AgProv
"In Ohlmarks' translation, Merry killed the Witch-King, not Éowyn."
But Merry did kill the Witch-King? Only he had the weapon that was capable of doing that. Éowyn stabbed him after Merry had delivered the fatal blow from behind with the enchanted Barrow-blade: bravery, yes, but it would have been ineffectual without a hobbit an an Elf-forged sword capable of hitting the witch-king.
Male, early sixties, Cranky old fart, at least two decades behind. So you have been warned. Functionally illiterate in several languages. Hide / Show Replies
No, in Tolkien's text Éowyn killed the Witch-King. Merry was able to (crucially) assist her because he had a Barrow-blade (forged by the dunedain, not the elves). The Barrow-blades weren't the *only* weapons capable of hitting or wounding the Witch-king, they were simply made to be better at it. (Tolkien's description of the powers and abilities of the Nazgul is a bit ambiguous, though.)
Bully in the Alley
This page reads like a TOW article. Shouldn't we just put a trope list that includes "Blind Idiot" Translation, instead of this boring torrent of details?
"The only way to truly waste an idea is to shove it where it doesn't belong." Hide / Show Replies
(disclosure: I'm the original author of the article.)
The content of this article is probably more interesting to Swedish Lot R fans in my generation than to most of the rest of humanity. Still, I can't really see how cutting out the main part of it and substituting a list of one trope is going to make it less boring.
This article seems more like a rant over a bad translation. I am not sure if we ought to have this article at all.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
(Still the original author)
Well, yes. The article is justified if and only if editorial policy allows articles with a limited audience.
Again, most of those who were subjected to this particular translation will most likely enjoy this article. I realize that this accounts for a very small percentage of the world's population.
While I did try to write a worthwhile article, I sort of put this one up under the radar. I've already saved it from deletion once by making puppy eyes (and urging my countrymen to stop heaping ridicule onto poor Ohlmarks), and maybe in the long run it's inevitable that it will have to go.
You should of course do what you find most reasonable, but if you believe that a Swede, whiling away the long winter nights by surfing the seedier parts of the web, deserves a brief chuckle of recognition if they happen to pass through, then you will let this little article live a bit longer.
I wrote an answer on Quora (https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-myths-about-Lord-of-the-Rings-youve-always-believed/answer/Peter-Lewerin)
that touches on this. After writing that answer, I'm tempted to finally re-write and improve this article a bit. No one should hold their breaths, as I'm still very weak, but I'd like for it to happen not too far in the future.