Today’s entry in my A to Z Challenge, the theme of which is SF and Fantasy, authors and worlds, is - E is for The Encyclopedia Of Science Fiction. I will also be writing a little about a character I like a lot, Eowyn from Tolkien’s masterwork The Lord Of The Rings.
The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction was first produced late in the 1970s, winning a Hugo Award for best non-fiction book in 1980. The editors were Peter Nicholls, John Clute and others. The second edition cane out in 1993 - I have a copy of that lurking somewhere on my overflowing shelves.
Finally, by the time the 21st century rolled around, they decided that it might be better to do it digitally and there was first a CD ROM, then the web version, which started in 2011. It has won some more awards, and now it is easier to update it. It also has entries under authors, artists, awards, comics, communities and such, and cover art.
I regret to say I’m not in there anywhere, nor is anyone I know personally, but it’s a highly useful resource and it’s free! Check out the web site here! http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/category/all
E is for Eowyn! In case you haven’t yet read Tolkien’s work, Eowyn is one of the few women in The Lord Of The Rings. Tolkien, bless him, was one of those men who hung out with the boys, although in his case it was to talk about books. He adored his wife, Edith, but that didn’t stop him from going out till about 2.00 a.m every night. Thinking about it, there were absolutely no women at all in The Hobbit(Book, not film, which slotted in Galadriel and an elf maiden Tolkien never created), and only a few in LOTR. However, when he did create a woman, she was usually special, whether she was 100 year old Lobelia Sackville Baggins, who was not popular until she bravely stood up to the baddies in the Scouring of the Shire(if you’ve only seen the films, forget it - they skipped that part of the novel), Galadriel the Lady of Lothlorien, who resisted the offer of the Ring, Arwen, her granddaughter - Aragorn’s Lady, or... Eowyn.
Eowyn is the niece of the King of Rohan, a sort of Saxon kingdom, except Saxons were not really into horses for battle, whereas the Riders of Rohan were crazy about them. Eowyn is brave, strong and competent. She is perfectly capable of running the kingdom while her brother and uncle are off at war, except, after a lot of time being competent and in charge of the kingdom, she doesn’t want to. She has developed a crush on Aragorn, Ranger and King of Gondor, and wants to show what she can do as a fighter - something else she can do brilliantly. She disguises herself as a boy and joins the army, smuggling along the Hobbit Merry, who has also been told he will be left behind, and between them the two of them destroy the Witch King of Angmar, head of the scary black riders, who is overconfident because he’s been told he can’t be killed by any man. Well, he isn’t, is he? He’s killed by a woman, with the help of a Hobbit.
And after near death, she gets a man who appreciates her for what she is, Faramir, whose father, the Steward of Gondor, has nearly killed him . Faramir can fight brilliantly, but is, by preference, a nerd who would rather be reading his history books than going into battle. And he is the alter-ego of the author, so... we can kind of guess who is Tolkien’s favourite female character.
Mine too! And I liked the fact that the only people she really has to hide from in the army are her family. It was made pretty clear that the other soldiers know exactly who she is and are happy to oblige.
A pity they left out most of her romance with Faramir in the movies; even the extended version only shows a couple of brief scenes.
Still - a wonderful woman, film or book!
21 comments:
I didn't know about the encyclopedia. How cool!
And so useful!
I loved Eowyn in the books, and I was angry at the movies for passing that story by. Also, I was very young when I first read LotR, and I missed the "golden hair" part somehow, so she will forever have black hair in my mind... :D
The Multicolored Diary
There was an extended version, but not much. Eowyn is recovering in hospital and sees Faramir, who smiles at her. Then another scene where they are discussing the weather. She lays her head on his shoulder. He puts an arm around her. That’s all. No real conversation. No scene where he kisses her passionately in public! I guess we all have our own images of favourite characters. I, for example, loved film Aragorn, but he is too young.
I think I may have a copy of that lurking around too - I had no idea it was online now. Thanks for the link. Tolkien was not great with including the ladies, was he? Great choice of character - Eowyn was always one of my favs.
Tasha
Tasha's Thinkings - Ghost Stories
I stumbled across the online version by accident. Very handy! No, Tolkien was not great with including ladies, indeed. Women were not made welcome when the Inkl8ngs met at the pub, so I suppose the fictional ones were not welcome either!
I've always loved Eowyn - obviously not many women to choose from, but she's a powerful character. I loved the moment she killed the Witch King.
And I agree that there isn't enough of her and Faramir! Probably one of the more healthy relationships in the book. I mean, I love Aragorn and Arwen, but from her perspective, she has to give up her world, her family to marry a man she knows she won't have for long. Call me a pessimist. XD
I agree that Faramir and Eowyn is a healthier relationship than Aragorn and Arwen. She knew she wouldn’t have him for long, but not really - when, as a Gondorian King, he decided to die before dropping off his perch, she tried to talk him out of it. (Appendices). And then she was all alone and the last ship had gone to the Undying Lands and it was too late to follow her family.
But Faramir and Eowyn are normal human beings, as are Sam and Rosie(Okay, they’re Hobbits!)
I wrote a post about Faramir as my book boyfriend some time ago. Here is the link if you’re interested.
https://suebursztynski.blogspot.com/2012/05/my-book-boyfriend-faramir.html
Thank you for sharing the link to Encyclopedia - I'm almost scared to check it out in case I get lost in it for hours :D.
I like Eowyn too, more than any other female character in Lord of the Rings (though you are right - there aren't that many to choose from). I always liked how Yeskov in the Last Bearer of the Ring referred to Aragorn marrying Arwen instead of Eowyn as "an elven conspiracy to keep tabs on humans".
Oh, how I love Lord of the Rings! I never noticed there was a lack of women in LOTR since the beginning narrator was Galadriel, the elven beauty. Anyway, Eyowin is very brave indeed. She was good and I felt kind of sorry for her for not having Aragorn's heart, which was promised to another. The beautiful Arwen.*sigh*
Jackie's Bookbytes Letter E
Hi Joanna, the encyclopaedia is very useful to look stuff up, but yes, very easy to get absorbed in it. I’ve never heard of The Last Bearer Of The Ring, but as I recall, Arwen’s father, Elrond, was not at all happy about the marriage. They had a quarrel about it before the wedding.
Hi Jackie! I think you are remembering the film rather than the novel, in which Galadriel didn’t turn up till halfway through. However, it was a lovely film. In the end, Eowyn got the right man for her. And Aragorn had promised his heart to Arwen for many years.
Eowyn has always been my favourite female character in LOTR - maybe even character. Followed by Galadriel and Goldberry. I read LOTR in my teens over one weekend, and my favourite part is the Pelennor Fields scene with the slaying of the Witch King. [I discovered Tolkien, my favourite writer, through his academic writing.]
Goldberry is a fascinating character, though we’re never going to see her in dramatised versions as nobody ever shows Tom Bombadil! I’ve read some of Tolkien’s essays, very readable stuff!
Although Goldberry is unlikely to appear in a dramatized form like movies of TV - sad as her and Tom are among the best characters - I have encountered Goldberry. I played Lord of the Rings Online and her and Tom have some key interactions with the player in the Old Forest and on the Downs.
As for my first Tolkien read, that was 'Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics, then Tree and Leaf.
Yes, I have heard that those two appear in games. I have Monsters and The Critics. I read it during a Tolkien binge a few years ago. 🙂
Hi Sue, yes, the Game of Thrones TV series is good but that's just my opinion. You may not like it but I was obsessed over it 2 years ago. I loved the wintery scenes at the Wall and the filming locations of Malta, Spain, Croatia, Iceland and Ireland. Best of luck in the AtoZ Challenge! Thanks for stopping by.
Hi Jackie! I think that that GoT the TV series is very popular. I saw some early episodes because they were fairly faithful to the first book. I just lost track!
When you're listing the females in LOTR, don't forget Shelob! ;)
I was so angry that the film version tried to make Faramir more like his brother, instead of the perfect man he really was.
Black and White: E is for Emela-ntouka
Yes, definitely a female character if not one whom we can admire! 😏 And she was not just a giant spider of the kind the(female)Doctor could pity. She was a sentient creature who supported the bad guys.
Reading this, I now realise that my reading of LotR was done in a most hurried way (and at a time of injury) so my memory of it is very sketchy and clearly more influenced by the films that I'd like. Whilst I am horrified at the thought of adding such a huge tome onto the pile - again - it is decidedly sneaking closer to a re-read.
Debs, it took me years to get around to finishing it, then - suddenly I was devouring it! And I just had to read it again and again.
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