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Hi,
I'm here to try to debunk Tom Bombadil and the enigma that he appears to be. My ideas and concepts seem to be rather unique as I have done exhaustive searches and have not seen the same story told by anyone else (other than Copilot and Gemini when I put forth these possible histories for...
Why Tom Bombadil is J. R. R. Tolkien
I gave this as a discussion on my You Tube channel about a month ago, and I thought you Tolkien lovers and appreciators would enjoy it.
I. The Enigma of the Eldest
Among the many puzzles in The Lord of the Rings, none has provoked more debate than the...
I'm currently teaching a class on the works of Tolkien and in our last class we talked about Tom Bombadil.
Tom Bombadil is the strangest creature in Middle-earth. He was originally a little Dutch doll owned by one of Tolkien's children, and Tolkien made up funny stories for him. He threw...
Hello All,
I am not sure how many people are familiar with Malcolm Guite, or if he has been discussed on this forum before, but I discovered him recently and have been enchanted. He has many videos on Tolkien that I find very well thought out and insightful - not to mention a love of all the...
So we know that Bombadil somehow knew that the hobbits were 'wandering' and that 'all paths lead to Withwindle. Old grey Willow-man, he's a mighty singer; and it's hard for little folk to escape his cunning mazes' (In the House of Tom Bombadil). So obviously Tom will be waiting for them by Old...
My Biggest problem with the Jackson films was skipping the south downs, not explaining them, nor the remenenants of the old forest and tom Bombadil... I think it was a mistake
The meter of Tom Bombadil reminded me of Old King Cole, both merry fellows and old souls. So I asked ChatGPT to analyze the Bombadil poems in relation to the Roud Folk Song Index. While I didn't get a hit on Old King Cole, I did get a hit on John Barleycorn, a precursor to Old King Cole. John...
Hello!
I've got a question regarding Frodo's childhood. If Bilbo carried the ring around constantly in his pocket, that must've meant it's presence was felt by the other hobbits around him- especially Frodo, who must've spent a lot of time with him. Does that mean Frodo heard the ring as a...
Is Tom Bombadil the point where Tolkien stopped understanding his own works? Did one of his creations confuse him? I'm wondering because there is never any indication about what Tom actually was, or how he fit into Middle Earth.
The Problem: JRR Tolkien wrote in his unpublished notes and again in Fellowship of the Ring, "[Tom Bombadil] knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless - before the Dark Lord came from Outside." Christopher Tolkien comments this is a problem, "These words are extremely surprising; for...
I am slower on the uptake than some, so this comment may be old hat, too many of you. Have all of you noticed that Tom Bombadil‘s speeches, even those written in pros, are almost all written in the same meter as his songs? For example, his first speech, if written in verse: whoa! Whoa! Steady...
I'm currently rereading FOTR and had a question to pose to you lovely folks.
We know that Farmer Maggot and Tom Bombadil know each other. Here is the passage (from when Frodo and the gang are at Bombadil's house) for those who haven't read it in a while:
"He [Tom] appeared already to know much...
I'm rereading the Fellowship of the Ring: The Council of Elrond, and they are wondering about giving the Ring to Tom Bombadil. Elrond says,
Gandalf seems to know him better, as does Glorfindel, and they can both say with confidence that Tom Bombadil would be the wrong person to have the ring...
Specifically this question was prompted by the reference to white bread on the meal table of Tom Bombadil and Goldberry. I thought where did the flour come from? There could be a cereal field beyond their kitchen garden but then the idea of Tom or Goldberry hand grinding the corn doesn't seem to...
Everyone has theories on who Tom Bombadil could be. One of my favorites is the one I posed in the title: Could Tom Bombadil truly be the embodiment of the Music of the Ainur? The idea that Tom Bombadil is "oldest and fatherless" and is indicated with the name Iarwain Ben-Adar by the Elves...
Hello,
i want to print this picture https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/009/569/517/large/pavel-filippov-5.jpg?1519726978 of Tom Bombadil for my home, so i want to ask the author for authorisation.
Does anyone know the author or know a legal way to print this as a poster...
A few years ago, I wrote a blog titled The Bombadil Enigma, and I shared the link here in order to discuss it. I have just posted a second part to that blog that I think some here might be interested in reading. In it I share an excerpt about Tom Bombadil from an unpublished letter by Tolkien to...