#do candles pity moths? or moths candles when the wind blows them out?

[erdarieldraws]

(Klikkaa kuva auki parempaa kuvanlaatua varten!) Click here for a version with English text

Kuis ois vähän Andreth/Aegnor angstia yhdisteltynä kansanrunoon?

[feydrawings]

'Speak of neither to me!' said Andreth. 'I desire neither. I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?' 'Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?' said Finrod. 'Adaneth, I tell thee, Aikanar the Sharp-flame loved thee. For thy sake now he will never take the hand of any bride of his own kindred, but live alone to the end, remembering the morning in the hills of Dorthonion. " J.R.R.Tolkien, Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth, History of Middle Eart Vol. X, Morgoth's Ring

Andreth and Aegnor for the Tolkien Advent Calendar!

[soul-spices]

'Do candles pity moths?’

'Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?’ said Finrod. ’Adaneth, I tell thee, Aikanár, the Sharp-flame loved thee. ’

Based on Hellelil and Hildebrand, the Meeting on the Turret Stairs painting by Frederic William Burton. 🦋🕯️

[emyn-arnens]

@finweanladiesweek DAY 5: LADIES WHO (SHOULD HAVE) MARRIED IN ↣ ANDRETH

“I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?”

“Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?” said Finrod. “Adaneth, I tell thee, Aikanár the Sharp-flame loved thee. For thy sake now he will never take the hand of any bride of his own kindred, but live alone to the end, remembering the morning in the hills of Dorthonion.”

[remornia]

Do candles pity moths? Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?

[southfarthing]

sHUt UP not aegnor and andreth eoduhvoaivhnaqpnqa ive been waiting for you to read athrabeth for ages. I know this is controversial but theyre my favorite couple and finrod and andreth is my favorite platonic ship it kills me I cant think, finrod was so devoted to her and they were intellectual soulmates even if on the opposite side and aegnor DIED before her, and she thought she would trouble him rips hair out and eats it

and the nature ajkfnof elves and how they differ from men and how they think and how deeply Morgoth has corrupted the land that they believe they are cursed but andreth will be free one day and aegnor will be trapped in mandos alone till the second song comes and I my head hurts

it was SOOOOOOOOO literally I was sat reading in the park with my brain rising from my body like

it was SUCH an interesting discussion??? I definitely need to read it again because there was so much going on but yes the way elves know their past while men seem to have come out of such darkness that they see morgoth as the most powerful force???? and always that sense of loss and bitterness 😩😩😩 and all the discussion of hopelessness and hope and pity and healing and 😩😩😩😩😩😩😩

and then the breaks every once in a while where you see how close finrod and andreth are 😩🥺🥺 when he says in Arda remade the elves would sing to the men and andreth is like 'what would you say once you've done singing' and Finrod laughs 😩🥹😩🥹

AND THEN. GOD.

DO CANDLES PITY MOTHS.... OR MOTHS CANDLES WHEN THE WIND BLOWS THEM OUT?...... I TELL THEE AIKANAR LOVED THEE........... THEN WHY DID HE TURN AWAY WHILE I HAD A GOOD FEW YEARS TO SPEND........FOR ONE YEAR, ONE DAY, OF THE FLAME I WOULD HAVE GIVEN ALL....... THAT HE KNEW ........

she doesn't want to be a burden but she never would have been because he never would have run on before her he would have waited but he didn't want her to feel ashamed . but none of that matters because he's going to die first anyway. im literally abt to start chomping on my mattress. the memory of her he will take with him but what will she take wherever it is that she goes ....... 😩🔫

why are elves abd men made different......so we can touch hands in the darkness ... ..

and at the end... "But you are not for Arda. Whither you go may you find light. Await us there, my brother – and me." HEEEEEEEEE Finrod has SO much love and respect for her i want to scream i am inconsolable I will never recover from this i cant believe you recommended this to me my brain chemistry has been changed forever

[vorbarrsultana]

“Speak of neither to me!” said Andreth. “I desire neither. I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?” 

“Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?”

[thelordofgifs]

is your blog title from the thing where the other bug (a beetle? a centipede?) says 'i wish i had ever wanted something like the moth wanted to burn itself in that flame'

oh I love that little comic (I think it's a comic at least)! but no, it's a quotation from the Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth:

'Speak of neither to me!' said Andreth. 'I desire neither. I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?' 'Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?' said Finrod.

For no particular reason, I just think it's a lovely and heartbreaking line and worked quite well as the header for a Tolkien blog.

[001herald]

I think about “do candles pity moths?” “or moths candles when the wind blows them out?” at random and it upsets me every time

[arofili]

@finweanladiesweek​ day five | ladies who [almost] married in I andreth saelind

          ‘I desire neither,’ [said Andreth.] ‘I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?’

          ‘Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?’ said Finrod. ‘Adaneth, I tell thee, Aikanáro the Sharp-flame loved thee. For thy sake now he will never take the hand of any bride of his own kindred, but live alone to the end, remembering the morning in the hills of Dorthonion.’

—The History of Middle-earth: Volume X: Morgoth’s Ring, “Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth”

[morgoths-ring]

Do candles pity moths? Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?

[mavariel]

Do candles pity moths? Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?

[under-the-silver-starlight]

"Do candles pity moths?"

"Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?"

Aegnor and Andreth

[queenlucythevaliant]

“'Speak of neither to me!’ said Andreth. ‘I desire neither. I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?‘ 'Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?'”

[alystraea]

"...I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?' 'Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?' said Finrod. Darkness fell in the room. He took her hand in the light of the fire. 'Whither go you?' she said. 'North away,' he said: 'to the swords, and the siege, and the walls of defense—that yet for a while in Beleriand rivers may run clean, leaves spring, and birds build their nests, ere Night comes.' 'Will he be there, bright and tall, and the wind in his hair? Tell him. Tell him not to be reckless. Not to seek danger beyond need!' 'I will tell him,' said Finrod. 'But I might as well tell thee not to weep. He is a warrior, Andreth, and a spirit of wrath. In every stroke that he deals he sees the Enemy who long ago did thee this hurt. 'But you are not for Arda. Whither you go may you find light. Await us there, my brother—and me.' (J.R.R. Tolkien, Morgoth's Ring, History of Middle Earth Vol. 10) @tolkiengenweek

[russingon]

your blog title...... I'm gonna be thinking of that one on the bus to work for a While

hey anon! i’m just seeing this. my blog title is from the ‘athrabeth finrod ah andreth’ by tolkien. andreth, a mortal woman, is talking about aegnor (called aikanár here), an elf she loves with finrod, his brother.

the passage it comes from is:

'Speak of neither to me!' said Andreth. 'I desire neither. I was young and I looked on his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leaped towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?'

'Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?' said Finrod. 'Adaneth, I tell thee, Aikanár the Sharp-flame loved thee. For thy sake now he will never take the hand of any bride of his own kindred, but live alone to the end, remembering the morning in the hills of Dorthonion. But too soon in the North wind his flame will go out!…’

this is one of my favorite bits of tolkien’s writing, personally! definitely worthy of bus thoughts :)