It's twue! It's twue!:
Literary Interlude: Bearded Mentor Figures in the Literature of the Fantastic : Uncertain Principles: It's time now to talk about two of the greatest mentor figures in the literature of the fantastic. You know their stories well, I'm sure, but the parallels between them are eerie:
- Both are gruff but kindly mentor figures who provide crucial guidance for the young and naive protagonist of the story as he moves out into a scary world to complete an important quest.
- Both fall into a chasm while battling a fearsome monster to allow the protagonist time to flee.
- Both return from their apparent death when least expected, just in time to save the day. *Both have awesomely impressive beards.
I am speaking, of course, of Gandalf from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and Yukon Cornelius from the animated tv special Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer
