alternate histories

[Craig Clark]

I'm a relative newbie, so if this one has been done before, please forgive...

Here's an idea for some fans of Tolkien trivia :-)

What about some _alternative history_ scenarios using the vast amount of
historical info which JRRT provided?

What I have in mind is something like the following: what would have
happened if Arvedui had followed the advice of the Lossoth (ROTK, Appendix
A) and not boarded the ship sent by Cirdan to rescue him? How would the
history of the Third Age proceeded from that point?

There are a few obvious ones - like, What would have happened if Isildur had
destroyed the One Ring, or What would have happened if Melkor had just sung
along in the Music of the Ainur? But let's hear some ideas - what would
have happened if:

a) Turin hadn't killed Beleg Cuthalion by mistake?
b) Tuor hadn't found the Gate of the Noldor?
c) Bilbo had been killed by the stone that fell on his skull during the
Battle of the Five Armies?

Any ideas?

Craig

[Nick Vesselovskyiy]

> There are a few obvious ones - like, What would have happened if Isildur had
> destroyed the One Ring, or What would have happened if Melkor had just sung
> along in the Music of the Ainur? But let's hear some ideas - what would
> have happened if:

> a) Turin hadn't killed Beleg Cuthalion by mistake?
> b) Tuor hadn't found the Gate of the Noldor?
> c) Bilbo had been killed by the stone that fell on his skull during the
> Battle of the Five Armies?

> Any ideas?

> Craig

I think this is plainly unreasonable to do such kind of
analysis. The history of ME is so entangled with prophecies, curses
and doom that to suppose "what if" sounds pretty much like ignorance.
Turin COULD NOT avoid killing Beleg. What you are saying is: "What if
Morgoth laid curse on the children of Hurin but it actually didn't
work and they lived happily ever after?" This is a mockery. ;-/

Hope I'm not offending,
Nick.---

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Nick " And there is no place abiding
Carleton U. on the Earth where the memory
of the times without Evil
Email: nves...@chat.carleton.ca has been preserved..."
----------------------------------------------------------------------

[watkins julia k]

My favorite "what if" is "What if Faramir went north?" (It
certainly seemed he was the person intended to go.)

This also raises the corollary: "Would Boromir have recognized
Aragorn's claim if the first time he saw him he was in the black
ships, coming to the city's rescue?" Boromir avoided the issue
at the Council of Elrond.

Julie

[DVPSH]

What about.....if Boromir had not tried to take the ring from Frodo? What
would have happened then?

[Graeme Cree]

A mockery? How do you figure? Tolkien didn't believe in predestination,
and if you do, it's a little silly to accuse the other chap of mocking Tolkien,
since by your own reasoning, he could not have NOT done it.
Right?

[Nick Vesselovskyiy]

I said this discussion would sound like mockery. I love the
history of ME the way it is. If you don't, you can take your time and
invent new, and maybe even publish a book later, titled something like
"Mt. Doom erupts again". Go ahead. It's your choice. I just told what
i think of this entertaining.

Nick.----