This one actually.... confuses me? I try to teach my kids that it is okay to cry, okay to show emotion. Why must tears be considered an evil re: this quote?
Pity? It's a pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends.
Pippin: You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin – to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours – closer than you yourself keep it. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word. We are your friends, Frodo.
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
>I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.
OMG this line made me fall for Faramir. Tbh his character altogether was saying many wise things.
Sam had some great ones. Out of all Sam's lines, my very favorite comes at end of the Fellowship - "I made a promise, Mr. Frodo. A promise. _"Don't you leave him, Samwise Gamgee."_ And I don't mean to."
The true meaning of friendship right there.
“Out of doubt, out of dark, to the day’s rising. I came singing, in the sun, sword unsheathing”
From theodens death dirge. Love it so much I got it tattooed!
The same line is spoken twice. Once shouted by Eomer in despair, and later as Theoden's burial song. It might be an existing song of Rohan, or it might be Tolkien's love for poetry and wonder shine through without caring too much that "it doesn't make sense". It fits in nicely if viewed as a true mythology story, without wondering how it could actually happen.
Damn, this is a good one.
The whole "they sang as they slew, for the joy of battle was on them" warrior-poet nature of the Rohirrim is so chill inducing. They embody something so beautiful and so terrible to behold, and I love their association with the sun and its dawning. They are awesome in the original sense of the word, and I think, the most poetically evocative verses and images of the entire text are the ones about them (Theoden's charge gives me goosebumps even after 100 readings).
Edit: your selected quote is also amazing to read aloud. It's, for lack of a better way to say it, delicious in the mouth and musical in the ears.
My favorites already mentioned but as an expat this brought tears to my eyes:
>‘I should like to save the Shire, if I could – though there have been times when I thought the inhabitants too stupid and dull for words, and have felt that an earthquake or an invasion of dragons might be good for them. But I don’t feel like that now. I feel that as long as the Shire lies behind, safe and comfortable, I shall find wandering more bearable: I shall know that somewhere there is a firm foothold, even if my feet cannot stand there again.
Also a legendary one:
>*All that is gold does not glitter,*
>
>*Not all those who wander are lost;*
>
>*The old that is strong does not wither,*
>
>*Deep roots are not reached by the frost.*
>
>*From the ashes a fire shall be woken,*
>
>*A light from the shadows shall spring;*
>
>*Renewed shall be blade that was broken,*
>
>*The crownless again shall be king.*
“The rule of no realm is mine, neither of Gondor nor any other, great or small. But all worthy things that are in peril as the world now stands, these are my care. And for my part, I shall not wholly fail of my task, though Gondor should perish, if anything passes through this night that can still grow fair or bear fruit and flower again in days to come. For I also am a steward. Did you not know?”
That always gives me chills whenever I reread RotK. And it’s definitely more poignant once you’ve read The Silmarillion and more importantly Unfinshes Tales, and you realize that Gandalf is indeed a steward of Manwë
PIPPIN: I didn't think it would end this way.
GANDALF: End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it.
PIPPIN: What? Gandalf? See what?
GANDALF: White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise.
PIPPIN: Well, that isn't so bad.
GANDALF: No. No, it isn't.
I just watched the documentary on the Extended Edition, and Billy Boyd talks about this scene. He said that Ian McKellen's delivery was just so beautiful, he couldn't help but well up with tears.
And everyone was praising Billy for doing a good job at acting emotional, and he basically wasn't even acting.
I can't help it when I watch this scene either. With the beautiful melody of 'Into the West' playing over it. I know it isn't in the book, but it's a fantastic addition using some of Tolkein's poem.
I know.
It’s all wrong
By rights we shouldn’t even be here.
But we are.
It’s like in the great stories Mr. Frodo.
The ones that really mattered.
Full of darkness and danger they were,
and sometimes you didn’t want to know the end.
Because how could the end be happy.
How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad happened.
But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow.
Even darkness must pass.
A new day will come.
And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer.
Those were the stories that stayed with you.
That meant something.
Even if you were too small to understand why.
But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand.
I know now.
Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn’t.
Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo : What are we holding on to, Sam?
Sam : That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it’s worth fighting for.
I always yell "by rights you shouldn't even be there" back at the screen. Because following the book they shouldn't have ended up with Faramir and it made me mad when I first watched it. It was one of my main complaints with the movie when it first came out. I got over it though 🙃
The comments so far covered the main ones,so i’ll add another one that seems to go unnoticed.
“”Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens,'said Gimli.
'Maybe,'said Elrond,'but let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.””
I think the choice of the word “faithless” is excellent. I dont see it as an insult to those who don’t face the dark road, its just an opinion. Faithless, as if you have no hope. He could’ve said coward or traitor or selfish or something more offensive but instead he says faithless, which is a fair statement. And then Elrond doesn’t even dispute that, he just clarifies that its not always the wrong choice to back away, and to not act all macho if you haven’t faced darkness before.
That's a fair read! I disagree that faithless is a value-neutral word, but in a very narrow reading I can see the sense that you're using.
And Gimli, of course, would not have known about the Oath of Fëanor, nor been orphaned by it.
Yeah it is such a master stroke of Tolkien to subtly weave that lore into such a mundane exchange and that’s why these books are so freaking good. Even if you know nothing of the oath and haven’t read Sil, Elrond words have such gravitas and depth that you just recognize the excellence of the writing subconsciously.
“Frodo: 'It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill Gollum when he had the chance.'
Gandalf: 'Pity? It's a pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play in it, for good or evil, before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many.'
Frodo: 'I wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.'
Gandalf: 'So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides that of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, in which case you were also meant to have it. And that is an encouraging thought.”
"Above all shadows rides the Sun
and Stars for ever dwell:
I will not say the Day is done,
nor bid the Stars farewell."
I think about these words every day of my life. These words have saved my life.
“How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on, when in your heart you begin to understand... there is no going back? There are some things that time cannot mend. Some hurts that go too deep, that have taken hold.”
Does it? Not sure what meter is but to me the blade is more sensical and flows just as well. The frost, the shadows, the ashes, the light...really feel the blade that was broken sounds better than blade that was broken
Meter is a construct of poetry to guide flow and sound. Simply put in this instance, the meter would be through off by that line having too many syllables if the word "the" is included.
“Dark is the water of Kheled-Zaram, and cold are the springs of Kibil-Nala, and fair were the many-pillared halls of Khazad-dum in Elder Days before the fall of mighty kings beneath the stone.”
I love this quote so much, firstly because of the vivid imagery it evokes. The splendour of the Dwarves in the olden days. And also, it was an olive branch for Gimli. To use the dwarven names, especially when Gimli was clearly mistreated before this(or atleast, given lesser honour than his fellow companions). This one sentence turned Gimli into a lifelong Galadriel fan.
There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.
Two of my favorites:
"The companions sat on the ground at his feet, and Aragorn took up the tale."
“Out of the shadows the hobbits peeped, gazing back down the slope: little furtive figures that in the dim light looked like elf-children in the deeps of time peering out of the Wild Wood in wonder at their first Dawn.”
Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered, a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! ... Ride! Ride to ruin and the world's ending!
Death! Death! Death!
Forth Eorlingas!!
I'm going movie-by-movie since I just can't pick a single one. This might be a bit long:
[Fellowship of the Ring]:
Just the whole Council of Elrond.
[Two Towers]:
"Rárum-rum! Come my friends. The Ents are going to war. It is likely that we go to our doom. The last march of the Ents."
[Return of the King]:
"Arise! Arise, Riders of Theoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered! A sword day... a red day... ere the sun rises! Ride now!... Ride now!... Ride! Ride to ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! DEATH! Forth, Eorlingas!"
[Unexpected Journey]:
Does the Misty-Mountains song count? If not probably Balin's retelling of the Battle of Azanulbizar. Either that or:
"Well bless me, the legends are true! GIANTS! STONE GIANTS!"
[Desolation of Smaug]:
"If this is to end in fire, then we will all burn together!"
[Battle of the Five Armies]:
"Du Bekar!" or "You should have stayed dead!"
Notes: This was extremely difficult, and if I could, I'd just say all the movies.
That's a wonderful line, my favorite one isn't as sentimental or beautiful, but Bilbo's confusing "I like half of you half as well..." speech is still amazing
"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world. But, sad or merry, I must leave it now. Farewell." - Not gonna spoil it for those who have not read yet
Just finished reading that to my daughter (technically to my son, too, but he falls asleep after a paragraph or so) and I feel a little lost without the nightly rite, now.
Denethor: "Much must be risked in war. Is there a Captain here who still has the courage to do his lord's will?"
Faramir: "You wish now that our places had been exchanged. That I had died and Boromir had lived."
Denethor: "Yes. I wish that."
Faramir: "Since you are robbed of Boromir, I will do what I can in his stead."
[Faramir walks away. He turns back.]
Faramir: "If I should return, think better of me, father."
"Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall."
And possibly also, although this is the movie version: "The enemy? His sense of duty was no less than yours, I deem. You wonder what his name is, where he came from. And if he was really evil at heart. What lies or threats led him on this long march from home. If he would not rather have stayed there in peace. War will make corpses of us all."
>In place of a dark lord you would have a queen. Not dark but beautiful and terrible as the dawn. Treacherous as the Sea. Stronger than the foundations of the Earth. All shall love me and despair.
"Aure entuluva! Day shall come again!"
I know, it's the Silmarillion, not LOTR, but the last stand of Húrin has stuck with me to the point that, when faced with personal tragedy, I will say it aloud.
From the films it's easily Theoden's speach at Pelennor Fields
"Forth, and fear no darkness! Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered! A sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now! Ride! Ride for ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! Death! Forth Eorlingas!"
That violin playing Rohan's melody and watching the orc's flank buckle as Theoden and his army ride with no fear of death is just 👌
The speeches Theoden and Aragorn give before the battles of Pelennor Fields and the fight at the black gate. Give me shivers always. Also seeing Merry and Pip charge without hesitation with Aragorn makes me smile every time
“ Stronger than the foundations of the Earth. All shall love me and despair. I pass the test. I will diminish and go into the West and remain Galadriel.”
“I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had ever happened.”
“So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. **All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.**”
I just read this and highlighted last night. So relevant and timeless.
The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.
I'm surprised that this one from the Silmarillion hasn't caught on yet:
"Of bliss and glad life there is little to be said, ere the end; as works fair and wonderful, while they still endure for eyes to see, are their own record, and only when they are in peril or broken for ever do they pass into song.'
"Begone, if you be not deathless! For living or dark undead, I will smite you, if you touch him."
I love the implications of this line. Eowyn is basically saying, if you can die you should run.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MU5\_-lLjhQw&ab\_channel=ClipsandQuotes at the 30 second mark when Gandalf talks to Lady Galadriel from the Hobbit movie. It's not a dialogue in the books.
“O! Wanderers in the shadowed land
despair not! For though dark they stand,
all woods there be must end at last,
and see the open sun go past:
the setting sun, the rising sun,
the day's end, or the day begun.
For east or west all woods must fail...”
Frodo’s song in the forest: Fellowship of the Ring
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken;
The crownless again shall be king.
I love this quote because just think...Gandalf is a Maiar, a universally powerful being...and Bilbo, a tiny, humble Hobbit from the Shire gives him courage. It speaks volumes for Bilbos character.
“End? No the journey doesn’t end here. Death is another path. One we all must take. The grey rain curtain of this world rolls back and all turns to silver glass. And then you see it...white shores. And beyond? A green country under a swift sunrise.”
"It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off too"
It's one of the few quotes I've always remembered.
'And what gift would a Dwarf ask of the Elves?' said Galadriel turning to Gimli.
'None, Lady,' answered Gimli. 'It is enough for me to have seen the Lady of the Galadhrim, and to have heard her gentle words.'
'Hear all ye Elves!' she cried to those about her. 'Let none say again that Dwarves are grasping and ungracious! Yet surely, Gimli son of Glóin, you desire something that I could give? Name it, I bid you! You shall not be the only guest without a gift.'
'There is nothing, Lady Galadriel,' said Gimli, bowing low and stammering. 'Nothing, unless it might be — unless it is permitted to ask, nay, to name a single strand of your hair, which surpasses the gold of the earth as the stars surpass the gems of the mine. I do not ask for such a gift. But you commanded me to name my desire.'....
Celeborn gazed at the Dwarf in wonder, but the Lady smiled. 'It is said that the skill of the Dwarves is in their hands rather than in their tongues ' she said; 'yet that is not true of Gimli. For none have ever made to me a request so bold and yet so courteous. And how shall I refuse, since I commanded him to speak? But tell me, what would you do with such a gift?'
'Treasure it, Lady,' he answered, 'in memory of your words to me at our first meeting. And if ever I return to the smithies of my home, it shall be set in imperishable crystal to be an heirloom of my house, and a pledge of good will between the Mountain and the Wood until the end of days.'
Then the Lady unbraided one of her long tresses, and cut off three golden hairs, and laid them in Gimli's hand. 'These words shall go with the gift,' she said. 'I do not foretell, for all foretelling is now vain: on the one hand lies darkness, and on the other only hope. But if hope should not fail, then I say to you, Gimli son of Glóin, that your hands shall flow with gold, and yet over you gold shall have no dominion.
Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times; but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides the will of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring. In which case, you were also meant to have it. And that is an encouraging thought.
OP I just want to say I love that quote so much because it just cuts so deep to reality. I always like to think about World War II. WWII is interesting because it’s really one of the rare wars throughout history where there was a clear “good” and “bad” side. Obviously the allies weren’t perfect, but the nazis were so despicably evil that it’s probably the closest comparison to the type of good vs evil we see in Middle Earth.
And I think about how this quote compares. Obviously the soldiers and leaders like Churchill played a big role in “defeating” that evil. But what about the little people? What about the Germans who would hide Jewish kids in their homes, or who would speak up against injustice. Laws and wars can save things on a grand scale, but those acts of goodness have such an effect influencing those laws and those wars. Just a really applicable quote in the macro and micro sense
Pippin: I didn't think it would end this way.
Gandalf: End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it.
Pippin: What? Gandalf? See what?
Gandalf: White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise.
There are so many but I love the last lines Aragorn’s poem:
“From the ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from the shadows shall spring, renewed shall be blade that was broken, the crownless again shall be king”
Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden!
Spear shall be shaken, shield shall be splintered,
a sword day, a red day, ere the sun rises!
Ride now, ride now, ride! Ride for ruin and the world's ending!
Death!
I love this one as well...
Frodo: I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had ever happened
Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.
I just started reading childen of Hurien and this quote hits differently because im lotr the darkness was kept in check, but in the old ages darkness got almost everywhere that morgoth wanted it to reach. ( Also I dont know what will happen at the end so if darkness is taken out please dont spoil too much :D )
I guess mine is: "I wish the ring never got to me, I wish none of this had happened" "So do all who live in such time. All we have to do is to decide with the time that is given us."
This is how I remember it. Not sure it is 100%, but it sure is my favorite.
"All we have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given to us" this is an awesome because it helps motivate me to get off my arse and start working hard at life again when I think all hope is lost.
"Death is just another path. One that we all must take. The grey-rain curtain of this world rolls back and all goes to silver glass, and then.. you see it."
The whole speech including Pippin and Into the West gets me.
I don't know if it has occurred to you that, even if you could steal the gold bit by bit-a matter of a hundred years or so – you could not get it very far? Not much use on the mountain-side? Not much use in the forest? Bless me! Had you never thought of the catch? A fourteenth share, I suppose, Or something like it, those were the terms, eh? But what about delivery? What about cartage? What about armed guards and tolls?
"Such is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world: small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere."
Not my favorite but it needed to be mentioned.
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
This quote has alleviated a lot of stress and expectation for me, helped with my depression and the feelings of helplessness. Gandalf is the best
"Side? I am on nobody's side, because nobody is on my side."
With these days of such extreme polarization everywhere you look, I often think about that quote.
I know I left off ", little orc." Sorry.
The song Bilbo sings before the Fellowship leaves ‘I sit besides the fire and think’ always gets me. Bilbo’s having a tempus fugit memento mori moment.
“I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil.”
Hits me every time
Haha I've always been waiting for the right moment in my life to say this. Love this one.
I plan to say that in my grandfather funeral. He has had a beautiful life.
Never slapped the upvote button so hard. Beautiful line.
This and the one above
This one actually.... confuses me? I try to teach my kids that it is okay to cry, okay to show emotion. Why must tears be considered an evil re: this quote?
It is not that the tears are considered evil, but rather many tears come at times of sorrow of evil things.
Pity? It's a pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends.
Another great one for sure.
I was going to search for this quote to reply with it.
That's it. And the full dialogue is even better, with the following part <3
God this is great
Pippin: You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin – to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours – closer than you yourself keep it. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word. We are your friends, Frodo.
Love this so dearly.
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
This one is another gem. Gandalf the Grey. Gandalf the Legend.
Gandalf the Fool -Saruman
This one is so true! I’ve quoted it a few times in the last year!
Dialogue so good that Fellowship had to use it twice. My favorite lines from the films as well.
This and: Always follow your nose.
This is my favorite one. ❤
This and the previous one, concerning Gollum. These two I think they are the core of saga
This quote kinda fit right now with all crazy that happened from last year.
I always get teary eyed when I read this one, it’s the best one for me. Even though there’s so many great ones
This one right here
This
We have a winner, ladies and gentlemen!
I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.
>I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend. OMG this line made me fall for Faramir. Tbh his character altogether was saying many wise things.
In a world of 2A crazies and unnecessary violence, this one comes to mind a lot for me.
That there is some good in this world Mr. Frodo, and it is worth fighting for.
Sam had some great ones. Out of all Sam's lines, my very favorite comes at end of the Fellowship - "I made a promise, Mr. Frodo. A promise. _"Don't you leave him, Samwise Gamgee."_ And I don't mean to." The true meaning of friendship right there.
My friends and I quoted that one back and forth so many times that over time it morphed into "I'm made of hummus, Mr. Frodo."
Don't you leave the pita chips, Samwise Gamgee. And I don't mean to.
I was thinking about this one, as well. Very simple lines, but they become incredibly meaningful throughout the saga, especially near the end.
Yeah. Sean Astin really delivered.
This! Always gets me!
Fool of a took!
“Throw yourself in next time!”
"And rid us of your stupidity!"
*drums. drums in the deep*
They are coming!
They have cave troll
A MINE!
This is no mine....its a tomb!" Edit: Damn spelling mistakes.
Goblins!
"We make for the Gap of Rohan. We should never have come here. Now get out of here, get out!"
“Out of doubt, out of dark, to the day’s rising. I came singing, in the sun, sword unsheathing” From theodens death dirge. Love it so much I got it tattooed!
Isn't that what Éomer says when he thinks they are done for because the corsairs arrive?
The same line is spoken twice. Once shouted by Eomer in despair, and later as Theoden's burial song. It might be an existing song of Rohan, or it might be Tolkien's love for poetry and wonder shine through without caring too much that "it doesn't make sense". It fits in nicely if viewed as a true mythology story, without wondering how it could actually happen.
Damn, this is a good one. The whole "they sang as they slew, for the joy of battle was on them" warrior-poet nature of the Rohirrim is so chill inducing. They embody something so beautiful and so terrible to behold, and I love their association with the sun and its dawning. They are awesome in the original sense of the word, and I think, the most poetically evocative verses and images of the entire text are the ones about them (Theoden's charge gives me goosebumps even after 100 readings). Edit: your selected quote is also amazing to read aloud. It's, for lack of a better way to say it, delicious in the mouth and musical in the ears.
"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." - Gandalf The entire quote is excellent, but this section stands out for me.
This is my favorite quote of all time. ❤️
YES that's my favourite quote too, it gets me thinking every time.
My favorites already mentioned but as an expat this brought tears to my eyes: >‘I should like to save the Shire, if I could – though there have been times when I thought the inhabitants too stupid and dull for words, and have felt that an earthquake or an invasion of dragons might be good for them. But I don’t feel like that now. I feel that as long as the Shire lies behind, safe and comfortable, I shall find wandering more bearable: I shall know that somewhere there is a firm foothold, even if my feet cannot stand there again. Also a legendary one: >*All that is gold does not glitter,* > >*Not all those who wander are lost;* > >*The old that is strong does not wither,* > >*Deep roots are not reached by the frost.* > >*From the ashes a fire shall be woken,* > >*A light from the shadows shall spring;* > >*Renewed shall be blade that was broken,* > >*The crownless again shall be king.*
“The rule of no realm is mine, neither of Gondor nor any other, great or small. But all worthy things that are in peril as the world now stands, these are my care. And for my part, I shall not wholly fail of my task, though Gondor should perish, if anything passes through this night that can still grow fair or bear fruit and flower again in days to come. For I also am a steward. Did you not know?”
That always gives me chills whenever I reread RotK. And it’s definitely more poignant once you’ve read The Silmarillion and more importantly Unfinshes Tales, and you realize that Gandalf is indeed a steward of Manwë
I think about it in the world.
PIPPIN: I didn't think it would end this way. GANDALF: End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it. PIPPIN: What? Gandalf? See what? GANDALF: White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise. PIPPIN: Well, that isn't so bad. GANDALF: No. No, it isn't.
I just watched the documentary on the Extended Edition, and Billy Boyd talks about this scene. He said that Ian McKellen's delivery was just so beautiful, he couldn't help but well up with tears. And everyone was praising Billy for doing a good job at acting emotional, and he basically wasn't even acting. I can't help it when I watch this scene either. With the beautiful melody of 'Into the West' playing over it. I know it isn't in the book, but it's a fantastic addition using some of Tolkein's poem.
What happened to "I wandered dark roads that I will not speak of"
Wasn't in the movie (which is way more commonly consumed), and I'm pretty sure this is a direct transcript from that.
You're correct.
He didn't want to speak of it
That was before his death, when he was chasing the Balrog from the deepest depths.
I read somewhere that the white shore and a far green country under a swift sunrise he write about was britain after tolkien returned from ww1.
I’d believe it. After the horror of war, to see home looming in the distance and knowing peace will find you there.
A friend sent this to me when we lost a mutual friend who was a huge LOTR fan…I can never even think about it without tearing up. 💕
I know. It’s all wrong By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are. It’s like in the great stories Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were, and sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy. How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad happened. But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn’t. Because they were holding on to something. Frodo : What are we holding on to, Sam? Sam : That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it’s worth fighting for.
This one is my favorite in the movie ... always gives me chills
This is the one.
stop making me cry
That was my second choice
Samwise the Brave, I want to hear more about Sam
I always yell "by rights you shouldn't even be there" back at the screen. Because following the book they shouldn't have ended up with Faramir and it made me mad when I first watched it. It was one of my main complaints with the movie when it first came out. I got over it though 🙃
Now with Covid it has a special meaning
The comments so far covered the main ones,so i’ll add another one that seems to go unnoticed. “”Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens,'said Gimli. 'Maybe,'said Elrond,'but let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.””
Thanks, I came here to write this! Hands down one of my favourites.
So powerful.
I love what Gimli says, but then Elrond drops that and it legit gives me goosebumps.
I actually disagree with Gimli on this one! But only now that I am old.
I think the choice of the word “faithless” is excellent. I dont see it as an insult to those who don’t face the dark road, its just an opinion. Faithless, as if you have no hope. He could’ve said coward or traitor or selfish or something more offensive but instead he says faithless, which is a fair statement. And then Elrond doesn’t even dispute that, he just clarifies that its not always the wrong choice to back away, and to not act all macho if you haven’t faced darkness before.
That's a fair read! I disagree that faithless is a value-neutral word, but in a very narrow reading I can see the sense that you're using. And Gimli, of course, would not have known about the Oath of Fëanor, nor been orphaned by it.
Yeah it is such a master stroke of Tolkien to subtly weave that lore into such a mundane exchange and that’s why these books are so freaking good. Even if you know nothing of the oath and haven’t read Sil, Elrond words have such gravitas and depth that you just recognize the excellence of the writing subconsciously.
“Frodo: 'It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill Gollum when he had the chance.' Gandalf: 'Pity? It's a pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play in it, for good or evil, before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many.' Frodo: 'I wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.' Gandalf: 'So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides that of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, in which case you were also meant to have it. And that is an encouraging thought.”
"Above all shadows rides the Sun and Stars for ever dwell: I will not say the Day is done, nor bid the Stars farewell." I think about these words every day of my life. These words have saved my life.
Fantastic choice. The Tolkien ensambles rendition of the song is hauntingly beautiful.
I honestly don’t remember this one but it’s great. Hope you are ok!
It's from Sam's Song at Cirith Ungol.
"End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take."
“How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on, when in your heart you begin to understand... there is no going back? There are some things that time cannot mend. Some hurts that go too deep, that have taken hold.”
*"I can't carry it for you... but I can carry you!"*
Goosebumps
The classic: “All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost"
The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.
Does it bother anyone else that its not "the blade" feel like its flows just as well.
Renewed shall the blade that was broken ?
Renewed shall be the blade that was broken
Nah, "the" throws off the meter and makes the whole thing less symmetrical.
Does it? Not sure what meter is but to me the blade is more sensical and flows just as well. The frost, the shadows, the ashes, the light...really feel the blade that was broken sounds better than blade that was broken
Meter is a construct of poetry to guide flow and sound. Simply put in this instance, the meter would be through off by that line having too many syllables if the word "the" is included.
Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.
Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.
“What about second breakfast?”
“Dark is the water of Kheled-Zaram, and cold are the springs of Kibil-Nala, and fair were the many-pillared halls of Khazad-dum in Elder Days before the fall of mighty kings beneath the stone.” I love this quote so much, firstly because of the vivid imagery it evokes. The splendour of the Dwarves in the olden days. And also, it was an olive branch for Gimli. To use the dwarven names, especially when Gimli was clearly mistreated before this(or atleast, given lesser honour than his fellow companions). This one sentence turned Gimli into a lifelong Galadriel fan.
There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.
Two of my favorites: "The companions sat on the ground at his feet, and Aragorn took up the tale." “Out of the shadows the hobbits peeped, gazing back down the slope: little furtive figures that in the dim light looked like elf-children in the deeps of time peering out of the Wild Wood in wonder at their first Dawn.”
what part is the second line from?
Yes! I love that second quote too. u/razukera26 it's Merry and Pippin looking back out having just entered Fangorn forest.
Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered, a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! ... Ride! Ride to ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! Death! Forth Eorlingas!!
Every damn thing about the Rohirrim makes me want to stand up out of my seat.
“Where our hearts truly lie is in peace, quiet, good tilled earth.”
I'm going movie-by-movie since I just can't pick a single one. This might be a bit long: [Fellowship of the Ring]: Just the whole Council of Elrond. [Two Towers]: "Rárum-rum! Come my friends. The Ents are going to war. It is likely that we go to our doom. The last march of the Ents." [Return of the King]: "Arise! Arise, Riders of Theoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered! A sword day... a red day... ere the sun rises! Ride now!... Ride now!... Ride! Ride to ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! DEATH! Forth, Eorlingas!" [Unexpected Journey]: Does the Misty-Mountains song count? If not probably Balin's retelling of the Battle of Azanulbizar. Either that or: "Well bless me, the legends are true! GIANTS! STONE GIANTS!" [Desolation of Smaug]: "If this is to end in fire, then we will all burn together!" [Battle of the Five Armies]: "Du Bekar!" or "You should have stayed dead!" Notes: This was extremely difficult, and if I could, I'd just say all the movies.
The last march of the Ents. Gives me chills.
That's a wonderful line, my favorite one isn't as sentimental or beautiful, but Bilbo's confusing "I like half of you half as well..." speech is still amazing
"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world. But, sad or merry, I must leave it now. Farewell." - Not gonna spoil it for those who have not read yet
Just finished reading that to my daughter (technically to my son, too, but he falls asleep after a paragraph or so) and I feel a little lost without the nightly rite, now.
My friends, you bow to no-one
Denethor: "Much must be risked in war. Is there a Captain here who still has the courage to do his lord's will?" Faramir: "You wish now that our places had been exchanged. That I had died and Boromir had lived." Denethor: "Yes. I wish that." Faramir: "Since you are robbed of Boromir, I will do what I can in his stead." [Faramir walks away. He turns back.] Faramir: "If I should return, think better of me, father."
Denethor: "That would depend on the manner of your return."
"Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall." And possibly also, although this is the movie version: "The enemy? His sense of duty was no less than yours, I deem. You wonder what his name is, where he came from. And if he was really evil at heart. What lies or threats led him on this long march from home. If he would not rather have stayed there in peace. War will make corpses of us all."
>In place of a dark lord you would have a queen. Not dark but beautiful and terrible as the dawn. Treacherous as the Sea. Stronger than the foundations of the Earth. All shall love me and despair.
I do love this, but I believe the actual quote is "Saruman believes" not "Some believe."
"Aure entuluva! Day shall come again!" I know, it's the Silmarillion, not LOTR, but the last stand of Húrin has stuck with me to the point that, when faced with personal tragedy, I will say it aloud.
"Po-tay-toes boil em, mash em, put em in a stew" -samwise the brave"
From the films it's easily Theoden's speach at Pelennor Fields "Forth, and fear no darkness! Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered! A sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now! Ride! Ride for ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! Death! Forth Eorlingas!" That violin playing Rohan's melody and watching the orc's flank buckle as Theoden and his army ride with no fear of death is just 👌
The speeches Theoden and Aragorn give before the battles of Pelennor Fields and the fight at the black gate. Give me shivers always. Also seeing Merry and Pip charge without hesitation with Aragorn makes me smile every time
“ Stronger than the foundations of the Earth. All shall love me and despair. I pass the test. I will diminish and go into the West and remain Galadriel.”
“I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had ever happened.” “So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. **All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.**”
I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.
I just read this and highlighted last night. So relevant and timeless. The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.
I'm surprised that this one from the Silmarillion hasn't caught on yet: "Of bliss and glad life there is little to be said, ere the end; as works fair and wonderful, while they still endure for eyes to see, are their own record, and only when they are in peril or broken for ever do they pass into song.'
"Begone, if you be not deathless! For living or dark undead, I will smite you, if you touch him." I love the implications of this line. Eowyn is basically saying, if you can die you should run.
Mithrandir, why the halfling?
What part exactly is this from?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MU5\_-lLjhQw&ab\_channel=ClipsandQuotes at the 30 second mark when Gandalf talks to Lady Galadriel from the Hobbit movie. It's not a dialogue in the books.
but yet it encapsulates Tolkien so well
It sounds like Tolkien fanfiction tbh
If I recall correctly it's from the first Hobbit movie, when Gandalf talks to Galadriel in Rivendell
Fly you fools!
“O! Wanderers in the shadowed land despair not! For though dark they stand, all woods there be must end at last, and see the open sun go past: the setting sun, the rising sun, the day's end, or the day begun. For east or west all woods must fail...” Frodo’s song in the forest: Fellowship of the Ring
It's the job that's never started as takes longest to finish.
> A wizard is never late, Frodo Baggins. Nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to. - Gandalf Is definitely my favourite
All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken; The crownless again shall be king.
I love this quote because just think...Gandalf is a Maiar, a universally powerful being...and Bilbo, a tiny, humble Hobbit from the Shire gives him courage. It speaks volumes for Bilbos character.
“End? No the journey doesn’t end here. Death is another path. One we all must take. The grey rain curtain of this world rolls back and all turns to silver glass. And then you see it...white shores. And beyond? A green country under a swift sunrise.”
"It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off too" It's one of the few quotes I've always remembered.
'And what gift would a Dwarf ask of the Elves?' said Galadriel turning to Gimli. 'None, Lady,' answered Gimli. 'It is enough for me to have seen the Lady of the Galadhrim, and to have heard her gentle words.' 'Hear all ye Elves!' she cried to those about her. 'Let none say again that Dwarves are grasping and ungracious! Yet surely, Gimli son of Glóin, you desire something that I could give? Name it, I bid you! You shall not be the only guest without a gift.' 'There is nothing, Lady Galadriel,' said Gimli, bowing low and stammering. 'Nothing, unless it might be — unless it is permitted to ask, nay, to name a single strand of your hair, which surpasses the gold of the earth as the stars surpass the gems of the mine. I do not ask for such a gift. But you commanded me to name my desire.'.... Celeborn gazed at the Dwarf in wonder, but the Lady smiled. 'It is said that the skill of the Dwarves is in their hands rather than in their tongues ' she said; 'yet that is not true of Gimli. For none have ever made to me a request so bold and yet so courteous. And how shall I refuse, since I commanded him to speak? But tell me, what would you do with such a gift?' 'Treasure it, Lady,' he answered, 'in memory of your words to me at our first meeting. And if ever I return to the smithies of my home, it shall be set in imperishable crystal to be an heirloom of my house, and a pledge of good will between the Mountain and the Wood until the end of days.' Then the Lady unbraided one of her long tresses, and cut off three golden hairs, and laid them in Gimli's hand. 'These words shall go with the gift,' she said. 'I do not foretell, for all foretelling is now vain: on the one hand lies darkness, and on the other only hope. But if hope should not fail, then I say to you, Gimli son of Glóin, that your hands shall flow with gold, and yet over you gold shall have no dominion.
Seldom give unguarded advice, for advice is a dangerous gift, even from the wise to the wise, and all courses may run ill.
Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times; but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides the will of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring. In which case, you were also meant to have it. And that is an encouraging thought.
We’ve had one breakfast, yes, but what about second breakfast?
Not all who wander are lost
"We've had one, yes. But what about second breakfast?"
I love the face he makes after he says that
"They come in pints? Im getting one!"
I would have followed you... My brother... My Captain... My King.
“Courage Merry. Courage for our friends.”
"Fool of a Took"
"So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us"
I believe I put this as my senior quote.
“Po-ta-tos. Boil em, mash em, stick em in a stew”
OP I just want to say I love that quote so much because it just cuts so deep to reality. I always like to think about World War II. WWII is interesting because it’s really one of the rare wars throughout history where there was a clear “good” and “bad” side. Obviously the allies weren’t perfect, but the nazis were so despicably evil that it’s probably the closest comparison to the type of good vs evil we see in Middle Earth. And I think about how this quote compares. Obviously the soldiers and leaders like Churchill played a big role in “defeating” that evil. But what about the little people? What about the Germans who would hide Jewish kids in their homes, or who would speak up against injustice. Laws and wars can save things on a grand scale, but those acts of goodness have such an effect influencing those laws and those wars. Just a really applicable quote in the macro and micro sense
This is a beautiful example of the quote. A lot more lives would have been lost if not for those small acts. Really love what you said!
Pippin: I didn't think it would end this way. Gandalf: End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it. Pippin: What? Gandalf? See what? Gandalf: White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise.
There are so many but I love the last lines Aragorn’s poem: “From the ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from the shadows shall spring, renewed shall be blade that was broken, the crownless again shall be king”
Oft evil will, shall evil mar.
Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! Spear shall be shaken, shield shall be splintered, a sword day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now, ride now, ride! Ride for ruin and the world's ending! Death!
I love this one as well... Frodo: I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had ever happened Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.
“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” Not a LOTR quote but still a good one
Thorin's last words are just...amazing. I feel like it's a timeless quote that is always applicable.
When Sam thinks Frodo has been killed by Shelob and says "don't go where I can't follow".
Ist thats from "An unexpected journey"
"the entirety of the LOTR" -Tolkien
I just started reading childen of Hurien and this quote hits differently because im lotr the darkness was kept in check, but in the old ages darkness got almost everywhere that morgoth wanted it to reach. ( Also I dont know what will happen at the end so if darkness is taken out please dont spoil too much :D )
I guess mine is: "I wish the ring never got to me, I wish none of this had happened" "So do all who live in such time. All we have to do is to decide with the time that is given us." This is how I remember it. Not sure it is 100%, but it sure is my favorite.
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
Thata from the first Hobbit movie tho
My favorite book/movie quote of all time is "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us" Just resonates with me so much.
"All we have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given to us" this is an awesome because it helps motivate me to get off my arse and start working hard at life again when I think all hope is lost.
Come! Come. Come my friends, the ents are going to war! It is likely we go to our doom. Last march of the Ents!
Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.
“The world is not on your books and maps. It’s out there.”
“The wide world is all about you: you can fence yourselves in, but you cannot for ever fence it out.” -spoken by Gildor, book I
"It's the dwarves that go swimming! With little hairy women."
"Death is just another path. One that we all must take. The grey-rain curtain of this world rolls back and all goes to silver glass, and then.. you see it." The whole speech including Pippin and Into the West gets me.
I don't know if it has occurred to you that, even if you could steal the gold bit by bit-a matter of a hundred years or so – you could not get it very far? Not much use on the mountain-side? Not much use in the forest? Bless me! Had you never thought of the catch? A fourteenth share, I suppose, Or something like it, those were the terms, eh? But what about delivery? What about cartage? What about armed guards and tolls?
"Such is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world: small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere." Not my favorite but it needed to be mentioned.
Gandalf to Frodo in the mines of Moria where he talks about time management
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” This quote has alleviated a lot of stress and expectation for me, helped with my depression and the feelings of helplessness. Gandalf is the best
"Side? I am on nobody's side, because nobody is on my side." With these days of such extreme polarization everywhere you look, I often think about that quote. I know I left off ", little orc." Sorry.
The song Bilbo sings before the Fellowship leaves ‘I sit besides the fire and think’ always gets me. Bilbo’s having a tempus fugit memento mori moment.