Waiting for 'The Battle of the Five Armies'...

The sister said Bilbo was a girl and after a little discussion the older sibling just went with it and he/she discovered that the story floated just as good- Norc

I think a lot of things would work that way, I gave earlier the example of Ripley in Alien having been written as male and them not changing the dialogue, Sigourney Weaver brought the feminine side to the role through her interpretation, not the writing.

And whilst I would not have  been happy with an adaptation on screen where the lead was female, as I think Bilbo represents universal ideals as it is, I think its a good idea if you are reading the story to a little girl who wants a little girl in her stories to change the gender.
As Bilbo is universal it wont change the meaning or the story a jot. And you would have a story where the girl is not needing rescued by princes (only old wizards) and is not trying to win a prince either.


"i both agree with figg and Petty"- Norc

How dare you! A consensus! How can I be crabbit in a consensus?   I blame Eldo for this sort of thing  

well, that was exactly the point i was trying to make when i mentioned Bilbo being female, it doesn't make any difference because the "message" is universal.

so if we see Sauron in this movie.. or the "necromancer".. will he look like Benedict? like can that adorable dork be scary? *points at avatar* --->


maybe

   

Norc wrote:haha, you thought i was just another witless fangirl there is more to little norc than meets the eye ;D

Hey know, I remember our march across Rohan distances thread.

{{{Yes, I recognize those quotes. }}}

Forest Shepherd wrote:

I have a flight in the morning so I'd better get to bed myself!

That's no way to travel the mid-west! You have to drive, silly!

Do they even have airports in the Midwest?

Chicago...

Minneapolis...

{{{Those are the only two I can think of off the top of my head. }}}

They've got plenty! Milwaukee, Columbus, St. Louis, Indianapolis. Don't sell us short!

And I think a lot of writers can learn a thing or two about Gender Neutrality from reading Tolkien. He's very good at it. Also, he's good at making female characters who are strong because they are feminine (like Galadriel or Luthien) or men who are strong because they are humble (Aragorn or Faramir). He's not making any character be anything extraordinary in terms of gender role, but they are extraordinary because they are so true to themselves. Which of course goes back to Bilbo never really changing who he is in the story but changing how he sees the world. And he's so easy to get along with because who doesn't like food and comfort and feels completely and utterly confused when thrust into new and frightening situations? Gender doesn't even apply there.

What would Bilbo's name be if he were a girl? Begonia?

well said Tin, totally agree

  yeah thats true.

what about Bilbona or Bilbetta?

how about Bilbo being a girl's name too?

Bilbao?

Bilbeena

I was thinking flowers, since all the female hobbits are flowers? Begonia is the only thing I thought of with a B

Ooh that's actually a good one.

There are a few gemstone female Hobbits though, right? At the very least there's Pearl Took. I can't think of many gemstones that start with B. "Beryl" maybe, but I'm not really sold on that as a Hobbit name.

Cracked.com quotes the following from the AUJ Appendices, but I don't know if it was taken out of context.

Peter Jackson wrote:For a long time I thought that going back to the amazing experience of Lord of the Rings would be a good idea. But, ultimately, I've come around, because films are stressful and hard to make ... if somebody came up to me and said, 'You know, we can carry on pre-production for another six weeks,' I would just say, 'No, no, hell no, let's just start shooting.'

http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-behind-the-scenes-features-that-show-why-movies-went-wrong/

It's quoted in support of an argument that The Hobbit films suck because PJ got old and tired (which I don't entirely agree with), but I think it's indicative of the broader cultural shift surrounding the movies since the initial premiere.

I think its clear enough from the end product his heart has never been in these films, he is just offsetting his own disinterest by playing with his new toys. Probably the only thing about these films he is enjoying.

That and his paycheck.

Tolkien was only ever a talking point, at most, in my opinion. A fan of his work would not so heavily and so gleefully alter the story, themes, and characters.

Or the language.

Recoveryanonymous wrote:Tolkien was only ever a talking point, at most, in my opinion. A fan of his work would not so heavily and so gleefully alter the story, themes, and characters.

It's been pretty clear that PJ doesn't like the story of The Hobbit, mostly because of its "simplicity."