Lord of the Rings

I grew up reading these books years ago.  I could never have imagined them as clearly as the movies.  I was eager to see the movies, and I liked them because they were something I was familiar with, I guess.

Now, I noticed something after awhile, which amazes me as to how blind I was before.  How could I not have seen it? All the good guys are white, and all the bad guys are black.  There are no good-guy humans, hobbits, elves or dwarves who are black.  The dwarves are swarthy, and the least well-mannered of the good guys.  (I don't think the tree-people, Ents, count though they are dark brown.)  What do you think?

Assalamu alaikum,

Ah, herjihad, glad you see it too!  I think, however, it (the books themselves) can be blamed on the fact that the author J.R.R. Tolkien grew up in such times (you know, before people of colour were considered human beings by the British).

As for the movies, I can only come to the conclusion that Peter Jackson must be a racist.  What other conclusion is there?

Myself, I think he missed the boat in not casting Morgan Freeman as Gandalf - I think he would have been supurb in that role!  The movies certainly would have been more true to life and more palatable had there been some hobbits, elves and men of colour.  Sad........

Peace, ummziba.

ummziba wrote: As for the movies, I can only come to the conclusion that Peter Jackson must be a racist.  What other conclusion is there?

oh maybe Peter was reflecting the book, afterall the movie is the moving adaption of the books, it is Tolkins' creation Not Peter Jackson's!   

Myself, I think he missed the boat in not casting Morgan Freeman as Gandalf - I think he would have been supurb in that role!  The movies certainly would have been more true to life and more palatable had there been some hobbits, elves and men of colour.  Sad........ Peace, ummziba.

Bismillah,

That's true.  He was a good guy gone bad.  Of course, one of the heros could have been cast as a handsome black or chinese man.  One of the groups of people could also have been cast as a different race than white.  But they weren't. 

I just know that I liked the books and movies as a classic struggle of good against evil.  I just don't like the feeling that the good has to be white and the evil mostly black.  It's just a feeling I got after watching the movies, and after quite a while after I had seen them.  Of course, the Nation of Islam would have to cast the colors of the characters opposite, wouldn't they, since they believe white people are created by the devil?

I'm just thinking outloud.  So you don't see that at all, Dayem?