/lit/ - Literature

>>22893763
>Like in LOTR where nobody fucking knows what magic even is, and Gandalf doesn't ever explain it.
I'd argue it's pretty sensible if you pay attention.

The world is the physical reflection of Eru Iluvatar's and the Ainurs' song of creation. Thus creative power is the root of everything. Craftsmanship, of a certain worth, shares in that power and is capable of producing miracles. Make a great piece of bread, and a few crumbs can keep you alive for weeks. Make a great poem, and it can scare away spider monsters. Make a ring and...

The second part is trying to corrupt creation, force it to one's own will, rather than participate in it. That's how you get orcs and rings of power. (Notice that Sauron couldn't create the rings, he had to corrupt the work of Celebrimbor. And even the One Ring was more of corrupting his own soul and putting it inside rather than a normal act of creation.)

It's not a Brandosando system, but it makes more sense than people give it credit for.

>>22226423
Anybody telling you that it's going to change your world and allow you to understand the classics better is lying to you. In nearly every single case, you'd understand them better if you had just read them in your native language with help from footnotes. Unless you're learning a language like Chinese which isn't related to any language you do speak, what is lost in translation between fellow indo-european languages is so insignificant so as to be unnoticeable, poetry being the one major exception. You should learn at least a second language because it's great exercise for your brain, and it'll open the door for you to read untranslated works (usually old, forgotten histories, encyclopedias, anthropology, theology, even blogs by people on the other side of the world). The greatest benefit, however, is how much more you'll appreciate your native language after learning another. Remember, the health of the body affects the health of the mind and vice versa, so you should be training both.

>>21827335
Rhialto the Marvellous