The Lord of the Rings Expert Answers Tolkien Questions From Twitter | Tech Support | WIRED

The Tolkien Professor, Cory Olsen, uses the power of Twitter to answer the internet's burning questions about J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, and all the associated lore. Does Sauron use any weapons? Do compasses exist in Middle-Earth? Is there a Tolkien book about the Goblin and Dwarf Great War? Cory answers all these questions and much more.



Learn more:


Follow WIRED:



Also, check out the free WIRED channel on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV.

ABOUT WIRED
WIRED is where tomorrow is realized. Through thought-provoking stories and videos, WIRED explores the future of business, innovation, and culture.

[kyleanderson]

Inject another 8 hours of this straight into my veins.

[ree]

There's nothing better than a dude whos truly passionate about a subject.

[BlankCanvas]

To build a fictional world that is so intricate and complex that there are experts and professors on your material... Tolkien really was a genius and a one of a kind.

[ImpudentInfidel]

Arwen: I abandon my immortality for my beloved.
Legolas: Hey Gimli, wanna break into heaven?

[ig]

This guy really knows what he’s tolkien about

[flamingstallion]

“Of course, the Akallabeth is the story of the downfall of Numenor.”

Yes, of course

[mariellouise]

A small family memory : Tolkien was my grandfather’s tutor at Oxford. My mother’s name was Mariel Elizabeth and my grandfather called her Malbeth. Tolkien collected names he liked and my mother became “ Malbeth the Seer”.

[owenb]

So basically the Valar sacked an underperforming employee but instead of replacing him with someone new, they merged two jobs into one. Typical upper management

[SchruteFarms]

New Grey Wizard: So what is my role exactly?
White Wizard: Just...be positive.

[jamiemckelvie]

If only all Tolkien fans were like him, Tolkien books are heavy complicated and hard to understand everything; he explains everything without insulting anybody’s intelligence and that’s cool

[austindrawhorn]

Can we get a 90-minute version of this?

[GaunteroDimmm]

Imagine writing a book thinking “heck yea I did it. I hope people will like it” and 80 years later EVERYONE reveres it and it is the basis of an entire genre throughout generations?

[moq]

He might be a LOTR expert, but does he know that Vigo Mortensen broke his toe in that one scene?

[sammulhall]

A few fun facts for those who are curious: Merry and Pippin were buried at Gondor, and Aragorn was buried alongside them when he died at the age of 210 (after being king for over a century). Following his death, Legolas and Gimli built a ship and sailed off to Valinor together.

[alexandersmith]

I love how this guy makes Tolkien’s world so comprehensible and easy to understand

[WideMouth]

Fun fact: after announcing his treason in the books, Saruman denounced his role as the white wizard and began calling himself “Saruman of Many Colors.” I think this represented how Saruman no longer wanted to be restricted by his assigned role, and desired the power to do whatever he pleased.

[naturalone]

Props to the guy who actually has figured out the Silmarillion. That stuff is *dense.*

[Massivecarcrash]

Tolkien seemed like he took great pleasure in acting like he was a professor in Middleearthology, not the creator of it.

[mazayashah]

He's so nice and welcoming to people who aren't as knowledgable about Tolkien and his works!

[TheRhetoricGamer]

14:55 "You cannot mess up my plan for the world and you will find that everything you do will ultimately contribute to the beauty of my creation."
That is incredibly beautiful.