I Am a Jedi: Luke Skywalker’s Journey of the Soul
On a remote desert planet overlooked by the rest of the galaxy, the pensive figure of a young farm boy watches the twin suns sink below the horizon. As darkness settles over the barren landscape,…
Tag: Character Studies
A Hidden Hero: The Importance of Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter Series
Hidden heroes are everywhere. Behind the light of the protagonist of a story or movie is an almost equally bright light of the hidden hero. One particular hero, I found recently, is Ron Weasley from…
Pity for a Creature Dark as Darkness: Bilbo’s Encounter with Gollum in “The Hobbit”
The meeting of Bilbo, the dreadfully and fearfully lost hobbit, and Gollum, a creature “as dark as darkness” (Hobbit 88), their riddle-game and what happens after Gollum loses are among the most iconic scenes of…
Boromir the Misunderstood Hero: A Fallen Man Finds Reconciling Grace
Tolkien’s most famous novel The Lord of the Rings displays a multitude of characters, but probably no other of them is as controversial as Boromir. Many readers hold the view that Boromir was the only one…
Aragorn the Lover: Union with the Beloved and the Call to Greatness
Halbarad, the Ranger of the North, bears a gift for Aragorn. It is a thing of mystery, “close furled in a black cloth bound about with many thongs”. And there is a message with it…
Why Do We Always Like The Bad Guys?: An Analysis of Memorable Villains
Watching movies like Star Wars, Thor, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, I kept finding myself liking the “bad guy.” And it wasn’t at all because he was good looking (though that does help). In…
When I Am Weak, I Am Strong: Frodo’s Providential Heroism
The tiny figure of a hobbit stands on the edge of a precipice, shrouded in a surreal haze. With an eerie glare flickering across his face, he clutches a chain in his grimy hand,…
Character Injustice: Underappreciated Figures in the Star Wars Universe
My pen name may be Frodo Baggins, but I am a huge Star Wars fan. I have the Star-Wars-themed keychains, pillows, and Barbie dolls to prove it. Don’t even get me started on my…
12:15 Thoughts on Faramir: A Book and Movie Character Comparison
Early one morning, approximately 12:15, shortly after completing a viewing of The Two Towers, I realized how much I loved Faramir, and how generally awesome and admirable he is. So dutifully, later that morning, I…
The Ghost’s Conscience: A Character Study of the Persian in "The Phantom of the Opera"
Many people are familiar with the haunting mystery/horror story that is French writer Gaston Leroux’s Phantom of the Opera. They know of the ill-fated obsession that Erik, a brilliant yet malformed musician, held…