16: Extremely Specific Middle-earth Q&A with The Tolkien Professor--Corey Olsen

[@tonybaker1268]

On the topic of Eowyn needing to learn there is much more to life than being a warrior: Faramir tells Frodo and Sam that the Shire must be a great place where gardeners are held in high honor. Gardeners being people who grow and care for things. Faramir constantly expresses his feelings on war and he does not love war but what people fight to defend. Faramir is exactly the type of person Eowyn needs in her life as his mindset is that of a person who can fight (and does) but does not strive for glory in battle above all else. Also its interesting that they both nearly find death on the battlefield and it is this common ground that causes them to reflect on themselves.

[@CatholicCulturePod]

Yes! Very well put.

[@dreamer2260]

Really insightful and interesting discussion, thank you very much. I am an atheist but I've always been deeply touched by the spiritual, or even theological, aspects of Tolkien's work, and I very much enjoyed these kinds of perspectives in this conversation.

[@CatholicCulturePod]

Thank you Matthew. I think that art often touches an awareness in us deeper than our conscious beliefs (and I think this is also true from the artist's perspective). I have several other Tolkien episodes if you're interested in more--most recently a tribute to Christopher Tolkien after his death.

[@Kal-99]

Another Tolkien enjoying atheist here! Love this channel’s discussions on Tolkien’s work. Well done, to say the least.

[@christianmondragon7006]

This podcast is great! I can’t believe it doesn’t get more views.

[@CatholicCulturePod]

Thanks, Christian! We do a bit better in our podcast feed than on KZbin. Anyway, we hope only to reach the exact audience level God wants us to ;)

[@SunnyLovetts]

Wonderful conversation, Tolkien was a genius!

[@inakilambrechts1114]

Great podcast, your questions were extremely interesting, good work!

[@CatholicCulturePod]

Thank you!

[@ProtomanButCallMeBlues]

1:16:00 I think the racial stigmas in the lore are a great asset for it because it makes the stories a lot more engaging. For example, people think the Fellowship was some sort of generic DnD party of boys going on an adventure. But in context within Tolkeins lore Gimli and Legolas working together as a team was unprecedented in middle earth. It was a big deal. Even going back most of combined free people's armies were always segregated. The Dwarfs, men and elves were fighting in their own divisions. But we fast forward, we see Dain Ironfoot holding his position so the people of Dale can flee is a testament to the growth of their society as a whole.

[@Nikolai18A]

A good example of verbal spellwork (in the movies at least) is the spell Saruman uses when the fellowship is on the mountains after Kahzad Dum.

[@AbhijeetBorkar]

This was really cool discussion!

[@CatholicCulturePod]

Thank you sir! Check out Corey's new video with WIRED, it's really fun.

[@AbhijeetBorkar]

Thank you! I was recommended your video after watching that one ;)

[@robinriebsomer4607]

Eowyn's struggle reminds of the Iliad which was a work that questioned the values of a warrior culture. Achilles is told he can die in battle and die in glory, be remembered eternally or he. can live and be forgotten. Eowyn often feels dismissed and forgotten, almost invisible. . Don't underestimate women's strength on the battle field. After all Eowyn does kill the leader of the Nazguls. Something no man could do. So why was she able to kill him? Maybe because she helped a dismissed hobbit go to battle. What's the beatitude? " The meek shall inherit the earth." You could say Clara Barton was a warrior of healing because she was on the front lines of the battle fields in the Civil War. She nursed both confederate and union soldiers. She did NOT have a gun. Like Clara Barton, Eowyn comes to see that there is great honor in being a creator of life, a healer. I have to wonder if not only Faramir but her friend Meriadoc may have helped her see this.

[@circedelune]

The difference is between magic and no magic to me is the authority to do what you do. We do not say God does magic. He has the power and authority to do what He will. Magic is borrowing power and authority that is not yours to do something. As the bearer of the ring of preservation, Galadriel has the power and authority to preserve days past. As an elf of elves, created to commune with nature, she desires and the earth grants her what she wants. These are arts, gifts, and skills, not magic. Magic is doing something beyond your power or ability by the powers that do not belong to you. I think when Gandalf says “spells,” it is for lack of a better word for it. “Passwords” may have been a better or more accurate word.

[@Matt42MSG]

'Spell' is derived from older words meaning 'to speak'. Tolkien, being a philologist, was acutely aware of the histories and earlier meanings of the words he chose.

[@joekeegan937]

Two very interesting comments, thanks to you both.

[@magicl4088]

What about the theory thatTom Bombadil is the counterpart of Ungoliant.

[@CatholicCulturePod]

I've never heard that - can you tell me more?

[@Matt42MSG]

It seems more like he's the counterpart of Sauron.

[@magicl4088]

@@Matt42MSG really? Apart from the ring not affecting him I can’t see that especially when you look at the evidence shown before.

[@kristiankastberg1748]

@@magicl4088 i guess i can follow Matt42MSG s logic in that Sauron has a strong will to dominate all life and bombadil has no will to dominate. Might also be why the cannot affect him. The power it gives has no value to him so it can't corupt him simply because he does not desire power.

[@Matt42MSG]

@@magicl4088 They're both Maiar, associated with the powers of earth, who have claimed specific territories. Tolkien loved to take two things with multiple similarities and use them to highlight the importance of the ways they differed. Bombadil seems to have no desire to dominate others and isn't subject to anyone's authority (except Eru, but the One rarely exerts power directly). Sauron desires absolute dominion and was the lieutenant and slave of Morgoth. Mortals can't even perceive where Bombadil's territory begins and ends, and it doesn't even have a name, while the boundaries of Mordor are all too clear. Either Bombadil's power and nature are sufficiently greater than Sauron's, or his lack of desire for power gives the Ring no vulnerability to work with, but given that we're told Bombadil would be the very last holdout if Sauron regained the Ring it seems likely they're peers and roughly equals - it's notable that Gandalf was afraid of Sauron's power, which is part of why he was chosen to oppose him. There are lots of dualities in LotR: Gandalf and Saruman, Merry and Pippin, Theoden and Denethor, Faramir and Boromir, Isengard and Minas Tirith and Barad-dur are all compared to each other at some point, et cetera. Bombadil was originally just thrown in, but I believe he was retained even after Tolkien found a structure for his story because he contrasts so strongly with Sauron, and that contrast is so striking precisely because they are alike on many points.

[@bn16fan]

Catholicism informed Tolkien. How has it informed Professor Olson?

[@CatholicCulturePod]

He is a Protestant, not a Catholic.

[@bn16fan]

​@@CatholicCulturePod Thanks! He must trust it deeply and implicitly if he dedicated his life to Tolkien.

[@cerealfanatic]

"dedicated to the holy family" AAAAAAND I'M OUT... Might be a fan of catholic culture if I had a wife who wouldn't listen but uh..... Here in modern america, we stopped the whole "wives make a soul whole" movement.

[@CatholicCulturePod]

Hi PickledButton2, I think you might misunderstand what I am referring to. I am not dedicating my podcast to the subject of families, rather, whatever my subject matter of the episode is, my show as a whole is done in honor of the three people Catholics refer to as the Holy Family: Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

[@sit-insforsithis1568]

The world isn’t just the USA my guy