The Moment of Truth
Daria S.

I apologize for the condition this article is in, but I really don't have time to edit everything I receive. Please, when submitting debate articles, try to edit your own work and make it look pretty! Thank you. :-) -- MATTHEW

To flame or not to flame? that is the question

nah, of course i won't flame u, Max, buddy. getting flamed by me is a special privelege reserved for racists. ;)

so here's the deal.
never did i conceive that my post could be misinterpreted so horribly. but i will save answers to your personnal comments for the end. i am here to discuss much more serious disagreements. some people go as far as accusing Tolkien of being *a bit sexist and racist*, and some go "oh, he couldn't help it, he was living at a time like this, the poor guy". i disagree with both
well, let's see.  which one of the Valar was most honored by the Elves, the most talented race of Arda? and in all the "inter-racial" love stories of Middle earth....hmmm... Melian and Thingol, Luthien and Beren, Aragorn and Arwen, and Idril and Tuor...who was the superior ?  All the power of Doriath came from Maia Melian, and Beren's name is mentioned in the tales only because his fate was linked to that of Luthien,  and wasn't it Aragorn who was stunned by Arwen's superiority when he first saw her? in Lothlorien, who was the Wielder of the Power, who was portrayed as the leader of the realm in wisdom, foresight, glory and mercy? in Frodo's darkest moment, did he cry out to Gandalf and Manwe?... strange, i always thought it was "by Elbereth and Luthien the Fair..." oh well, maybe i dreamt it.

the story of Beren and Luthien shows us that Tolkien WAS able to give enormous power and heroism to his Ladies. He was able to do the same for Arwen. However he chose not to *for a reason*.  i think here's why. The Lord of the Books...ah sorry, the Lord of the Rings, is a story of heroism, courage, desperate sacrifice...and small hands protecting the world. With Arwen's role expanded it will turn mainly into another love-story.   Who in the average audience would care about this wee halfing running around (u actually have to stare hard at the screen to notice him) when there's theis beautiful Elven Lady, the beloved Evenstar of her people, who, in spite of many hardships, asserts her love to an inspiring, romantic, and courageous King-in-exile?
the LotR would turn into the story of Aragorn and Arwen for those who have not read the book. period.

now for your personal comments:
The "teary maiden in waiting", huh?  How about a High Lady, tied by the duties to her family and to her people, deeply loving and sorrowful, but at the same time preferring to do what she must instead of running off like a rebellious teenager.   Yes, WAITING for Aragorn is something she had to do, like many others in the book.   She knew she could not help Aragorn but to watch for him in thought, which she did faithfully.  According to Tolkien at least.  I don't know what Professor Max's version is, but I am sure it is much more correct and interesting.

As to Armageddon- I was semi-sarcastic. 
If they can't stay out of messing with Arwen they might as well…My parallel referred exclusively to the fun-for-the-average-audience factor (that's as far as the parallel goes, no more, no less).  I thought this was pretty simple to understand for an objective reader.  The reason why you decided to wash me down the sewer instead escapes me.

The bottom line is, in your first post u had no idea what my actual views on Arwen and the LotR was. 

By the way, as a female, I would rather feel insulted by your reflections of a female's role.  A woman should be able to choose whatever she wants to be, an active leader, a housewife, a stay-at-home-mom, a professional, or a supporter of her husband (the list goes on). ALL of the above are respectable OPTIONS for a woman, and neither of these are melodramatic or insulting if it's her choice to be so.  We don't want to be confined to the traditional stereotype and it is equally annoying to be confined to the modern stereotype. As long as we are not CONFINED to any position, no position is degrading, since it's our choice.

Finally, being accused of not valuing Tolkien's work enough is about the worst insult I can think of in the literary world. Thank you kindly. 
And really, u owe me an apology, although an apology is not what I ask. I do request that next time u try to  get a clue what a person's views REALLY are before throwing dirt at them, otherwise u could seriously offend someone in regards to something they value most. 
I am sorry if my sarcasm offended u at any point of this post. this is the way I treat everybody- with a bit of sarcasm.  J

I also apologize to everybody else who had to read this rebuttal. I know it wasn't pretty, but I felt I had no choice.

May the stars of Elbereth light your path.