Welcome to The Great Hall of Poets, our regular monthly feature showcasing the talent of Middle-earth fans. Each month we will feature a small selection of the poems submitted, but we hope you will read all of the poems that we have received here in our Great Hall of Poets.
So come and join us by the hearth and enjoy!
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
The deep breath
by D. McGlinchey
The rolling shadows thrown down from venomous clouds spewed from dark pits seals the arena. The throbbing beat of a multitude of drums shakes you to the core whilst the savage screams from out of the dark tear at your senses. No way forward. No way back. This is where you make your stand.
Formidable are the walls upon which you stand and strong are the defences behind which you prepare. Fierce and fell in appearance, your brothers in arms line up by your side in these dark hours of waiting. No more doubts No more fear There will be no quarter asked, nor given.
Heavy now the shadows fall as against the defences they press like a physical, unstoppable force. But stop it does as it meets the immovable will of the mountainous fortress and the iron will of its defenders. No longer preparing. No longer fearing. The deep breath before the plunge.
~~ * ~~
Who would think to light a tree
by: Alec R.
Who would think to light a tree? Valar, gold and silver see, Lorien’s Mallorn; Poplar’s clap, Bilbo’s too, and take that map,
Odd his humble Party Tree, Would upward nod toward ancientry, Heaven’s case, a flaming sword, Placed in Eden, by the Lord,
At the tree of life to ban, Free from clutch of every man, The only one who touched that tree? The Son of God: who hung for thee.
~~ * ~~
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
If you’re one of the lucky fans attending San Diego Comic-Con this weekend, don’t forget to swing by our presentation tomorrow night, July 20, from 6:45 to 7:45 p.m. in room 6DE. The room is already filling up, so be sure to get there early! For all of you Hobbits, Elves and Orcs who attend in costume, directly after the panel there will be a group photo taken on the steps behind the convention center, facing the Bay and the Coronado Bridge. In true Hobbity fashion, after the Cosplay photo, we’ll also be having in ice cream social at Ghirardelli, 643 Fifth Ave., San Diego, CA 92101. Show up between 8:15pm through about 9pm or so and there may be a few little mathoms handed out as well.
More details about the panel below, and don’t forget to RSVP on the SDCC SCHED page for the panel linked below.
*** TheOneRing.net (TORn) staffers Josh “Elessar” Long (host of Collecting the Precious), Jon “Tookish” Ben-Asher (former associate editor for TORn), Hannah “Took” Greenwood (co-host of TORn Tuesday, associate staff at WETA Workshop), and Josh “Sarumann” Rubinstein (former host of TORn Bookclub) celebrate 20 years of talking Tolkien and all things Middle-earth. They will be discussing all the current known news and maybe a rumor or two, reminiscing about some of their biggest stories and events in the past, and laying out a schedule of some of their 20th anniversary events. The Tolkien movie has already hit theaters, but the Amazon Lord of the Rings (LOTR) series is full-steam ahead in preproduction and this panel’s got some tantalizing news on that front. Bring your favorite stories about a TORn event or story they posted to discuss-they really want to focus on the community that TheOneRing.net has created these past 20 years. Costumes are welcome and encouraged. Cathy “Garfeimao” Udovch (special events coordinator) moderates.
Welcome to The Great Hall of Poets, our regular monthly feature showcasing the talent of Middle-earth fans. Each month we will feature a small selection of the poems submitted, but we hope you will read all of the poems that we have received here in our Great Hall of Poets.
So come and join us by the hearth and enjoy!
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
Dain’s Last Stand
by David McG.
There’s a hallowed hill near Erebor were the heirs of Durin were slain.
And there upon that honoured mound stood the mighty warrior Dáin.
For many a year, great peace ensued for Dwarf and Men of the Dale.
The Orc Wars fought so long and fierce had seen the Dwarves prevail.
Oh Mighty Dáin
King Under Mountain
Ruler of Durin’s Folk
Defender of the Dwarven Realms
We feast.
We drink.
We smoke!
It was at Azanulbizar , Nanduhirion, that Dáin in fire was tested.
When as a stripling of the Iron Hills, the Great Pale Orc he bested.
There it was he at last avenged the death of the honoured Náin.
Though foresight stopped him fighting on, for he’d glimpsed grim ‘Durin’s Bane’
Oh Mighty Dáin
King Under Mountain
Ruler of Durin’s Folk
Defender of the Dwarven Realms
We feast.
We drink.
We smoke!
Emissaries from the Dark Lords lands had come with words of tempting.
To seek a ‘trifle’ in form of ring, the Great Kings aid pre-empting.
But well knew Dáin of the ancient deceit that had snared many a Dwarven Lord.
He refused the hand of the Morgul realm and they left in great discord.
Oh Mighty Dáin
King Under Mountain
Ruler of Durin’s Folk
Defender of the Dwarven Realms
We feast.
We drink.
We smoke!
Northward fiersome Easterling’s marched to punish the warrior King.
To lay to waste all Erebor in refusing to aid the ring.
Erebor North down to Gondor South, the armies of Mordor assailed.
Though fiercely outnumbered with backs to the wall, Dàin’s Kingdom again prevailed.
Oh Mighty Dáin
King Under Mountain
Ruler of Durin’s Folk
Defender of the Dwarven Realms
We feast.
We drink.
We smoke!
Brave men of Dale had answered Dàins call to face the Dark Lords threat.
Sons and fathers who would fight til they’d fall for past wrongs they would never forget.
And so it was for Good King Brand who led the Men of Dale.
Standing side by side with the mighty Dàin he fought there in the Vale.
Oh Mighty Dáin
King Under Mountain
Ruler of Durin’s Folk
Defender of the Dwarven Realms
We feast.
We drink.
We smoke!
But one by one the defenders fell , step by step retreated.
Til a fateful blow laid King Brand low and the allies seemed defeated.
But the Mighty Dàin would not submit, Brands body fierce defending.
His fiery axe drank dark revenge from a stream that seemed never ending.
Oh Mighty Dáin
King Under Mountain
Ruler of Durin’s Folk
Defender of the Dwarven Realms
We feast.
We drink.
We smoke!
Finally fell the Mighty King, though his life he sold so dear.
Whilst safe secured behind strong Erebor walls his people conquered fear.
Long assailed the Easterling hordes, long the free folk defended.
Til there came a dawn when the ravens cried “The War of the Ring has ended! “
Oh Mighty Dáin
King Under Mountain
Ruler of Durin’s Folk
Defender of the Dwarven Realms
We feast.
We drink.
We smoke!
~~ * ~~
From Éowyn’s Diary
by Kayla B.
All this time I believed
action was my only worth,
glossy as a thoroughbred
ready to race for the prize—
when really such belief only
lives in other people’s whispers
saying only one kind can win,
only one kind can be right.
Someone saw through masks
I thought were my real faces,
saw down through lie-scars
to the heart still beating
and I saw the rubbed-red-raw
part of me I tried to cut away
when really I am no
thoroughbred
instead I am a woman
who lives by coaxing heartbeats,
who wants to open other
stables of illness, injury,
which is why I never left
my uncle’s creasing face.
My own sick heartbeats
falter at changing pattern,
but if this is real
I will fight through
and I will prove to them
who I really am
and want to be.
~~ * ~~
Tinúviel’s Lengthening Song
by Melissa A.
Like full and flowing beards in Belegost, As long as mangy tail of Carcharoth, Or massive Glaurung, terror of the air, As wide as trunk of Hírilorn the fair, Like fearsome, sharp, bright blade of Glend, Nan’s Sword, And Aulë’s ponderous chain, Angainor, As high as stands the head of Gilim, Or far as flows the hair of Uinen, So long may my dark tresses grow to be, To match the height of towering tree, That of them ladder sturdy I may braid, Descend to bring my suffering Beren aid.
~~ * ~~
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
Welcome to The Great Hall of Poets, our regular monthly feature showcasing the talent of Middle-earth fans. Each month we will feature a small selection of the poems submitted, but we hope you will read all of the poems that we have received here in our Great Hall of Poets.
So come and join us by the hearth and enjoy!
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
The Whispered Doom
by David McG.
Barely audible over the silence of reason.
The words, they slithered in.
Finding residence in the core of her being they settled to grow and spread.
Choking vines entwined around memory and spirit.
Erasing.
Replacing.
Enchanting.
At the Hill of Spies she was spied.
The dragon smiled as only one of his kind could.
No joy or humour was there in that maw of death.
Just malice and wicked intent for a revenge served hotter than his fiery breath.
He knew of her, knew of her kin and the fate they all would bear.
Gazing
Mesmerising
Eradicating
Leaving her to a foretold fate to fall.
Who she was and from whence she came the whispered doom said naught.
Til panic driven, naked and alone she was lost and forsaken.
No longer mourning, she would become a maiden of tears.
Found though she was, by the kin she knew not.
Protecting
Comforting
Embracing
Though master of doom, by doom to be mastered.
The whispered spell set her downfall in motion.
By cruel fate or malicious, predetermined design the trap was set.
Ensnaring two to the curse of their father.
No escape until the whisper became word.
Encircling Spiralling Constricting The whispered doom fulfilled.
~~ * ~~
Wine on the Chesapeake Bay
by: Alexander R
I stood there thinking, at the bar,
And wondered why the We, so far,
Had scattered, half an Earth away,
Were then just now? I might just stay.
Colonialism: movement, rest, In my own land, I’m but a guest
“But it is not your own Shire,’ said Gildor. ‘Others dwelt here before hobbits were; and others will dwell here again when hobbits are no more.” John Ronald Reul Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
Appropriately, there are a lot of complex emotions and thoughts to unpack after watching the latest film to tackle Middle-earth, TOLKIEN.
Let’s get this out of the way: If you have more than a passing interest in J.R.R. Tolkien or his works, you should view the film. You should view it in theaters and you should view it without knowing too much of what is going to unfold — and I will do my best to withhold spoilers, but some are inevitable if I am going to offer fair commentary on the film.
Let’s also get this out of the way: The next person who says “It’s not a documentary,” to me or anyone else with criticisms of the film’s portrayal of Tolkien’s life can go straight to Angband. This quip attempts to dismiss completely valid, rational views of the film, most often the assumed position that someone is about to say film isn’t accurate. Feel free to disagree with criticism, but don’t insult the discussion with a patronizing deflection or insinuate that there were two choices: either documentary accuracy or giving up all hope of accuracy and accepting anything.
Watching TOLKIEN was a powerful emotional experience. As J.R.R. has done for so many, he has profoundly influenced my own life. His words touch us on a deep level. His works laid the foundation of so much else that came after, most definitely including the biggest fantasy property on the block at the moment, GAME OF THRONES on HBO, that is something of a reply to Tolkien from George R.R. Martin. STAR WARS would certainly not exist as we know it without Tolkien. Harry Potter, Dungeons & Dragons and so much else grew from the field he plowed. The Professor is a giant that looms above us all.
So when Nicholas Hoult and Harry Gilby combine to portray Tolkien as a child and as a young man, it was unexpectedly moving; just the simple act of putting Tolkien on screen was powerful. It is a reminder that the nearly mythical professor was scared, lonely, insecure, sad, frustrated, desperate, drunk, charming, combative and impulsive.
Not only does Tolkien live before our eyes but his best mates from his young years, the boys essential to him during his formative era, all live and walk and breathe before our very eyes. In fact the film makes all of them immortal in a way, a reality that I imagine would have tickled Tollers.
And all of this is entertaining and beautiful but …
Watching TOLKIEN was a frustrating, and in some moments, an agonizing experience and I don’t mean in the midst of the drama lost in the story and characters but rather outside the drama and about the drama. And yes, I do get it. Screenwriting is hard. Putting a powerful, emotionally relevant story on screen is hard. The story of J.R.R. Tolkien is hard. Story telling about an period with less data about the man is hard.
But Tolkien was a real life person. Some living now, knew him then, and he left behind letters and notes, video, audio recordings and war and school records. So when the film’s writers David Gleeson and Stephen Beresford, and director Dome Karukoski, chose to tell the story in a way that ignores those records and turns instead to fantasy, it is troubling at the least, distracting and frustrating.
SPOILER but (seriously, film spoiler ahead) the film chooses to depict Tolkien going for something of a walk in the midst of fierce fighting during the Battle of the Somme. He is obsessed, if not crazed, with the idea of finding his friend.
In reality 2nd Lt. Tolkien didn’t abandon his fellow soldiers and instead fulfilled his duty as a signaler for a battalion of infantry, sending instructions and trying to help communication in the chaos of fighting and dying across no man’s land.
Soon after he contracted trench fever — typically via lice — and was taken off the front. One of the most common symptoms of the ailment is leg pain — not quite the disease to inspire tench walking.
This isn’t a small shift in a man’s history, this is a massive, unneeded change about important characterization in the man and developments in the myth he created. There was already drama, conflict and characterization present in the actual history. If only the filmmakers had trusted the story of J.R.R. Tolkien instead of needing to make a fantasy story to replace it.
The film suggests Tolkien had a sort of fever dream during this walk and had visions of his future stories. Some will shrug this off, and he did start writing as he was away from the front, but a hallucinating Tolkien instead of a crafting Tolkien, especially when there was a set-up for it, is less effective. Yes, this can all be viewed as metaphorical, but it can also be viewed as a bad trip that became a good story.
Those aren’t the only inaccuracies; we are treated to a wildly different start of some important writing, that is definitely not an improvement (and from a filmmaking only viewpoint, it feels glued on at the end.) But it also avoids the opportunity to depict The Professor being the a professor. We are robbed of a very on-the-record Tolkien moment of inspiration that changed everything, only to have it replaced by a weakened moment, of problematic motivation.
I will resist the temptation, for spoiler’s sake, to say more and this essay isn’t the place to create a checklist of wrong history, but suffice it to say, some will.
To say that another way, just as big of a problem as being inaccurate about a real person’s story is that the inaccuracies — or straight up fantasy — robs us of getting to know the man, and the man is pretty interesting. The man didn’t need embellishing. And to be clear, I am not objecting to filling in some gaps and I credit the movie for doing that effectively in spots.
I object, as others will, to replacing the known record with storytelling fancy.
Others may legitimately raise concerns about structure or pacing, and while that isn’t something to be ignored, for me, those are forgivable.
None of this is to say there isn’t a fine story with a beautiful love-story in it. There is definitely that. And some dose of fancy or manufacturing of details is certainly inevitable and understandable. But manufacturing important things that contradict what is known is frustrating.
There is heart and abundant beauty present to be sure. In fact, there is a beautiful film here for you to catch in theaters, but it is too often a fantasy film about a real person as much as it is the story of that person.
Those knowing little about Tolkien will walk away “educated” and will perhaps find some emotional connection. Hopefully they will wish to learn more and pick up one of several great books about the man, which the director, a fan, has undoubtedly read. But this is TORn, not a collective that knows little about Tolkien.
Karukoski directed something beautiful. The acting is excellent. The lighting and shooting is beautiful. The music is wonderful. The tone is occasionally modern for a period piece but all of that is effective and emotional and there is much to praise.
But we aren’t going to get some other Tolkien biography anytime soon — this is it. We are rewarded with beauty and with pieces of Tokien and we are frustrated by the fantasy depiction of a man — and a story — that deserved greater purposeful fidelity.
The party continues! We’re still celebrating 20 years of TheOneRing.net (check out the message boards for all the fun and games), and yesterday we received another lovely video message. This comes all the way from New Zealand; check out what Richard Taylor had to say. (You may want to be sitting down before you watch this one…) Thanks so much, Richard!
