Abstract
In the large pantheon of characters in The Lord of the Rings, Faramir stands out for his position of unbelonging, and is usually analyzed comparatively to other characters rather than in-depth in his own right. However, more focused considerations of Faramir can articulate the breadth of Tolkien’s influences that were incorporated into Middle-earth as well as the ways in which those influences conflicted with Tolkien's own moral compass, and thus needed to be openly challenged and modified. Those internal conflicts can be interrogated throughout Faramir’s contradictory positions within the literature, history, and societies that Middle-earth represents. His positioning in a liminal state, perpetually caught between several competing influences and ideas—between Old Norse and Christian literary conventions, between transgressing and conforming constructs of gender, and even between fantasy and reality—helps to clarify the roles of converging elements in Tolkien’s construction of Middle-earth. Faramir uniquely illuminates aspects of the larger story environment as a whole, reflecting the divergent pieces that cohabitate in Middle-earth and the breadth of analytical frameworks that can be applied to Tolkien’s storytelling.
Recommended Citation
Fuller-Shafer, Kelsey A.
(2023)
"Middle-earth’s Middleman: Exploring the Contradictory Positionalities of Faramir in J.R.R. Tolkien’s 'The Lord of the Rings',"
Journal of Tolkien Research: Vol. 18:
Iss.
2, Article 7.
Available at:
https://scholar.valpo.edu/journaloftolkienresearch/vol18/iss2/7