[Vitesse]

I typed something like this out yesterday but it was swallowed whole by the black hole of bad networks...

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I've read the LOTR series a couple of times now, and I have to say, I've never seen much sexual content in it at all - straight or gay. The romantic relationships in the book are all very minute details and in general don't spring forward with any emphasis on Passion. With the exception of the meeting of Faramir and Eowyn, there's hardly any really vibrant romance.

Now, I've heard the "Gay Sam" theory before and I have to say - I don't buy it, either then or now.

I don't mean to patronize fans of Hamfast Gamgee's son, but it seems to me that the Love, genuine love, that Sam feels for Frodo is more akin to the love a Puppy might feel for it's master than anything else. In my eyes, it's certainly not sexual love, despite the touchy-feely customs of Hobbits. Sure, Sam and Frodo are more "together" in Mordor than other characters in the text in other places, but even ad Barad-Dur, Sam's thoughts do indeed stray to Rosie, the shire, and his friends the Cottons. When they return to the Shire it doesn't take long for Sam and Rosie to court and they have a long and very fertile marriage - which would seem to negate any idea that Sam is Gay.

I also don't see any necessarily homosexual relationship between Legolas and Gimli.

In Dwarvish culture it's uncommon for men to get married and male Dwarves outnumber female Dwarves by something like 6 to 1. Dwarvish marriages are always manogamous and rarely do they have more than one child. This is recorded in the appendix "Durin's Folk" after the end of "Return of the King". Romantic relationships of any kind seem rare among Dwarves and the text gives the impression that they are more concerned with their crafts and ideas than any kind of sexual or romantic relationships.

Similar but different is the attitude of Elves. Legolas it seems, is more interested in the mysteries of the woods and nature and the songs of the sea than any more traditional living thing. He seems to me to be more comfortable among the Ents and in Lorien than anywhere else. I think his rather isolated but warm demeanor is typical of Elves in the text, but I'd have to re-read The Silmarillion to really understand more about Elvish culture.

That said, it's highly unusual for a Dwarf and an Elf to be such good friends. But I don't see anything sexual or romantic about it - they're two friends, friends who are more interested in having orc-killing contests and learning about their cultures (which are equally misunderstood on both sides because of the animosity between Dwarves and Elves) than anything else. Furthermore, Lady Galadriel commands Gimli's attention in a way that Legolas never does - and it's Gimli's like for Galadriel and service to her that allows Gimli to go to the Undying lands in the end.

If there's a Homosexual subtext to the relationship of Legolas and Gimli, I'm blind to it, for I cannot see it.

I should preface my next statement by saying that I am Gay, but I don't conform to any stereotype and I usually don't talk about such things with strangers as it's none of their business.

Anyway, I think that predisposes me to seeing a Gay subtext in a book or a film where most might not see one.

That said, I don't see anything like it in LOTR and it's my firm belief that JRRT never meant for one to be read into his characters - but books are intepretive and people can read them however they want.

I don't believe it's the case, but there is only one character in all of LOTR that I ever had an inkling might be Gay, and that's....Merry Brandybuck. Merry seems to come from a rather priveledged life and is somewhat more timid and posh than the other Hobbits. He's as mature and smart as Frodo but he's not as intrepid. I think that in 1940's Britain as today, Merry might meet some of the definitions of Gay Stereotypes, but nowhere near all of them. But to add fuel to the fire...

Merry is never without Pippin, until Pippin's "accident" with the Pilantir. Gandalf whisks Pippin away to Minas Tirith moments after that happens, and Merry and Pippin are separated for the first time. From there on, Merry's thoughts dwell specifically on two things - 1. Helping King Theoden any way he can, and 2. Getting back to Pippin. He even sneaks away with a disguised Eowyn to the battle at Minas Tirith in hopes of finding Pippin. After they return to the shire, Merry goes right back to his old life with Pippin, although now they're celebrities and enjoy a life of parties and both gain leadership positions within the Shire.

In the Chronicles Appendix, Pippin marries, but Merry doesn't. If you look in the family trees, Merry is listed as having Married Estella Bolger (presumably a relative of Fatty Bolger) - but there's never a mention of it in any text. And when they are old, Merry and Pippin leave the Shire and spend their last days in Gondor - and it says nothing of their wives or children (none are listed for Merry in the Family trees).

I don't believe that Merry is Gay, but if there were one character who would be, that would be the logical choice. I should also say that Tolkien was not altogether unaware of homosexuals and though in Britain the climate was very homophobic, among educated people there seems to have been something of a don't ask, don't tell policy - until the episode with Lord Montagu in the late fifties (by which time the LOTR series was entirely in print in several countries). However, I don't believe JRRT ever intended any of his characters to be Homosexual.

I don't think he meant for sex or Romance to play much of a part at all in LOTR - it's not a love story and strong love plots would be detrimental to the books, I think.

Anyway, those are my thoughts on it.