Discussion vs Chat

[Bill Ferny]

But (I’m not sure if this is on-topic here), sometimes there are discussions that go off into something not really Tolkien related, but still serious, but are not closed. For example, there is a thread called “Tolkien and Killing?” which sort of veers on and off topic. When it is off topic it is a really interesting discussion, and I check whether anybody’s posted on it every 10 minutes or so, but I doubt that what is being discussed has anything to do with Tolkien just now.

No, I don’t think you are on topic, Menelien. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] That’s definitely not a chatty thread. But this does bring up the related issue of what is and what is not “on topic.”

As the guy who resurrected this thread from the annuls of Barrow history, and someone who has contributed, I guess I would like to say something in my defense (for lack of a better word… I don’t think I’m actually being attacked [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]). I resurrected the thread because it was apropos to what was happening in the real world… something not Tolkien related, but none the less, relevant to everyone who breathes, and yes, everyone who happens to read Tolkien. No, I did not intend the resurrection of the thread to become a discussion about the war in Iraq, but I did think it would be good in light of world events if people discussed killing and war in relation to Tolkien and his work. As you know, Menelien, I did take a certain aspect of that discussion to PM because it strayed to more abstract philosophical notions that wasn’t supported directly by what Tolkien wrote, and had to do more with how I saw the world and about my beliefs.

What I have found on the forum, at times, is an almost overbearing fear of straying off topic, especially when the topic might happen to contain religious themes or current events. This is not a forum about philosophy, theology, general mythology, Christianity (more specifically, Catholicism) or current events. There are many other forums for those things on the internet. However, all these things do have a bearing on Tolkien, especially in threads where mythological/social/political/cultural/academic influences on Tolkien are being discussed. A good question I ask myself in order to determine whether my post about these things is on topic or not is: “Does what I’m writing say more about what I believe about ---------, than what I think Tolkien thought and wrote about -----------?” If the answer is yes, then the post is probably going off topic, and I don't post it.

Presenting material and discussing other authors, discussing historical facts, and investigating various mythologies and religious beliefs should be allowed and supported by the forum moderators, as long as it remains related to the life and work of JRR Tolkien. Don’t get me wrong, I think the moderators do, but some people have a tendency to post, “I think this is off topic, but…” or “…to bring us back to the topic…” Most of the time I’m left wondering how what they wrote is off topic, or how the thread is being corrected by a post that doesn’t address what other’s have contributed. For example, over half the information in David Day’s book, Tolkien’s Ring, would be considered unrelated to Tolkien and “off topic” to some people on this forum judging by the standards they impose on themselves and others.

Mentioning a Catholic doctrine, discussing a figure from the Elder Edda or Beowulf, investigating the Sturm und Drang movement in Germany, or the differences between Brythonic and Goidhelic languages isn’t necessarily unrelated to Tolkien. In fact, all of these things are directly related to Tolkien, his beliefs, what he enjoyed reading, that against which he riled, and that which he studied. One can post something relevant to Tolkien without ever mentioning his name or his books. Posters should have the freedom to pursue various avenues and approaches to Tolkien, and the freedom to disagree and present arguments counter to these theories without the fear of being tagged “off topic”.

As far as chatty posting is concerned (since this is the topic of the thread [img]smilies/tongue.gif[/img]), it seems to me that there are certain threads started for the sole intent of being chatty. I rarely look at these threads, mostly because they are comprised of about a thousand pages of chatty posts. I don’t know if these threads are good or bad, that’s up to greater people than I. However, in the threads that I do participate, I haven’t noticed very much chat-like posts at all. Perhaps it has to do with the subject and initial content of the thread? I dunno. It would be a shame to ban the occasionally witty and sardonic one-liners for which some Downers are famous.