led zeppelin e tolkien... ascoltando la ballata Stairway to heaven riprovo le emozioni di quando per la prima volta lessi la storia di Aragorn e Arwen...
per chi fosse interessato il link completo è http://www.auburn.edu/~speedhe/
Stairway to Heaven
(Led Zeppelin IV)
In an interview, Robert Plant stated plainly that "Stairway" had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with The Lord of the Rings. However, I am convinced that he is not being completely honest:
There's a feeling I get when I look to the West
And my spirit is crying for leaving.
In my thoughts I have seen rings of smoke through the trees
And the voices of those who stand looking...
As previously mentioned, Gandalf and the other wizards arrived in Middle Earth . from Valinor (the sacred lands of the Valar, banned to mortals) and like the Elves, they would return when their work on Middle Earth was complete. However, the beauty of the land captured the hearts of all who set eyes on it, forever leaving them yearning to return. Gandalf's hardest tasks befall him during the War of the Ring; even Frodo notices that he looks older, more worried, and even more careworn than ever. I believe this is what Plant is referring to in this verse. Also, Gandalf is famous for his colored smoke rings, and "those who stand looking" are more than likely the Dunadan (Rangers) who patrol the land in disguise, protecting it from evil. (The Simarillion p. 299-300; 102; TheFellowship of the Ring p. 54; 55)
I wrote the above about two years ago and after reading the trilogy again, I have found even more evidence for Tolkien in "Stairway." The above still holds true, but in a more specific context, the lines above are from The Hobbit where Gandalf, the thirteen dwarfs and Bilbo are coming down from the Misty Mountains after murdering the Great Goblin. The party makes their way to the home of Beorn, the Skin Changer on the edge of Mirkwood. Bilbo more than once wishes he was back home (the West) over the Misty Mountains. Which corresponds to the lines above. Leaving Beorn's house, they are given ponies and a horse, for Gandalf to ride, to the gates of Mirkwood. Beorn loves his animals and indeed, he would let no harm come to them. He and his creatures are seen by Bilbo off to the side of the trail, watching them at night in secret. Upon reaching the gate, Gandalf confirms Bilbo's suspicions. These are "Those who stand looking."
In my thoughts I have seen rings of smoke through the trees
And the voices of those who stand looking...
A new day will dawn
For those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter
Plant could also be referring to the Woodland Elves who make their home on the skirts of Mirkwood, opposite that of Beorn. While in Mirkwood, day was as night with no light whatsoever. Bilbo could not even see his hand before his face, but he could see eyes. Big eyes, little eyes, and eyes of all colors. Toward the end of the path through the forest, they came upon the elves hunting for deer and rabbits, with big bonfires three times. They could hear their laughter and see them glittering in jewels and hear their songs, but each time the company approached, they would flee.
Finally, there is a passage in The Hobbit (A Warm Welcome) where Tolkien writes of the men of Dale,
Some sang too that Thror and Thrain would come back one day
and gold would flow in rivers, through the mountain gates, and all that
land would be filled with new song and laughter.
This little passage may not be related to Led Zeppelin, to say it does would be a stretch. However, I think the lyrics to "Stairway to Heaven" bear the same message of hope as the passage above. After all, Plant says himself "This is a song of hope."
TAM
<pjohnson@ucsd.edu>
As I sit here listening to Stairway to Heaven, and it *does* make me think of Aragorn and Arwen as you said on your page...
The first lines of the song are: "There's a lady who's sure, all that glitters is gold." The first lines of Aragorn's poem are: "All that is gold does not glitter, not all who wander are lost, all that is old does not wither, deep roots are not touched by the frost." (That's from memory, as I don't have a copy handy. If you do, please check it out. It's in _Fellowship_, either At The Sign of the Prancing Pony or Strider.)
About three minutes in: "There's a feeling I get, when I look to the west, and my spirit is crying for leaving." West is a reference to either Valinor as the home of the Elves (for Arwen) or Numenor (Westernesse) as the home of the Dunedain (for Aragorn). My guess would be that it is Arwen that is the subject now, but I'm not sure. Following the great migration of Elves back to Valinor, she lived with Aragorn until he died and then laid herself down at Caras Galadon in Lothlorien a while later. The "spirit is crying for leaving" may be Arwen's wishing that she could follow her father's path to the Undying Lands, but she knows she can't because she chose to forsake her immortality to be with Aragorn.
Just after that: "In my thoughts I have seen, rings of smoke through the trees, and the voices of those who stand looking." Continuing the Arwen motif, she may be remembering the Dunadan (Rangers) standing watch over the land west of the Misty Mountains as you pointed out.
And again after that: "And a new day will dawn, for those who stand long, and the forests will echo with laughter." The new day is most likely the beginning of the Fourth Age, when Sauron is cast out and so begins a Golden Age of Men. The echoing laughter is that of the Elves in Greenwood the Great under Thranduil and those in Lothlorien under Celeborn.
And nearing the end: "There walks a lady we all know, who shines white light and wants to show, how everything still turns to gold." I can't think of anyone else this could be except for Galadriel. The White Lady of the Noldor, with her golden hair, brings light to all she touches.
