he [Tom Bombadil] chose a dagger, long, leaf-shaped, and keen, of marvelous workmanship, damasked with serpent-forms in red and gold. They gleamed as he drew them from their black sheaths, wrought of some strange metal, light and strong, and set with many fiery stones. Whether by some virtue in these sheaths or because of the spell that lay on the mound, the blades seemed untouched b time, unrusted, sharp, glittering in the sun.

"'Old knives are long enough as swords for hobbit-people' he [Bombadil] said. 'Sharp blades are good to have, if Shire-folk go walking, east, south, or far away into dark and danger.' Then he told them that these blades were forged many long years ago by Men of Westernesse: they were foes of the Dark Lord, but they were overcome by the evil king of Carn Duin in the Land of Angmar.

"'Few now remember them,' Tom murmured, 'yet still some go wandering, sons of forgotten kings walking in loneliness, guarding from evil things folk that are heedless..."

..."Their new weapons they hung on their leather belts under their jackets, feeling them very awkward, and wondering if they would be of any use. Fighting had not before occurred to any of them as one of the adventures in which their flight would land them."

I don't think there's really a solution to that mystery there. So I'm gonna go try and find a life on this sunny day!

[HairOfTheDog]

There is plenty of weed-wacking to do in my pasture! - I find that very rewarding.

[JenB]

Hello! What a great time I just had. I saved $50 by getting the last used books in two of my classes, then my friend Emily and I ran into another friend, Saodako, and we all had lunch together. I got three new books at the used bookstore, and now I have free time. School starts soon - I'm happy!

Where are the sneaks? I thought the precious would be won by now!