Seems Like Someone's Rooting for the Wrong Side

[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by The 1,000 Reader

I've seen some odd fans. They aren't really turned evil, but the certainly would seem to give you the impression. They don't seem to know when the "play" ends. I've never seen this behavior in "fans of good." Overall though, I didn't mean for this thread to be almost entirely focused on the oddest of fans, I just wanted to know why some fans of the darkness never seemed to acknowledge, even for a second, that the bad guys were ultimately the ones who were wrong and nasty. Like I said, the Nazgul are cool, but I still know that in the end they were heartless murderers.

Would it matter if they were 'evil'? Evil's a value judgement at heart - if someone is being cruel to animals or children or exercising psychological torment and threats on people then that's evil behaviour. But as for some kids mucking around in robes and thinking they're going to summon up a manifestation of Sauron or something - well it's just not going to happen, so leave them to their play-acting.

Fact is, a lot of young people like Tolkien's work for the adventure and the thrills and the monsters and the sword fighting, and that's not 'wrong', and put that together with the interest a lot of young people also have in being alternative and trying different things ( from growing your hair long to dabbling in magic - it can cover just about anything) and some will want to play act that Sauron and Orcs really existed. So long as you don't start actually living full time as an Orc or a Hobbit then you're just a fan responding to the work, that's all.

People do know that the Orcs were nasty, but they still find them interesting. And anyway, it's so easy to wind up young, idealistic Elf-heads by pretending to be a Minion...and it can be great fun too....

What do you think of vampires?