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Location
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Document Type
Presentation
Event Website
https://www.mythsoc.org/mythcon/mythcon-53.htm
Start Date
2-8-2024 3:30 PM
End Date
2-8-2024 4:20 PM
Description
For my paper I will examine and reconsider the character of Éowyn in The Lord of the Rings. I will look at the ways in which Tolkien uses dramatic elements and patterns from traditional literatures, including the Old English poem Beowulf and Shakespeare’s Macbeth, to tell an ancient tale anew, the tale of a dragon slain by an unlikely hero, in this case the Shield Maiden,Éowyn, and an even more unlikely assistant, a Hobbit named Merry. My process will focus on readings of the text, reflecting on ways Tolkien’s adaptations amplify female voice, choice, and agency. Éowyn enters in the middle of Tolkien’s complex narrative, where she is caught politically between the bright deeds of her ancestors and the darkness and doubt that surround her king and kin; caught geographically between the treason of Isengard on the west and the evil of Mordor on the east, surrounded by war and violence threatening her home of Rohan and all of Middle-earth. Éowyn, Lady of Rohan, is beloved and held in high regard, yet constricted by her charge to stay behind while she desires to ride forth into the field of battle. Her courage amid the larger battle raging around her on the Fields of the Pelennor is crucial to the outcome of the story. Through her pride and love, her courage and skill, and most of all, her determination, Éowyn steps out of the growing shadows and into the light of her own heroic story.
Creative Commons License
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Included in
‘A Stout Heart and a Good Blade’: An Examination and Reconsideration of Éowyn in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings
Minneapolis, Minnesota
For my paper I will examine and reconsider the character of Éowyn in The Lord of the Rings. I will look at the ways in which Tolkien uses dramatic elements and patterns from traditional literatures, including the Old English poem Beowulf and Shakespeare’s Macbeth, to tell an ancient tale anew, the tale of a dragon slain by an unlikely hero, in this case the Shield Maiden,Éowyn, and an even more unlikely assistant, a Hobbit named Merry. My process will focus on readings of the text, reflecting on ways Tolkien’s adaptations amplify female voice, choice, and agency. Éowyn enters in the middle of Tolkien’s complex narrative, where she is caught politically between the bright deeds of her ancestors and the darkness and doubt that surround her king and kin; caught geographically between the treason of Isengard on the west and the evil of Mordor on the east, surrounded by war and violence threatening her home of Rohan and all of Middle-earth. Éowyn, Lady of Rohan, is beloved and held in high regard, yet constricted by her charge to stay behind while she desires to ride forth into the field of battle. Her courage amid the larger battle raging around her on the Fields of the Pelennor is crucial to the outcome of the story. Through her pride and love, her courage and skill, and most of all, her determination, Éowyn steps out of the growing shadows and into the light of her own heroic story.
https://dc.swosu.edu/mythcon/mc53/schedule/13
