ICYMI, Monday's links are here, and consisted are of New Year related material: hangover science and cures, New Year’s Day in Paris in the 1800s, and Dave Barry’s 2017 Year in Review.
The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.
~ Tolkien (The Fellowship of the Ring)
It is said: "Do not meddle in the affairs of Wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger."
~ Tolkien (The Fellowship of the Ring)
How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on, when in your heart, you begin to understand, there is no going back? There are some things that time cannot mend. Some hurts that go too deep ... that have taken hold.
It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till. What weather they shall have is not ours to rule.
~ Tolkien (The Return of the King)
The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet,
And whither then? I cannot say.
~ Tolkien (walking song, several versions of which appear in The Lord of the Rings)
Faithless is he who says farewell when the road darkens.
~ Tolkien (The Fellowship of the Ring)
No one ever influenced Tolkien - you might as well try to influence a bandersnatch.*
Today is the anniversary of the birth of English philologist and author J(ohn) R(onald) R(eul) Tolkien (wiki) (1892-1973), best known as the author of the cult classic, The Lord of the Rings. Born to English expatriates in Bloemfontein, South Africa, Tolkien studied languages at Oxford and served in the British Army during World War I. After beginning his academic career at the University of Leeds, he became in 1925 the Bosworth professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford, where he developed the languages and supporting mythology that led to his epic magnum opus, The Lord of the Rings (published in three parts in 1954-55). Earlier, in 1937, he had written The Hobbit, which established a certain basis for his later work. (Here's a C. S. Lewis review of The Hobbit from 1937)
* N.B. The reference here is to the mythical beast mentioned in Lewis Carroll's nonsense poems, "Jabberwocky" and "The Hunting of the Snark."
The LOTR in 90 seconds:
CGP Grey explains the backstory of Middle-Earth in four minutes:
And the story of the One Ring:
Epic Rap Battles of History: J. R. R. Tolkien vs. George R. R. Martin - who is the king of fantasy novels?:
ICYMI, Monday's links are here, and include facial reconstructions of famous historical figures, the science of sword-swallowing, sunken Nazi gold, and Milton Friedman's birthday.
ICYMI, Friday's links are here, and include the anniversary of Skynet self-awareness. the truth about chastity belts, why some athletes drink their own urine, 1896 advice on electric car driving.
Tolkien fans, check out this Amazon.com listing, which describes this ring as being inscribed with the Lord's Prayer in Arabic. It's not Arabic, of course, but Elvish.
The customer reviews seem to indicate that it is most likely the One Ring from The Lord of the Rings - I've copied a few below but you can see them all here.
By Edward Martin III on February 15, 2014 I like that this ring makes me invisible, because finally I can just walk around wearing nothing but sunbeams and frustration. But on the downside, I've been moody and irritable and murderous lately.
By Beth Belch on February 15, 2014 Lovely ring. Well made. I'm only giving it a 4, because it is a little uncomfortable. But my plans for world domination are now coming along quite nicely. The included power to command the wraiths has been very convenient.
By Blue on February 14, 2014 I bought this as a prayer ring for reciting the Lord's Prayer before bed, as you do. But when I put it on and read the words out loud, I found myself standing at the food of a large tower, staring up at a flaming eye. God doesn't look like I thought He would. I'm still giving this three stars though, because the script is pretty.
A great birthday present!
By NBSteve on February 15, 2014 I bought this ring for my husband and they had it in just his size. I thought he'd love the writing on it, but the writing was very hard to see. When it arrived, on my birthday none-the-less, it looked a bit small, so I tried it on and discovered it fit me perfectly! Well, that meant it would never fit him, so I decided to return it... but because it was a Sunday, I had to wait a day. Well, I'm glad for the delay because I decided to try it on again the next day and I've been wearing it ever since! I love it, and it came to me after all, so why shouldn't I keep it? It's very precious to me.
