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| The Measure Of A Man by Virtuella | 8 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Raksha The Demon | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/18/2008 |
| Looks like Deoric is getting some much-needed guidance; and Gleowine benefits by having his songs recorded for posterity. Gleowine is well-written here as a man bruised by sorrows but not beaten by them; just the right sort to teach Deoric not to be a young idiot. Good chapter! Author Reply: Yes, I've come to quite liek Gleowine. I like him almost as much as Deoric, whom I'm rather in love with in spite of him being such an idiot. ;-) | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/18/2008 |
| Ah, a wonderful pair for advising these two young people, and the seeds of reunion are now sowed. Gleowine certainly has Deoric's number! And love that the pictures have convinced him to share the stories, even if it is on his own terms! Author Reply: "Gleowine certainly has Deoric's number!" Is that an Americanism? I've never heard that expression, though I can guess from the context what it means. | |
| Eluthaun | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/17/2008 |
| Every day when I start work at the restaurant I sidle up to the beaten lap-top, with a searing espresso cooling in my spare hand, while I log on to SOA in the hopes of seeing the new instalment of "Measure of a Man", (and "Aspects of Aragorn" for that matter). I particularly relish Gleowine's insight -that he has recognised Deoric's book as the mechanism by which Deoric hopes to reclaim a certain masculinity/dignity for himself. Tolkien's work was always brimming full of these little insights for me, and I think it is what makes his work the most precious to me -so it's a delight to see someone managing as much in their own right. I do hope (selfishly) to see more insights into the character of Deoric's father: I'm delighting in the development whereby Deoric's perspective that his father was a consummate warrior is being peeled away to reveal a duty-bound soldier with the heart of a minstrel... I could harp on like this endlessly! I promise I won't -though. Anyway, thanks for all your hard work -it makes my morning espresso taste even sweeter. Author Reply: Harp away all you like. I'm glad you enjoy the story so much. There will be a little bit more about Feadred, I think it's in the nect chapter. | |
| Jay of Lasgalen | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/17/2008 |
| I apologise for being an intermittent reviewer for this wonderful story. I love the development of Déoric's skills and the slow progress of the book set against the background of his home life - but there are times when I want to kick him for his self pity and thick-headed refusal to accept that Fana might still want him! Finally though, Fana has spoken to Dirlayn, and Gléowine seems to have achieved the impossible in making Déoric listen to him. I do hope they finally really talk to each other and reach an understanding - no doubt with Niarl's heartfelt approval :) I love the weaving of Tolkien's songs into such an original tale. Well done! Jay Author Reply: I admit I have tried to make Deoric as annoying as I felt I could still get away with... Please don't feel you have to apologize! | |
| Agape4Gondor | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/17/2008 |
| For every king of the Mark, from Eorl the Young to Théoden King, I have made a song. I had to take a moment to breathe when I read this... At one time, in the enthusiasm of youth, I promised myself I would write a Christmas song for every year I lived... I got through three years! :) What this minstrel is saying is an incredible accomplishment - I do not know if your hero is up to the writing of it.... Phew! *Sits back in awe!* As for Fana - I am soooo glad she went to Deoric's mom... I've got my fingers crossed for those two... And what a shock for the poor girl to realize that she reminds her love of things that once were but can never be again. I loved Gleowin's humility and giggled over the his 'modesty' as a king... A dear man and a treasure to have as a friend... Especially since he seems to give some really good advice. Excellent chapter! Author Reply: Well, it's the work of his lifetime, and it was his job, so I think he would have managed that fairly well. Fana, of course, could have realized this earlier, but she's not really very bright that way. Remember that when she first appears, jumping out of that tree, she /reminds/ Deoric of them climbing trees together? I'm glad Tolkien told us so little about Gleowine, so that I could have my way with him. ;-) | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/17/2008 |
| Oh, a beautiful chapter! It looks like Fana got the right advice from DIrlayn--and now Gleowine has told Deoric the truth! Good advice, too! Hopefully he will be less of a fool after this! But I loved the rest of the chapter too! Of course Gleowine saw through the tale (though as I said previously it *could* have had a grain of fact) but he also saw the truth in the fable. I'm so glad he changed his mind and decided to help. Did you make the verse at the end? An excellent example of Anglo-Saxon alliterative verse! I've tried my hand at it too, from time to time--it's hard! Harder than rhymes, I think... Author Reply: Yes, that song was mine. I'm aware that it's nowhere near as good as the Tolkien one I quoted earlier in the chapter, but it was the best I could manage, being no poet... | |
| Sunny | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/17/2008 |
| So Gléowine looked through Déoric's little fabrication, did he? And he was a good sport about it, too! :-) I can't shake the feeling that the fact that Déoric made up that little story that made Gléowine accept the idea that his songs should be written down. It certainly showed that Déoric has some instinct for the Minstrel's craft. And by making Déoric learn the songs by heart before he was permitted to write them down, Gléowine would also ensure that Déoric also learned due respect for that craft - as well as developing the mental tools for such memorization. I can just see Déoric astonishing everybody some time in the future by singing one of those songs. Hopefully he is able to carry a tune. ;-) And it was Gléowine who administered that well-deserved talking to! Hope Déoric gets out of his funk! Gléowine comes across as a father figure to Déoric. I assume that was intended? He certainly seems to need one! It shall also be interesting to see if Gléowine starts to see him as a sort of an apprentice - and perhaps in time as a sort of an extra son? Déoric certainly seems to be the chosen heir to Gléowine's treasury of songs! Author Reply: "I can just see Déoric astonishing everybody some time in the future by singing one of those songs." Well, I think, scribe, artist, story teller /and/ singer would be a bit too much. ;-) Yes, Gléowine is meant to be a father figure. With his own father dead, there are several men who fulfil that role for Déoric: Léofred, Himlebed, even Wulfhere, but Gléowine is certainly the most crucial. I'm glad you perceived this passage much in the way it was intended. | |
| Celeritas | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/17/2008 |
| Yes, I'm definitely liking Gleowine--from his seeing through Deoric's tale but also not calling him a liar (very nice digression on the meaning of Story there) to finally beginning to knock some sense into the guy! And he can get away with it because he's old! Author Reply: I know, it was about time, wasn't it? | |