Tolkien inspires Iranian protesters

[Eönwë]

Great to have you back (at least for a while), SPM!

Also, it's nice to see how Tolkien's works can inspire people to stand strong.

[Rumil]

Saucie's back!!!

Cool!

v interesting link too, I guess most of see what we expect to see in terms of applicability as coloured by our own cultural heritage. (Gandalf a bit Jesus, a bit Merlin etc) Fascinating to see what other cultures think - ie Gandalf reminding Persians of the Mahdi and Shadowfax of Rakhsh.

[Estelyn Telcontar]

Yes, Rumil, applicability is much superior to allegory; the latter could apply only to the cultural group to which it refers, while applicability lets people all over the world find aspects of the story that are close to their hearts.

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

Hey, great to see you SPM.

Let me disagree with you for old time's sake.

That is a tenuous link. So tenuous I hardly see the point. He/she explains in the first part that Iranians are shown famous films all the time - they're bound to play LotR sooner rather than later.

Tolkien's the new Nietzsche: anyone can fit him into their story. It doesn't usually make that story interesting.

[Lalaith]

A mutter from Pedant's Corner:

Boromir, human of Aragon

Succeeded, no doubt, by Faramir Boleyn....

Anyway, interesting how all manner of dialogue can take on significance at crucial moments.

As for Eomer's Nietzsche point, very true...I got very depressed when I found that a certain neo-Nazi website had its own dedicated Tolkien sub-forum.

[Lindale]

Originally Posted by Eomer of the Rohirrim

That is a tenuous link. So tenuous I hardly see the point. He/she explains in the first part that Iranians are shown famous films all the time - they're bound to play LotR sooner rather than later.

Tolkien's the new Nietzsche: anyone can fit him into their story. It doesn't usually make that story interesting.

I agree, Eomer, at some point, but let me raise another.

Tolkien may not be a Jose Rizal who wrote novels to spark revolutions, but if his text inspires people to be strong, as well-written and timeless literature does at one point or another, it's worthy of credit.