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| The Last Word by jenolas | 4 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 3/27/2005 |
| Ah, the subtle evil of the Ring at work, using the best it can catch hold of with each person. Poor Boromir. Author Reply: Yes, he was a certainly an unwitting victim, at least for a time. jenolas | |
| Dot | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 3/19/2005 |
| I’ve never seen anything like the speed with which you’re updating this! It’s lovely to see Faramir be so open in his affection for Éowyn – but it’s even nicer to see how pleased everyone else is for him. My heart went out to him, though, when he heard the shocking news that another battle would take place. At least Imrahil was able to convince him that he should stay in Minas Tirith. He knew just what to say too, by telling him that it would be the best way to honour Boromir. You have me increasingly gripped by Boromir’s thoughts. His troubled dreams are such a great way of showing the insidiousness of the ring. It was quite heartbreaking to watch him try to reason it out in his own mind, wondering what Faramir would say to him. But he still can’t quite let go of the fact that there might be some truth in his dream and that his home is in such danger. I think we’d all feel like that to some extent after such a dream. Ah, Bilbo. I wondered about him. You’ve captured his character perfectly and it’s his talkative and somewhat boastful nature that leads him to say enough to heighten Boromir’s curiosity. Looking at Bilbo, it must be very difficult to even imagine that the ring would have any ill-effects on its wearer. I actually went cold at the next part. The ring has found his weakness and the power to save his city as well as the promise of untroubled dreams seems very attractive to Boromir. I’m so glad that Faramir can still see his brother through these words and is aware of what was happening to him, because even though Boromir was back to himself the next morning, wondering why he’d have written such “nonsense”, Faramir is probably all too aware of the possibility that soon there might be no more entries questioning the strange thoughts and dreams, as his beloved brother’s voice fades and another takes over. Great stuff! :-) | |
| The Karenator | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 3/19/2005 |
| Boromir's dream was interesting and was a good way to show how the ring was already speaking to him. Fortunately, Boromir, in his most lucid moments, recognized the folly of possessing the ring, but his desire to protect Gondor was so strong that he wavered when he had moments of doubt. Excellent, Jenolas. And I liked that even though Faramir was disappointed in what he read about using the ring for the good of Gondor, he recognized it was ring influencing his brother. I like that despite his clear sight about this and his disappointment in Boromir at that passage, Faramir still had faith in his brother. Nice chapter. Karen Author Reply: I am delighted that my intent for the dream has been understood, I thought perhaps I was being a little obscure, but thankfully not it seems. Faramir will ever be loyal to Boromir, but it must be hard to see his broether heading towards the same kind of madness that took Denethor. thnaks for the comments, jenolas | |
| mirthor | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 3/19/2005 |
| Getting into Boromir's mind had to take a lot of thought. I like that you've portrayed it not Boromir himself that has thoughts of taking the ring, but of whatever the ring twists him into during those thoughts. However, I always thought that even if a part of the true Boromir harbored wishes to help his city through the ring, there's nothing particularly evil about that - the slaying of a friend to do so - yes; but even in Boromir's ring-influenced rage we don't know that he would have killed Frodo & how is a passion for saving mankind evil? All the talk everywhere of Boromir's "betrayal" - what of Frodo turning against his best friend, of all people? Granted, the ring was much closer to him, and it was in his presence much longer than Boromir's, but in the end Frodo would never have given the ring up willingly. I had hoped that Peter Jackson would play this fact up in defence of Boromir - it's obvious that he was either very fond of the character himself, or of Sean Bean, for he made his Boromir into so much more than Tolkien did & we have both the writers & SB to thank for that - amazing work. But, alas his arm didn't stretch that far. Good points you bring up - I'm sure we all wondered why, if Mithrandir & Galadriel knew of Boromir's struggle, they allowed him to go on. I don't think Mithrandir's excuses here are good enough, but who's to know? I've enjoyed your dialogue - I think some writers tend to slew too many 'old' words & phrases together & make it a chore to read - too formal. But you mix those words nicely into a more realistic blend of speech, specifically in Boromir's letters. Great insight on all of this & I'm looking forward to more. Author Reply: It is not easy trying to imagine what Boromir might have thought or felt, and I freely admit that only Tolkien himself really knew the motivations he had in mind for his characters as he wrote about them. Boromir's desire to use the ring to save Gondor is indeed an honourable intent, but it was clearly not the only way to save mankind. Destroying the ring was the better option, as Boromir agreed (albit reluctantly) at the council meeting before the ring had a chance to influence his thoughts, as I see it. It is this power to control that is evil. I agree that Frodo was far more under the influence of the ring, after all once Boromir tripped and fell, he literally had sense knocked back into him and realised his folly. Either the hold the ring had on him was not that powerful, or the ring realised it had Frodo fully in its control at last. As a Sean Bean fan myself, his portrayal of Boromir was all I expected it to be given his talent and as you say, the words he was given by the writers. I hope you comtimue to enjoy this, and thank you for your insightful comments, jenolas | |