It's worth remembering, also, that Eowyn did not GIVE UP the sword as much as she TRANSCENDED it. By choosing to become a healer, she effectively sets herself as equal to the king himself; it was not because of his sword or his lineage that the people of Minas Tirith first accepted Aragorn as king, but rather for his skill as a healer. And she never repudiated her past; she carried the sobriquet "of the Shield-Arm" with pride for the rest of her days.
I don't think Faramir changed Eowyn. I think rather that he enabled her to see more clearly what she had long felt was beyond her reach. I'm reminded of what Faramir said to Frodo "I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend." Perhaps Eowyn's time with Faramir gave her a glimpse of a possible future for which she had lost all hope. Perhaps he gave her a clear vision of that which they defend. He gave her hope and there is no weakness in that.
Great post! If I might split a few hairs here, in the spirit of "yes-and":
"But what if Éowyn has misread the situation? What if riding off to almost certain death is not a privilege, but a burden? What if men ride into battle not to win glory, but to defend their homes? And what if they are defending those homes not for themselves alone, but also for the women and children?"
It's true that riding off to almost certain death is a burden, and that the men riding into battle are doing it to defend their homes. It's *also* true that winning glory in battle is a *major* way to earn respect and improve one's reputation in her culture.
"If so, then Éowyn is privileged. She is not required to lay down her life unless all the men have laid down theirs."
She *is* required to lay down her life if the men fail, though. She's been specifically assigned to lead and defend the remainder of the people in the absence of her uncle and brother, and if they fail she will still have to do the work of dying in battle without the rightful wage of being remembered with honor.
She is suicidal, yes. She is acting as though glory in battle (or marrying a powerful man like Aragorn, who would treat her with the respect and honor her uncle and brother had been unwilling or unable to provide) is the only way to prove her worth. But in the context in which she was raised, she's not *wrong*. Her character arc isn't learning that she's been stubbornly clinging to a model of self-worth that she made up for herself - it's learning that the model of self-worth she had been taught isn't the only way to live. And it's worth noting that while she becomes a healer in a community where healing is highly respected, Faramir (who himself "uses the sword only to enable the coming of peace") and Aragorn both explicitly acknowledge that she *has* won glory in battle.
In that section, I was attempting to engage in a few hypothetical considerations, examining how the situation would look according to different presuppositions.
I think the contrast with Denethor is useful - Denethor is the proud but hopeless pagan, who in despair sees only an honorable death worthwhile. While her way about it is different, her view of her options is the same. Faramir is pulled safe from one such death, and goes about pulling her from hers. They have both lost their fathers, but Eowyn to not only honorable death but honorable because hopeful one; Faramir to despair and thus a truly dishonorable death.
Excellent thought-provoking stuff. I think it may be key that Éowyn doesn't (apparently) retreat into domesticity (as per the patriarchal model). Reading your piece I homed in on her words, 'I will be a healer'. This resonated with me because in my own novel series—without going into too much detail—excellence in healing allows one particular group of women to drive a wedge into the patriarchy of another land, and gives one particular individual a chance to shine. And they use the word 'Healer'. Maybe—just maybe—this moment with Éowyn planted some small seed in my mind years ago (I've read LOTR multiple times, going back to the 1970s).
Fantastic essay, Amy! This surely flips the common script on Éowyn. She came to her understanding of her role, if you will, through pain and hardship, bitter experience, in a different way than her future husband did, who found his through the wisdom of lore and personal counsel from the wise (Gandalf, especially). They are the perfect match, brought together in healing through the hands of the King.
Eowyn and Faramir are my two favorite characters and I think you do her justice. She is not a 2 dimensional archetype l, she's complex as all women are. I consider myself a radical feminist and I have always been irritated when people say Tolkien female characters have no dimension. It's so untrue.
Beautiful post, thank you for articulating this, Amy! It reminds me of a great exchange between two queens in Megan Whalen Turner's Return of the Thief:
“But you can fight.”
“We both can, Irene. We both will, if we have to.” She laid an arm around Attolia’s shoulder. “But the call of life is as powerful as the call of death, and it is no weakness to answer to it,” she said quietly.
The arc of Galadriel's story is similar, without the shame of becoming merely objectified by others. She was drawn towards the glories of battles and dominions. But found her fulfillment in a "diminished" role of healing and making things grow, remaining her true self.
Yes. And it’s important to point out that several male characters follow a similar trajectory: Aragorn becoming a healer, the hobbits returning to The Shire, etc.
Excellent point. It brought to mind that many of the villains, especially the chief ones like Morgoth, Sauron, or Saruman are characterized by how they damage or seek control of the world around them rather than heal the world.
Ooh. This is intruiging. I have always personally liked the ending Eowyn got. She is such an interesting and three dimensional character, and you understand her so well, it seems. Thank you for a fascinating commentary!
"She is healed in body and mind so that she may provide healing to others. She becomes fully herself, freer than she ever was in battle. She is not bound to a single thing forever, but to whatever is necessary in the moment for the benefit of the world."
Sounds like she chose to be healed and integrated, rather than woke and politically correct. Sounds like true freedom to me. Beautifully argued, and I enjoyed the post enormously. 🙏
Hi, really gained some insight there. Could Eowyn's darkness also have been brought on by Grima Wormtongue? His enfeeblement of Theoden may have distressed the healer part of her character, the weakening of Rohan could have wounded her pride in their history and her place in the royal lineage, and finally, his seeking her in marriage could have rightly offended her sense of propriety.
It's worth remembering, also, that Eowyn did not GIVE UP the sword as much as she TRANSCENDED it. By choosing to become a healer, she effectively sets herself as equal to the king himself; it was not because of his sword or his lineage that the people of Minas Tirith first accepted Aragorn as king, but rather for his skill as a healer. And she never repudiated her past; she carried the sobriquet "of the Shield-Arm" with pride for the rest of her days.
I don't think Faramir changed Eowyn. I think rather that he enabled her to see more clearly what she had long felt was beyond her reach. I'm reminded of what Faramir said to Frodo "I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend." Perhaps Eowyn's time with Faramir gave her a glimpse of a possible future for which she had lost all hope. Perhaps he gave her a clear vision of that which they defend. He gave her hope and there is no weakness in that.
Great post! If I might split a few hairs here, in the spirit of "yes-and":
"But what if Éowyn has misread the situation? What if riding off to almost certain death is not a privilege, but a burden? What if men ride into battle not to win glory, but to defend their homes? And what if they are defending those homes not for themselves alone, but also for the women and children?"
It's true that riding off to almost certain death is a burden, and that the men riding into battle are doing it to defend their homes. It's *also* true that winning glory in battle is a *major* way to earn respect and improve one's reputation in her culture.
"If so, then Éowyn is privileged. She is not required to lay down her life unless all the men have laid down theirs."
She *is* required to lay down her life if the men fail, though. She's been specifically assigned to lead and defend the remainder of the people in the absence of her uncle and brother, and if they fail she will still have to do the work of dying in battle without the rightful wage of being remembered with honor.
She is suicidal, yes. She is acting as though glory in battle (or marrying a powerful man like Aragorn, who would treat her with the respect and honor her uncle and brother had been unwilling or unable to provide) is the only way to prove her worth. But in the context in which she was raised, she's not *wrong*. Her character arc isn't learning that she's been stubbornly clinging to a model of self-worth that she made up for herself - it's learning that the model of self-worth she had been taught isn't the only way to live. And it's worth noting that while she becomes a healer in a community where healing is highly respected, Faramir (who himself "uses the sword only to enable the coming of peace") and Aragorn both explicitly acknowledge that she *has* won glory in battle.
In that section, I was attempting to engage in a few hypothetical considerations, examining how the situation would look according to different presuppositions.
This is more correct.
I think the contrast with Denethor is useful - Denethor is the proud but hopeless pagan, who in despair sees only an honorable death worthwhile. While her way about it is different, her view of her options is the same. Faramir is pulled safe from one such death, and goes about pulling her from hers. They have both lost their fathers, but Eowyn to not only honorable death but honorable because hopeful one; Faramir to despair and thus a truly dishonorable death.
Excellent thought-provoking stuff. I think it may be key that Éowyn doesn't (apparently) retreat into domesticity (as per the patriarchal model). Reading your piece I homed in on her words, 'I will be a healer'. This resonated with me because in my own novel series—without going into too much detail—excellence in healing allows one particular group of women to drive a wedge into the patriarchy of another land, and gives one particular individual a chance to shine. And they use the word 'Healer'. Maybe—just maybe—this moment with Éowyn planted some small seed in my mind years ago (I've read LOTR multiple times, going back to the 1970s).
I've always read it as growing things like cultivating the land, growing food, etc.
Fantastic essay, Amy! This surely flips the common script on Éowyn. She came to her understanding of her role, if you will, through pain and hardship, bitter experience, in a different way than her future husband did, who found his through the wisdom of lore and personal counsel from the wise (Gandalf, especially). They are the perfect match, brought together in healing through the hands of the King.
Great analysis. I feel better.
Eowyn and Faramir are my two favorite characters and I think you do her justice. She is not a 2 dimensional archetype l, she's complex as all women are. I consider myself a radical feminist and I have always been irritated when people say Tolkien female characters have no dimension. It's so untrue.
Beautiful post, thank you for articulating this, Amy! It reminds me of a great exchange between two queens in Megan Whalen Turner's Return of the Thief:
“But you can fight.”
“We both can, Irene. We both will, if we have to.” She laid an arm around Attolia’s shoulder. “But the call of life is as powerful as the call of death, and it is no weakness to answer to it,” she said quietly.
“Dying is easy young man [sic], living’s harder!”
I appreciate this complex reading of womanhood - and Éowyn is such a powerful woman too, in all her ways :) thanks for writing!!
The arc of Galadriel's story is similar, without the shame of becoming merely objectified by others. She was drawn towards the glories of battles and dominions. But found her fulfillment in a "diminished" role of healing and making things grow, remaining her true self.
Yes. And it’s important to point out that several male characters follow a similar trajectory: Aragorn becoming a healer, the hobbits returning to The Shire, etc.
Excellent point. It brought to mind that many of the villains, especially the chief ones like Morgoth, Sauron, or Saruman are characterized by how they damage or seek control of the world around them rather than heal the world.
Ooh. This is intruiging. I have always personally liked the ending Eowyn got. She is such an interesting and three dimensional character, and you understand her so well, it seems. Thank you for a fascinating commentary!
I quite enjoyed this. Thank you.
It's always more complicated under the surface.
"She is healed in body and mind so that she may provide healing to others. She becomes fully herself, freer than she ever was in battle. She is not bound to a single thing forever, but to whatever is necessary in the moment for the benefit of the world."
Sounds like she chose to be healed and integrated, rather than woke and politically correct. Sounds like true freedom to me. Beautifully argued, and I enjoyed the post enormously. 🙏
I don’t know that politics had anything to do with it, but she ended up very fulfilled and helping others.
H
Hi, really gained some insight there. Could Eowyn's darkness also have been brought on by Grima Wormtongue? His enfeeblement of Theoden may have distressed the healer part of her character, the weakening of Rohan could have wounded her pride in their history and her place in the royal lineage, and finally, his seeking her in marriage could have rightly offended her sense of propriety.
Yes, that is possible. The Peter Jackson adaptation leaned into this idea by including a scene where Grima tries to manipulate her.