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Trampling the Legacy, Remaking the Myth - Page 4

© Michael Martinez

Aside from the fact that this is one of Tolkien's longest passages of exposition, it comes from a character. You can feel Aragorn's passion for the story even though there is much in it which is mysterious to the first-time reader. In fact, it's downright confusing for many first-time readers. But it's entertaining. And it's distracting. The whole mood of the scene is altered by Aragorn's story, and the subsequent encounter with the Nazgul is starkly contrasted with his campfire tale. The revelation of ancient lore through the lips of a character, rather than the cold summation of an unseen and unnamed narrator, brings the lore to life. And it helps to make the fantasy world more realistic. Tolkien didn't throw away an opportunity to sit everyone down and tell a bunch of stories. The tale of Beren and Luthien really doesn't seem to fit with the adventure of Frodo, although there are connections to the greater story. It is a precursor of Aragorn's own quest for love. It inspires Sam when he and Frodo are in Mordor, and he realizes that they are in a way carrying on the ancient struggle of the Elves against evil. Eddings' prologue goes on to tell virtually the whole history of the world. Tolkien's history of the world is revealed slowly through numerous stories and books. Tolkien gives the reader enough to understand that something happened in the past which had a profound effect upon the relations of Elves and Men. We are also told that those relations came to an uncertain crux in-between the more ancient events and the current drama. But Tolkien hints that there is more behind each revelation. He carefully selects material from the broader story to color the one he is presently telling. Tolkien's trickle of information has been transformed into a torrent of infodumps from people wanting to establish for their readers or players that this is a new fantasy world. It's not enough merely to tell a story and drop hints here and there of something more ancient. A few authors, like Mary Gentle, actually preserve something of Tolkien's style. But many just sort of wallow in ancient lore. Ancient lore should be related either for its own sake or to enhance the primary story. Instead, we are being given massive doses of ancient lore to explain everything up front. Was it necessary for the reader to understand that Aragorn was a descendant of Luthien when Gandalf mentioned him briefly to Frodo in the Shire? Of course not. But if a lesser author had written The Lord of the Rings we would already have been told about Luthien, the War of the Last Alliance, and perhaps even Isildur's untimely end.

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