You say 'Faeries' & I say 'Fairies' - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Lalwendë · 09-23-2005, 01:51 PM

If there is a Faerie of the mind, of the imagination (and I think that there is), then it will be different to everyone, but it will also be the same in that Universal images and concepts will be present. Now my Faerie would be a place of light and shade as the imagination to me takes account of both; the wonders may be thrown into sharp relief by the terrors and dangers. But this again, is similar to how I see the place Faerie. Capricious and unknowable.

Even if Tolkien wished his Faerie not to have darkness then I should still expect to find it in mine. But I still think that even in Tolkien's creation there is plenty of darkness. It is 'tamed' within the pages, but as soon as a reader gets their hands on the book, they can begin to build on those ideas and create all manner of wonders or horrors that Tolkien did not place there, as seen in RPGs and fan-fic.

As to whether people can get by without an imagination, well everyone has got one, but some decide not to exercise it sadly. Maybe this is what Tolkien is getting at in SOWM; he is creating a story out of the contrasts of those who do and those who do not allow the mind to wander...

09-23-2005, 01:51 PM	#18
Lalwendë A Mere Boggart Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: under the bed Posts: 4,737	If there is a Faerie of the mind, of the imagination (and I think that there is), then it will be different to everyone, but it will also be the same in that Universal images and concepts will be present. Now my Faerie would be a place of light and shade as the imagination to me takes account of both; the wonders may be thrown into sharp relief by the terrors and dangers. But this again, is similar to how I see the place Faerie. Capricious and unknowable. Even if Tolkien wished his Faerie not to have darkness then I should still expect to find it in mine. But I still think that even in Tolkien's creation there is plenty of darkness. It is 'tamed' within the pages, but as soon as a reader gets their hands on the book, they can begin to build on those ideas and create all manner of wonders or horrors that Tolkien did not place there, as seen in RPGs and fan-fic. As to whether people can get by without an imagination, well everyone has got one, but some decide not to exercise it sadly. Maybe this is what Tolkien is getting at in SOWM; he is creating a story out of the contrasts of those who do and those who do not allow the mind to wander... __________________ Gordon's alive!