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Ungoliant
Ungoliant () is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, described as an evil spirit in the form of a spider. Her name means "dark spider" in Sindarin. She is mentioned briefly in ''The Lord of the Rings'', and plays a supporting role in ''The Silmarillion'', enabling the Dark Lord Melkor to destroy the Two Trees of Valinor, darkening the world. Her origins are unclear, as Tolkien's writings do not explicitly reveal her nature, other than that she is from "before the world"; this may mean she is a Maia, an immortal spirit. Scholars have likened the story of Ungoliant and Melkor to John Milton's ''Paradise Lost'', where Sin conceives a child, Death, by Satan: Sin and Death are always hungry. There are limited parallels in Norse myth: while there are female giants, they are not usually spiders, though the Devil appears as a spider in an early Icelandic tale, and a female giant in the ''Prose Edda'' is named Nott ("Night"), she and her brood dwelling in and person ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Two Trees Of Valinor
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the Two Trees of Valinor are Telperion and Laurelin, the Silver Tree and the Gold Tree, which brought light to Valinor, a paradisiacal realm also known as the Undying Lands where angelic beings lived. The Two Trees were apparently of enormous stature, and exuded dew that was a pure and magical light in liquid form. They were destroyed by the evil beings Ungoliant and Melkor, but their last flower and fruit were made into the Moon and the Sun. Commentators have seen mythic and Christian symbolism in the Two Trees; they have been called the most important symbols in the entire legendarium. Creation and destruction The first sources of light for all of Tolkien's imaginary world, Arda, were two enormous Lamps on the central continent, Middle-earth: Illuin, the silver one to the north, and Ormal, the golden one to the south. They had been created by the Valar, powerful spirit beings, but were cast down and destroyed by the Dark Lord Melkor., ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silmaril
The Silmarils (Quenya in-universe ''pl''. ''Silmarilli'', ''radiance of pure light''J. R. R. Tolkien, Tolkien, J. R. R., "Addenda and Corrigenda to the Etymologies — Part Two" (edited by Carl F. Hostetter and Patrick H. Wynne), in ''Vinyar Tengwar'', 46, July 2004, p. 11) are three fictional brilliant jewels in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. They were made by the elf Fëanor, capturing the unmarred light of the Two Trees of Valinor. The Silmarils play a central role in J. R. R. Tolkien, Tolkien's book ''The Silmarillion'', which tells of the creation of Eä (the universe) and the beginning of Elves (Middle-Earth), Elves, Dwarf (Middle-earth), Dwarves and Men. Tolkien, a philologist, derived the idea of Silmarils, jewels that actually contained light, from the Old English word ''Siġelwara''; he concluded that ''Siġel'' meant both ''sun'' and ''jewel''. Scholars have described the Silmarils as embodying elvish pride in their own creation, or a Biblical desire for Tree of knowle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Silmarillion
''The Silmarillion'' () is a collection of myths and stories in varying styles by the English writer J. R. R. Tolkien. It was edited and published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien in 1977, assisted by the fantasy author Guy Gavriel Kay. It tells of Eä, a fictional universe that includes the Blessed Realm of Valinor, the once-great region of Beleriand, the sunken island of Númenor, and the continent of Middle-earth, where Tolkien's most popular works—''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''—are set. After the success of ''The Hobbit'', Tolkien's publisher Stanley Unwin requested a sequel, and Tolkien offered a draft of the writings that would later become ''The Silmarillion''. Unwin rejected this proposal, calling the draft obscure and "too Celtic", so Tolkien began working on a new story that eventually became ''The Lord of the Rings''. ''The Silmarillion'' has five parts. The first, ''Ainulindalë'', tells in mythic style of the creation of Eä, the "worl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beleriand
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional legendarium, Beleriand was a region in northwestern Middle-earth during the First Age. Events in Beleriand are described chiefly in his work ''The Silmarillion'', which tells the story of the early ages of Middle-earth in a style similar to the epic hero tales of Nordic literature. Beleriand also appears in the works ''The Book of Lost Tales'', ''The Children of Húrin'',''The Guardian'', Book Review, John Crace, ''The Children of Húrin'' by JRR Tolkien, 4 April 2007. and in the epic poems of ''The Lays of Beleriand''. Fictional history At the end of the First Age of Middle-earth, Beleriand was broken in the War of Wrath by the angelic beings, the Maiar, against the demonic Morgoth (a Vala fallen into evil). As the inhabitants of Beleriand, including masterless Orcs, beasts of Angband, Elves, Men and Dwarves, fled, much of Beleriand sank in the sea. Only a small section of East Beleriand remained, and was known thereafter as Lindon, in the N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Morgoth
Morgoth Bauglir (; originally Melkor ) is a character, one of the godlike Valar, from Tolkien's legendarium. He is the main antagonist of ''The Silmarillion'', ''The Children of Húrin'', ''Beren and Lúthien'' and ''The Fall of Gondolin''. Melkor was the most powerful of the Valar but turned to darkness and was renamed Morgoth, the definitive antagonist of Arda. All evil in the world of Middle-earth ultimately stems from him. One of the Maiar of Aulë betrayed his kind and became Morgoth's principal lieutenant and successor, Sauron. Melkor has been interpreted as analogous to Satan, once the greatest of all God's angels, Lucifer, but fallen through pride; he rebels against his creator. Scholars have likened Morgoth, too, to John Milton's fallen angel in ''Paradise Lost''. Tom Shippey has written that ''The Silmarillion'' maps the book of Genesis with its creation and its fall, even Melkor having begun with good intentions. Marjorie Burns has commented that Tolkien used the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Varda (Middle-earth)
The Valar (; singular Vala) are characters in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. They are "angelic powers" or "gods", #154 to Naomi Mitchison, September 1954 subordinate to the one God (Eru Ilúvatar). The Ainulindalë describes how those of the Ainur who chose to enter the World (Arda) to complete its material development after its form was determined by the Music of the Ainur are called the Valar, or "the Powers of the World". The Valaquenta indicates that the Elves generally reserved the term "Valar" for the mightiest of these, calling the others the Maiar. The Valar are mentioned briefly in ''The Lord of the Rings'' but were developed earlier in material published posthumously in ''The Silmarillion'', ''The History of Middle-earth'', and ''Unfinished Tales''. Scholars have noted that the Valar resemble angels in Christianity but that Tolkien presented them rather more like pagan gods. Their role in providing what the characters on Middle-earth experience as luck or providenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melkor
Morgoth Bauglir (; originally Melkor ) is a character, one of the godlike Valar, from Tolkien's legendarium. He is the main antagonist of ''The Silmarillion'', ''The Children of Húrin'', ''Beren and Lúthien'' and ''The Fall of Gondolin''. Melkor was the most powerful of the Valar but turned to darkness and was renamed Morgoth, the definitive antagonist of Arda. All evil in the world of Middle-earth ultimately stems from him. One of the Maiar of Aulë betrayed his kind and became Morgoth's principal lieutenant and successor, Sauron. Melkor has been interpreted as analogous to Satan, once the greatest of all God's angels, Lucifer, but fallen through pride; he rebels against his creator. Scholars have likened Morgoth, too, to John Milton's fallen angel in ''Paradise Lost''. Tom Shippey has written that ''The Silmarillion'' maps the book of Genesis with its creation and its fall, even Melkor having begun with good intentions. Marjorie Burns has commented that Tolkien used the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Balrog
A Balrog () is a powerful demonic monster in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. One first appeared in print in his high-fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings'', where the Fellowship of the Ring (characters), Fellowship of the Ring encounter a Balrog known as Durin's Bane in the Mines of Moria (Middle-earth), Moria. Balrogs appear also in Tolkien's ''The Silmarillion'' and other posthumously published books. Balrogs are tall and menacing beings who can shroud themselves in fire, darkness, and shadow. They are armed with fiery whips "of many thongs", and its early drafts speak frequently of the whips of fire. ''The Lays of Beleriand'' describe Morgoth's prisoners tortured by Balrogs with scourges; and the Balrog in Moria (''The Fellowship of the Ring'', "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm") is armed explicitly with a "whip of many thongs" or strands. and occasionally use long swords. In Tolkien's later conception, they could not be readily vanquished—a certain stature was required by the w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shelob
Shelob is a fictional demon in the form of a giant spider from J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings''. Her lair lies in Cirith Ungol ("the pass of the spider") leading into Mordor. The creature Gollum deliberately leads the Hobbit protagonist Frodo Baggins, Frodo there in hopes of recovering the One Ring by letting Shelob attack Frodo. The plan is foiled when Samwise Gamgee temporarily blinds Shelob with the Phial of Galadriel, and then severely wounds her with Frodo's Elvish sword, Sting (Middle-earth), Sting. Some scholars have stated that Shelob is in the literary tradition of female monsters. Others have interpreted her as symbolising a sexual threat, with multiple sexual allusions. Scholars have noted her opposition to the Elves, and in particular her adversary, Galadriel, whose light helps the hobbits to defeat her darkness. Shelob's appearance in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film series, film trilogy was based on the Porrhothele antipodiana, New Zealand t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fëanor
Fëanor () is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Silmarillion''. He was the eldest son of Finwë, the King of the Noldor, and his first wife Míriel. As a great loremaster and creator, he improved the Sarati alphabet, inventing Tengwar text, and creates the three Silmarils, the skilfully-forged jewels that give the book their name and theme. Palantir and the Feanorian Lamps are also his creations. Fëanor's Silmarils form a central theme of ''The Silmarillion'' as the human and elvish characters battle with the forces of evil for their possession. After the Dark Lord Morgoth steals the Silmarils and kills Finwe, Fëanor's father, Fëanor and his seven sons swear the Oath of Fëanor, vowing to fight anyone who withhold their Silmarils. Fëanor led the Noldors back to the Middle-earth, but died soon after his arrival. Later, his sons were united in the cause of defeating Morgoth and revenging their father. They lived on in relative harmony with the Eldar of Bel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maia (Tolkien)
The Maiar (singular: Maia) are a fictional class of beings from J. R. R. Tolkien's high fantasy legendarium. Supernatural and angelic, they are "lesser Ainur" who entered the cosmos of ''Eä'' in the beginning of time. The name ''Maiar'' is in the Quenya tongue (one of several languages constructed by Tolkien) from the Elvish root maya- "excellent, admirable". Tolkien, J. R. R., "Words, Phrases and Passages", ''Parma Eldalamberon'' 17, p. 174. Commentators have noted that since the Maiar are immortals but can choose to incarnate fully in Men's bodies on Middle-earth, they can be killed; Tolkien did not explain what happened to them then. Others have observed that their semi-divine nature and the fact that they can be sent on missions to work out the divine purpose makes them much like the angels of Christianity. Description Lesser Ainur Tolkien stated that "Maia is the name of the Kin of the Valar, but especially of those of lesser power than the 9 great rulers". In the Va ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nemesiidae
Nemesiidae, also known as funnel-web trapdoor spiders, is a family of mygalomorph spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1889, and raised to family status in 1985. Before becoming its own family, it was considered part of "Dipluridae". Description Nemesiidae are relatively large spiders with robust legs and a body that is nearly three times as long as it is wide. They are darkly colored, brown to black, though some have silvery hairs on their carapace. '' Atmetochilus'' females can grow over long. They live in burrows, often with a hinged trapdoor. This door is pushed up while the spider waits for passing prey. They rarely leave their burrows, catching prey and withdrawing as quickly as possible. Some of these burrows have a side tubes, but it is not certain whether ''Sinopesa'' builds burrows at all. Genera , the World Spider Catalog accepts the following genera: *'' Amblyocarenum'' Simon, 1892 *''Brachythele'' Ausserer, 1871 — Europe, Cyprus *''Calisoga'' Chamberli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
