Summary Of The Book 'The Giver Through The Silmarillion'
1. Which characters in the class reading (The Giver through The Silmarillion) have wasted time or wasted their lives one way or another? Provide at least two specific examples, and explain your choices.
a. By selling “his deepest self,” Mentor from Messenger traded away what was most important. He gave up his charm, his kindness, and his acceptance of others for something temporary: attractiveness. Gollum also wasted his life by becoming bound to the Ring, which extended his life, but at the same time, made it meaningless and pleasureless.
2. Try to imagine the perspective of an immortal creature like one of Tolkien’s elves. What would motivate an immortal creature to achieve any goals if time wasn’t an issue? Would an elf ever stop and …show more content…
Without time as a motivator, Elves would probably be pushed to accomplish goals for their own wellbeing, as well as that of their families and friends, especially if the task ahead were overcoming a threat. For example, several elven communities in Beleriand had to construct cities and walls with the looming threat of Morgoth and his Orcs. In this sense, they were working against the time it would take for the Enemy to assemble and make its attack. Under certain circumstances, yes, an elf could realize that he or she had wasted time that could have been spent protecting his or her friends, but in other cases, such Elwe’s entrancement, years could pass by and have little effect on the Elves.
3. What does it mean to hang on “in quiet desperation”? Which characters from the class reading have done this? Are these the same characters you listed in response to the first question? Provide two specific examples, and explain your choices.
a. To hang on “in quiet desperation” refers to the fact that most (if not all) people try to live their lives as if nothing is wrong, but in truth, they are hiding things that are troubling them. Montag, for example, had pretended his whole life that he was happy when he really wasn’t, and it wasn’t until Clarisse challenged this that he began to realize how empty and lifeless his life was. Another character who had this type of experience was Aragorn, who after Gandalf’s death, tried to hide the fact that he was unsure of himself to keep the others’ spirits
a. By selling “his deepest self,” Mentor from Messenger traded away what was most important. He gave up his charm, his kindness, and his acceptance of others for something temporary: attractiveness. Gollum also wasted his life by becoming bound to the Ring, which extended his life, but at the same time, made it meaningless and pleasureless.
2. Try to imagine the perspective of an immortal creature like one of Tolkien’s elves. What would motivate an immortal creature to achieve any goals if time wasn’t an issue? Would an elf ever stop and …show more content…
Without time as a motivator, Elves would probably be pushed to accomplish goals for their own wellbeing, as well as that of their families and friends, especially if the task ahead were overcoming a threat. For example, several elven communities in Beleriand had to construct cities and walls with the looming threat of Morgoth and his Orcs. In this sense, they were working against the time it would take for the Enemy to assemble and make its attack. Under certain circumstances, yes, an elf could realize that he or she had wasted time that could have been spent protecting his or her friends, but in other cases, such Elwe’s entrancement, years could pass by and have little effect on the Elves.
3. What does it mean to hang on “in quiet desperation”? Which characters from the class reading have done this? Are these the same characters you listed in response to the first question? Provide two specific examples, and explain your choices.
a. To hang on “in quiet desperation” refers to the fact that most (if not all) people try to live their lives as if nothing is wrong, but in truth, they are hiding things that are troubling them. Montag, for example, had pretended his whole life that he was happy when he really wasn’t, and it wasn’t until Clarisse challenged this that he began to realize how empty and lifeless his life was. Another character who had this type of experience was Aragorn, who after Gandalf’s death, tried to hide the fact that he was unsure of himself to keep the others’ spirits