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Who do you think Tom Bombadil is?

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MorwenEdhelwen Aussie Tolkien freak from Sydney, Australia Since: Jul, 2012
Aussie Tolkien freak
#1: Apr 7th 2013 at 8:23:30 PM

So, it's almost certain that it's impossible to know who Tom Bombadil definitely is. But who does everyone think he is? I personally think he's a nature spirit.

The road goes ever on. -Tolkien
MorwenEdhelwen Aussie Tolkien freak from Sydney, Australia Since: Jul, 2012
Aussie Tolkien freak
#3: Apr 7th 2013 at 9:02:33 PM

Isn't he the guy who says "We'll leave the light on for you" in those Motel 6 ads?

Ha ha ha ha. grin

edited 7th Apr '13 9:03:03 PM by MorwenEdhelwen

The road goes ever on. -Tolkien
kalel94 Rascal King from Dragonstone Since: Feb, 2011
Rascal King
#4: Apr 7th 2013 at 9:27:04 PM

I think he's just a regular guy, maybe with some mystical experience, who's just not interested in the ring.

The last hurrah? Nah, I'd do it again.
MorwenEdhelwen Aussie Tolkien freak from Sydney, Australia Since: Jul, 2012
Aussie Tolkien freak
#5: Apr 7th 2013 at 9:40:39 PM

[up] Don't forget "sings instead of speaks".

The road goes ever on. -Tolkien
Yuanchosaan antic disposition from Australia Since: Jan, 2010
antic disposition
#6: Apr 8th 2013 at 2:59:49 AM

The Witch-King of Angmar.

"Doctor Who means never having to say you're kidding." - Bocaj
MorwenEdhelwen Aussie Tolkien freak from Sydney, Australia Since: Jul, 2012
Aussie Tolkien freak
#7: Apr 8th 2013 at 4:39:45 AM

That theory makes a crazy sort of sense.

The road goes ever on. -Tolkien
3of4 Just a harmless giant from a foreign land. from Five Seconds in the Future. Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: GAR for Archer
Just a harmless giant from a foreign land.
#8: Apr 8th 2013 at 7:43:43 AM

Q.

"You can reply to this Message!"
ArsThaumaturgis Since: Nov, 2011 Relationship Status: I've been dreaming of True Love's Kiss
#9: Apr 8th 2013 at 7:55:47 AM

Perhaps the genius loci of that particular region.

As I recall it, his power is limited to his little domain, and his tendency to sing, and especially his exertion of power through singing ("his songs are stronger songs", if I recall correctly) might reflect the hand of the Music of the Ainur in the creation of Arda.

His immunity to the Ring's draw might be because power over others isn't the sort of thing that "nature" would be likely to be interested in at all, and his ability to see people made invisible by the ring might be a result of him existing, as nature presumably does, in both worlds.

It also seems to me to fit fairly well with his being married to the daughter of a river spirit (given her name and parentage, I imagine that Goldberry is a spirit related to or personifying some plant that grows near or in the water).

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3of4 Just a harmless giant from a foreign land. from Five Seconds in the Future. Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: GAR for Archer
Just a harmless giant from a foreign land.
#10: Apr 8th 2013 at 8:06:38 AM

Genius Locus?

wild mass guessBombadil is the local version of Demonreach. His charge is to imprison Melkor wild mass guess

"You can reply to this Message!"
ArsThaumaturgis Since: Nov, 2011 Relationship Status: I've been dreaming of True Love's Kiss
#11: Apr 8th 2013 at 8:42:30 AM

Argh, you're right, it should be genius locus (genius loci being the plural), I believe. >_<;

Thank you for the correction!

edited 8th Apr '13 8:42:52 AM by ArsThaumaturgis

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Carciofus Is that cake frosting? from Alpha Tucanae I Since: May, 2010
Is that cake frosting?
#12: Apr 8th 2013 at 9:30:41 AM

Tom Bombadil is Melian, who never went to Valinor, had her power severely diminished, and uses her magic to change her gender.

Goldberry, on the other hand, is Ar-Pharazon the Golden wild mass guess

edited 8th Apr '13 9:32:42 AM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.
Benluke Some guy. from United States Since: Jun, 2012
Some guy.
#13: Apr 8th 2013 at 10:11:45 AM

A merry fellow with a bright blue jacket and who's boots are yellow.

MorwenEdhelwen Aussie Tolkien freak from Sydney, Australia Since: Jul, 2012
Aussie Tolkien freak
#14: Apr 8th 2013 at 3:32:30 PM

@ Ars Thaumaturgis: I seem to remember that Tom's domain was once really huge...

@caricofus: Why would Melian want a sex change? grin

edited 8th Apr '13 3:42:57 PM by MorwenEdhelwen

The road goes ever on. -Tolkien
Madrugada Since: Jan, 2001
#15: Apr 8th 2013 at 3:37:29 PM

Genius Loci is the singular. There's a lovely hottip on that page explaining the various plurals, depending on whether there are plural spirits in one place, one spirit in plural places, or plural spirits in plural places:

Which means the plural is designed to break your mind. For more than one mind of a single place, Genii Loci; for a single mind that covers more than one place, Genius Locorum; for multiple minds, each with its own place, Genii Locorum. Latin is dead because someone took it out and shot it.

ArsThaumaturgis Since: Nov, 2011 Relationship Status: I've been dreaming of True Love's Kiss
#16: Apr 8th 2013 at 5:24:31 PM

Ah, thank you very much for the clarification, Madrugada!

Well, at least I was right the first time, it seems. :P

(And I love that last quip about Latin in the quote! XD)

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Lightflame Stick of the Fallen from where you can't find me Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: Drowning in your pond, hoping you'll notice me
Stick of the Fallen
#17: Apr 8th 2013 at 6:13:23 PM

Either some random stoner or Voldemort's past self.

"Oh great! Let's pile up all the useless cats and hope a tree falls on them!"
Moth13 Since: Sep, 2010
#18: Apr 8th 2013 at 6:22:52 PM

He is the revelation! The Tiger-Force at the core of all things! When you cry out in your dreams it is Bombadil that you see!

Carciofus Is that cake frosting? from Alpha Tucanae I Since: May, 2010
Is that cake frosting?
#19: Apr 8th 2013 at 8:11:08 PM

caricofus: Why would Melian want a sex change?
Let's recap:

  • Her husband bet her daughter with a mortal over a rock.
  • Her daughter stole said rock from a dark lord, eloped with said mortal, became mortal herself, and died.
  • Her husband got murdered by dwarves over a necklace containing said rock.
  • Her grandson and her grandaughter-in-law got murdered by the sons of the creator of that rock, again because of it.
  • Of her three great-grandsons, two disappeared (almost certainly brutally murdered, again because of that !$%& rock), and the remaining one eloped with a mortal, went to the West with that rock, and became a bird.
  • Her great-grandson-in-law finally convinced the Vala to take care of that "dark lord ruling Middle Earth with an iron fist" issue. They came, had a rousing victory, and returned to the west together with the sons of Feanor and many other elves. The rock was put in a boat that her great-grandson-in-law flew against a dragon.

What I mean is that Melian might have felt inclined to have a fresh start, and not at all inclined to return to the West together with the Vala and with her family's murderers. Shapeshifting is not a problem for a Maia; so she took a different form, moved from Doriath to Eriador, and started protecting a small patch of it like she used to protect her kingdom. (S)he still has power, but not as much as she used to have, and now (s)he mostly relies on song-based magic (like her daughter used to do).

edited 8th Apr '13 8:16:09 PM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.
Jhimmibhob Since: Dec, 2010
#20: Apr 9th 2013 at 10:59:53 AM

Tom is Manwë and Melkor's irresponsible, unemployable, weed-smoking kid brother. He spent the music of the Ainur playing air guitar, and has been meaning to start composing a rock opera since before the Two Trees (spoiler: he won't). Goldberry is actually a 19-year-old runaway from Bree—early in the Fourth Age she went back home, had a family, and encouraged her kids to call her by her first name.

MorwenEdhelwen Aussie Tolkien freak from Sydney, Australia Since: Jul, 2012
Aussie Tolkien freak
#21: Apr 10th 2013 at 2:47:28 AM

@Carciofus: You know, that sort of makes sense.

The road goes ever on. -Tolkien
Carciofus Is that cake frosting? from Alpha Tucanae I Since: May, 2010
Is that cake frosting?
#22: Apr 10th 2013 at 4:04:04 AM

Well, sort of. It is really crackpotty; but I like very much the character of Melian, and it feels strange to me that she just abandoned Middle Earth for Valinor — the very reason why she met Thingol was that she loved the forests of Middle-Earth, after all, and she spent most of the First Age protecting the Doriath against Melkor.

Plus, the Old Forest is one of the oldest forests left in Middle Earth, so perhaps she might be especially interested in protecting it; and she was easily powerful enough to resist the Ring (judging by the Silmarillion, I would say that she was at least Sauron's equal, and quite possibly more powerful than him — her daughter had no particular difficulty defeating him, after all), and being a Maiar she could reasonably be said to be "oldest and fatherless".

But Goldberry being Ar-Pharazon is unrealistic, I have to admit. Perhaps Goldberry is Thingol, who respawned in Valinor, stowed away on the Istari's ship, and joined Melian in her masquerade? tongue

edited 10th Apr '13 4:07:35 AM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.
MorwenEdhelwen Aussie Tolkien freak from Sydney, Australia Since: Jul, 2012
Aussie Tolkien freak
#23: Apr 10th 2013 at 4:15:23 AM

@Carciofus: But then how do you explain the whole River-daughter thing?

The road goes ever on. -Tolkien
Carciofus Is that cake frosting? from Alpha Tucanae I Since: May, 2010
Is that cake frosting?
#24: Apr 10th 2013 at 4:30:41 AM

I don't remember for sure; but wasn't Thingol one of the first elves to awake in Cuiviénen and to dwell by the rivers of that region? So in a sense, he was a "river-son" of sorts...

EDIT: For a less silly theory, I think that Bombadil = Aule, Goldberry = Yavanna works very well.

edited 10th Apr '13 4:47:19 AM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.
JohnPotts Since: Sep, 2012
#25: Apr 10th 2013 at 2:41:59 PM

He's clearly a (senile) Eru, chilling it out in Middle Earth, toking on the weed and banging some hot chick. What up, dude!


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