khazadaimenu reblogged
You know what's disappointing? There's no shirtless dwarrow scenes in The Hobbit. Unrealistic. 3/10
It’s canon too. They bathed naked in a river in the book. Where’s that scene? Cowards.
khazadaimenu reblogged
i’ve grown very fond of them, and i would save them if i can
Unpopular opinion:
I prefer the hobbit over The Lord of The Rings 1000%. No one can take my love for the dwarves away from me.
Same here! I mean the lotr movies are definitely great, I get why people think they’re better but…. They don’t make me HAPPY the way the Hobbit movies do. I think the characters are great, but I don’t LOVE AND ADORE THEM WITH ALL MY HEART FOREVER UNTIL THE END OF TIME, like I love Fili and Kili and Thorin and his hobbit and his whole silly little dwarf company 🤧
I don’t love everything about the hobbit movies. I know they have shortcomings. There’s stuff that annoys me every time I re-watch. But that doesn’t change the fact that they just bring me sm joy 🤧💖 These movies and the dwarves have a special place in my heart.
dwarves are awesome.
I agree with that last part: “I don’t love everything about the hobbit movies”. I refuse to watch the ending of the battle of five armies. Because I refuse to believe that after such a long journey, and an even more glorious battle, it’s essentially all for naught.
I live by the #EveryoneLivesAU 🤣
#lotr is special to me it’s my teenage years#but i stopped obsessing over it a long time ago#whereas the hobbit became very dear to me#the dwarves especially#they will always be my special love#there’s something about the way it all came together#the cast and the story and the production#it just makes you want to know them better#the hobbit#dwarves#tolkien dwarves#thorin oakenshield#fili and kili
khazadaimenu reblogged
Just reread The Hobbit 😩 and I stand by my opinion:
📣 Bilbo would have stayed in Erebor if Thorin didn’t die 📣
I've often wondered why Tolkien felt he needed to kill off all three Durins and no one else. I'm sure there are all kinds of scholarly papers out there on it. I even thought it might have been tragically poetic for Fili to be left to rule after losing his family just as Thorin had been, but nope.
They all lived in the first drafts. What changed so drastically in moving the battle from Dimrill Dale to Erebor that Tolkien felt he had to kill off this whole family and leave the one female Dwarf he ever named all alone in the world?? I really wonder if he ever thought about how horribly he treated Dis. I'm thinking probably not.
So I did some (very minimal) research, and I'm pretty sure the answer all comes down to Dain.
I just got a shiny new copy of The History of the Hobbit for my birthday, so of course I have to look this up. In the chapter with the aftermath of the battle all that's mentioned is that
In the original story neither Fili nor Kili died fighting alongside their uncle but survived to the end of the tale. The idea that the two most likeable of all Bilbo's companions should also die in battle ... first appears in the continuation of the typescript ... 'Of the twelve companions of Thorin ten remained. Fili and Kili had fallen defending him with shield and body, for he was their mother's eldest brother...'
But in the version where Fili and Kili live, Dain still becomes king...wtf? In a later section titled *Dain son of Nain* I found:
That Thorin was to die was a late development, not present at all in the Second Phase: there is no hint of it in any of the Plot Notes, and clear indication to the contrary as late as Bilbo's discussion with Thorin after the battle ... Even when Tolkien concluded that Bilbo would be unable to resolve the crisis and lift the siege without a battle ... the idea of bringing a dwarven army to the scene was one of the last plot-points to emerge ...
Dain himself nowhere appears until the Third Phase. Like Bard (or, later, Arwen in The Lord of the Rings), Dain is a character Tolkien introduces abruptly to fill a specific plot-function, in this case to bring a dwarven army to the fight at the Mountain, but with his usual keen eye to potentialities, once the character is present Tolkien makes good use of him. Nothing in fact anticipates Thorin's death scene in the original manuscript until Gandalf actually ushers Bilbo into the dying dwarvenking's tent, but once Tolkien had made the surprising decision to drive home the cost of victory with the tragic but heroic death of the second most important character in the book, he needed someone else to fill Thorin's role as the new King under the Mountain, dealing out treasure and restoring the lost realm so that the prophecies could come true.
Dain is a Mary Sue. No wonder we hate him so much. Don't get me wrong, I love a good Dain as a solid supporter of Thorin and the proper Line of Durin, but man he is easy to make into a slimy usurper for a good reason.
In a sense, Dain is to Thorin as Faramir is to Boromir in The Lord of the Rings: the close kinsman who avoids the fall from grace of his elder ... It is easy, in retrospect, to forget Thorin's or Boromir's virtues even after their heroic deaths ... but an unprejudiced reading ... shows Thorin as a capable leader, fair in his judgements, determined to leave none behind, and courageous ... Dain is all this and more: Thorin as he is meant to be, who either because of the example of Thorin's fall ... or more likely because of an unshakeable bedrock of good sense ... is able to resist the dragon-sickness. Dain deals out the treasure fairly, keeps his bargains, and establishes good relations with his neighbors - all the things Thorin should have done and that we, like Bilbo, expected him to do based on our experience of him prior to his glimpsing the dragon-gold.
That Thorin's heir proves to be a new character, Dain ... might have surprised some readers among whom Tolkien circulated the original version of the story ... But the two young dwarves' descent is through the female line, being the sons of Thorin's sister, whereas the patriarchal dwarves obviously trace the kingship through the male line; it is indeed possible that the deaths of Fili and Kili were added to the story during the typescript stage precisely to avoid such confusion. ... in the 'heroic' cultures that preceded feudalism a closely-related capable adult male (brother, uncle, nephew) often succeeded instead of a son. As Thorin's first cousin, the battle-hardened Dain, who proved himself a loyal kinsman by coming at once to Thorin's aid and who had already accomplished heroic deeds in killing Bolg's father in the goblin war, is obviously an eminently suitable candidate to re-establish the Kingdom under the Mountain.
There's a lot more Dain fawning in that section that I don't even want to bother with. He also says something rather nasty about the fact that Dain had an army but Thorin could only raise a group of 12 🤮
"Patriarchal Dwarves obviously" 🖕...Yes, it's probably right, but still, 🖕
Oh and I think this is kind of bullshit, imo:
At first Thorin's sudden death – shocking within the traditions of classic British children's fantasy – would seem to reverse Tolkien's theory of eucatastrophe, the sudden unexpected happy ending to the tale, but in fact the eagles' arrival that turns the tide serves as the eucatastrophe that makes The Hobbit a successful fairy-story within Tolkien's own conception of the genre. Thorin's death, and the later addition of those of Fili and Kili, serve rather to ground the eucatastrophe and prevent the book from being 'escapist' in a negative sense: in Tolkien's terms they confirm 'the existence of dyscatastrophe, of sorrow and failure: the possibility of these is necessary to the joy of deliverance; [eucatastrophe] denies (in the face of much evidence, if you will) universal final defeat'.
TL;DR - Did Tolkien really need to abruptly kill off a primary character just to give the story the proper gravitas, then invent the perfect character simply to fit the hole he made, then kill off a couple more to avoid any confusion about the new character's legitimacy!? 🙄 I guess so, because that appears to be what he did? 🤷🏼♀️
Yeah sorry this turned into another Ted Talk. Thanks for sticking it out to the end lol 🥰
I read this great post a bunch of times since it was released.
And this time this bit jumped out at me.
Funny how the book (The History of The Hobbit) justifies killing off Fili and Kili to avoid confusion in who inherits the throne, because heroic cultures of the past didn’t strictly follow the lineage (so, theoretically, they had a claim), and then in the same breath uses that as justification for Dain to rule as a capable male relative.
Like, yes, i get it, Dain is legitimate both in terms of lineage and in terms of personal capacity, but still… I mourn the boys.
And I think Fili capable of leading his people. In fact, being called to it early is a great plot to explore. And Kili would be there to help. And they didn’t hold the grudges and would distribute the gold fairly. And they didn’t succumb to gold sickness. And, and…
In some other Tolkien-related reading I encountered a thought that he was inspired by Anglo-Saxon stories of the past, where sister-sons would often fall in battle to defend their uncle/older male relative.
Great for you, JRRT, but that doesn’t make me abhor their deaths any less.
Funny, my eye was caught by the same irony when I reposted it last night!! If it was acceptable for indirect heirs to inherit, you'd think Fili and Kili would have still been viable options, but the key here is that they are Thorin's SISTER sons, so their claim would have been seen as less legitimate in the patriarchal society Tolkien seems to have envisioned for the dwarves. (Again, I say, 🖕)
What I really don't understand is why he didn't just change them to his brother's son's (or his own...why really did he make both Thorin and Bilbo confirmed bachelors with no children??)...he was changing so many other details! If he really *really* just had to kill off Thorin (which is still think was a sloppy fix for breaking him so badly in the first place), when he made the decision to have the boys die defending him Tolkien could have just as easily made Fili his brother's son and leave him alive to inherit the throne just as Thorin was left to become king in the wake of losing so much of his family. And Dain could have been available as a Regent or advisor, so he'd still get his unsullied dwarf lord. Fili could become the tragic noble hope for the future, with solid guidance and support, and it wouldn't have been such an overt insert of a shiny new character who had not been previously even mentioned.
Really, the themes of snatching victory from the jaws of defeat, or this eucatastrophy that so many Tolkien scholars seem to praise, would have been just as realized with Thorin redeeming himself, overcoming the sickness and showing the error of his ways by doing all the right things Dain is being praised for here. If anything, it's a greater triumph for a broken character to be redeemed than for him to die and his mantle passed to one who had not been tested as fiercely.
The author of the History of the Hobbit praises Dain as a paragon of a dwarf, but what challenges did he face after he slew Azog? He was, they all were, dreadfully young and forced to step onto a throne he was not prepared for, but he had a mountain to return to, and a people who were stable and safe.
Thorin was ten times the dwarf Dain was, because of all the tragedy and pressure he endured and thrived under, because he fell to gold sickness, but he was the only dwarf in history to have thrown it off and come back to be of sound mind after. It would have been ten times the triumph for him to have nearly died and then had a chance to redeem himself. It's one of the reasons the fanfiction about him is so very satisfying!!
Unsullied dwarf lol
I fully agree, coming back from dragon sickness is a ten times better story than “this perfect lord steps in to save the day”
It’s not like Dain was unwilling to slaughter a bunch of elves and a few fishermen. Thorin was under the influence of gold. What excuse did Dain have?! Loyalty? If he’s so perfect, he should’ve known not to answer the call to arms, but negotiate instead. And yes, he had a mountain to go back to and a people. Why then didn’t he help the Company when they first set out on the quest, huh? HUH?
I guess it’s poetic to realise one’s greatest mistake on deathbed, like Thorin did. Or young lives lost valiantly, like the ones of Fili and Kili.
But on a rainy November day all I want is for them to be safely ensconced in their mountain, alive and well, drinking hot beverages and having the time of their lives. As they deserve. On to fix-it fics!
khazadaimenu reblogged
When I was younger watching lotr I thought wow man the ELVES THE ELVES were the best characters in all their perfection.. but now in my late 20’s my favorite race is the dwarves lol and I have to give full credit to The Hobbit movies. I mean talk about a good time will they trash your house? YES BUT they will do your dishes AND leave your house exactly how they found it. Also they sing nicely
khazadaimenu reblogged
Happy Durin’s Day!
May you spot the Moon and the Sun in the sky together today and may your secret door to a year full of happiness and joy open!
It’s that time of the year again folks… Happy Durin’s Day! May your beards grow ever longer!
khazadaimenu reblogged
Once again thinking about the grave injustice
(Dwarrows not getting enough screentime and storylines in the Desolation of Smaug and Battle of Five Armies and the actors not receiving their due despite hard work)
khazadaimenu reblogged
The way Bofur looks at Bilbo 🥹🥹🥹❤️❤️❤️❤️
khazadaimenu reblogged
*me watching a clip that shows Thorin’s body from the side or a 3/4 angle* hehe wide boy
khazadaimenu reblogged
#This is the best thing EVER#they’re ALL in character#the pissing contest lmao#and what’s Nori doing exactly?!#brooding Thorin#dwarves are so much fun#tolkien dwarves#dwarf#the hobbit#balin#dwalin#thorin#thorin's company#the company of thorin oakenshield#fili and kili#the line of durin#fili#fíli durin#fili durin#fíli#kili#kili durin#kíli#kíli durin#the hobbit fili#the hobbit kili#fili the dwarf#kili the dwarf#fili art#the hobbit art
Going about my day peacefully when I suddenly remember…
That Tolkien ‘translated’ the languages of Middle-Earth into our real languages. And the language of the people of Dale is represented by Old Norse. And guess where dwarves borrowed their ‘public’ names from? The people of Dale. Albeit a long time ago, so the ‘modern’ Third Age people of Dale might not speak that anymore or use those names.
Which means, even names like Dwalin, or Fili, or Thorin are ‘translations’.
WHICH MEANS, we’ll never know the real names of the dwarves. Not the secret Khuzdul ones, not the ones they borrowed from the race of Men.
GHAAAA
khazadaimenu reblogged
when dwarves are in your house...
#oh this is so good#the style the concept#heart eyes#it would be so much fun and chaotic to have them all here#I think of that often#of how they would experience our world#fili and kili being annoying after the initial proclamation of devotion from the artist is so funny to me#because that’s probably what would’ve happened#they’d be a bit too much at times#but also so good to have a family of dwarves#sigh#love how Fili holds on to Kili’s belt#The hobbit#the hobbit art#fili and kili#thorin oakenshield#the company of thorin oakenshield#tolkien dwarves#durin boys#sons of durin#the line of durin#the durins#fili#fili durin#fíli#fíli durin#kili#kili durin#kíli#kíli durin
khazadaimenu reblogged
"The Dwarves had an agriculture – which in early times they practiced when isolated and unable to buy grain etc. by barter. They had invented a “plough” of some sort – which they dragged as well as steered themselves: they were tough and strong – but they did not delight in such labour of necessity."
-- The Nature of Middle Earth
very silly mental image when i read this sentence tbh
khazadaimenu reblogged
The Expulsion (preliminary art)
by Donato Giancola
khazadaimenu reblogged
You know the emissary Sauron sent to Erebor with the direct orders of finding Bilbo? I always think about this guy. What was his plan? I imagine he brought a comically large bug catching net like in a cartoon
khazadaimenu reblogged
Be a good son, Thráin
(disclaimer this is based on legendarium Thráin because I hate what they did to him in the movies k thanks byee!)
khazadaimenu reblogged
POV: you're the human working weapons check at a pub that serves humans and dwarrow and yeah the dwarrow are great and polite and keep their weapons clean because safety and weapon cleanliness is important for longevity BUT BRO HOW MANY FUCKING KNIVES AM I PUTTING BACK FOR YOU COME ON
I WANT THAT JOB PLEASE. Solely so I can throw dirty jokes at Fili every Friday night