Dwarves - what is Tolkien's attitude? - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Lobelia · 05-06-2004, 09:12 PM

After reading a whole lot of Tolkien - not all of his work, admittedly -I am beginning to wonder what his attitude really was to Dwarves? There's something touching about the description of their initial creation by Aule, but in general, the stories of earlier ages present them as a generally unpleasant bunch - greedy, liable to curse jewels, working with the bad guys. In The Hobbit, they're likable enough, and perhaps more "human" if you'll pardon the term, in that you can understand individual motivations. But Tolkien stresses that, as Dwarves, they are, after all, limited by their negative traits, not something they can help, poor things. He seems amused as he says it. Then we have LOTR, where they are brave - gutsy - and able to love beauty of all kinds, and Gimli is unaffected by gold, the traditional downfall of Dwarves. They fight for the good guys and resist Sauron's messenger.

So, what does he think of them, really? Any opinions? I am fond of this race as Tolkien presents them in LOTR, and I'd like to think he was, too.

05-06-2004, 09:12 PM	#1
Lobelia Wight Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Australia Posts: 150	Dwarves - what is Tolkien's attitude? After reading a whole lot of Tolkien - not all of his work, admittedly -I am beginning to wonder what his attitude really was to Dwarves? There's something touching about the description of their initial creation by Aule, but in general, the stories of earlier ages present them as a generally unpleasant bunch - greedy, liable to curse jewels, working with the bad guys. In The Hobbit, they're likable enough, and perhaps more "human" if you'll pardon the term, in that you can understand individual motivations. But Tolkien stresses that, as Dwarves, they are, after all, limited by their negative traits, not something they can help, poor things. He seems amused as he says it. Then we have LOTR, where they are brave - gutsy - and able to love beauty of all kinds, and Gimli is unaffected by gold, the traditional downfall of Dwarves. They fight for the good guys and resist Sauron's messenger. So, what does he think of them, really? Any opinions? I am fond of this race as Tolkien presents them in LOTR, and I'd like to think he was, too.