Annoying Amateurs

[Isowen]

I totally agree, I know quite a bit about lotr and nobody I know really likes it as much as I do. If I talk about lotr and somebody gets something wrong, I tend to scream at them at the top of my voice. Also, none of my friends have even heard of Old man willow or Bill Ferny! some dont even know what Gollum's name was once! I just have to say that even though i dont have many posts (because im a newbie ) I am apalled at the lack of Tolkien knowledge where I live and what's worse is that some of them pretend they know everything and really, they don't. Somebody once asked me "since when was Iluvatar in lotr?"

[Encaitare]

What was extremely interesting, though, is that LotR fans pop up in odd places: ie, my Music Theory teacher/Marching band conductor, Mr. Giannotti, or fondly, simply G. The band was playing at the graduation ceremony this past June and they were reading an uber-long list of names and we were all insanely bored, G included. Suddenly they read out this one kid's name, and his last name sounded like Smeagol! Suddenly our (meaning me, three of my friends, and G) ears all perked up and G went, "What? Smeagol?" It was exciting... okay, not really. I guess you had to be there

[Sapphire_Flame]

Encaitare, where in the name of high school football did you find that Sue writer?! I feel so pointedly annoyed all of a sudden. *gr*

Happily, I knew the answers to the questions you presented, although I almost spaced on Gildor (the fact that you said Frodo, Sam, Pippin, *and* Merry may have thrown me off...). I can't believe how badly she did! She must have read the books with her eyes closed...

I may have to borrow that list as my "Offical Amateur Test", just to see if people have actually read the books, or have even the slightest clue as to what they're talking about.

Oh, before they got to Bree, the hobbits also ran into the Barrow-wights. ^ ^

Abedithon le,

~ Saphy ~

[Encaitare]

Please do use it as an Official Amateur Test, and thus we may determine within moments who knows "lotr cannon" and who doesn't. I found her while browsing fanfiction.net, and was immediately so enraged by her lack of skill at anything that I felt compelled to send it to all my friends to bash. A lot of people reported her because of her blatant errors and general lousiness and the admins took it down and I believe suspended her account as well ::cackles with no remorse whatsoever::

I'm sure there are more bad bad bad writers like her but I haven't checked out ff.net recently.

And they most certainly did meet the Barrow-wight, although if the creator of the list had presented the fool writer (whose name was, incidentally, iloveleggy -- gee, what does that tell you?) with FOUR non-movie characters (Tom, Golderry, Gildor, and the Wight), I think her brain would have exploded from all the canon.

[Neferchoirwen]

What I also find annoying is all the behind-the-scene stories that are better left with the dvds.

Although making the movie is very memorable and fun to talk about, it just seems idiotic to talk about them and consider it "Tolkien talk." It just doesn't make sense to me.

However, I just hope that these "fans" (a misnomer, no doubt) would not remain "unread" and therefore relatively ignorant fans.

I feel sorry for the buggers.

[Lyta_Underhill]

I have been looking for a copy of the Tom Bombadil book for ages but havent found one, and bombadil is my favourite character. is it worth tracking down or should i wait for a copy to find me.

If you're referring to "The Adventures of Tom Bombadil," this is contained in The Tolkien Reader, which I bought from Half.com . It is also available on Amazon.com and sometimes on Ebay.com . I bought one for 99 cents plus shipping. The books I'm waiting on are the HoME series books. Having devastated my credit card for a million reasons, most of them being the replacement of tires in this area of VERY rough roads, I haven't bought any new books in a while.

They ask me questions about things not fully explained in the movie, so I tell them: read the book. But do they listen? Noooo.

Perhaps you should show them a portion of the movie and then read them the corresponding quote from the book from behind a makeshift lectern...well, I suppose everyone has his or her own style! Or perhaps tell them to go into the middle of the woods and lean against a tree and read...no distractions but the odd bird-dropping--heh heh!

My own conclusion is that those who were meant to come to the books will do so in their own time. It took me many years to finally crack the books, even though I had them in my library for a long time. The Hobbit is always a good "way in!"

Cheers!
Lyta

[Orcrist]

I have some amateurs at my school. Some of them only know LOTR from the videogames. There is one kid who has read the books but he doesn't really like to discuss(he's too cool ) I do have a friend who does like to discuss them but we don't do it very often. I have a cousin who loves Viggo Mortensen so I told her that he gets stepped on by a troll and dies in RotK. She was literally crying

[Pyroclastic]

I allways have a good laugh over the people who make it all the way through the books, then complain about the return to the shire being 'pointless'. Yup, very pointless indeed; they only destroyed Saruman, Wormtounge, and inspired the timid Hobbit cluture to stand up for themselves. True LOTR fans are so hard to come by. That what makes The Downs so awsome! Three cheers for us!
~Pyro~

[Novberaid]

Yes, it is always easier to watch a movie than to put some time, effort and maybe a little research into finding out what JRR really wanted to reflect. I love the movies too, but there is so much more to be found.

[Fordim Hedgethistle]

Got the ultimate A.A.

I said to somebody who was saying how good the movies were that they should read the book. This person said, and I quote:

"I hate reading the book-versions of movies. The people they hire to turn the movies into the books never get it right."

[Kitanna]

That's horrible, but a friend of mine thought the same thing. I was telling her how things in the book were different and she goes "Oh I thought the book was based off the movie." I just laughed because she isn't really into LOTR, but it was still funny.

[Knight of Gondor]

Some are annoying, yes, but nowhere near as annoying as those who know bloody everything and righteously stick it in your face, whether you asked them to or not.

Perhaps you should start a thread about annoying experts.

Myself being the most dedicated (two years and counting!) of nerds, naturally.

I first read the books when I heard rumors of the movie, and I’ve been devoted ever since.

I second that, Gil-Galad...

I met a good "amateur" today. She enjoys the movies (Frodo fancier) and she's in the middle of reading TTT. She's looking for The Silmarillion at the library. I said I'd help her read it (tough book, y'know, and I don't know that she'll like it), and guide her to sites like this. I'm so excited! I hope that she falls in love with it like I have. Then I'll have someone to talk to who I can see... I love the good newbies!

“Newbies” like that are good! They’re not annoying. We were all newbies once upon a time.

And I am betting that I will always be an amateur just because I don't have the amazing ability to read through many of Tolkien's works once and instantly know everything about it (And also I get confused while reading The Book of Lost Tales, and have recently been too cheap to go out and buy Unfinished Tales).

Don’t worry, Gorwingel! I got a little bogged down in Lost Tales 1 and 2 too! I’m only now working through UT, but I like most the stories about Númenor and Gondor and Rohan and Arnor. All those Noldor and Atari and Atani and older Elven kingdoms, while still pretty cool (as in, the stories of Tuor and Beren etc.) are so ancient, and one can get lost between all the Elven kingdoms and kings and people. I think the story of Turin is one of the saddest and unhappy tales, I don’t know what foul mood brought Tolkien to write it. But what I mean is, I prefer some of the newer stories and got a little lost myself in the older. (“Newer” and “older” meaning in terms of Middle-Earth years) If you can make it through the Silmarillion, or the Appendices if RotK, you’re probably doing good.

Although amateurs can be annoying it is funny to make them belive one of the characters dies.

*Chuckles* Yes, it is, isn’t it?

Now a few days ago he was talking to his friends and they believed that Celeborn had one of the three rings.

Even the two friends he was talking to evidently had some surface knowledge, beyond that of your average movie-goer. If you told them about Celeborn, they’d probably go “who?”

You know, there was a time not too long ago when I would have fallen into the "amatures" bin. Specifically, when I saw FotR for the first time.

Of course, we already discussed this to some extent in What Does it Take to be a Tolkien Expert, or something along those lines. No one blames anyone for being an “amateur” at all. The term is even open and subject to interpretation. What irritates us is people who pretend to know more than they do.

My parents are what you might call annoying. They care (a little) about LotR, if for no other reason than because my brother and sister love it so much. But we always have to stop and explain things for them, and repeat lines that they missed (my mom is always frustrated at Gandalf, because he really DOES mutter a whole lot, just barely able to make out his words, and she’s like “WHAT? What did he say?” and we have to repeat it), and then we have to explain and remind them of things. As in, “this guy is the guy whose brother got hit with all those arrows in the first movie. His father is the steward.” “So the steward is the king?” “No, he’s a steward, Gondor doesn’t have a king yet.” “And his son is this guy?” “Yeah, he’s the guy we saw before who meet Frodo and Sam.” “The brother with the arrows?” “Yes.”

Then there are things like “Why’s Gandalf riding out like that?” (When Mithrandir plunges forth from Minas Tirith to stave off the Nazgûl) “To frighten them off!” “Oh, with his magic wand?” “*SIGH*”. They miss a whole lot because they ask questions, then we have to remind them of things or tell them why something is going on. Mom didn’t see Théoden and Aragorn and co. riding to Edoras, so when they showed them making a toast, she was like “How’d they get there?” *Sigh* They’re fun, and it’s fun to watch a movie with someone who doesn’t know...it’s just not fun when we’re milked for all the details.

[Saraphim]

I think I fall into the "annoying experts" catagory. I have to keep reminding myself not to talk about Lord of the Rings in my daily life. It is...very hard. I get funny looks when I do because about 50 people (maybe) in Las Vegas are fans of the books. And half of them havn't done the Silmarillion and HoME.

So I have to ask my brother to beat me over the head with something blunt if I get started. ^_^

I have to agree. People just want to make themselves look good, and not just when you're talking about LOTR. I know a girl who is constantly talking about LOTR but she's never read the books. My friend and I were talking about Legolas and Haldir and she just butted in and stated that Legolas couldn't have talked to Haldir because they were different races. They're both Sindarin right? If she had read the books she would have known that Haldir recognized Legolas's tounge. It's in the chapter titled "Lothlorien"!

[Iaurhirwen]

I'm at a summer program for 5 weeks this summer and have already professed my love of LOTR. I'm simply waiting to see if any A-As show up and what will happen. Of course I'll be kind to them when i see them and graciously correct them if need be - - - - and then i'll come on here and rant.