My Middle Earth

[Dexpapa]

There is so much discussion and controversy regarding the Rings of Power. Personally, my struggle is with my own imagination. I first read the books in 1970, and Middle Earth bloomed with JRR's vivid descriptions. Back then artwork inspired by the books was not readily available, the Hildebrandts and Nasmith calendars appearing in '76. Even Bakshi and Jackson's portrayals have bumped into the images in my brain, like a Grey Ship tied to a quay at the Grey Havens. Each interpretation of the story has contended with my Middle Earth, subtly altering and embellishing it. Every devotee of JRR has their own Middle Earth in their imagination, we should not denounce their artistic expression because it is not the same as ours.

 

[Ent]

Welcome aboard, Dexpapa. Please don't hesitate to share in our "New Members" thread.
Your words are rich with meaning and pertinence for our forum, while also indicating a predilection for the art of writing. I for one am thrilled to welcome you aboard.

Enjoy the forum, and the family we work to be here.

 

[Radaghast]

There is so much discussion and controversy regarding the Rings of Power. Personally, my struggle is with my own imagination. I first read the books in 1970, and Middle Earth bloomed with JRR's vivid descriptions. Back then artwork inspired by the books was not readily available, the Hildebrandts and Nasmith calendars appearing in '76. Even Bakshi and Jackson's portrayals have bumped into the images in my brain, like a Grey Ship tied to a quay at the Grey Havens. Each interpretation of the story has contended with my Middle Earth, subtly altering and embellishing it. Every devotee of JRR has their own Middle Earth in their imagination, we should not denounce their artistic expression because it is not the same as ours.

Agreed. You can take or leave others' images of Middle-earth. I have more often than not chosen to leave them but others will do as they will. Welcome to the board.

 

[Maedhros_Nelyafinwë]

Every devotee of JRR has their own Middle Earth in their imagination, we should not denounce their artistic expression because it is not the same as ours.

Indeed. I have my own version in my head. I like to think of "my version" of Middle-Earth as a shopping cart full of things Tolkien wrote, as well as imaginations from my own mind or from other people. Not everything goes in my "shopping cart." Not even certain things from HoME, since Tolkien never fully decided on certain issues. (For example, Elves having beards in the third cycle of their lives is something I politely put back on the shelf and did not add to my shopping cart...) But you're absolutely right; everyone has their own way of imagining the legendarium, and we don't have to agree with everyone else's takes, but we are not to denounce them either.

Welcome to TTF, and hope you enjoy your time on the forum! We're happy to help if you ever have questions or need some help.

 

[Halasían]

There is so much discussion and controversy regarding the Rings of Power. Personally, my struggle is with my own imagination. I first read the books in 1970, and Middle Earth bloomed with JRR's vivid descriptions. Back then artwork inspired by the books was not readily available, the Hildebrandts and Nasmith calendars appearing in '76. Even Bakshi and Jackson's portrayals have bumped into the images in my brain, like a Grey Ship tied to a quay at the Grey Havens. Each interpretation of the story has contended with my Middle Earth, subtly altering and embellishing it. Every devotee of JRR has their own Middle Earth in their imagination, we should not denounce their artistic expression because it is not the same as ours.

Well said. I have a Pinterest board titled 'My Middle Earth' where I have various visual portrayals that come close, or are acceptable. to me in visualizing the people and places. Being fortunate to have read the Lord of the Rings several times before any visual media adaptations came out, I have a pretty solid mind's-eye visual of everything involved in that tale.

I didn't mind Hildebrandt, and the depiction of Saruman in the 1977 one was good. Also the fact the shading would have his face aglow from the Palantir if there was any light in the room had me drawn in. Bakshi didn't really alter any of it much, and my favorite portrayal from him was the Orcs and Rohirrim on the edge of Fangorn. Jackson managed to get the look and feel of The Shire right, along with the two Seans portraying Samwise and Boromir. So too Viggo portrayed Strider/Aragorn well but was let down by bad screenplay (I go into this elsewhere). Rings of Power on the other hand brings to life a lot of vague sketches my mind's eye has of the brief summaries of places of the 2nd age. For example, I like Numenor, but not so much Pelargir. I agree with your last sentence, and it was horrible how much vitriol was poured out against Rings of Power for months before the first episode even aired.

Welcome to Tolkien Forums. Hopefully you will return and discuss Middle Earth more with us!

 

[ZehnWaters]

There is so much discussion and controversy regarding the Rings of Power. Personally, my struggle is with my own imagination. I first read the books in 1970, and Middle Earth bloomed with JRR's vivid descriptions. Back then artwork inspired by the books was not readily available, the Hildebrandts and Nasmith calendars appearing in '76. Even Bakshi and Jackson's portrayals have bumped into the images in my brain, like a Grey Ship tied to a quay at the Grey Havens. Each interpretation of the story has contended with my Middle Earth, subtly altering and embellishing it. Every devotee of JRR has their own Middle Earth in their imagination, we should not denounce their artistic expression because it is not the same as ours.

It's true, though one may critique. I find it a fun challenge to create an image I see in my mind from the description DESPITE what I've seen previous.