Tolkien has an interesting aside about Éowyn in the Letters (244): "[S]he was not herself ambitious in the true political sense. Though not a 'dry nurse' in temper, she was also not really a soldier or 'amazon', but like many brave women was capable of great military gallantry at a crisis".
It seems to me that Éowyn wants freedom, and an active life - and in her culture, that means being a Rider. Instead she gets to watch Theoden get sicker. Later, she wants death, rather than wanting battle. But when she doesn't die, and when real freedom is offered - she takes it. Gondor will open up a bigger world to Éowyn than Rohan ever could. I think she would find many projects upon which to lavish her considerable energy and talents, and I imagined the one in the drabble as only a small part. Gondor's population is about to explode. Perhaps we could think of her as Minister for Health. (Part of what I was getting at with the Florence Nightingale allusion: statistician and health reformer, rather than Angel of Scutari.)
ETA: I wrote: Gondor will open up a bigger world to Éowyn than Rohan ever could. I think she would find many projects upon which to lavish her considerable energy and talents
Actually, that was sort of what A Game of Chess was going to be about originally, Éowyn's adjustment to her new life, and then the shellshock came out of nowhere, and the story became about both of them adjusting to their new life.
I did have 'her' but changed it for 'she', because the word is so much stronger. Perhaps this was the nickname these men had for her. "She is coming to day! What did She have to say to you? Have you spoken to She about it?"
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momijizukamori
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Date: 2011-05-24 05:15 pm (UTC)It seems to me that Éowyn wants freedom, and an active life - and in her culture, that means being a Rider. Instead she gets to watch Theoden get sicker. Later, she wants death, rather than wanting battle. But when she doesn't die, and when real freedom is offered - she takes it. Gondor will open up a bigger world to Éowyn than Rohan ever could. I think she would find many projects upon which to lavish her considerable energy and talents, and I imagined the one in the drabble as only a small part. Gondor's population is about to explode. Perhaps we could think of her as Minister for Health. (Part of what I was getting at with the Florence Nightingale allusion: statistician and health reformer, rather than Angel of Scutari.)
ETA: I wrote: Gondor will open up a bigger world to Éowyn than Rohan ever could. I think she would find many projects upon which to lavish her considerable energy and talents
Actually, that was sort of what A Game of Chess was going to be about originally, Éowyn's adjustment to her new life, and then the shellshock came out of nowhere, and the story became about both of them adjusting to their new life.
I did have 'her' but changed it for 'she', because the word is so much stronger. Perhaps this was the nickname these men had for her. "She is coming to day! What did She have to say to you? Have you spoken to She about it?"