Since this is an advice thread for those new to the RR discussions, here's my
two cents/pence. Too often I see people getting stressed out by the large
number of questions in posts, a phenomenon now occurring on the Movie
Discussion as it now has several recurring RR-style series. It can
sometime look more like homework than a fan discussion board--and in a way
that's defeating the whole purpose of TORN. If you can't answer all of
the questions, or don't have the time to get to all, answer what you can and
don't sweat it. Use the quote feature Curious mentioned or just copy and
paste the question into the message box and answer it with what you think or
feel about the topic. There are many hardcore RR denizens here who write
dissertations for ever question, but sometimes the simple, two-sentence answers
can shed new light on the topic as much as a long discussion.
The object is to have fun and learn, so even if you don't think you have
anything "profound" to add, give us your reading anyway. You don't need
to read Old English or know the Icelandic sagas to read the Sil. Bring
your own frame of reference to the table when you look at the book. I
love seeing the variety of different responses to Tolkien this board
generates.
So don't treat these discussions like a calculus assignment in school or cringe
when you see 25 questions or reference to Odin! There's no test at the
end... or there better not be or else I'll turn the Balrogs loose with their
swinging whips!
:)
But an equally basic passion of mine ab initio was for myth
(not allegory!) and for fairy-story and above all for heroic
legend on the brink of fairy-tale and history, of which there
is far too little in the world (accessible to me) for my
appetite....Also -- and here I hope I shall not sound absurd --
I was from early days grieved by the poverty of my own beloved
country: it had no stories of its own (bound up with its tongue
and soil), not of the quality that I sought, and found (as an
ingredient) in legends of other lands. (Letter #131)
