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Sep. 22nd, 2019 05:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
roselightfairyIt’s like Tolkien set out specifically to vex me with the way he set up Mirkwood. He puts just enough characters and events in there that I can’t ignore them to do what I want to do, but gives no detail about them whatsoever, so I’m forced to make up their entire characterization and narrative myself to make it fit with the other stuff he wrote.
And he throws so many things and characters in there! There’s a king! Actually there were two kings, but the stories are contradictory about who did what when! There’s a wizard who lives on the outskirts, but that and his name are the only things we know about him. Oh, and Sauron was there for awhile, but then he got driven out, but also he was still kinda there? It’s unclear. And the skinchangers are there too, but what are they? Who knows– you’ll have to comb through three different supplementary materials to find out!
It’s like if Tolkien wanted there to be a detail in his books but didn’t want to flesh it out, he just threw it into Mirkwood and forgot about it. Asdaisynorbury so succinctly put it, Mirkwood is the garbage can of Middle-earth.
…And here I am rummaging around in the trash.
(three guesses who's opened her WIP draft again)
And he throws so many things and characters in there! There’s a king! Actually there were two kings, but the stories are contradictory about who did what when! There’s a wizard who lives on the outskirts, but that and his name are the only things we know about him. Oh, and Sauron was there for awhile, but then he got driven out, but also he was still kinda there? It’s unclear. And the skinchangers are there too, but what are they? Who knows– you’ll have to comb through three different supplementary materials to find out!
It’s like if Tolkien wanted there to be a detail in his books but didn’t want to flesh it out, he just threw it into Mirkwood and forgot about it. As
daisynorbury so succinctly put it, Mirkwood is the garbage can of Middle-earth.…And here I am rummaging around in the trash.
(three guesses who's opened her WIP draft again)
