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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Clint_L" data-source="post: 9489517" data-attributes="member: 7035894">I think Bombadil is kind of a goofy character. And I think he is unnecessary for the plot.But I still like that he's in the book. And I like him because he is unnecessary for the plot. He is one of many elements that Tolkien includes who are there not to advance the story, but flesh out Middle Earth as setting that goes beyond the exigencies of plot. In TTRPG terms, he makes it feel like more of a sandbox and less of a railroad. He reminds the reader that the history of Middle Earth is bigger than the war with Sauron.So I see Bombadil as a character that violates most of the norms of good writing, but then, Tolkien does that in quite a few other ways, too. I think he is a uniquely Tolkien inclusion, and I think he is an important reason that no one else feels like Tolkien, despite the many, many efforts to emulate him.As a critic, I find myself almost at a loss in assessing Tolkien. His writing is often expository, his dialogue frequently fails to come across like actual people talking, he includes unnecessary plot elements and characters, his prose is like weird combination of the King James, Beowulf and, I dunno, Tennyson? By most of my usual measure he should be bad, but he's not. It all just works.For me.Herbert, not so much. I think only the first book is any good at all, and even then it has some super icky themes and ridiculously unbelievable characters. Basic fantasy plot, with very well executed battles. Cool setting, though, for sure.</blockquote>

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