The Accidental King: Five Reasons Why Finarfin Deserves More Appreciation by Dawn Felagund

Posted on 31 January 2006; updated on 13 December 2020

Part 1

I am a self-proclaimed Finarfin fangirl. I think that the guy is terribly underrepresented and sometimes misrepresented outright by the Tolkien fan community. In 2006, the Silmarillion Writers Guild declared January as Finarfin Appreciation Month. This started as an earnest joke on my part and quickly burgeoned until all sorts of people that I'd never imagined as Finarfin fans were writing stories and creating artwork about him. That month, as I'd bring up Finarfin in light of the fact that it was Finarfin Appreciation Month, the responses I received could basically be dichotomized as such:

1) "Yes! Finarfin deserves an appreciation month! Why hasn't Finarfin Appreciation Month been declared before??"

... and ...

2) "Finarfin? Why Finarfin?"

So, using the published Silmarillion as my guide, I am taking on this second question--"Why Finarfin?"--in hopes of convincing those non-Finarfanatics out there why the current High King of the Noldor is deserving of greater appreciation.

1. "Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt."
Abraham Lincoln

Take a minute and peruse just the first couple of pages on the Silmarillion section on fanfiction.net. Look at the stories posted there, particularly the characters featured in the stories. Who gets overwhelmingly the most press, especially out of the House of Finwë? To save you time, I've gone and done it for you. On 6 January 2006, going by characters mentioned in the summaries, on the front page, there were four stories about Fëanor, two stories about Fingolfin, one story about Maedhros, and one story about Maglor. Yes, there was a story about Finarfin, but it was mine and was posted in honor of Finarfin Appreciation Month.

When Fanged Geranium did a character profile on Finarfin, my first thought was how little is said about him. How little he does in the book. Truly, many people, I think, will admit that Finarfin is a little boring, especially compared to his older brothers. I've seen him called a wimp and portrayed as a coward; I've even taken advantage of his lack of ambition in some of my own comedy pieces. During the Noldorin rebellion, when his brothers get all of the righteous outrage and sig-line-worthy quotes, it is said of Finarfin that he "spoke softly, as was his wont, and sought to calm the Noldor, persuading them to pause and ponder ere deeds were done that could not be undone" (1).

Like Fëanor and Fingolfin, Finarfin's father had been murdered by Melkor. Like Fingolfin, he had heard the treacherous words of Melkor regarding his half-brother's ambitions (2). Yet he alone of the Finwians asks that the Noldor stop to consider their actions and the possible repercussions. He does not tell them that going to Middle-earth and defying the Valar are wrong, and he does not try to talk them out of pursuing vengeance. But he alone recognizes that deeds done in angry haste are often done foolishly or thoughtlessly, resulting in errors that cannot be undone. While Fingolfin and Turgon speak against Fëanor following the oath, their words are harsh and likely exacerbate a situation that needs anything but that (3). No mention is made of them seeking to calm the Noldor and asking that logic and thoughtfulness prevail over a decision that will be the biggest many of the Noldor have made--or ever will. Finarfin is the only one of the Finwians to set his emotions aside long enough to recommend a reasonable course of action.