The House of Elrond Sends Its Regards on Tumblr

Anonymous asked:

Hi! Sorry if this is a bother, but would you mind talking a bit about the potential canonicity of Túrin and Beleg? I just love them <3 and I loved your meta on Russingon!

absynthe--minded answered:

anon I genuinely don’t have to make an argument here

the man himself does it for me in the Lay of the Children of Húrin (bolding mine):

“and Túrin coming

stared astonished on the stern visage

of Beleg the brave his brother in arms,

of whom he learned the lore of leaping blades, and of bended bow and barbed shaft,

and the wild woodland's wisdom secret,

when they blent in battle the blood of their wounds.

Then Túrin's heart was turned from hate,

and he bade unbind Beleg the huntsman.

‘Now fare thou free! But, of friendship aught if thy heart yet holds for Húrin’s son,

never tell thou tale that Túrin thou sawst

an outlaw unloved from Elves and Men,

whom Thingol's thanes yet thirst to slay.

Betray not my trust or thy troth of yore!’

Then Beleg of the bow embraced him there --

he had not fared to the feast or the fall of Orgof --

there kissed him kindly comfort speaking:

'Lo! nought know I of the news thou tellest;

but outlawed or honoured thou ever shalt be

the brother of Beleg, come bliss come woe!”

and in Turambar and the Föalókë in the Books of Lost Tales (bolding mine again):

“Now would he have made at Flinding, but that Gnome sprang back, dropping his lamp, so that its cover slipped and the light of it shone forth, and he called out in the tongue of the Gnomes that Túrin should hold his hand and slay not his friends—then did Túrin hearing his speech pause, and as he stood, by the light of the lamp he saw the white face of Beleg lying nigh his feet with pierced throat, and he stood as one stricken to stone, and such was the look upon his face that Flinding dared not speak for a long while. Indeed little mind had he for words, for by that light had he also seen the fate of Beleg and was very bitter in heart. At length however it seemed to Flinding that the Orcs were astir, and so it was, for the shouts of Túrin had come to them; wherefore he said to Túrin: ‘The Orcs are upon us, let us flee,’ but Túrin answered not, and Flinding shook him, bidding him gather his wits or perish, and then Túrin did as he was bid but yet as one dazed, and stooping he raised Beleg and kissed his mouth.”

and in The Children of Húrin:

“If I stayed beside you, love would lead me, not wisdom,” said Beleg.

and

“In this way Beleg came back to Túrin, yielding to his love against his wisdom. Túrin was glad indeed, for he had often regretted his stubbornness; and now the desire of his heart was granted without the need to humble himself or to yield his own will. But if Túrin was glad, not so was Andróg, nor some others of his company. It seemed to them that there had been a tryst between Beleg and their captain, which he had kept secret from them; and Andróg watched them jealously as the two sat apart in speech together.”

look I could argue all I like but they kiss. it’s on the page. I ship it because it’s canon and Beleg can’t stop saying “I love you”.

nikosheba

OH DID SOMEONE ASK FOR THE MAGIC SEVEN “LOVE” QUOTES BETWEEN BELEG AND TÚRIN IN CHILDREN OF HÚRIN

Absynthe mentioned two of them up there but there are SEVEN times they talk about “love” between those two in the Narn. (I’ve said it before...if you’ve only read the Silmarillion....you haven’t even met Túrin as he really is.)

1. 'Give me leave, lord,' said Beleg, 'and on your behalf I will redress this evil, if I can. For such manhood as he promised should not run to nothing in the wild. Doriath has need of him, and the need will grow more. And I love him also.'

2. But to all their questions Beleg would give one answer only: ‘A friend I have been to this Neithan since I first met him in the woods, and he was then but a child. I seek him only in love, and to bring him good tidings.'

3. 'If I stayed beside you, love would lead me, not wisdom,' said Beleg. (MY GOD)

4. In this way Beleg came back to Turin, yielding to his love against his wisdom. Turin was glad indeed, for he had often regretted his stubbornness; and now the desire of his heart was granted without the need to humble himself or to yield his own will.

5. 'What have you there?' he said.

'The greatest gift that one who loves you still has to give,' answered Beleg.

6. And ever the more did hatred grow in the heart of Mim, who hated all Elves, as has been told, and who looked with a jealous eye on the love that Turin bore to Beleg.

7. Thus ended Beleg Strongbow, truest of friends, greatest in skill of all that harboured in the woods of Beleriand in the Elder Days, at the hand of him whom he most loved; and that grief was graven on the face of Turin and never faded.

daegred-winsterhand

I see your seven love quotes and I raise you this scene from the Lays of Beleriand:

Then a song on a sudden soaring loudly --

and the trees up-looming towering harkened --

was raised of the Wrack of the Realm of the Gods;

of the need of the Gnomes on the Narrow Crossing;

of the fight at Fangros, and Feanor's sons'

oath unbreakable. Then up sprang Beleg:

'That our vaunt and our vows be not vain for ever,

even such as they swore, those seven chieftains,

an oath let us swear that is unchanging

as Tain-Gwethil's towering mountain! '

Their blades were bared, as blood shining

in the flame of the fires while they flashed and touched.

As with one man's voice the words were spoken,

and the oath uttered that must unrecalled

abide for ever, a bond of truth

and friendship in arms, and faith in peril.

the men among the Gaurwaith are talking about the oath of Fëanor, and Beleg declares that his oath of love and loyalty to Túrin is just as strong. anyway these are their marriage vows

absynthe--minded

every time the Oath of Fëanor Wedding Vows turn up my heart grows three sizes

Anonymous asked:

Hi! Sorry if this is a bother, but would you mind talking a bit about the potential canonicity of Túrin and Beleg? I just love them <3 and I loved your meta on Russingon!

anon I genuinely don’t have to make an argument here

the man himself does it for me in the Lay of the Children of Húrin (bolding mine):

“and Túrin coming

stared astonished on the stern visage

of Beleg the brave his brother in arms,

of whom he learned the lore of leaping blades, and of bended bow and barbed shaft,

and the wild woodland's wisdom secret,

when they blent in battle the blood of their wounds.

Then Túrin's heart was turned from hate,

and he bade unbind Beleg the huntsman.

‘Now fare thou free! But, of friendship aught if thy heart yet holds for Húrin’s son,

never tell thou tale that Túrin thou sawst

an outlaw unloved from Elves and Men,

whom Thingol's thanes yet thirst to slay.

Betray not my trust or thy troth of yore!’

Then Beleg of the bow embraced him there --

he had not fared to the feast or the fall of Orgof --

there kissed him kindly comfort speaking:

'Lo! nought know I of the news thou tellest;

but outlawed or honoured thou ever shalt be

the brother of Beleg, come bliss come woe!”

and in Turambar and the Föalókë in the Books of Lost Tales (bolding mine again):

“Now would he have made at Flinding, but that Gnome sprang back, dropping his lamp, so that its cover slipped and the light of it shone forth, and he called out in the tongue of the Gnomes that Túrin should hold his hand and slay not his friends—then did Túrin hearing his speech pause, and as he stood, by the light of the lamp he saw the white face of Beleg lying nigh his feet with pierced throat, and he stood as one stricken to stone, and such was the look upon his face that Flinding dared not speak for a long while. Indeed little mind had he for words, for by that light had he also seen the fate of Beleg and was very bitter in heart. At length however it seemed to Flinding that the Orcs were astir, and so it was, for the shouts of Túrin had come to them; wherefore he said to Túrin: ‘The Orcs are upon us, let us flee,’ but Túrin answered not, and Flinding shook him, bidding him gather his wits or perish, and then Túrin did as he was bid but yet as one dazed, and stooping he raised Beleg and kissed his mouth.”

and in The Children of Húrin:

“If I stayed beside you, love would lead me, not wisdom,” said Beleg.

and

“In this way Beleg came back to Túrin, yielding to his love against his wisdom. Túrin was glad indeed, for he had often regretted his stubbornness; and now the desire of his heart was granted without the need to humble himself or to yield his own will. But if Túrin was glad, not so was Andróg, nor some others of his company. It seemed to them that there had been a tryst between Beleg and their captain, which he had kept secret from them; and Andróg watched them jealously as the two sat apart in speech together.”

look I could argue all I like but they kiss. it’s on the page. I ship it because it’s canon and Beleg can’t stop saying “I love you”.

#replies #tolkien #absynthe’s meta #turleg

Anonymous asked:

Hi! Sorry to bother, but do you know where I can read more about Tolkien's opinion on queer relationships and queerness in general? I haven't read all of the letters, but in one of them he says some icky and misogynistic stuff about (het) relationships and I was kind of disappointed. (I don't mean this in a 'gotcha' kind of way, I'm just a queer person who's genuinely bothered by some of his views and wants to learn more)

I don’t think it’s any sort of a gotcha!

The short answer (there is more I have to say, but I’ll give you the important bit first) is that Tolkien never made any explicit and confirmed statements one way or the other about queerness. I’ve seen some people allude to things but I’ve never found anything concrete, and this fandom and this scholarly field are both homophobic enough that if there were anything he said against queer relationships we’d have all heard it by now. also, seriously, good job digging deeper into his views and interrogating them - he was far from perfect and honest, forthright engagement with his flaws is basically the only way we’ll move forward and tackle them.

the longer answer is that while he was both openly sexist (ranging from pretty bad misogyny to “uh, have you ever met a woman in your life?”) and openly racist (usually taking the form of “repeating any ethnic stereotypes he came across without any thought of their relationship to reality, and having no idea of what was or wasn’t offensive”) his feelings on queerness are harder to find. this isn’t that unusual - even people we’ve been able to confirm as queer or probably queer are in many cases silent about their relationship with their sexuality, and Tolkien was in a position where even if he himself was queer (which, by the way, is my opinion) he’d probably have no incentive to say so directly.

because this fandom and this scholarly discipline are so overwhelmingly cishet, queer scholarship of Tolkien is in its infancy, even to a point that means most people who are open to queer readings and queer interpretations will balk at trying to argue for the canonicity of queer relationships and queer subtext, there’s also not a lot of writing on this subject by biographers or other academics. however, there’s a fair bit of evidence that at least argues both that Tolkien was okay with IRL queer people and he was consciously engaging with queer themes in his works.

what we know is this:

he was friendly with W.H. Auden (gay), and a deep admirer of the works of Mary Renault (lesbian who wrote historical M/M fic focusing on the classics, sort of a midcentury Madeline Miller but more focused on historical accuracy). in fact he’s on the record as saying he loved Renault’s books (specifically The King Must Die and The Bull from the Sea, though possibly also The Charioteer and The Last of the Wine, both of which are explicitly gay fiction) and the fan letter she sent him was among his most prized correspondences
he was Catholic, but he purposefully wrote stories or developed narrative ideas that weren’t directly in compliance with Catholicism, and he did acknowledge that in one case (specifically the Gift of Men and the concept of euthanasia as a blessing) he was interested in exploring concepts as good stories rather than moral messages - this shows that his faith wouldn’t have necessarily bound him to only depict homosexuality badly
he wouldn’t have suffered socially for speaking out against queerness (other authors of his circle like C.S. Lewis were more vocal) but he didn’t, which indicates a choice not to
he was aware of and directly inspired by Homeric epics alongside Northern European sources, and this does include the Iliad
Quenya doesn’t have gendered pronouns, and we know that in at least one draft he changed gendered words like “husband” and “wife” to “spouse”. he also depicts elves and dwarves as having a high degree of androgyny, and elvish marriages are not explicitly required to be between a male elf and a female elf
his inclusion of vital and important relationships like Túrin and Beleg, Frodo and Sam, and Fingon and Maedhros alongside equally important het relationships indicates that he was interested in giving space to M/M that blurs or steps over the line between platonic het-approved friendship and queerness
there’s something to be said for how British midcentury queer literature depicts queer men as sad outcasts at war with their true nature who can’t ever be happy, and how Tolkien writes a lot of men in relationships with other men who are in that position except they’re miserable because of outside forces (the Ring, the Oath, Morgoth’s curse, their failings as people apart from relationships) and their deep connections with other men are the happiest and best part of who they are

this is, as you can see, both an area that really needs further study and an area that has just enough to suggest that he wasn’t a garden variety homophobe.

I hope that helps?

#replies #absynthe’s meta #queer tolkien scholarship is basically a ghost town

trying to argue queer people in a story are actually queer and the author really truly meant for them to be interpreted that way is hard enough, but if it’s a piece of fiction written before 1980 you’ve gotta take out the conspiracy board and cite three different articles, six different historical figures alluded to or referenced in the author’s work, and a complete list of their friends and acquaintances who weren’t cishet

and of course by that point you sound like you’re insane but at least you’ve referenced George Sand and Virgil

#this is about Victor Hugo first but it’s also about JRRT

lorenfangor

can we pretend to leave, and then we’ll meet again?

#you know what yeah actually I will reblog this because it hurts me #if you know what this is then uh #well you know

fyblackwomenart

“Majestic ” by Charlotte J.B

#ÍRISSË #THAT’S HER

the thing about my theme park post is that I said I wanted to theme a B&M hyper and I’m honestly not sure how to do that but I REALLY want an indoor hypercoaster for the Moria section of the park

#absynthe is a coaster enthusiast

Anonymous asked:

It’s so nice to see someone who’s catholic and who also ships Russingon. The amount of times you see a hate post about Russingon then go to the persons account and see “Christian” is far too many.

so you know that tweet that got sent to Neil Gaiman about how he’s never going to be as good as Tolkien because he writes too much gay sex and “rejects Logos”?

it’s bullshit, I’m a Catholic lesbian, and I’ve written so much gay sex. I live for making those people angry.

#watch the trads come rolling out for this one #can’t wait #actually please don’t stay out of my inbox

disasterbipippin

doctor who van gogh scene but it's showing boromir gondor restored

#every time I see this I weep #fuck he deserves that

absynthe--minded

me: I know everything gay in these books

JRRT, calling me on the phone from beyond the grave: but can we talk about how Pippin is in love with Faramir? have you paid attention to that yet?

absynthe--minded

“… when he saw the pale face of Faramir he caught his breath.”

“Yet suddenly for Faramir his heart was strangely moved with a feeling that he had not known before.”

“He knew now why Beregond spoke his name with love.”

“… and there Pippin, hardly noticed, stood behind the chair of Denethor and felt his weariness little, so eagerly did he listen to all that was said.”

#thanks jrrt

me: I know everything gay in these books

JRRT, calling me on the phone from beyond the grave: but can we talk about how Pippin is in love with Faramir? have you paid attention to that yet?

#I’m paying attention NOW sir #tolkien

Anonymous asked:

Homecoming Husband??

the easiest explanation of a lot of this that I can find in one place is ATU 974 THE HOMECOMING HUSBAND, THE RETURNS OF ODYSSEUS, AND THE END OF ODYSSEY 21 (link to JSTOR, can be read online, yes the title is in all caps) - it won't be the only thing I'm referencing, but it gives a pretty good and accessible rundown of the basics and contains a few excerpts from non-Greek versions of the story that I think are relevant.

the Aarne-Thompson-Uther index is a folklore classification system designed to group different stories into similar types or motifs, with an eye to showcasing how the variations of a story don't change the fundamental pieces of it. this is of course an extreme simplification, but the idea is that it can demonstrate deeper cultural connection or shared influence as well as provide an organizational tool for folklorists and other academics. it's not without controversy but it's what we're working with here.

ATU 974, the Homecoming Husband, is the story of a man who's been away from home for a long time and returns in disguise to find his wife about to be married off to someone else. He infiltrates his home, now grown hostile, and reveals himself to his wife and her suitor(s) at a key moment. she recognizes him, her faithfulness is proved by her fidelity and joy at their reunion, and he overcomes the obstacles keeping them apart and reasserts his place at the head of the household. other versions include the husband killing the wife for being unfaithful, but we're going to focus on the happy ones.

as indicated by the title of that article, there are some theories that suggest Odysseus fulfills this motif, and some evidence for the idea that pre-Homeric or additional versions of the story of his return existed at one point. particular attention is drawn to Odysseus stringing his bow and the comparison in the poem to song and singing; in most versions of the story the husband reveals himself through song. the paper I linked details an Uzbek version (appropriately told in song) about a husband whose wife recognizes him after he sings to her and she reaches her hand through a lattice to hold his.

now I'm not going to make this about the Odyssey, so where this is relevant with regard to Tolkien and specifically to Fingon and Maedhros becomes evident when you consider both bow and song. Fingon has been isolated from Maedhros by war and tragedy, he sets out to save his spouse from calamity and facilitate their reunion, he reveals himself in song and Maedhros answers to prove his fidelity, and then Fingon of course tries and fails to shoot him while calling for help. they then vanquish the obstacles keeping them apart and are reunited in comfort and joy, for a time. you see something similar with Frodo and Sam in Cirith Ungol, though in this case the violence and bloodshed associated with murdering suitors has already been accomplished by the orcs themselves.

Túrin and Beleg are proof enough that Tolkien was familiar with Greek epics on a scholarly level (something something accepted tropes of gay relationships being inverted and played with, Beleg does the cooking and is the elder and dies first, boy I wonder if you read the Iliad in school Ronald) so arguing that there's a potential link between both the ATU motif and specifically its manifestation in Homer strikes me as reasonable. IANAC (I Am Not A Classicist) so I can only say that nothing ever happens by accident in these stories, and Tolkien was very good at reinterpreting existing inspirations into something wholly his own.

#absynthe's meta #RUSSINGON #replies #anon replies

eamonorus-blog asked:

Let me ask, why do you ship Russingon? I never got the appeal of the ship myself, so I am interested in why its so popular

so the thing is that for me, this is very much two questions rather than one. I'm not someone who ships things just because of vibes or because I think the characters are hot together. My interest in romantic subplots that aren't fundamentally integrated into character motivation and plot is basically Zero - I actually have to think that the canon narrative is enhanced by the story of these two people. Either their love explains or enriches their motivations, or the actual plot hinges upon their connection, or both. And this isn't just positive, either - I'm fascinated by gothic romances where the main pair are drawn together but shouldn't be (think Labyrinth, Crimson Peak, The Phantom of the Opera). Russingon isn't one of those romances for me? But the point is that if something is important to the plot I will become invested in it, assuming the plot is well-written.

this leaves us in a space where the two questions are "Why do you think this is canon or canonically compliant?" and "Why do you then actively engage with this plot element as a favorite part of the story?" and I'm really going to be able to only answer one effectively.

the first question, why I think it's canon (not canonically compliant, actually properly canon, with evidence) is an extremely long explanation that touches on narrative recurrence, Tolkien's preferred story beats and inspirations, the folkloric motif of the Homecoming Husband, midcentury British queer literature and how it differed from American queer literature, Tolkien's affiliation with people like Iris Murdoch, W. H. Auden, and Mary Renault, Aragorn's green stone, and a lot of in-depth analysis in the close reading fashion. my very best summation of why I think it's canon is that Tolkien does a lot with the same tropes over and over again, and Fingon's rescue of Maedhros is in tandem with Sam's rescue of Frodo and Lúthien's rescue of Beren as central points upon which the whole Legendarium turns, drawing on the myth of Orpheus alongside the Homecoming Husband. I will happily go into more detail in another post but that's really not the question you asked, so suffice it to say that at this point I think there's more evidence in favor of canon Russingon than in favor of the idea that it's simply fan-preferred.

the second question - why I engage with it - is a lot more straightforward. I like these people, and I like their struggles, I like following their stories. I like the way their lives make more sense when you examine their actions through a lens of love and long-term commitment, and I like the complications in their family that arise out of their bond. I like the way they complement each other (Maedhros's careful planning vs Fingon's ebullient reckless hope, Fingon's determination to succeed vs Maedhros's stoic pessimism) and I like the way they're invested in one another and they work together. Every part of their lives is more interesting and more enhanced by their contact and their interactions, and their stories take on this incredible tragic quality that fascinates me endlessly.

I am trying to keep this brief lmao but uh. the truth is I just really really like them? their story is amazing and I'm glad to spend time chronicling it and talking about it.

#replies #eamonorus-blog #tolkien #RUSSINGON #absynthe's meta #the homecoming husband conspiracy board is REAL

in response to the various anons in my inbox -

When That Thing’s first season has concluded and we are well out of the period when they care about completion metrics and streaming viewership, I will possibly consider discussing it. My focus is on canonical content and always has been, so I won’t guarantee anything, and I won’t be responding publicly to any more asks about it, but enough people have asked that I figured I’d make my position clear.

#however #DMs are open #as are private asks

Anonymous asked:

I'm sorry you have to deal with racist Tolkien "fans". I will admit, I thought hobbits were the only poc in middle earth,but thanks to you, you helped me educate myself. I wasn't to familiar with Tolkiens mythology , I haven't even finished the silmarilion yet. tysm and take care 💗

You’re welcome, and I’m so glad I’ve helped!! I’m willing to deal with a veritable sea of dumbasses in my inbox if I can make some kind of positive impact. I hope you enjoy the Silm!

emyn-arnens

TOLKIEN WEEK 2022 | DAY 5: HEARTBREAK ⇢ ANDRETH

“Andreth adaneth, the life and love of the Eldar dwells much in memory; and we (if not ye) would rather have a memory that is fair but unfinished than one that goes on to a grievous end. Now he will ever remember thee in the sun of morning, and that last evening by the water of Aeluin in which he saw thy face mirrored with a star caught in thy hair—ever, until the North-wind brings the night of his flame. Yea, and after that, sitting in the House of Mandos in the Halls of Awaiting until the end of Arda.”

“And what shall I remember?” said she. “And when I go, to what halls shall I come? To a darkness in which even the memory of the sharp flame shall be quenched? Even the memory of rejection. That at least.”

tanadrin

absynthe--minded asked:

The thing about VOY that’s worth keeping in mind is that it was essentially screwed by the network from the start. Unlike Deep Space 9, which had been crafted as a budget-minded drama that was intended to compete with Babylon 5, Voyager was meant to be a return to TNG form with standalone episodes outside of occasional two-parters. There were network mandates that each story be self-contained, with limited interconnectivity, specifically so that they could be shown in any order during UPN’s daylong or weekend-long Trek marathons; as a result each episode hits the reset button hard and there’s basically no capacity for continued growth in the characters. That’s why the cool ideas introduced in the pilot and early episodes basically go nowhere and why everything feels so disjointed and underdeveloped - the writers WANTED to be able to tell more intricate stories like Behr et al were doing over in DS9, and couldn’t.

tanadrin answered:

I don't think that limitation screws the show as hard as people think it does. TNG did very good things with an episodic format, and still managed character growth and the occasional thematic arc in a way that worked quite well. Moreover, VOY has some great standalone episodes! The best VOY episodes IMO are pretty much all standalone or two-parters that just use the conceit of the show to its fullest.

Being a full-on serial like the last arc of DS9 is not a prerequisite to good storytelling. It's certainly not a prerequisite to good Star Trek. And I think on balance VOY is good! VOY lends itself to comparison with the BSG reboot, not just on structural grounds but because Ron Moore was involved in both, and while the BSG reboot was also good, I find myself returning to VOY a hell of a lot more than I find myself returning to BSG. Letting writers run a bit wild with their budget and their ability to plan arcs sometimes results in great art, and sometimes just results in kind of a letdown, and BSG was never able to live up to the promise of its more serialized format, despite having more structural freedom than Voyager. It didn't stick the landing--much like JJ Abrams or Russell T Davies, Moore had a massive problem actually resolving the arcs he set up.

Not every writer's room is the DS9 writer's room. Now, I don't know what the Voyager writer's room was like; maybe it was closer to DS9 than BSG. But it still produced some great episodes, and while the status quo directive from above may have limited the kinds of stories the writers were able to tell, I don't think it's a major source of what are (to me) the biggest flaws in VOY, which have more to do with inconsistent script quality, underutilizing some of the most interesting aspects of their characters, and a breathtakingly stupid depiction of native american culture.

absynthe--minded

The reason I point it out is that they were charged with this premise that I think would have benefited more from serialization - the two crews coming together and the conflicts etc would have probably been better suited to a different style of storytelling. (And I speak with love; VOY is my favorite Trek, even with Chakotay’s pan flute testing every fiber of my being each time I hear it)

However you’re 100% right that a writing staff that WANTS to tell stand-alone stories can pull it off admirably, and I think when VOY’s writers manage it they do some of the best episodes of the franchise.

#the fucking pan flute though #like on the one hand it’s not their fault their consultant was a Pretendian #but also guys can’t you do a LITTLE research holy shit

absynthe--minded

Anonymous asked:

You’re one of the few people I know who’s really well versed in the lore and also has been criticizing Amazon without being racist. What do you actually think of ROP as an adaptation?

absynthe--minded answered:

anon if I answer this I legally have to pay @monstrousgourmandizingcats $25 for talking about the show publicly, so I’m going to instead tell everyone that if they want Tolkienian fantasy (slow burning narrative, concepts of good and evil as external realities, subtle magic system) that also has postcolonial commentary, a racially diverse cast, a lot of different worldbuilding inspirations than traditional Eurofantasy, sympathetic portrayals of drug addiction, serious examinations of in-universe prejudice and racism, and lesbians who don’t die, they should read the Elemental Logic series by Laurie J. Marks

absynthe--minded

actually I’m gonna try and pitch this series more coherently, because it’s one of my quiet favorites

the story is about what happens after colonization - how people react, how they respond, their interactions with the occupiers and their relationships with each other. the book starts before the military assault on Shaftal begins in earnest and then immediately time skips some years later to more critically look at the aftermath and at resistance
it’s also about decolonization, and how to handle that successfully when it’s been long enough that your colonizers were born here with no direct ties to home. how do you answer that? how do you tell them “go away” when this is to some extent the only place they’ve ever lived? what does ceding sovereignty look like? how can they heal from being placed in a system that only values them as military assets?
I appreciate that there are different groups of people impacted by invasion, both the settled-agriculture Shaftal inhabitants and the ethnic minority living in the mountains, and that the prejudices and imperfections of the Shaftal inhabitants against that minority don’t go away just because of a common enemy
general tw for genocide - the main character Zanja is part of that mountain dwelling ethnic minority and she’s the lone survivor of her village’s massacre. she’s one of the last of her people, who lasted militarily against the invaders far longer than expected, and while she lives and then goes on to become a leader in her own right that loss does define her.
there is both canon F/F (the main couple of the series) and canon M/M and everyone here is Great
reading the climax of book 1 was the closest thing I’ve experienced to Tolkien-authored eucatastrophe other than the man himself

Anonymous asked:

You’re one of the few people I know who’s really well versed in the lore and also has been criticizing Amazon without being racist. What do you actually think of ROP as an adaptation?

starstuffandalotofcoffee

I do think there's a lot of value in reading well-written examples of the genres of books geared towards adults that one often dismisses. I think a lot of people who don't enjoy sci fi would benefit from reading some well-written examples to understand how to accept that the story will provide exposition at an appropriate pace and not knowing everything is not bad. I think people would benefit from the worldbuilding in high fantasy. I obviously lean more towards those genres, but I think reading a good book that is about middle-aged people divorcing is a great way to see well-crafted dialogue, and how to portray inner thoughts, and subtle character work. Horror or mystery require a lot of work on atmosphere and plot, respectively. A lot of classics (which isn't a genre anyhow, more just a category) are actually incredibly funny if you're willing to put in the work to understand something from a different culture; and if you're anti-dead-white-guy books (and classics are not solely the province of dead white guys), then are you reading lit prize winners from other countries (including in translation)?

It's fine to not be terribly into a genre - again, as a speculative fiction person, I know that a lot of people are like "frankly, I don't give a shit about dragons" and I'm not going to drag them screaming to do so; but there is typically something to be learned.

#also even if you ARE anti dead white guy books #you do actually have to be aware of them because they continue to be relevant #you can’t dismantle the old tropes and ideas without knowing where they came from and why #and oftentimes books like Dracula or Les Mis or what have you can teach you important things about right now #what’s changed and what hasn’t #these people built English literature you have to actually know what they did #h. rider haggard owes basically every nonwhite fantasy fan an assload of money #for writing that fucking book that everyone copies from (She)#but I can’t ignore the existence of She even though it’s super racist #literally every fantasy author ever draws from it