Old Man Willow: Difference between revisions
m (Reverted edits by Woolly Mammoth (talk) to last revision by Mithbot) |
m (Added information and a reference) |
||
Line 10: | Line 10: | ||
Sam managed to fight off the spell and rescued Frodo from the stream. Together they attempted to save Merry and Pippin by lighting a fire at the tree's base, but this only served to infuriate Old Man Willow, who threatened to kill the trapped hobbits. They were saved by the timely arrival of Tom Bombadil who knew "the tune for him".<ref name="OMW"/> | Sam managed to fight off the spell and rescued Frodo from the stream. Together they attempted to save Merry and Pippin by lighting a fire at the tree's base, but this only served to infuriate Old Man Willow, who threatened to kill the trapped hobbits. They were saved by the timely arrival of Tom Bombadil who knew "the tune for him".<ref name="OMW"/> | ||
In the poem ''[[The Adventures of Tom Bombadil]]'', Old Man Willow sings Tom Bombadil to sleep and traps him in a crack. He then speaks to Tom, chastising him for spying on him and tickling him with his feather. Tom orders Old Man Willow to release him, which he does immediately.<ref>{{AB|Tom}}</ref> | |||
==Other Versions of the Legendarium== | ==Other Versions of the Legendarium== |
Revision as of 04:56, 18 May 2015
Old Man Willow | |
---|---|
Ent | |
Biographical Information | |
Other names | Old grey Willow-man, The Great Willow |
Location | The Old Forest |
Language | Old Entish |
Notable for | almost killing the four Hobbits |
Physical Description | |
Gender | Unknown |
Gallery | Images of Old Man Willow |
Old Man Willow was a willow in the Old Forest standing near Withywindle.
History
He might have been an Ent who had become tree-like, or possibly a Huorn, as the Old Forest was originally part of the same primordial forest as Fangorn.
The Great Willow was evil-hearted and from it much of the Forest's hatred of walking things came.[1]. Despite his power, Tom Bombadil, who called him Old grey Willow-man, had power over him, and checked the evil as much as he could, or was willing.
On 26 September T.A. 3018[2] Old Man Willow cast a spell on the hobbits (Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin ), causing them to feel sleepy. Merry and Pippin leaned against the trunk and fell asleep, while Frodo sat on a root to dangle his feet in the water, before also falling asleep. The tree trapped Merry and Pippin in cracks in the trunk, and tipped Frodo into the stream.
Sam managed to fight off the spell and rescued Frodo from the stream. Together they attempted to save Merry and Pippin by lighting a fire at the tree's base, but this only served to infuriate Old Man Willow, who threatened to kill the trapped hobbits. They were saved by the timely arrival of Tom Bombadil who knew "the tune for him".[1]
In the poem The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, Old Man Willow sings Tom Bombadil to sleep and traps him in a crack. He then speaks to Tom, chastising him for spying on him and tickling him with his feather. Tom orders Old Man Willow to release him, which he does immediately.[3]
Other Versions of the Legendarium
In The Return of the Shadow, in the early text for The Lord of the Rings, the incident with Old Man Willow has Bingo (who would later become Frodo) and Odo (who would become Pippin) laying against the tree. Frodo (who becomes Sam) is the one pushed into the river while Marmaduke (later Merry) is the one who resists the spell.[4]
Later in Tom Bombadil's house Tom relates the lore concerning Old Man Willow. He is described as a "grey thirsty earth-bound spirit" that had "become imprisoned in the greatest Willow of the Forest".[5]
Portrayals in adaptations
2002: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers:
- Although he did not appear in the 2001 movie adaptation, a very similar episode with Hobbits being swallowed by a tree was included in the extended edition, where Merry and Pippin are swallowed by a Huorn in Fangorn Forest, to be saved by Treebeard.
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Old Forest"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Great Years"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, "The Adventures of Tom Bombadil"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Return of the Shadow, "The First Phase: V. The Old Forest and the Withywindle"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Return of the Shadow, "The First Phase: VI. Tom Bombadil"