Aragorn angst
(public post)
There are many different communities within the LOTR fandom, especially when it comes to the fan fiction part of fandom. I'm going to explore the one that has a special place within my heart: Aragorn angst.
Within the original book, there was very little hinted at when it comes to Aragorn and angst- however, Tolkien did not leave us completely bereft of misfortune for the Ranger! While his additions are subtle, to book!Aragorn fans who happen to like the Ranger's struggles, they are a lifeline.
Tolkien especially acknowledges us in the Fellowship of the Ring where he is still the mysterious Strider for a few chapters. It is there that we learn he is no friend of the Enemy, and has had a previous encounter with the Nazgul:
"'They will come on you in the wild, in some dark place where thereis no help. Do you wish them to find you? They are terrible!’
The hobbits looked at him, and saw with surprise that his face was drawn as if with pain, and his hands clenched the arms of his chair. The room was very quiet and still, and the light seemed to have grown dim. For a while he sat with unseeing eyes as if walking in distant memory or listening to sounds in the Night far away.
’There!’ he cried after a moment, drawing his hand across his brow. ‘Perhaps I know more about these pursuers than you do. You fear them, but you do not fear them enough, yet.'"
While this is certainly one of the most exciting angsty prospects of Aragorn's past, it is not the only one. For just a few chapters later, Aragorn is vehemently opposed to going into Moria. All he says on why, though, is:
'I too once passed the Dimrill Gate,' said Aragorn quietly; 'but though I also came out again, the memory is very evil. I do not wish to enter Moria a second time.'
I am certainly not the only Aragorn fan who has wondered what evils he encountered there- the prospect for angst is very great, to say the least.
If you are into the more emotional angst, FOTR is wonderful in providing content there, too. In Lorien, after Gandalf's fall, Aragorn long ponders where he should go. Unlike the films, you may recall that Aragorn originally meant to go to Minas Tirith with Boromir and give his aid there. After he takes the leadership of the Fellowship, there are hints of struggle with himself and what decision he should make on his own path. It's fascinating to contemplate.
The Two Towers and ROTK are not bereft of their own hints of angst, either. Aragorn's sorrow over Boromir's death was evident in the text, but what about his sorrow over the fall of his kinsman Halbarad, who he embraced when they met in Rohan? What of his battle weariness after the battle of Helm's Deep (where he "turned and sped up the stair; but as he ran he stumbled in his weariness. At once his enemies leapt forward. Up came the Orcs, yelling, with their long arms stretched out to seise him. The foremost fell with Legolas' last arrow in his throat, but the rest sprang over him." He escaped the peril, obviously, but nonetheless peril he did experience), and, of course, the battle of Pelennor and the Black Gate. Tolkien says nothing about weariness in those two battles (indeed, Aragorn is 'unscathed after the battle of Pelennor), but there is still much left to the imagination.
There is also, again, emotional angst and physical exhaustion. What of the toll healing Eowyn, Faramir, Merry, and a good half of Minas Tirith took on him? What of the exhaustion he felt after fighting the battle at the Black Gate and then immediately spending all of his time healing Frodo, Sam, and Pippin? And was there any effect on him after gaining the palantir from Sauron's grasp, beyond the grey pallor right after the event? What of his pining for Arwen, and the terrible knowledge that he may never be with his true love? There is much to explore in the books when it comes to Aragorn and what the poor man has to go through.
While Tolkien laid out the road map for Aragorn angst fans, Peter Jackson and Viggo Mortensen all but made it a permanent part of fandom. While scenes such as the ones in Tolkien's written Helm's Deep were left to our imagination, with the films we could see the action clearly- and, seeing how large this group of people are, quite a few fan fiction writers enjoyed what PJ and Viggo did with Aragorn's character.
The Fellowship of the Ring has a countless amount of action for the character, and the number of times he nearly dies is almost laughable. Such is war, of course, but this man goes through more trouble in battle than all of the characters.
Take, for instance, the battle at Weathertop. First off, he's fighting the flipping Nazgul. He nearly gets himself stabbed 2 or so times, and that is only what the camera shows us.
The scene when Arwen comes in holding a sword to Aragorn's throat doesn't help matters whatsoever.
Moria, however, is when the action really starts to get good.
The whole battle is excellent to watch, and this is the EE version- and people, do you realize how hard he hit that wall?! That concussion would have hurt like no other, and concussed he very well would have been! He's lucky that he was lucid enough to survive with Frodo on the broken staircase, especially since part of it collapses under him. I'm surprised he didn't trip when running on the bridge.
Speaking of the bridge...
Go to 1:24 and just *look* at that expression. Complete and utter devastation. Keep watching, though, and count with me how many times he's shot at. I count about 10 arrows (including one he *ducks* to avoid), and you cannot help but wonder if this man is a flipping god. Someone normal surely would not have avoided all of those projections. Especially when suffering from a concussion.
Lothlorien healers had a lot of stuff to deal with, that's for sure.
Amon Hen is a whole different ball game.
Another one worth watching the whole way. Aragorn, man, Aragorn, he gets himself nearly killed *how* many times? Legolas saves him a couple times (the one where he and an Uruk are struggling in the background is always interesting to watch) and Gimli, too, parries a blow meant for Aragorn. He also misses quite a few shots of death in his one on one with the Uruk-hai Leader (Lurtz). I mean, man, this guy is invicible! No wonder fangirls love it.
You would think that there was no way PJ and Viggo could up the angst factor in TTT and ROTK, but they do. In TTT there is the infamous warg battle (I mean, he goes off a flipping cliff- you can't get better than that) and, of course, the famous Helm's Deep battle. He's blown off a flipping wall, jumps on a ladder and then falls *with* it, nearly gets himself killed when he defends the front gate with Gimli... the guy never stops! In ROTK there is, of course, the whole emotional angst with the Palantir, Arwen, and his worry for Frodo and Sam- more than there was in TTT. And while there is the battle of Pelennor Fields, there is something more heart-pounding than that in ROTK.
I speak, of course, of the Battle at the Black Gate. It was this scene that I watched almost five years ago that made me realize that I like seeing Aragorn kick butt and I like seeing his own body used as a punching bag. I liked angst.
The Battle of the Black Gate uncut (as in, no Frodo and Sam alternate scenes). This is probably my favorite Aragorn outfit. The look when he says "For Frodo" is so heart breaking... it's like he knows that he is likely going to die.
And then the troll fight. Oh, that troll fight. Starts at around 4:15 in this video. I mean, he's battling a freaking troll (which is better than Sauron, the original concept). He gets whacked a decent 15 feet by said troll (and likely ends up with another concussion). And amg, when he's knocked back on the ground- ouch!
I cannot say for sure why I like Aragorn angst. I know when it started (I can't believe it's been almost 5 years). But these are, at least, the roots of where it is in the books and the films that gives me the drive- and, of course, shows that this part of fandom is COMPLETELY CANONICAL and supported by the TEXT AND THE FILMS.
*cough*
This was a fun post.
There are many different communities within the LOTR fandom, especially when it comes to the fan fiction part of fandom. I'm going to explore the one that has a special place within my heart: Aragorn angst.
Within the original book, there was very little hinted at when it comes to Aragorn and angst- however, Tolkien did not leave us completely bereft of misfortune for the Ranger! While his additions are subtle, to book!Aragorn fans who happen to like the Ranger's struggles, they are a lifeline.
Tolkien especially acknowledges us in the Fellowship of the Ring where he is still the mysterious Strider for a few chapters. It is there that we learn he is no friend of the Enemy, and has had a previous encounter with the Nazgul:
"'They will come on you in the wild, in some dark place where thereis no help. Do you wish them to find you? They are terrible!’
The hobbits looked at him, and saw with surprise that his face was drawn as if with pain, and his hands clenched the arms of his chair. The room was very quiet and still, and the light seemed to have grown dim. For a while he sat with unseeing eyes as if walking in distant memory or listening to sounds in the Night far away.
’There!’ he cried after a moment, drawing his hand across his brow. ‘Perhaps I know more about these pursuers than you do. You fear them, but you do not fear them enough, yet.'"
While this is certainly one of the most exciting angsty prospects of Aragorn's past, it is not the only one. For just a few chapters later, Aragorn is vehemently opposed to going into Moria. All he says on why, though, is:
'I too once passed the Dimrill Gate,' said Aragorn quietly; 'but though I also came out again, the memory is very evil. I do not wish to enter Moria a second time.'
I am certainly not the only Aragorn fan who has wondered what evils he encountered there- the prospect for angst is very great, to say the least.
If you are into the more emotional angst, FOTR is wonderful in providing content there, too. In Lorien, after Gandalf's fall, Aragorn long ponders where he should go. Unlike the films, you may recall that Aragorn originally meant to go to Minas Tirith with Boromir and give his aid there. After he takes the leadership of the Fellowship, there are hints of struggle with himself and what decision he should make on his own path. It's fascinating to contemplate.
The Two Towers and ROTK are not bereft of their own hints of angst, either. Aragorn's sorrow over Boromir's death was evident in the text, but what about his sorrow over the fall of his kinsman Halbarad, who he embraced when they met in Rohan? What of his battle weariness after the battle of Helm's Deep (where he "turned and sped up the stair; but as he ran he stumbled in his weariness. At once his enemies leapt forward. Up came the Orcs, yelling, with their long arms stretched out to seise him. The foremost fell with Legolas' last arrow in his throat, but the rest sprang over him." He escaped the peril, obviously, but nonetheless peril he did experience), and, of course, the battle of Pelennor and the Black Gate. Tolkien says nothing about weariness in those two battles (indeed, Aragorn is 'unscathed after the battle of Pelennor), but there is still much left to the imagination.
There is also, again, emotional angst and physical exhaustion. What of the toll healing Eowyn, Faramir, Merry, and a good half of Minas Tirith took on him? What of the exhaustion he felt after fighting the battle at the Black Gate and then immediately spending all of his time healing Frodo, Sam, and Pippin? And was there any effect on him after gaining the palantir from Sauron's grasp, beyond the grey pallor right after the event? What of his pining for Arwen, and the terrible knowledge that he may never be with his true love? There is much to explore in the books when it comes to Aragorn and what the poor man has to go through.
While Tolkien laid out the road map for Aragorn angst fans, Peter Jackson and Viggo Mortensen all but made it a permanent part of fandom. While scenes such as the ones in Tolkien's written Helm's Deep were left to our imagination, with the films we could see the action clearly- and, seeing how large this group of people are, quite a few fan fiction writers enjoyed what PJ and Viggo did with Aragorn's character.
The Fellowship of the Ring has a countless amount of action for the character, and the number of times he nearly dies is almost laughable. Such is war, of course, but this man goes through more trouble in battle than all of the characters.
Take, for instance, the battle at Weathertop. First off, he's fighting the flipping Nazgul. He nearly gets himself stabbed 2 or so times, and that is only what the camera shows us.
The scene when Arwen comes in holding a sword to Aragorn's throat doesn't help matters whatsoever.
Moria, however, is when the action really starts to get good.
Click to viewThe whole battle is excellent to watch, and this is the EE version- and people, do you realize how hard he hit that wall?! That concussion would have hurt like no other, and concussed he very well would have been! He's lucky that he was lucid enough to survive with Frodo on the broken staircase, especially since part of it collapses under him. I'm surprised he didn't trip when running on the bridge.
Speaking of the bridge...
Go to 1:24 and just *look* at that expression. Complete and utter devastation. Keep watching, though, and count with me how many times he's shot at. I count about 10 arrows (including one he *ducks* to avoid), and you cannot help but wonder if this man is a flipping god. Someone normal surely would not have avoided all of those projections. Especially when suffering from a concussion.
Lothlorien healers had a lot of stuff to deal with, that's for sure.
Amon Hen is a whole different ball game.
Another one worth watching the whole way. Aragorn, man, Aragorn, he gets himself nearly killed *how* many times? Legolas saves him a couple times (the one where he and an Uruk are struggling in the background is always interesting to watch) and Gimli, too, parries a blow meant for Aragorn. He also misses quite a few shots of death in his one on one with the Uruk-hai Leader (Lurtz). I mean, man, this guy is invicible! No wonder fangirls love it.
You would think that there was no way PJ and Viggo could up the angst factor in TTT and ROTK, but they do. In TTT there is the infamous warg battle (I mean, he goes off a flipping cliff- you can't get better than that) and, of course, the famous Helm's Deep battle. He's blown off a flipping wall, jumps on a ladder and then falls *with* it, nearly gets himself killed when he defends the front gate with Gimli... the guy never stops! In ROTK there is, of course, the whole emotional angst with the Palantir, Arwen, and his worry for Frodo and Sam- more than there was in TTT. And while there is the battle of Pelennor Fields, there is something more heart-pounding than that in ROTK.
I speak, of course, of the Battle at the Black Gate. It was this scene that I watched almost five years ago that made me realize that I like seeing Aragorn kick butt and I like seeing his own body used as a punching bag. I liked angst.
The Battle of the Black Gate uncut (as in, no Frodo and Sam alternate scenes). This is probably my favorite Aragorn outfit. The look when he says "For Frodo" is so heart breaking... it's like he knows that he is likely going to die.
And then the troll fight. Oh, that troll fight. Starts at around 4:15 in this video. I mean, he's battling a freaking troll (which is better than Sauron, the original concept). He gets whacked a decent 15 feet by said troll (and likely ends up with another concussion). And amg, when he's knocked back on the ground- ouch!
I cannot say for sure why I like Aragorn angst. I know when it started (I can't believe it's been almost 5 years). But these are, at least, the roots of where it is in the books and the films that gives me the drive- and, of course, shows that this part of fandom is COMPLETELY CANONICAL and supported by the TEXT AND THE FILMS.
*cough*
This was a fun post.