9. This Flash, This Sublime Thing. - a podcast by Ned, Oriana, and Jared @ Megaphonic.fm

Jared, Oriana and Ned discuss Jared’s choice of topic: magic. It may seem strange given that one of Tolkien’s most central and indelible characters, Gandalf, is a wizard, but magic plays a more understated role in Middle-earth than it might seem on first blush. Starting with the famed exchange between Galadriel, Frodo and Sam about whether her mirror is magic—a question Galadriel seems not to understand—we consider magic’s role as an at once strong and yet sublimated element throughout Tolkien’s Middle-earth work. What does it mean that Gandalf often seems reluctant to do anything magical to start with? Is magic something intrinsic to certain characters, things and places, or is it a matter of craft and study? How does Tolkien’s use of magic differ or resemble magic as portrayed in other fantasy authors’ work? Does the off-hand mention of Queen Berúthiel in The Lord of the Rings contain a larger clue to how widespread magic itself might be? And which of us confessed to trying to use Gandalf’s fire-creating spell on the slopes of Caradhras to set sticks on fire in their backyard when they were 12 years old?

Further episodes of By-The-Bywater: A Tolkien Podcast

Further podcasts by Ned, Oriana, and Jared @ Megaphonic.fm

Website of Ned, Oriana, and Jared @ Megaphonic.fm