Quite recently a friend of mine noted that Ori (one of the dwarves from Peter Jackson's The Hobbit) is the "best representation of true British folk." It's a statement, I think, has a great deal of sense to it. But what is it that makes him so quintessentially British? He isn't one of the warrior dwarves (although in Jackson's interpretation we see that he can fight). He is awkward, bumbling, soft-spoken, and hardly memorable. But ultimately Ori proves himself courageous and determined. He is, quite literally, a little man who stands up against a dragon and wins. Moreover, I find it interesting to note that Ori is a writer, accompanying the other dwarves to the Lonely Mountain as their scribe. So what can this mean for British writers? If American writers are coarse and blunt and include allusions to the American dream and capitalism, it would seem apt that British writers are more softly spoken, melancholic and sarcastic in their work. Perhaps this...
This works in its simplicity Holly. I like the way you have pared down what could easily be interpreted as a huge dilemma into a simple, yet still difficult, decision.
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