Five Times Tolkien Was An Accidental Queer Icon
By Marlow Hurst
Tolkien’s writing possesses many virtues: it’s bold, it’s imaginative, and it’s detailed to the extreme. But what if one was to ignore the rich lore and compelling characters and instead read Tolkien’s work as it was meant to be read: as an exploration of fantastical queerness? It’s a hard task, but during my recent re-read of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings I pledged to disregard the historical definitions of the words ‘gay’ and ‘queer,’ read far too much into off-handed statements, and attempted to ensure that every piece of subtext is brought forth to serve my ambitious quest.
Here are 5 times Tolkien was an accidental queer icon (so far: The Lord of the Rings is really quite long):
The most well known and compelling queer reading of Tolkien’s work focuses on Frodo and Sam’s dynamic (and to some extent Merry and Pippin’s as well). One of the most glaring problems with Tolkein’s writing is his almost-exclusive population of male characters. However, this means that there are all the more homoerotic undertones present for analysis. Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin eat together, sleep together, bathe together, and express affection for one another. Is this a shameful example of me reading into a platonic male friendship? Yes, at least when it comes to the four hobbits. But the relationship between Frodo and Sam is a little more complex. Sam jumps between being Frodo’s friend, his employee, his companion, and yes, at times, an implied romantic partner. He frequently expresses his love for Frodo both verbally and in his internal dialogue, he describes him as “beautiful” and feels “endless happiness” when Frodo is in his arms.
It should be noted that Sam certainly expresses far more love and affection for Frodo than Frodo does for Sam. Was there authorial intent behind this relationship? Certainly not. Anna Smol in her article on male intimacy in The Lord of the Rings designates this sort of platonic romance amongst male friends to be typical of a “British male friendship that belongs to the First World War”. She does note, and I happen to agree, that this relationship took on a life of its own through the film adaptations and the swag of fanfiction that came with it. Does Tolkien’s lack of intent diminish this relationship? Of course not. Have I spent too long on this one point? Almost certainly.
The only subtextual gay relationship in Middle Earth that rivals Sam and Frodo is that of Bilbo and Thorin. I’ll be the first to admit that this relationship is so subtextual it’s probably reached the Earth’s core, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t possible. Many Tumblr Scholars agree that Bilbo and Thorin have a profound (yet subtle) romantic connection (primarily drawn from the films) based on the following points: their mutual status as bachelors, Thorin’s initial dislike for Bilbo followed by his subsequent warming to the Hobbit (this fits nicely into the enemies to lovers trope), and Thorin's gift of a mithril shirt to Biblo. Why are these important? Firstly, bachelorhood is a well known shorthand for homosexuality in fiction. Secondly, this shows that their relationship develops in a meaningful fashion inviting speculation as to how far said relationship advanced. Finally, it’s established in The Fellowship of the Ring by both Gandalf and Gimli that a mithril chain shirt is worth more than the whole Shire and that this was quite a peculiarly valuable gift to give. It’s not much to go on, but queer fans of 20th century fantasy novels have worked with less.
Asexuality is almost completely absent from fiction, but luckily, The Lord of the Rings has you covered. Middle-earth is a pretty chaste place with almost all sex occurring beyond the narrative and centuries prior, but that allows for some interesting interpretations. While many characters in The Lord of the Rings possess an absence of sexual desire and/or romantic desire, I’m going to focus on Gandalf. In both The Hobbit and all three The Lord of the Rings books, Gandalf (to my knowledge) doesn’t express sexual or romantic desire at all. This doesn’t exclude him from having meaningful platonic relationships, nor does it undermine his authority or power. Gandalf is by no means alone in this as many characters in Middle-earth exhibit an absence of sexual or romantic desire (Bilbo and Frodo for example are both lifelong bachelors) and in that there’s something quite wonderful. Considering Game of Thrones has become emblematic of epic fantasy and has a penchant for gratuitous sex scenes, it’s nice to know that both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings don’t measure their characters by sexual achievement or romantic attachments, and instead place equal value on platonic relationships. Admittedly, Gandalf, as an Istari (wizard), is a Maiar, a being which could reasonably be compared to a demigod. His semi-divine status could explain this absence of sexual or romantic desire, but let’s have a little fun and treat him as the asexual/aromantic king epic fantasy deserves.
Now, this next one is surprisingly clear cut. It took quite a bit of searching, but there is in fact a canonical gay kiss with romantic implications in Tolkien’s writing. In some of Tolkien’s extended works (The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, and The Children Húrin) the tale of Túrin and Beleg is recounted. There’s quite a bit to it, but to put it simply: Túrin is a Man, Beleg is an Elf, they are companions, Beleg dies (by Túrin’s hand but this was a case of mistaken identity), and as an expression of his grief Túrin kisses Beleg’s newly dead body on the lips. Admittedly, Beleg’s death does undermine the romance of this kiss, as Beleg was unable to consent, meaning it is unclear whether Túrin’s feelings were requited. But the circumstances of that kiss do not entirely detract from its significance. A kiss can be a platonic gesture; Túrin and Beleg as war time companions would have formed a robust bond perhaps beyond romance or physical desire, but there is reason to believe this kiss had romantic motivations. For starters, Beleg is an Elf while Túrin is a man, and throughout the Tolkien canon the greatest love stories are between a Man and an Elf (Think Aragorn and Arwen or Beren and Lúthien). Additionally, as I’ve mentioned previously, Tolkien’s works are extraordinarily chaste. To the point that even a kiss is exceptional and the presence of said kiss does lend it significance. Of all the interpreted queer couplings in Middle-earth, this seems the most obvious, explicit, and canonically justified.
Finally, here’s a mixed bag of queer adjacent phrases I’ve collected along the way.
After almost being consumed by Old Man Willow in the Old Forest (I know, not a particularly inventive naming scheme), Tolkien describes the sentient tree as having a “grey thirsty spirit”.
After an evening with a group of exiled Elves Sam describes them as being “so old and young, and so gay and sad”.
During the initial meeting of Bilbo and the Dwarves in The Hobbit, Tolkien mentions that Bilbo’s dwarvish guests were wearing “the best detachable party hoods”. The mere fact that “party hoods” exist in Middle-earth is enough to send me wild, but combined with the fact that they’re detachable and ‘the best’ really sheds some light on Thorin’s company: they’re dressing to impress, and before they even arrived they knew that a party was in order.