This week Krysta and Briana from Pages Unbound are leading us in a topic that I could write about all day: Who is your favorite character from The Lord of the Rings?
I have to start by saying that I have SO MANY FAVORITE CHARACTERS. Seriously, that’s half the reason that I re-read those books so often. Sam, Aragorn, Faramir, they’re all the best, and I could go on and on about each of them. But my favorite character has always been Eowyn.
Honestly, I probably couldn’t have even told you why I loved her the first time I read LOTR. A big chunk of it is that she’s more or less the only significant female character in the series. I also fell in love with this book before the badass-female-lead became a thing, and it’s a beloved trope for a reason. And my favorite line of hers is DEFINITELY a movie-ism.
But now that I’m a grown up, I can put my finger on exactly why she is the best.
She doesn’t let society’s expectations define her
In a lot of ways The Lord of the Rings is pretty anti-feminist. The few women characters there are exist solely as love interests or home-makers. The men often seem to care more for their beauty than anything else. And heaven forbid two women should SPEAK TO EACH OTHER.
But Eowyn defies those expectations openly. She asks to ride to death with Aragorn because she doesn’t want to be left behind. Then she shows up to the Muster of the Rohirim in an effing sword. Her uncle leaves her behind to rule in his absence, rather than a trusted man. And then she ignores him and rides to battle, taking the forbidden hobbit with her. There she kills the flippin’ Nazgul, something EVEN GANDALF couldn’t do. She refuses to be the dutiful wife and insists that the men see her as one who deserves valor. I admire that.
Continue reading “Classic Remarks: Favorite Lord of the Rings Character”
Mmmmm, so hard to pick, but probably 