Humor in Science and Theology

bness2 · July 9, 2024, 1:36am

jpm · July 10, 2024, 3:40am

Kendel · July 18, 2024, 2:20am

Paraleptopecten · July 18, 2024, 10:26pm

Where do bowels fall out on this chart?

Maybe that’s the wrong way to phrase it.

Kendel · July 19, 2024, 1:11am

Godfather David Campbell gave this sage advice to his heir, Timothy, “Son, keep your friends close. But keep your enemies closer. So close, they feel themselves a part of the Family. Then you operate like the Thymus gland, and when your enemy least expects it, it’s lights out.”

bness2 · July 19, 2024, 5:06am

Mervin_Bitikofer · July 19, 2024, 5:43am

Actually, the following isn’t humor so much as just a pleasant escapist diversion for any needing that (and who are LOTR nuts - If you don’t know what that is, then you likely aren’t one.)

Put these quotes in chronological order as they happened in the story. Movies will be insufficient here, since movies always insert spectacle at the expense of any substantial dialogue and so probably only one or two of the following quotes might even be in the movies at all (if that.) Bonus points for naming or describing the speaker and the context. (or for providing any zingy next lines that came right after these bits in the books, such as Gimli’s witty rejoinder to the #6 line.)

Do not come between the Nazgul and his prey, lest he not slay thee in thy turn!
Fly, you fools!
Ah! That was a proper 1420 that was!
He was great once, of a noble kind that we should not dare to raise our hands against. He is fallen, and his cure is beyond us; but I would still spare him, in the hope that he may find it.
Mithrandir has long had your heart in his keeping.
Were it known that hobbits had such hides, all the hunters in the world would be riding to the shire!
I am glad you are here with me, at the end of all things, Sam!

Answer (according to me): 2 6 5 1 7 4 3
Don’t hover or click the text above unless you are ready to see my answer. And of course if you want to post your own commentary - you can use the same spoiler blur (by putting [spoiler* and [/spoiler* around your text, only replace the astrisks with a closing bracket.

Feel free to contest my answers. Quotes were largely from my memory and so might not be exactly right - but are close enough.

Paraleptopecten · July 19, 2024, 12:23pm

My recollection is

1–spoken by the Witch-King of Angmar during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
2–spoken by Gandalf just before falling into Khazad-Dum
3–spoken by older hobbits a few decades into the fourth age, of the quality of a drink, in reference to the vintage of Shire Reckoning 1420.
4–spoken by Frodo of Saruman, near the end of the scouring of the Shire.
5–the only one that I can’t remember
6–can’t remember the speaker, but I think this was to Frodo after the mithril mail stopped a blow in Moria.
7–spoken by Frodo to Sam, whilst on Orodruin.

So, my guess of order is 5, 2, 6, 1, 7, 4, 3 or 2, 6, 5, 1, 7, 4, 3

1 and 2 are in the movies; and the scenes for 3 and 4 were entirely left out.

We could try a much harder one, if I search my copy of the Silmarillion.

Mervin_Bitikofer · July 19, 2024, 1:18pm

Nicely done!

And spot on about all the ones you did remember. #5 was hard in that I didn’t give much. But it was Deneathor speaking to his son Faramir, lamenting how he had chosen Boromir (“who was no wizard’s pupil”) to go on the quest to Rivendell. While it’s a heart-breaking scene (for Farimir), I liked that phrase - a picture of somebody who “has your heart in their keeping”. Meaning (if there is mutual ‘heart-keeping’ happening), that this is a rather nice picture of what it means to be in close relationship to somebody. Marriage is of course (or should be) a picture of this. But close friendships too.

So I agree with your second list of answers - since Deneathor’s rebuke of Farimir happened just as Minas Tirith was still preparing for the storm - early in the last book.

Oh - and after Aragorn treats Frodo’s wound (after their flight from Moria); he says: Were it known that hobbits had such hides, all the hunters in the world would be riding to the shire!

And Gimli replies: “And all the arrows of all the hunters of the world would be in vain!” That was a kingly gift that Bilbo gave Frodo.

Yeah - it could be made a lot more challenging; even just within the trilogy where I kept it. Adding in the Silmarillion would be really hard for me since I’ve not read that one nearly so many times as the hobbit and the trilogy.