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Originally Posted by littlemanpoet
This last was especially intriguing, and points up some more differences:
In SWoM, the tree is a birch; in Phantastes it's a beech.
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"I may love him, I may love him, for he is a man, and I am only a beech-tree."
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Haunting and mysterious-- I remember reading and rereading that line, trying to get my thoughts around it.
What struck me in Phantastes was the difference between the protective tree, and the Ash-- the protective tree felt dangerous, meaning mysterious and unpredictable; but not terrifying like the Ash tree. Why did she love, and why offer a part of her strength in protection? It was completely sacrificial. Why? Just because? What am I supposed to take away from that?
The Ash Tree reminds me of Old Man Willow, or an Ent gone so terribly bad it's not funny. Maybe Tom Bombadil gone bad. Yeeks.
Come to that, the Beech reminds me of Goldberry, of her golden sanctuary that she offered from the Storm. Except that Goldberry doesn't suffer in giving the sanctuary; the Beech does. (Straying, aren't I? Sorry.)
At the moment (without rereading them both) the main difference between Smith and Phantastes is that while Smith is mostly mysterious, Phantastes is too, but is also very Dark. Phantastes has all the darkness of Mirkwood, Fangorn, and the Old Forest put together-- plus nasty trollish things, and worse. Smith never oppressed me that way, and conjures some mix of Lorien, the Shire, & Rivendell. But I suppose all that could be due to faulty memory...
I shall see if I can find the time to reread Phantastes, and Smith.
EDIT: But for bedtme reading I'm definitely NOT reading Phantastes. Even the cover creeps me out. Smith it is...