[Lord of Angmar]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>But why is Arwen at Helm's Deep so much worse than Haldir at Helm's Deep? Is it worse because she's a girl? And why is making her nearly go to Valinor and then getting sick "a better way of doing it"?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>I really hope you are not accusing me of being sexist. No, it is not because Arwen is a girl. It is because Arwen's character is much more vital to the plot and much more subtely drawn than Haldir's, and changing the plot to have her fighting alongside Aragorn at Helm's Deep is simply too much of a stretch and would detract too greatly from the mysteriousness of their relationship (in my opinion).<P>I did not think having her almost go to Valinor would be a much better way of doing it, as a matter of fact. In all honesty, I think the best way to do it would have been to leave her like she was in the books. But I do think that the way in which her character interacted with Aragorn in <I>The Two Towers</I> (with short and poignant flashbacks) was the best way to bring across the nature of her relationship with Aragorn as Tolkien himself would have wanted it conveyed. <P>Please do not be so inconsiderate as to imply that I am in any way sexist, and if you do, at least do it over Private Messaging. It is the nature of Arwen's character in the books, not Arwen's gender, that makes me find Peter Jackson's use of her in the certain instances in the movies somewhat suspect. Rest assured that I would be equally upset if Cirdan or Elrond rode to the defence of Gondor or Rohan (although even these would be more credible than Arwen doing so for Helm's Deep, since Arwen is never described as having partaken in any battles).<P>-Angmar