Monday, 9/15 Recap

 Wow! What an incredible group we have this semester. We had some great discussions today about The Silmarillion centering around the creation of Arda and some of Tolkien’s intriguing characters. There was so much to talk about, and there’s still so much to cover! 

We learned a bit about the first war, Melkor fleeing, and his hatred for Tulkas. 

We also talked the creation of the lamps Iluin and Ormal. Then we learned about the trees Telperion and Laurelin. After we touched on Aulë and his love for his dearly created dwarves. Of course, we all know that Yavanna was not particularly pleased with this - the dwarves, she feared, were going to wreck all of the pretty things of nature she made! Then we circled back to Melkor, who was (finally) captured by Tulkas. We'll talk about this more next class.

We only got through a few chapters today, and there’s still more to go. Don’t you wish that class time worked how time did in Middle-earth so that our one hour and fifteen minutes was closer to seven? Just me? With all the details Tolkien sneaks into The Silmarillion, an extended, Middle-earth style hour, may seem like the only way to get through every little bit of the text. 

That being said, remember, it’s okay if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed right now. This is a big text to get through and is written in a style that may not be as comfortable or familiar to some of us. Getting through this story is a process. That’s why we’re going to continue to work together as a class in our deep dive.

Lastly, a special shout out for our students who shared their character bios today! We heard from Melkor, an Orc, a Balgrog, and an Eldar Elf. 

Check each of these posts out. It’s worth the read!

Melkor: https://melkormorgothmighty.blogspot.com/

Orc: https://matthewlotr.blogspot.com/2025/09/orc-character-bio.html

Balrog: https://honorscollegecourse111.blogspot.com/2025/09/what-it-means-to-be-balrog.html#more

Eldar Elf: https://takingontolkien.blogspot.com/2025/09/eldar-elves-elves-of-three-kindreds.html

Every one of you did a fantastic job researching and developing your characters. I wish that there had been enough time to read every single one in class today. So make sure to check out your peers’ posts on your own to learn a bit more about the characters. These are all listed on this blog under the “Links to Blogs” section. 

I loved hearing your insights, questions, and connections about the text so far.  There were some fantastic points that were brought up today, and I can’t wait to see the ideas unfold as time goes on.