Lothlorien

Gimli proudly shared the beautiful reflecting pool known as Mirrormere with Frodo and Sam. 

Following the brief excursion, the Fellowship continued along their journey through the Elvish forest kingdom of Lothlorien, which is sometimes referred to as Lorien.

In his portrayal of Lothlorien, Tolkien describes the year-round visual beauty of its trees.

But Tolkien also explains the social setting of Lothlorien by examining the deep connection between its elvish residents to the forest where they live and their fear of the dangers that threaten them from the lands beyond their home. These passages give Lothlorien a distinct and vivid sense of place and time.

Legolas, a elf from a woodland kingdom in Mirkwood, spoke fondly of Lothlorien as the Fellowship neared the forest kingdom.

 

'There lie the woods of Lothlorien!' said Legolas. 'That is the fairest of all the dwellings of my people. There are no trees like the trees of that land. For in the autumn their leaves fall not, but turn to gold. Not till the spring comes and the new green opens do they fall, and then the boughs are laden with yellow flowers; and the floor of the wood is golden, and golden is the roof, and its pillars are of silver, for the bark of the trees is smooth and grey. So still our songs in Mirkwood say. My heart would be glad if I were beneath the eaves of that wood, and it were springtime!'

'My heart will be glad, even in the winter,' said Aragorn. 'But it lies many miles away. Let us hasten!' [The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Chapter 6]

 

Upon his arrival in Lothlorien, Frodo sensed the forest preserved the wonders of a time that had long since passed.

 

As soon as he set foot upon the far bank of Silverlode a strange feeling had come upon him, and it deepened as he walked on into the Naith: it seemed to him that he had stepped over a bridge of time into a corner of the Elder Days, and was now walking in a world that was no more.

In Rivendell there was memory of ancient things; in Lorien the ancient things still lived on in the waking world.

Evil had been seen and heard there, sorrow had been known; the Elves feared and distrusted the world outside; wolves were howling on the wood's borders; but on the land of Lorien no shadow lay. [The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Chapter 6]

 

Lady Galadriel wore an Elven Ring, which allowed her to ward off the decays of time and maintain the beauty of Lothlorien. Frodo and Sam, who had never seen the forest kingdom, were impressed by its beauty.

 

The others cast themselves down upon the fragrant grass, but Frodo stood awhile still lost in wonder. It seemed to him that he had stepped through a high window that looked on a vanished world. A light was upon it for which his language had no name.

All that he saw was shapely, but the shapes seemed at once clear cut, as if they had been first conceived and drawn at the uncovering of his eyes, and ancient as if they had endured forever. He saw no colour but those he knew, gold and white and blue and green, but they were fresh and poignant, as if he had at that moment first perceived them and made for them names new and wonderful.

In winter here no heart could mourn for summer or for spring. No blemish or sickness or deformity could be seen in anything that grew upon the earth. On the land of Lorien there was no stain.

He turned and saw that Sam was now standing beside him, looking round with a puzzled expression, and rubbing his eyes as if he was not sure that he was awake. 'It's sunlight and bright day, right enough,' he said. 'I thought that Elves were all for moon and stars: but this is more elvish than anything I ever heard tell of. I feel as if I was inside a song, if you take my meaning.' [The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Chapter 6]

 

Frodo came to love the forest, which was prized by the elves who lived there.

 

As Frodo prepared to follow him, he laid his hand upon the tree beside the ladder: never before had he been so suddenly and so keenly aware of the feel and texture of a tree's skin and of the life within it. He felt a delight in wood and the touch of it, neither as forester nor as carpenter; it was the delight of the living tree itself. [The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Chapter 6]

 

Sam observed the elves of Lothlorien loved their forest home. The elves were part of the forest, and the forest was part of them.

 

‘I reckon there's Elves and Elves. They're all elvish enough, but they're not all the same. Now these folk aren't wanderers or homeless, and seem a bit nearer to the likes of us: they seem to belong here, more even than Hobbits do in the Shire. Whether they've made the land, or the land's made them, it's hard to say, if you take my meaning. It's wonderfully quiet here. Nothing seems to be going on, and nobody seems to want it to. If there's any magic about, it's right down deep, where I can't lay my hands on it, in a manner of speaking.' [The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Chapter 7]

 

The Fellowship would soon meet Lady Galadriel, who jointly ruled the Kingdom of Lothlorien with her husband, Lord Celeborn. I will discuss Lady Galadriel in my next analysis.