The Shadow of Our Fandom

I think it's time for a LOTR rant. Let's face it, I love to rant, and I saw something online the other day that really bothered me, and has been nagging at me for some time.

Ok, can you explain something to me, fellow LOTR fans? Because there is an unfortunate part of our beloved fandom that has always cast a shadow upon our passion for this beloved world. This is, if I can choke it out...the slash fictions.

Ugh. 

Let's see if I can get through this rant without barfing.

Ok, I am as about obsessed and passionate about LOTR as much as anyone, and have been involved in the various aspects of this fandom for many years, and I still don't understand the appeal in ANY sort of slasher fiction or illustration. Some of you  may  be wondering what slash fiction is. I hate to be the one to educate you on this, but here it is. The basic principles of slash fiction (at least as far as I have come to know it) is different illustrations and fanfictions that place various characters in a storyline who would not normally be together, together in a romantic (and usually a grotesque) fashion. I have not immersed myself too much in this area of fandom for obvious reasons, but examples of this that I have seen are Frodo/Sam, Aragorn/Legolas, Boromir/Arwen, Frodo/Aragorn...need I go on? 

And thus the rant begins.

Why do we do this, my fellow Ringers? Why do we tolerate this happening? Why is it ok that fellow fans not only give us a bad name by such behavior but also trash the names and personalities of characters we hold so near and dear to our hearts?

Let me state a probably already obvious ideal of mine: homosexuality is not ok. I will NOT condemn those who fall into the temptation of homosexuality, but I will not condone their behaviors as alright or natural in any sense of the term. By the teaching of the Catholic Church, the feelings of same-sex attraction are not in and of themselves an evil; feelings are not inherently evil. They are just emotions, and they are gifts from God. What we do with them is the key to whether it causes us to sin or not. Anger for example is not an evil; it often helps us sort through the various elements of an event, and helps remind us we are human. But if we go out and murder someone in rage, that is a sin. Homosexuality is along the same lines. Being tempted to commit acts with a member of the same sex is not a sin; that is just a temptation. But actually indulging in those acts is sinful. It is no different than if I was tempted to sleep with my boyfriend; it would be a sin if I gave in to the sexual temptations I felt, even I felt it was good and would make me "happy".

But even if homosexuality was ok, and there wasn't an issue there, why would we so greatly alter the original storyline of such an amazing plotline? Why would that be ok, to rip apart Tolkien in that way? Such actions between any of those people would be COMPLETELY uncharacteristic for them. Tolkien was all about making this world realistic, within the confines of who these characters really were in the world they lived in. Yeah, I am all for imagination, and trying different circumstances that give different aspects to the story, but there are limits to what I consider plausible or honorable in the LOTR world.

Some of you may be thinking, "You are taking this WAY too seriously. It's just a story!" 

Well, no, it's not. LOTR is so much more than a story, and if someone says that, they probably don't see or understand what the huge deal is in LOTR. 

Ultimately, what I want to say is this: God gave us an amazing gift in LOTR that gives us a way to pursue and discover and ponder over truth in a safe world, surrounded by wholesome, real, and amazing characters who perhaps help us see a bit of ourselves in that world, and give us hope for a better future in our own. 

Yeah, I take this really seriously because it saved my life when all I thought about was suicide and wanted nothing more than peace from all the pain and utter despair I had around me. Then God showed me LOTR, and started me on an incredible journey that led me here. He saved me from suicide, self-injury/destruction, and from succumbing to despair through LOTR. So...don't mess with it. 

Not just a Trinket

In my continued experiences with Lord of the Rings and its various fans, one idea I keep running into more and more is that Frodo is a wimp.

Ok, let's get one thing straight: 

FRODO IS NOT A WIMP. 

I know why people think this, and I understand why this idea is misconstrued when watching the movies. I really do see it. After defending Frodo for many years, I have come to the conclusion that people think Frodo lacks strength or courage because we don't, even as a LOTR fan base truly understand what the Ring is. In order to truly understand Frodo's agony as the Ringbearer, you have to understand the Ring itself. 

Right now in the school year, I am in a Scripture class, and the ideal of Christ being the ultimate melding of the physical and spiritual world has been brought up often. This idea says that, according to the teaching and beliefs of the Catholic Church (and to my knowledge, most Christian religions), Jesus Christ is fully man and fully Divine, bringing into perfect unison the life of the spiritual realm and the physical. He became both God and man on Earth in order to fulfill His mission as Savior of the world. 

Talking about Lord of the Rings with a dear friend of mine suddenly got me thinking about this idea, this principle of the spiritual inextricably bound with the physical, and this thought occurred to me with the Ring.  

What is the Ring?

The origins of the Ring go as far back as the reigning of Sauron in the Second Age of Middle Earth as evil lord. Sauron, his dominion in Mordor, crafted a series of rings in order to trick the various races into his servitude, leading to an attempted complete control of Middle Earth. I am sure this is familiar to you, but the infamous Tolkien poem explains this perfectly:

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die, 
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them
One Ring to bring them and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie. 

                                    

The craft of Sauron was successful in its deception; the dwarves, men, and elves took the rings, each of them receiving whatever they wished from the works of these rings. Some came to horrific ends as a result of this greed. The infamous Ringwraiths, as Aragorn so aptly describes in the Fellowship of the Ring, "...were once men. Great kings of men. Then Sauron the deceiver gave to them nine rings of power, one by one, falling into darkness. Now they are slaves to his will." 

The dwarves met nefarious ends as well (although I do not know the exact specifics), but the Elves, however, had the foresight and the will power to see that there was more to this gift of crafting the rings than appeared. They hid themselves, away from the sight and knowledge of the Dark Lord. Even up until the time of the One Ring and the Fellowship's quest across Middle Earth, Sauron had no knowledge of where the three rings were hidden. Galadriel and Elrond were two of the ringkeepers, the third being given to Gandalf from the elf Cirdan, who originally held it. This was the reason Elrond and Galadriel were bound to stay behind in Middle Earth while the War of the Ring ravaged; if they left, and Sauron discovered the rings they carried, it would have been disastrous and dire to the safety of all in Middle Earth. 

What were magic rings? What powers did they hold? This very basic fact is essential to understand what LOTR truly is, and what that journey meant for Frodo as the bearer of the One Ring.

Ultimately these rings were what they appeared to be: rings that bore special powers, and held incredible responsibility for whoever bore it. Although I am not versed in the detailed descriptions of the other rings of power, the basic principles are the same for them. These rings did not make the wearer perfect, or impervious to temptation or evil, as is shown by Galadriel's still being tempted by the One Ring in Lothlorien when Frodo offered it to her. 

They didn't endow you with supernatural physical strength, although a spiritual and magical strength did accompany some actions of magic with the ring, as is shown with Gandalf is his fight with the Balrog in Moria, (both in Gandalf's being able to deflect the majority of the Balrog's blow and using his staff to sever the stone bridge that caused the Balrog to fall).

Let's take these basic applications/traits of the magic rings, and take a fresh look at the darkest of all the rings, of all the evil forces in the world: the One Ring. This is not an ordinary ring, even as far as magic rings go. With this ring in particular, the intention behind its creation is EVERYTHING. Sauron created the Ring for the sole purpose of conquering the known world, of submitting every one of its creatures to his will, and killing/tormenting those who stood in his way. That level of evil, that depth of complete greed, wrath, and lust is darker than any of us could possibly comprehend. This level of evil was so tangible that it was able to be formed, through the dark arts, into an actual object.

How is this illustrated? You don't have to look very far. The Ring's first act upon being discovered after being hidden for more than 500 years was murder. Yes, Smeagol (later called Gollum after the Ring found him) chose to murder his cousin, but this would not have happened if Smeagol hadn't found the Ring. The Ring truly drove him mad with lust, and drove every single one of his actions, even up to his death in Mount Doom. 

This Ring is not simply a tool that evil wants to use for their benefit. This is a complete manifestation of evil; this is THE manifestation of evil. That is not to say that the Ring is all-powerful or able to move on its own. It does have a will, (the intention of evil bred into it being so strong), but it doesn't work in direct, outright actions. It works subtly, quietly, weaving dark whispers and temptations into the heart of the one bearing it. 

It wasn't just anybody who could take the Ring to Mordor to be destroyed. Gandalf couldn't even touch it, and it drove Galadriel to a dark state of temptation and anguish when she was tempted. These two people weren't exactly wimpy or delicate. And yet, Frodo in his innocence and true goodness volunteered to take the Ring, having a very basic idea of its evil and without fully knowing what he was doing (who does in such an instant of necessity?). Remember, all you who think Frodo is a wimp: the Ring is a huge deal. Remember that when looking at Frodo! The inner turmoil and anguish he suffered because of the Ring and over the Ring is a topic for later, but remember what the Ring means in the world it was created in. The Ring is not just a trinket, it is the point upon which Middle Earth will either stand or fall.

So, let me state again...FRODO IS NOT A WIMP.

(Start at 5:16)
http://youtu.be/xyQlj6dIzAw

Namaste!
     Jenn

Day in the Life of a Ringer

"There may come a day
when we're too tired to climb the hill,
when icicles hang from our noses,
when our hands are frozen solid
(and we should probably be studying),
but it is not this day
THIS DAY WE SLED!"

This was how my afternoon went, down here in winter-bound Steubenville on a snow-covered hill behind a dorm on campus. Three sleds, a few laughs and an iPhone camera later, this LOTR parody was born. (Video to follow later!)

Believe it or not, I have encountered a handful of people over the years who, dare I say this, that DON'T like LOTR. You can imagine my complete shock and surprise. Off the top of my head, I can only think of four people in my 12 years of fandom that have ever said this. Two of the four people had stopped at the Fellowship of the Ring (I don't know how this is even POSSIBLE), one of them was a nun who said she didn't like how much the movies left out a lot of Catholic themes found in the books (I disagree with this, but anyway), and the final person (this one is I absolutely cannot believe) had NEVER SEEN THEM.

The rarity of such findings as these about LOTR leads me to my main point for the day: the majority of people, whether here or across the world, love LOTR. Whether it is a passionate devotion or a casual affinity, there is a common tie in LOTR that ties and connects all of its fans.

What is it about LOTR that draws people to it, or makes them love it? What makes LOTR such a great triumph of human cinematic achievement? What makes the story, the characters, the depth to emotion so inspiring?

PART I: The Story
So, what is the story? Let's take a step back and look at it from an outside perspective. There is a character, voluntarily stepping forward and under no obligation taking upon him the duty of carrying, and destroying, the darkest and greatest manifestation of evil in the whole of the world. Then, also voluntarily, men of every race step forward and offer themselves as companions, to the death, on this perilous journey. This act alone, of a voluntary sacrifice of livelihood, happiness, and for some, life itself, is the demonstration of true honor, love, and fidelity.

What guy doesn't want to be know as being like Aragorn, strong, kinglike, hardy, compassionate, all while wielding the sword that was the downfall of the greatest current enemy of the world in ancient history?

What woman doesn't want to be as faithful, as true, as beautiful (inside and out) and as loving as Arwen? Or as strong-willed, courageous and downright boss as Eowyn?

These are all questions ultimately leading to the ultimate conclusion that can be made from LOTR (a summary of a quote I read once): it shows us how the world should be, an idea I completely agree with. We find in our hearts a great consolation at rejoining in the world of Middle Earth.

Over the next few weeks, I want to continue to explore this more. Let this whet your appetite for more. More later!
                    Namaste!
                            Jenn