LotR -- Book 2 - Chapter 01 - Many Meetings - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Lalwendë · 09-18-2004, 11:31 AM

Hilde - I too would not associate it with death, but like davem says in his first post on this thread, I'd also associate green with the 'otherworld'. I think it does have some sinister undertones (no pun intended) as a colour, due to this association; it's considered unlucky to wear green at a wedding or to dress a child in green, and witches traditionally have green eyes. I do like the way that elves and hobbits seem to have such a fondness for the colour, as it lends a mystical air to think of someone slipping through woodlands, cloaked in green.

The meeting between Bilbo and Frodo where Bilbo asks to see the ring reminds me of a father and son, wary of one another and Bilbo's words after the ring has been put away are touching. He feels regret that his heir, a hobbit who is very much like his own son, has in effect been 'signed up' for war.

One thing struck me the very first time I read this, and that was the appearance of Aragorn standing beside Arwen - here was the rough ranger dressed in kingly fashion, and although the text is very subtle, it was something of a revelation to me exactly why they were standing together, and the image made a big impression on me at that age. I still like these sentences, as Tolkien managed to express their relationship delicately but powerfully in just these few lines. Quite the opposite to the movie.

09-18-2004, 11:31 AM	#13
Lalwendë A Mere Boggart Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: under the bed Posts: 4,737	Hilde - I too would not associate it with death, but like davem says in his first post on this thread, I'd also associate green with the 'otherworld'. I think it does have some sinister undertones (no pun intended) as a colour, due to this association; it's considered unlucky to wear green at a wedding or to dress a child in green, and witches traditionally have green eyes. I do like the way that elves and hobbits seem to have such a fondness for the colour, as it lends a mystical air to think of someone slipping through woodlands, cloaked in green. The meeting between Bilbo and Frodo where Bilbo asks to see the ring reminds me of a father and son, wary of one another and Bilbo's words after the ring has been put away are touching. He feels regret that his heir, a hobbit who is very much like his own son, has in effect been 'signed up' for war. One thing struck me the very first time I read this, and that was the appearance of Aragorn standing beside Arwen - here was the rough ranger dressed in kingly fashion, and although the text is very subtle, it was something of a revelation to me exactly why they were standing together, and the image made a big impression on me at that age. I still like these sentences, as Tolkien managed to express their relationship delicately but powerfully in just these few lines. Quite the opposite to the movie. __________________ Gordon's alive!