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Old 01-03-2007, 01:45 PM   #66
Sardy
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Join Date: Apr 2006
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I've been following this thread with great interest, and thought I'd throw in a few thoughts for consideration...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Alcuin
And I still see no “hidden jokes” in any of this, except the name “Teleporno”.
Not being nearly as versed in biographies of Tolkien as in the LotR/Sil/HoME, I would like to see if anyone more knowledgeable about the lives, histories, anecdotes, etc. of Tolkien, his wife Edith, family, friends, et al might be aware of anything that might consitute a "joke" within the text. Of course, this would most likely require some detective work, scouring of texts, and out-of-the-box thinking... But as an example, in reading the above I found myself wondering what sort've personal anecdote or experience of Tolkien might consitute a "joke" within the text regarding the Entwives. One (purely speculative) example might be if Tolkien (or a friend of Tolkien's) were ever in a stuation by which they'd imcompetently tied a knot, and when called out on it, with great bravo explained to his wife that it was not incompetence, but rather, expert skill, "magic" even that caused the unravelling... This (purely made-up) example of a real life anecdote would perfectly jive with the "inside joke" within the text. I am certainly not proposing my own fabricated example as anything other than a sample of the sorts of things that one might look for in the text of the Tolkien biographies... something that might, however loosely, be related to Tolkien's descriptions of the Ents, the Ent-Wives, or any of the seeming inconsistencies pointed out in the articles above...


Quote:
Originally Posted by Alcuin
The argument that there was an Entwife at the top of the cliff in the Emyn Muil is, as far as I can determine, the only time an Entwife might have appeared in the text.And I still see no “hidden jokes” in any of this, except the name “Teleporno”.
Forgive me if this has been covered before, but what of the "walking trees" spotted in the Shire, as mentioned ealy on in Fellowship? (Not to derail this fascinating thread, if this has been covered or is innapropriate, a simple link to the topic would be fine!)


Quote:
Originally Posted by Alcuin
...in fact, Tolkien says on at least two separate occasions that he does not believe they will ever be found.
At the risk of sounding overly picky, there's a semantic consideration to consider here. Tolkien's stated belief is that the Ent-wives will never be found by the Ents. This is an important consideration. His assertion that there will be no re-union between the Ents and their wives is a very different thing than saying that there are no clues or Ent-wives hidden in the text for the readers.
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