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Originally Posted by davem
Tolkien didn't 'invent' Faramir - anymore than he 'invented' himself. He had something to say, experiences & realisations to communicate, & in Faramir he discovered a 'spokesman', wandering in the woods of Ithilien...
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It is entirely possible that Faramir represents something of Tolkien's own personality, and maybe he was aware of the similarities. By saying that he did not know who Faramir was or where he had come from, Tolkien may have been attempting to add an air of mystery about the origins of the character. Yet there is also much of Tolkien in other characters such as Bilbo, so it would be a mistake to think Faramir is the only one. Maybe he represents Tolkien's 'depths' while a character such as Bilbo simply shows similar behaviour - if that makes sense!
One question has occurred to me, and that is whether Faramir is the only example of a Gondorian who is like this? The other prominent Gondorians, Denethor and Boromir, we know to be different in their outlook, though in his own way, Boromir is also something of a dreamer. We do not really see enough of Imrahil to discern if he is like this, and Aragorn does not seem to pontificate on the nature of war. If Faramir
is the only example of such a Gondorian then how far could it be said that his yearnings/thoughts are in any way typical?
Faramir does have an opposite force, and that is Eowyn, who is seemingly different in every way; together they make a 'whole' and complement one another perfectly, and it could be argued that Faramir and Eowyn are anima/animus figures, an argument I shall leave to greater experts on Jung
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