Facial hair: who’s got, who doesn’t?
I thought that JRRT was pretty emphatic that the elves–and the Numenoreans–didn’t have (i.e., were incapable of growing) beards. Yet, as I re-read RotK, I was reminded again that Cirdan has a beard!
What’s up with that?
From my Tolkein Encyclopedia I remember that 2 of the 3 types of Hobbits are incapable of growing facial hair. The last type(I don’t remember the name, but they’re the river folk of which Smeagol was one) are taller than most hobbits and some of them can grow beards.
I cannot recall seeing anything specific from Tolkien about the description of elves (not even a mention of pointed ears)… The mention of Cirdan’s beard did throw me too, but I don’t think that contradicts anything else Tolkien wrote.
In his letters, Tolkien did occasionally remind people that “elf” is only a bad approximation for what he had in mind… I’ve not seen anything too specific… so maybe all of these descriptions come from what we’ve heard about elves in other work?
Hobbits were described in more detail. IIRC, they aren’t supposed to have much facial hair. Nothing really was said about dwarves (and the detail about dwarvish women having beards in the Peter Jackson movie, AFAIK, is strictly Dungeons and Dragons).
The bit about women having beards struck me as a joke, Aragorn poking fun at Gimli. I don’t think we’re supposed to take that dwarven women are bearded from that. Although they might be, for all we know!
No, read the Appendices to RotK, about Dwarves. It specifically says that dwarf women look enough like Dwarf men that they are easily mistakable, and that every Dwarf would die of shame without a beard . . .
Ah, mine and Engywook’s mistake!
I thought this thread would be about Viggo Mortenson’s mesmerizing stubble.
Yes, amazing how he is able to keep that permanent four-days-growth all the time.
From The Secret Diary of Aragorn, son of Arathorn, Day 6:
'Nuff said!
After everything that keeps happening to him, it seems possible that he could lose the will to shave.
I also thought the Dunedain - being Numenorean of purer bloodlines to Elros - would not have facial hair. I can’t find anywhere Tolkien (at least emphatically) mentioned the topic.
It’s noted in IMDB’s goofs for The Two Towers that Viggo’s beard grows and shortens in the scene inside Edoras.
I haven’t cued up the DVD to check that - but will also definitely look for the Rohir rider wearing sunglasses!
Whoops, duh :smack:
Of course I don’t have TTT on DVD. I’ll look for it when I see it again.
<obligatory Tolkien geek correction>
No, mellon. You’ve gotten two different strains of Hobbitry mixed up. It’s the Fallohides who are the tall ones (the Tûk family is of Fallohide descent).
The Stoors tend to be shorter than other Hobbits, but you’re right in that the Stoors are the only ones who can get peachfuzz on their chins. Farmer Maggot is an example of a Stoor. They are the ones who naturally take to the riverbank life. They also wear Dwarven boots when it comes to tramping about in mud.
The Harfoots are the strain of Hobbit who have no especial distinguishing characteristics, except that they are the most numerous and “average” in nature. They’re the ordinary ones who sit around in the Green Dragon nursing mugs of ale while dissing the adventurous Fallohides and riverboating Stoors. “Can’t no good come of such things, says I. Not proper for a Hobbit, says I, mark my words, young fella,” and that sort of thing.