At the Movies (Frametale)
It was Tuesday and Matt had just finished three of his four final exams for the semester. The last one was on Friday, and it wasn't going to be that difficult. As he walked out of the building and breathed in some fresh air, he was feeling pretty good. He noticed someone from his class sitting on one of the benches outside the building, just hanging up his cell phone.
Matt waved and asked, "How'd the test go for you?"
"It went alright, I guess," the classmate replied. "I'm glad the class is over."
"Yeah, me too. That was a tough class. I only have one more final left, and that's not until Friday."
"Really? That's cool. What are you doing between now and then?"
"Not much. I need to study a little Friday morning, but I'll probably just relax and get ready to go home for the break," replied Matt. "Why?"
"If you're not doing anything tonight, me and some friends are going to see Return of the King. I just got off the phone with one of them -- he had to cancel, so now we've got an extra ticket."
"Sure, that sounds cool," said Matt. "I liked the first two movies. I didn't realize the third one was out yet."
"Yeah, tonight's opening night." The classmate pulled a ticket out of his pocket and handed it to Matt. "We're getting together at the theater at 8:30."
"Great," said Matt. "I'll see you guys then." If Matt had looked at the ticket, he would have noticed that it was for the midnight showing, but he just put it in his pocket and waved goodbye.
Matt had tried all evening to remember his classmate's name. He felt like he had known it at one time. He was getting close to the theater now, but it just wasn't coming to him. He parked and got out of the car.
"Hey Matt! Over here."
Matt waved at his classmate and walked over to him.
"Everybody's already here. Let me introduce you."
Matt wasn't quite prepared for what happened next. He and his classmate walked through the door to the theater, and Matt saw a large group of people almost all in costumes! They were sitting on the floor, about half of them with their backs to the wall and the others opposite them. "Guys, this is Matt; Matt, this is the guys." Matt waved, a little uncomfortably.
"Nice to meet you, Matt," said one of the guys. Matt noticed that he was wearing pointed ears -- like an elf, he supposed. "How do you know Sam?"
Sam! That was his name. "Sam and I took a mythology course together this semester."
"Cool," said the elf. "Well, have a seat. Dave was just about to start a story."
Story 1: The Oath of Feanor
The group gave a short round of applause. "That was a great retelling of Feanor's oath, Dave," said the elf. Everyone agreed.
"I wanted to explore more how Feanor would have responded to Morgoth's lies, how he would have interpreted events from the past based on those lies. Even though Feanor makes so many wrong decisions, he truly was wronged in this instance; I don't know that I would have reacted differently in his position."
Matt enjoyed the story. He knew the terms "Middle-Earth" and "Elves" from Tolkien, but he had never heard of Melkor or the Silmarils before. He had no idea how this story fit in with the Lord of the Rings, but it sounded much older. "Were Elrond or Galadriel involved in this story?" he asked, since he thought they were the oldest characters in the Lord of the Rings.
"Elrond was not yet born," replied the elf.
"But Galadriel was," replied the girl next to him. Matt noticed that she too had elf ears. "She was there that day, when Feanor spoke to the Noldor. She was the Noldorin princess Dave mentioned. Finarfin was her father, so that makes Feanor her uncle."
"Are you dressed as Galadriel?"
"Actually, no, " she said, "but you're close. My name is Sarah, but everyone calls me Halo. I am dressed as Celebrian. She was Galadriel's daughter."
"Oh," said Matt. "I didn't even know she had a daughter."
"There are plenty of tales I could tell about Celebrian," Halo continued, "but you asked about Galadriel."
"Oh, right. So she came to Middle-Earth with Feanor?"
"Feanor's words stirred her heart; she was eager to leave Valinor to explore new realms and rule over them. The two groups, Feanor's group and Fingolfin's group, set out together. They did not have enough ships for the entire host, so Feanor and his group stole the ships and left the majority of Fingolfin's group alone on the shore. They later followed, but it was a grueling and painful road. Let me tell you about that journey."
Story 2: The Crossing of Helcaraxe
"I didn't realize all this about Galadriel when I watched the movies!" replied Matt. "She seems much higher and more noble than I would have imagined. How long before the Lord of the Rings did that crossing take place?"
"Roughly seven thousand years, " replied Halo.
"Oh!" said Matt. "She is old."
"Very old," said Randy. "As Halo said, all those that came with her had died long before the Lord of the Rings."
"Halo said that Finrod died aiding Beren in his quest for a Silmaril. Why was Beren trying to get a Silmaril? Why was Finrod helping him and how did he die? Do you have a story to tell about that?"
"Of course he has a story to tell," laughed Leslie, Randy's wife. Randy began the story.
Story 3: The Ring of Barahir
"Wow," said Matt. "That was a powerful story!"
"I agree," said Randy. "It's one of my favorites from all of Tolkien's writings."
"Are you dressed as Aragorn? Is that ring you're wearing the ring in the story?"
"Absolutely," said Randy. "The story means so much to me that I bought this replica of the ring and wear it all the time."
"You mean it's more than just part of your costume? Whoa!" Matt said. "So tell me more about this quest for the Silmaril. When did Beren and Luthien meet? When did Thingol send Beren off on the quest? Did Beren get out of Sauron's prison?"
"After the Battle of Sudden Flame, when Barahir rescued Finrod, Morgoth sent orcs to kill Barahir and all his company," said Dave. "Beren alone survived. After long and difficult wanderings in exile, he eventually came to the elvish realm of Doriath. One day, while wandering in the forest, he saw Luthien dancing in the woods. Luthien was the most beautiful of all the Children of the World. Her mother was a Maia -- the same race as the Gods, but of a lower order. She had left Valinor and wandered into the forests. Thingol married Melian, and they became king and queen of all the elves in Middle-Earth, before Feanor led the Noldor back.
"And Thingol would not let Beren marry Luthien?"
"Thingol did not have respect for the race of men, as most of the elves at that time did not. And he was a protective father who didn't think anyone was good enough for his daughter," said Arwyn. "I guess he was lucky he did not have to deal with Melian's father. Thingol told Beren that he could only marry Luthien if he would bring Thingol a Silmaril from Morgoth's crown. The elves had not been able to defeat Morgoth in numerous battles, so Thingol believed he was sending Beren to his death."
"But I'll never forget Beren's response," said Halo. " 'For little price do Elven-kings sell their daughters! When we meet again, my hand shall hold a Silmaril from the Iron Crown; for you have not looked the last upon Beren son of Barahir.' And then he set off to Nargothrond to ask for aid from Finrod."
"What happened to Beren after Finrod died?"
"Luthien had heard that Beren was kept in Sauron's prison," began Leslie, " and she rode with Huan, the hound of Valinor, to rescue him. Huan defeated Sauron, and Luthien freed all the prisoners. Together, Beren and Luthien came to Angband and cast even Morgoth from his throne. Beren freed one of the Silmarils from the iron crown. They brought the Silmaril back to Thingol, but Beren was slain by the Wolf that came from the gates of Angband. He died in Luthien's arms."
"And what about Luthien? Weren't they in love? The story just can't end there, can it? I mean, if she were immortal and Beren mortal, then they would never see each other again, right? Not even in the halls of Mandos?"
"I think that deserves a full tale," said Leslie, and so she continued.
Story 4: Luthien's Mortal Choice
"I can't believe Luthien had to make such a difficult choice," said Matt. "Do the stories ever say what it was like for Beren, letting Luthien give up everything for him?"
"The stories don't ever talk about it from that perspective," said Arwyn. "But we see that in Aragorn and Arwen. The movies explore that idea even more than the books: how could a man ask an elf to give up everything to be with him?"
"I remember from the Two Towers that Aragorn says good-bye to her," says Matt, "and Arwen heads west, to leave Middle-Earth and Aragorn behind. I never realized how sad that scene truly was. Do they end up getting together, or does Aragorn forget about Arwen and go with Eowyn?"
"If you don't know, we're not going to tell you," laughed Leslie. "You'll just have to wait and see."
Matt looked around at everyone to see if anyone would tell him the ending. They all smiled at him, but no one would talk. "Well if no one will tell me about Aragorn and Arwen, then what about other Elf/Man couples? Did any other elf marry a man?"
"There was one other Elf/Man couple in the First Age," said Randy. "Tuor and Idril."
"Could someone tell me about them?" asked Matt.
Before anyone could answer, Matt caught sight fo something out of the corner of his eye. He turned and saw a most terrifying sight: Sauron had entered the theater! And he was coming towards him!
"Byron!" yelled Randy. Sauron waved at the group. He reached up and took off his hideous mask. Matt breathed a sigh of relief. It was not really Sauron, just some college kid in a very convincing costume.
"Hello, everyone," said Byron. "Sorry I'm later than I had planned. Traffic coming down here was worse than I expected."
"Byron, this is Matt," said Randy. "He's a friend of Sam's. Matt, this is Byron. He and I went to high school together."
"It's nice to meet you," they both said to each other.
"We've just been telling Matt some stories about the history of Middle-Earth."
"Then I'm really sorry that I was late," said Byron. "I love hearing and telling stories about Middle-Earth."
"He just asked about Tuor and Idril," said Sam. "Would you want to tell the story?"
"Of course!" said Byron, "That's one of my favorites."
Story 5: Ulmo Appears to Tuor
Arwyn stopped him at this point. "You're telling it in way too much detail; it will be months before you even get Tuor to Gondolin so he can meet Idril."
"Okay, okay," said Byron. "Then you can finish it, Arwyn."
"Arwen?" asked Matt. "Is your name Arwen, like in the Lord of the Rings?"
"It's spelled just a little differently; but yes, my name is Arwyn. My dad is a huge fan of the Lord of the Rings; he reads it every year. My sister and I both have names from Tolkien's writings; we even have a pet named Gandalf."
"Wow," said Matt. He had never known that there were people this excited about Tolkien's writings.
"Ulmo sent a guide to Tuor," said Arwyn, "and together they made their way to Gondolin. It was located in a valley, surrounded by mountains. The way into the valley, an old riverbed under the mountains, was hidden and well-guarded. But when the guards saw Tuor's sword and shield, they knew he was a messenger sent by Ulmo; they led him straight to King Turgon. Tuor delivered his message, just as Ulmo had instructed him."
"But Turgon rejected the message," continued Byron. "Though Tuor could not believe it, he remembered Ulmo's words that his journey to Gondolin would not be in vain -- even if Turgon did not receive the message."
"Turgon and the elves of Gondolin realized that the favor of Ulmo was on Tuor," said Arwyn, "and they invited him to remain in Gondolin. Tuor lived in Gondolin for many years and had much favor in the city."
"And what about Idril?" asked Matt.
"I was just getting to her," said Arwyn.
Story 6: Tuor Marries Idril
"Did Idril have to give up her immortality to marry Tuor?" asked Matt.
"No, that was a special choice given only to Luthien," said Leslie.
"So what happened to Tuor and Idril? Wouldn't Tuor eventually die, leave the circles of the world, and leave Idril behind?"
"After Gondolin was destroyed," began Dave, "Tuor and Idril lived beside the sea. After many years, the longing of the sea in Tuor and Idril was too great. They sailed west together and never came back to Middle-Earth. Legend says that Tuor, alone of men, was treated as one of the Elves because of his great deeds and given immortality in this world; but no one knows for sure."
"Arwyn said in her story that Earendil was the 'last hope' for the Noldor; what does this mean?" asked Matt.
"Ulmo granted special favor to Tuor, and both Idril and Tuor had the sea-longing in their hearts; it makes sense that Earendil would become a great mariner," said Sam. "Earendil set sail for Valinor to plead with the Gods for help in their war against Morgoth, on behalf of Men and Elves."
"Did the Gods grant his plea?" asked Matt. "Is that how they eventually got the Silmarils back?"
"Let me tell you the full tale."
Story 7: The Voyage of Earendil
Something inside Matt resonated with this last story. He saw the majestic whole of the history of the Silmarils, from their creation by Feanor in Valinor to their recovery in the War of the Jewels. He had so many more questions that he wanted answered, so much more that he wanted to explore. But he didn't even know where to start!
The line started moving into the movie. It was approaching midnight, but Matt was not tired at all. He knew that he had just taken his first step into a much larger world; as he took his seat inside the theater, he knew that he would be spending a lot of time in that world in the days to come.
They all loved the movie, and Matt not least of all. He was so glad that he had heard these stories before he saw it. Galadriel seemed so much loftier now that he knew her history! He understood where the elves were going when they left Middle-Earth. He understood the dynamic between Arwen and Aragorn much better, and he was glad to know what happened to them. He needed to watch the first two movies again to see how his reactions to them would be different.
They all said their good-byes and drove home. It was really late, so Matt went to bed as soon as he got home. But he woke up first thing in the morning and drove to the bookstore. He went to the information desk and asked where he could find the Tolkien section. The cashier pointed him in the right direction; he was surprised and delighted to see that there were so many books. He took a copy of the Silmarillion off the shelf and, after he paid for it and bought some coffee, he sat down in the cafe and started reading.