Thread by @gilestelscanvas

Of Galadriel, Mirrors, Water and #TheRingsOfPower : A thread

One of the things TROP has done well and I think will continue to build on is exploring why water is an important element and a theme for Galadriel's story from both Tolkienian and purely creative angles 1/20

Let's start with Tolkien & move on to TROP. In Silm, we meet Galadriel who rebels against Valar and probably fights for the first time in defence of her kin, Teleri elves, who are also known as Sea-elves. The Teleri side of Galadriel is a defining characteristic of her 2/20

which one can interpret as something that differs her from some Noldo counterparts. On exile, she lives with a yearning for the sea in her heart, like others, but she is unique in the sense that among all who left Aman, she is the last one to cross the sea back to Aman 3/20

The sea is at the centre of a diversion from Fëanor in her rebellion, her personal victory against Sauron which is her redemption, too. While residing far from the sea that she gravely yearns for, she receives the Ring of Water. A power of water that preserves the good. 4/20

In Lórien, she uses a silver basin of water that can present visions of the past, present and speculates about possible futures. The mirror is made of the water from her fountain which contains the Silmaril light from Eärendil, radiating down from the skies. 5/20

"The tides of fate are flowing" she says to Frodo when she rejects the ring, in a way reflecting how she perceive's Eru's will to be a water that has its own tides. She sees in her fate that her role is to assist the bearer of the One Ring instead of replacing him 6/20

We understand that water is an important theme for this character, as fire and the Ring of Fire are for Gandalf - because Olórin's gift is to kindle a fire of courage and aspiration in people's hearts. Though Galadriel differs from Olórin in this regard 7/20

The bearer of the Ring of Water is, as we see, is tempted by power very strongly. She is somewhat a Mother Mary, as Tolkien explains, but also not, as she is a good but proud and highly ambitious woman on exile, seeking fulfilment and eventually redemption 8/20

Let's move on to TROP: Young Galadriel asks her brother how to differentiate the skies from the reflection of the sky on water when the water is as clear as a mirror. Touching the dark waters might be the only way sometimes to find the true light, says Finrod 9/20

This analogy is in line with Tolkien's Galadriel who chose to remain in midst of the affairs of ME before finding peace about going back to Aman. In the show, she jumps into the sea when she decides to stay and the sea presents to her: Sauron himself adrift and lost 10/20

Sauron uses her "tides of fate" metaphor when he meets her and soon after he rescues her from the darkness of the sea when she is drowning. The tides of fate start flowing for both of them in that moment. So it doesn't end there 11/20

The sea (that is always right for Elendil), takes her to Númenor, which leads the party of Míriel, Elendil, Isildur, Sauron in disguise and Galadriel to the Southlands where they hope to find the key to bringing order and peace to the Middle-earth 12/20

"There is a tempest in me," she says to Míriel. A desire to keep fighting, a storm of deadly waves and lightnings over the oceans. This tempest becomes key to the decisions she makes and push others to go into certain directions 13/20

With Adar's involvement, story is complex, but Galadriel soon learns that a lot of the things she believed were fallacies. In Eregion, by the water, she learns about Halbrand's true identity who in a mind game presents her a future on the mirror-like surface of the sea 14/20

Having done, unintentionally, what Finrod told her, she now knows the difference between the illusion on the dark waters and the light in the skies, refuses him, and is then left to drowning in waters from where friendship rescues her 15/20

She is soaked, as Celebrimbor notices, when she gives up on the dagger, a symbol of her attachment to the past, which then is forged into 3 rings of power that will determine the fate of the elves in the Middle-earth 16/20

Now Galadriel has mastered the game that is played between the light of the sky, darkness of waters, and the mirroring effect in between; which will make her the master of the Mirror of Galadriel later in Lórien: One of her powers Sauron cannot decipher 17/20

It now, I feel, becomes more of an issue of fate, which moves in a flow, that she needs to trust. The tides that Eru controls only pushed her to extreme ends where she faced her weaknesses which is the first step of walking toward her might that will challenge Sauron 18/20

So she starts moving away from the tempestuous waters but walks toward the water that holds Eärendil's light, which she also gifts to Frodo for his journey, and kicks off her journey of becoming the Lady of Light. The theme presents that: 19/20

Water is a tremendous force that can be devastating, dark, full of illusions - but it can be also healing, beautiful, bright and a rich source of life. TROP has already made its decision to explore this duality for the character, which was thoughtfully done so far 20/20