Gil-Galad: a chicken?

[tehta]

And now for something completely different...

Gil-Galad. I have found yet another reason to be confused regarding his parentage.
Other than this, I mean.
I guess most people around here would vote against Fingon, because of Fingon/Maedhros Christopher Tolkien said this was a mistake, and it should have been Orodreth. However, I recently re-read the Children of Hurin (for Mablung reasons, because Turin gives me a headache), and encountered this:

Then Túrin ... said to [Finduilas]: ‘I had a sister, Lalaith, or so I named her; and of her you put me in mind. But Lalaith was a child, a yellow flower in the green grass of spring; and had she lived she would now, maybe, have become dimmed with grief. But you are queenly, and as a golden tree; I would I had a sister so fair.’

‘But you are kingly,’ said she, ‘even as the lords of the people of Fingolfin; I would I had a brother so valiant.

Which is of course a little ironic, with all the mixing of sibling/sexual affection and the resulting foreshadowing, however: I would I had a brother so valiant? What about poor Ereinion?

I guess we have three options:
* Gil-Galad is not Finduilas' brother at all.
* Gil-Galad has not been born yet, during this conversation. (which, since his father is about to take the fast boat to Mandos at this point, would make him a posthumous baby. And actually, I sort of like this, hmm. It even goes well with the name "scion of kings.")
* Gil-Galad has been born, but has been sent away, and is, at this point in his life, a chicken. (I like this even more, because I like ruining noble Elves' reputations.)

Anyway, several plot-bunnies here!

Comments

[lenine2.livejournal.com]

For the vast majority of my life the word "scion" had to do with grafting rose plants. I know it makes no sense, but "scion of kings" makes me imagine GG as a thorny branch grafted onto Fingon's back.

Anyway, I like option #2, the posthumous baby. It would make GG's own arrival at Mandos pretty interesting.

[wulfila.livejournal.com]

I like the "posthumous baby" version, but the non-valiant brother idea is quite amusing, too, (especially if Gil-Galad has not been sent away at all, but is listening behind a curtain at this point, and Finduilas is fully aware of this). Another possibility might be, of course, that Gil-Galad is sort of a Fabius Maximus Cunctator of his people and mistaken for a coward because he is cautious instead of following the new, more aggressive strategy that is becoming popular in Nargothrond at the time (much to the detriment of the place and its denizens).

[rcfinch.livejournal.com]

Or he was a little kid, too small to qualify as being 'valiant', which unlike 'courageous', has a somewhat soldierly ring to it.

[heartofoshun.livejournal.com]

‘But you are kingly,’ said she, ‘even as the lords of the people of Fingolfin; I would I had a brother so valiant.

Oi! Poor Gil-galad! That cracks me up. Makes me laugh! But I do like Gil-galad and like to think he was a good king and a brave one. I tend to lean in the opposite direction of thinking that the anti-heroes of The Silmarillion, all of the children of Feanor and Fingolfin (with the exception of maybe Turgon--who always struck me as kind of dull) were given a worse reputation than they deserved.

I am lazy and stuck with the original version I first read in The Silmarillion that Fingon was the father of Gil-galad. I momentarily struggled with Christopher Tolkien's opinion that perhaps he should have used the idea of Orodreth as Gil-galad's dad. I just never had strong positive feelings for Orodreth--he seemed to lose things that other people struggled to build. And, despite being fairly obsessed with writing a continuing history of Fingon/Maedhros, I like the idea of Fingon having a descendant. (I am writing a novel which recounts how Fingon conceived Gil-galad with a lot of help from Maedhros. Gives me a chance to write a threesome involved Fingon and Maedhros. Kind of tacky maybe, but a lot of fun. I can put in all kinds of interesting sex scenes and insecurities, jealousies, and speculation about Fingon being gay and Maedhros bisexual but who really has eyes only for Fingon. Lot of fun plot lines to explore.)

[sirielle.livejournal.com]

I believe this simply follows the Silmarillion "mistake", so GG being son of Fingon cannot be Finduilas' brother.

[fanged-geranium.livejournal.com]

Nice to see you around again! I assumed she meant that she thought Gil-galad was being a bit chicken and opposing Turin's policy of going out to fight - possibly influenced by her wanting to impress Turin - but I like your theory #2 as well.

[ithilwen.livejournal.com]

Nibble away, plot-bunnies! You'll bring down your resisting prey sooner or later! :D

[anna-wing.livejournal.com]

(a) He could simply be very young at this point.

(b) Based on the story, Finduilas is not very bright, and has rather poor judgement of people, so her views on what her brother is like are probably inaccurate.