Tolkien Picks Up A Few More Bits Of Cultural Baggage [Awww... the orcs are just misunderstood!]

Washington Post ^ | December 29, 2002 | Chris Mooney

[HairOfTheDog]

Tolkien Picks Up A Few More Bits Of Cultural Baggage

By Chris Mooney
Sunday, December 29, 2002; Page B03

Early in the new film of Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers," the heroes happen upon a pile of burning carcasses, the smoldering remains of a party of orcs bred by the evil wizard Saruman. These orcs were ambushed and slaughtered by horsemen from the kingdom of Rohan, the heroes' allies in the great war enveloping Tolkien's fantasy world. Despite their military advantage, the riders took no prisoners; in fact, they slew so recklessly that they didn't even notice that the orcs had prisoners of their own. As a memento of their victory, the horsemen left behind an orc head gruesomely spitted on a spear.

In the real world, the horsemen's wanton slaughter of the enemy -- no matter how evil -- would probably qualify as a war crime. In its gorily violent film incarnation, however, it is just one episode in a rousing tale of good versus evil. The heroes' sense of mission remains unclouded...

More... WashingtonPost.com, see link.

[HairOfTheDog]

In real life, we simply aren't going to encounter baddies who would literally devour women and children or cannibalize their own kind the way orcs do. And in real life, it would be deeply troubling if Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told U.S. troops to show the enemy "no mercy, for you will receive none," as the human hero Aragorn tells his forces before battle in "The Two Towers."'

Is that a fact? - Speak for yourself, Mr. Mooney!

[HairOfTheDog]

The elf Legolas and the dwarf Gimli even have a contest to see how many orcs they can slaughter.

I knew he would hate the contest!

It's a topical connection that Peter Jackson, the director of the cinematic version of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy epic, seems to be inviting. In "The Two Towers," Jackson improvises upon Tolkien's text by introducing an orc suicide bomber at the battle of Helm's Deep.

You made the connection, Mr. Mooney, not me... Not bad though!

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

Jackson improvises upon Tolkien's text by introducing an orc suicide bomber at the battle of Helm's Deep.

I hadn't thought of the "suicide bomber" connection... when I saw it, it seemed more like the Olympic torch runner gone horribly wrong....

[Ramius]

Clearly Mr. Mooney does not have even the slightest grasp on who and what our enemy is.

[HairOfTheDog]

LOL! - Me too!

[rllngrk33]

And even orcs are living creatures -- just not ones possessing rights under the Geneva Conventions.

Orcs are men and elves who have been twisted and perverted by the evil one (Morgoth).

I can't understand why some people have to screw up a good story about good vs. evil by trying to read something into it that the author never intended.

The Lord of the Rings has nothing to do with anything going on in the world today except for the overall good vs. evil part. Getting into more detail than that is just a waste of time. It's also an indication how people have way too much time on their hands.

[ecurbh]

Ring Ping!!

[HairOfTheDog]

I have to admit, I have been scanning for articles by the left regarding LoTR... Sortof morbidly curious about what would come out of them when they finally spoke on it.

This one is funny enough to keep!

[rllngrk33]

And even orcs are living creatures -- just not ones possessing rights under the Geneva Conventions.

BTW the story of LOTR took place thousands of years before the Geneva Convention. So it doen't apply.

[HairOfTheDog]

Getting into more detail than that is just a waste of time. It's also an indication how people have way too much time on their hands.

Ruh roh.... Define "too much". LOL.

[carton253]

That's what I thought. I thought, oh my word, am I watching the Olympics. It was the most jarring moment... because Legolas, so accurate with his bow for 4 hours, couldn't kill this guy to save his life.

[HairOfTheDog]

That was not unnoticed by me either! Everything else Legolas hits drops like a bag of sand, but this guy took TWO GOOD HITS and just wouldn't fall! Gotta love the movies!

[HairOfTheDog]

You guys on ecurbh's list? - Sorry for the double ping if you are.

[Mudboy Slim]

Yea, I'm on both lists but I don't mind being double-pinged, HOTDog...

"New Bridge to FReedom!!"
(To be sung to Led Zeppelin's "Stairway To Heaven")

(TheBigMan on twelve-string...MUD on flute...)

There's a Party who's sure...
All Left's Minions Are Dolts...
They're defilin' Right's New Bridge to FReedom.
When Left first hears...they know...
Medyuh Whore'd is RATS' Ho!!
HollyWeirdSlick will git what he raped for.
Ooh~ooh~ooh Ooh~ooh~ooh~ooh~ooh.
And RATS're lyin' 'bout Slick Willie's Treason.
There are signs Left Shall Fall!!
'Cuz Truth haunts Left fer sure...
And you know Willie's words have no meaning.
In a cave, reading books,
There's a Patriot who sings...
"Lib'rals, all of yer thoughts are BabsStreisand!!

Oooh...it makes me wonder.
Ooooh...don't it make YOU wonder?!

There's a feelin' I get...
When I look at the Left...
And my spirit starts crying "They're dimwits!!"
Yes, MUD's thoughts Right Shall Sing...
Rings of smoke from MUD's cave...
Heed the voices of those who hear Limbaugh!!

Oooh...Rush makes me wonder.
Oooh...don't Rush make Left shudder?!

Next, MUD whispered that soon...
"If Right all sings in tune...
Then, George Dubyuh shall lead us with Reason!!"
And a new day will dawn...
For those who stand strong...
And our children will burst out in laughter!!
(Does Anybody Remember Laughter?!!)

Oh~ooh whoah~ooh whoah~ooh whoah~ooh
Whoah~hooh~oh~ohh.

If there's still questions in your head, folks,
Don't be alarmed now...
It's a reaction to RATS' RAPE-King!!
Yes, there are two paths you can go by,
And, my Lib'ral FRiends,
Folks, there's still time to change the road you're on!!

Folks, it makes me wonder.
Ahhh~ah-oh~hoh.

The Left is drownin' and RATS won't go...
To where Ol' Slick's goin'...
John Ashcroft's callin' you to join him!!
Sweet ladies, can't you hear Left's Lies Flow?!
And did you know...
Yer FReedom lies with the RighteousRightWing...hahh~ah-ohh!!

And as we Fight DemLib'ral HO's...
Dutch Reagan's larger than Left knows.
There walks a Nation Strong and Bold!!
Who knows what's Right...WE want to show...
How America's future is gold...
And if you listen very hard
MUD's tunes will come to you at last.
When all are one and Guv'ment's small-yeah...
'Cuz Right Shall Rock and Then We'll Ro__ll!!

And Right's Building a New Bridge to FReedom!!

FReegards...MUD

[Lil'freeper]

Thanks for the ping. What a wretched article you found.

As a commentary on contemporary conflicts, Jackson's film has serious limitations.

Well, duh. The film was not a commentary on contemporary conflicts, nor was the book. It has applications, yes, and big, timeless themes but Sauroman is not Osama! Rumsfeld is not a Rohirrim! It's not a frickin' analogy for anything!! JRR was quite open and outspoken about this! Nothing cheeses me more than ill-educated journalists/commentators who confuse their own shallow and sorely misinformed opinions for fact. In terms of cluelessness, elementary education majors may occupy the bottom rung of the IQ ladder, but journalists are sitting in the mud beneath it- this guy is no exception.

Thanks for the chance to rant.

No personal insults intended to anyone who is, or may know and like, an "El-Ed" major. I have one in my family, too.

[HairOfTheDog]

Thanks for the ping. What a wretched article you found.

Yes, it was... I can't help sharing. Like when you find someting bad in the back of the fridge, hidden behind the case of cola... "EEEEEW! - This is gross! - Check this out!!"

[Argh]

Thanks anyway Miss Hair. I kep getting stopped at a blank page with the following address:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/

I guess the Post is prejudiced against Canadians.:^)

[HairOfTheDog]

And if you listen very hard
MUD's tunes will come to you at last.

Thanks Mud! ;~D

[Mudboy Slim]

De nada, mi amigo...MUD

[Vast Buffalo Wing Conspiracy]

I actually read this article before finding it here on FR; and it isn't quite as bad as some are making it out to be, here. The writer does have a few good points, and not everyone who is against wars in general is a raving, left-wing lunatic. In particular, I think he was objecting not so much to PJ's movie version of Tolkien, but rather he was objecting to the attempts by some to use the film as an allegory on "why we should go and beat up on the Iraqis" or something similar. He doesn't make this distinction clear, though, so his opening comments about the Rohirrim not giving any quarter to the Orcs just sounds, well, pretty dumb, to anyone familiar with Tolkien. His other comments about how Tolkien used some orcish dialogue to give the orc's their own point of view, were more constructive. For the record, I find those currently trying to use Tolkien to bolster their pro-war sentiments, just as cringeworthy as other, more PC, attempts to harness Tolkien to serve political purposes he never intended his writings to serve.