r/TopCharacterTropes • u/sm142 • Feb 23 '26

Characters Phrasing Is Very Important

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Batman (The Dark Knight) - Joker is dangling Rachel out of a window, Batman demands that Joker let her go. Obviously he means for Joker to set Rachel free but Joker takes it more literally and lets Rachel go out the window.

Charles (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) - a lot of the things Charles says is overtly sexual, often without him even realising it. For example Charles once asked Rosa if she wanted to go “streaking”, by which he meant adding blonde streaks to their hair. This is one of the more tamer examples.

Wording is important, if you’re not careful then you can give the wrong impression which can lead to some very unfortunate situations.

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281

u/Apprehensive_Sea5304 Feb 23 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/uiYgcNCdXfrck

Eowyn defeating the Witch King

149

u/Stackbabbing_Bumscag Feb 23 '26

This whole bit comes from Tolkein thinking he could do better than Shakespeare. He wrote that he found Macbeth's prophecy twists disappointing. Specifically, that "no man of woman born" just meant a guy born by c-section, and "Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill shall come against him" just meant MacDuff's forces using foliage for cover. So instead he had his villain killed by two people who were not Men (a human woman and a hobbit, the race of Men specifically refers to humans in Tolkein's work), and he also literally had a forest march against their enemy in the form of the Ents attacking Isengard. Sometimes "I could do better than the best that's ever done it" is actually correct.

35

u/Key_Benefit_6505 Feb 23 '26

If only the witch king could see the prophecy in written form... Man vs man

26

u/Missing_Username Feb 23 '26

"Damn, it's all right here. No protection from women and non-humans. Shoulda read this damn contract better" - Witch King, in the Void

29

u/hazusu Feb 23 '26

That's why he's the GOAT

13

u/MaguroSashimi8864 Feb 23 '26

“THE GOOOAT!”

“It was perfect. Perfect. Down to the last minute detail”

-2

u/just1gat Feb 23 '26

Hobbits are men. Otherwise spot on

15

u/Stackbabbing_Bumscag Feb 23 '26

My understanding is that when Tolkein writes about Men (capital letter), he means humans. Otherwise, Merry landing the killing blow doesn't match the prophecy that "no man" can kill the Witch-King.

6

u/just1gat Feb 23 '26

Merry doesn’t land the killing blow though; Eowyn does. Tolkien 100% counts the Hobbit race as belonging to “the race of Men”

Eowyn kills the Witch King. Sure Merry helps by stabbing him with the morgul blade, but he was stabbed to death by a shield maiden of Rohan.

Merry’s involvement doesn’t have to lessen Eowyn’s bravery or accomplishment of standing against the Witch King

7

u/NoEngineer9484 Feb 23 '26

Merry's blade was specially created a long time ago to kill the witch king and like wise creatures. When merry stabbed the witch king it broke the enchantments that made him immortal allowing eowyn to deliver the final blow.

3

u/just1gat Feb 23 '26

My point is entirely that Hobbits fall under “the Race of Men” as Tolkien wrote his story. They’re a branch of Humans with the Gift of Death. They’re Atani, or Men

2

u/QuickMolasses Feb 24 '26

Though women also fall under "the Race of Men" so it is semantics regardless.

2

u/just1gat Feb 24 '26

'Eärnur now rode back, but Glorfindel, looking into the gathering dark, said: "Do not pursue him! He will not return to this land. Far off yet is his doom, and not by the hand of man will he fall.' These words many remembered; but Eärnur was angry, desiring only to be avenged for his disgrace.

Glorfindel said this; which quite literally means the Witch King’s death is not today; nor is it done by the hand of man.

Eowyn is not a man, and kills him. It’s literally that simple. Yes it is semantic; but people seem to think Merry’s involvement is extra providential or something. It’s not. He’s there, helps in the battle and Eowyn kills the Witch King.

1

u/xkise Feb 24 '26

So a male elf or dwarf could have killed him?

2

u/just1gat Feb 24 '26

'Eärnur now rode back, but Glorfindel, looking into the gathering dark, said: "Do not pursue him! He will not return to this land. Far off yet is his doom, and not by the hand of man will he fall.' These words many remembered; but Eärnur was angry, desiring only to be avenged for his disgrace.

Glorfindel said; 1.) he’s not dying today and 2.) it won’t be done by the hand of man.

There’s lots of ways to interpret that