Aragorn’s knowledge of oral tradition is not limited to proverbs: according to Butterbur ‘he can tell a rare tale when he has the mind’; under
Weathertop he sings a selection from the Lay Of Leithian (which he
clearly knows in multiple languages); faced with the Paths of the Dead
he recalls the prophetic-poetic words of Malbeth the Seer; and in the
Houses of Healing he recites a Rhyme of Lore:
‘When the black breath blows
and death’s shadow grows
and all lights pass,
come athelas! come athelas!
Life to the dying
In the king’s hand lying!
In the same way that Gandalf would have recited and repeated such lines and verses in his wanderings as an aid to memory, Aragorn has taken the three strands of oral tradition—songs, stories, and sayings— and made them his companions on his long road.
and all lights pass,
come athelas! come athelas!
Life to the dying
In the king’s hand lying!
In the same way that Gandalf would have recited and repeated such lines and verses in his wanderings as an aid to memory, Aragorn has taken the three strands of oral tradition—songs, stories, and sayings— and made them his companions on his long road.
Chapter 11 - 'Aragorn'
David Rowe
David Rowe
Oloris Publishing
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