Whitey Ford
05-30-2023, 01:21 PM
Black Aragorn in 'Lord of the Rings' Sparks Outrage: 'Hate This So Much'
https://i.ibb.co/F5kkfFy/Fx-Qy-Jvt-WAAIk-Wrd.jpg
The changing of a Lord of the Rings character's race from white to black in a collectible card game has sparked controversy online.
New artwork portraying Aragorn, a human character in the J. R. R. Tolkien high fantasy, in Magic: The Gathering released on social media on Sunday was met with both praise and outrage, with one user reacting: "I hate this so much."
Race-swapping characters have been the subject of controversy before. While advocates argue that such moves improve representation in popular works of fiction, critics argue that they are not true to the source material.
https://i.ibb.co/0yQDGRb/Aragornisnotanigger.jpg
Though Aragorn has been portrayed as white in previous Lord of the Rings media, in the Magic: The Gathering artwork he is depicted as a black man with hair twists and a greying goatee beard.
"This is just race-baiting," Thomas Crown tweeted in response. "A publicity stunt in the worst taste."
"I find it hard to understand why would it be beneficial to take a 'Numenorean' (describes as fair-skinned) and turn it into another race," Federico Martani, an Italian artist, wrote. "Isn't it more empowering to have great characters that fit a 'race' and are proud of it, instead of taking well established ones and swap them?"
https://www.newsweek.com/lord-rings-black-aragorn-outrage-1803113#:~:text=Though%20Aragorn%20has%20been%20po rtrayed,stunt%20in%20the%20worst%20taste.%22
https://i.ibb.co/F5kkfFy/Fx-Qy-Jvt-WAAIk-Wrd.jpg
The changing of a Lord of the Rings character's race from white to black in a collectible card game has sparked controversy online.
New artwork portraying Aragorn, a human character in the J. R. R. Tolkien high fantasy, in Magic: The Gathering released on social media on Sunday was met with both praise and outrage, with one user reacting: "I hate this so much."
Race-swapping characters have been the subject of controversy before. While advocates argue that such moves improve representation in popular works of fiction, critics argue that they are not true to the source material.
https://i.ibb.co/0yQDGRb/Aragornisnotanigger.jpg
Though Aragorn has been portrayed as white in previous Lord of the Rings media, in the Magic: The Gathering artwork he is depicted as a black man with hair twists and a greying goatee beard.
"This is just race-baiting," Thomas Crown tweeted in response. "A publicity stunt in the worst taste."
"I find it hard to understand why would it be beneficial to take a 'Numenorean' (describes as fair-skinned) and turn it into another race," Federico Martani, an Italian artist, wrote. "Isn't it more empowering to have great characters that fit a 'race' and are proud of it, instead of taking well established ones and swap them?"
https://www.newsweek.com/lord-rings-black-aragorn-outrage-1803113#:~:text=Though%20Aragorn%20has%20been%20po rtrayed,stunt%20in%20the%20worst%20taste.%22