View Single Post
Old 12-01-2004, 07:29 AM   #16
Lalwendė
A Mere Boggart
 
Lalwendė's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: under the bed
Posts: 4,814
Lalwendė is battling Black Riders on Weathertop.Lalwendė is battling Black Riders on Weathertop.
Quote:
Well, as has been pointed out on Boromir88's Aragorn's political skills thread (and by Helen above), Aragorn's acceptance by the people of Gondor was not simply down to his military skills. There is also his bearing, his nobility, his heritage, his humility, his leadership, his healing skills - the list could go on. It is these qualities, taken as a whole, that influence the people of Gondor. (And it is many of these qualities that inspire trust in Eomer in this Chapter too.)
Aragorn must have these attributes in order to credibly take back his 'kingship', both in terms of whether the populace would accept him and in terms of retaining his good character in the eyes of the reader. This is especially true when he could potentially be set against Faramir, who himself is an incredibly admirable leader. But to have the 'divine right/light' gives Aragorn an edge over Faramir; he is visibly the genuine king.

This brings to mind another instance where a King returns to his 'divine right', that of Charles II; the circumstances of this return follow the English 'republic' (there's some question over this however...) which proved unsuccessful in the end, as has done the Stewardship with Denethor's poor judgement. Though maybe I will develop the thinking on this one for Boromir 88's politics thread as it's a tad thorny.

Quote:
He's quite similar to Lancelot in that way - brought up by the Lady of the Lake (ie the OtherWorld).
The name Lancelot has roots in Celtic words for 'white', which is reflected in Aragorn's 'light'. And, Aragorn is taken by his mother to be brought up in Rivendell - does she 'give him up' to the Elves? This reminds me of folklore of children being taken down into the underworld and being brought up by faeries. Although I have often wondered if Tolkien intended to make Aragorn some kind of Arthurian figure, coming to rescue his land and people at their greatest hour of need. Instead of being entombed in a cave with his warriors, Aragorn has been exiled with his Rangers. He also carries a legendary sword, though this one is 'birthed' in fire rather than water.
__________________
Gordon's alive!
Lalwendė is offline   Reply With Quote