Christopher Tolkien | Suite101.com

Is your Canon on the loose?
An inquiry into how to establish a canon for Tolkien discussions, which inevitably leads to the question of how or whether the Silmarillion can or should be rewritten, and by whom.
silmarillion • j.r.r. tolkien • christopher tolkien • quenta silmarillion • the lord of the rings

Browsing the Compleat Middle-Earth Library
The study of J.R.R. Tolkien's life and works is an ever-expanding field. Here is a road-map for readers new and old to help them navigate their way through the winding paths of Tolkiendom.
j.r.r. tolkien • the history of middle-earth • the lord of the rings • the hobbit • the new shadow

Gil-galad was an Elven-king...
A discussion of Gil-galad's history and genealogy, and the importance of The Silmarillion in studying Gil-galad.
gil-galad • elendil • numenor • finwe • lindon

Dragoncon will be the Tolkien/SF event of the year!
A review of guests, panelists, and planned sessions for the Tolkien and Middle-earth track to be held at Dragoncon in Atlanta, GA, on June 29-July 2.
dragoncon • j.r.r. tolkien • middle-earth • brad dourif • karl urban

It's All in the Family: The Elweans and Ingweans
The first of two essays examines the Eldarin genealogies and whether it is possible to state definitively who was related to whom and how. The Ingweans and Elweans are the royal families of the Vanyar and Sindar.
ingwe • elwe thingol • the book of lost tales • the ruin of doriath • christopher tolkien

Middle-Earth Revised, Again
Was The Silmarillion really the only unwritten chapter left in the history of Middle-earth, or have we all overlooked another project, just as broad in scope, which Tolkien left unfinished at his death?
j.r.r. tolkien • middle-earth • the hobbit • the lord of the rings • christopher tolkien

Them Dwarves, Them Dwarves!
First part of a discussion about Tolkien's Dwarves.
dwarves • tolkien • middle-earth • belegost • nogrod

Bingo Baggins, Frodo Took and a Hobbit in Wooden Shoes
Wherein the author speaks of Tolkien's decades-long struggle in writing his masterpiece, 'The Lord of the Rings'.
tolkien • anduin • numenor • hobbit • baggins

Does Barliman Have a Beard? And Other Important Fannish Issues
Some of Middle-earth's greatest conflicts are fought among the fans and critics of J.R.R. Tolkien. Who is right? Who is wrong? What will be the next great debate? And who will turn up that long-desired recipe for lembas?
j.r.r. tolkien • christopher tolkien • the lord of the rings • the hobbit • the silmarillion

Elves By the Numbers
How many Noldor reached Aman? How many returned to Middle-earth? These questions have annoyed Tolkien fans for years. But though we cannot know what J.R.R. Tolkien intended, we can make some educated guestimates.
j.r.r. tolkien • christopher tolkien • the lord of the rings • the history of middle-earth • the peoples of middle-earth

Lonely Wanderers and the Tales That Almost Were
The story of Earendil changed considerably through the years of Tolkien's life. In a similar fashion, the history of the Lords of Dol Amroth also underwent changes. The promise of both stories was thus never fully achieved.
earendil • the book of lost tales • imrazor the numenorean • mithrellas • nimrodel

Looking beyond Peter Jackson to...J.R.R. Tolkien
A speculation on the impact that Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings movies will have on the fantasy film industry, and the impact Tolkien may have on the 21st century.
j.r.r. tolkien • christopher tolkien • peter jackson • the lord of the rings • the hobbit

The Quests of Middle-earth
A look at Tolkien's use of quests in his stories, long and short, and of how role-playing games and more recent fantasy stories have departed from Tolkien's ideas.
quest • gilgamesh • j.r.r. tolkien • the lord of the rings • fellowship

The Wars of the Glorfindels
Glorfindel has been the subject of much curiosity and discussion through the years despite how little J.R.R. Tolkien actually told us about this character. And yet it wasn't always that way....
glorfindel • gondolin • turgon • noldor • vanyar

The Tip of the Iceberg: New Information About Middle-Earth
This is the first of a series of essays analyzing previously unpublished works by J.R.R. Tolkien which have been brought to light by the Elvish Linguistic Fellowship.
elvish linguistic fellowship • vinyar tengwar • mythopoeic society • osanwe-kenta • rivers and beacon-hills of gondor

In Feanor's Footsteps
Could Tolkien have fully visualized the War of Wrath as he provided details for so many other events, or was it necessarily a legend about which little could or should be known?
war of wrath • host of valinor • eonwe • winged dragons • flying dragons

Real Orcs Don't Do Windows
Tolkien's vision of the Uruks, the black Orcs from Mordor and Isengard, followed a very unconventional path from conception to publication. Why did he feel compelled to create a new race of goblins, one which possessed none of the weaknesses of the older race of goblins?
uruks • orcs • goblins • uruk-hai • goblin feet

All the King's Horses and All the King's Men...
This is the third in a series of articles exploring previously unpublished texts about Middle-earth. The 'Osanwe-kenta' text is closely identified with J.R.R. Tolkien's 'Orcs' essay and 'Quendi and Eldar'. But there may also be a connection with the much later 'Shibboleth of Feanor'.
osanwe-kenta • shibboleth of feanor • quendi and eldar

Them Dwarves, Them Dwarves, Part II
A continuation of the discussion of Tolkien's Dwarves: their history, culture, and relationships with other peoples.
dwarves • middle-earth • tolkien • eriador • hobbits

A History of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, Part 3
Part three of a three-part article examining the causes and events of the War of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men. This section includes the end notes and bibliography of sources.
aule • valinor • war of the last alliance of elves and men • concerning galadriel and celeborn • unfinished tales

Have Island, Will Rebel
Did Numenorean society follow an inevitable path toward division because the kings retained, respected, and enlarged autonomous traditions? Were the noble families of Numenor able to influence the policies of the kings both directly and indirectly? This article examines the roots of Numenorean politcal power and the connections between that power and the economic forces of the Numenorean civilization.
numenor • edain of beleriand • beorians • marachians • elros tar-minyatur

It's All in the Family: The Finweans
The second of two articles examining the families of the Eldarin kings. With the publication of The Peoples of Middle-earth, we learned Tolkien's final decisions on who was related to whom, and how.
finweans • the lord of the rings • the silmarillion • morgoth's ring • tolkien

Lord of the Rings Homeschooling Art Projects
Tolkien's LOTR is rich with imagery and iconography. Use his maps of Middle-Earth, heraldic symbols and Elvish script for a number of homeschooling art projects.
tolkien projects • art project ideas • lotr • tolkien artist • middle-earth

Middle-earth: Myth, Legend or Tale?
Part two in a series examining Tolkien’s Middle-earth stories and appraising their value as myth, legend and tale.
tolkien • myth • legend • tale • grimm

The Moot at the Marathon
A short report concerning the author's attendance of the marathon showing of Peter Jackson's cinematic rendering of Tolkien's 'Lord of the Rings'.
lord of the rings • tolkien • society • tol-eressea • smial

Tolkien's Cottage of Lost Play
A discussion of transitional space and Tolkien's story about Olore Malle.
tolkien • psychology • transitional objects • fantasy • privacy of self

And Now, For the Rest of the Poem
What was the key event which led to the publication of The Lord of the Rings? Was it really the publication of The Hobbit, or should we look to something else entirely? The answer may be as surprising as any revelation in the history of Tolkien's world.
errantry • lay of leithian • the lord of the rings • j.r.r. tolkien • george allen and unwin

The Middle-earth Mysteries
A brief discussion of some of the unanswerable questions about Middle-earth's peoples, creatures, and history.
ents • spiders • dunedain • woses • druedain

Beorning questions...
Where the Beornings may have come from, and what they may have been like as a people...
beorn • beornings • gandalf • bilbo • thorin

Do Elves Dream of Eclectic Sleep?
What does it mean to be an Elf? The answer to that question changes with the passing of the ages, and eventually an Elf must choose between sorrow and uncertainty. The growing burden of Elvish regret may, in fact, have compelled the Elves to grow beyond their own fears and misconceptions.
uncertainty • aman • valinor • feanor • finwe

Exploring Tolkien's Fourth Age
How Middle-earth might have appeared in the Fourth Age, had J.R.R. Tolkien finished writing The New Shadow.
new shadow • j.r.r. tolkien • middle-earth • borlas • barrow-wights

Love, Middle-earth Style
An examination of some of the love stories (some tragic, some idyllic) bound up in Tolkien's long history of Middle-earth.
edain • numenor • love • marriage • hobbits

Before the Numenoreans Came
What was Eriador like in the years between the departure of the Numenoreans over Sea and their eventual return? We can extrapolate a few ideas based on things J.R.R. Tolkien said concerning the history of the Dunedain.
gil-galad • elrond • lindon • beleriand • cirdan

Cry 'Havoc!' and Let Slip the Wargs of Fandom!
An analysis of how Peter Jackson's movies portray Middle-earth, and how the film-maker uses compression to squeeze in as many details as possible.
the two towers • the lord of the rings • peter jackson • viggo mortensen • tobacco

Et Tu, Faramir?
Tolkien's vivid mythology captures the imagination with a careful retelling of supposedly ancient stories which were long forgotten. But just exactly what were the imaginary sources for Tolkien's imaginary sources? Middle-earth's undiscovered literature evokes a wheels-within-wheels mystique, much as real literature draws upon older sources to build up its own power and breadth.
epic of gilgamesh • indo-european • tyr • zeus • julius caesar

Seeking the Wayward Children of Numenor
How did Arnor and Gondor come to be, and what were the fundamental differences between the characters of the two realms? And what was the contribution of Numenor to their founding? A discussion of the origins of Arnor and Gondor explores the dynamics of Numenorean culture and how it laid the foundation for the two realms in exile.
tolkien • osgiliath • annuminas • pelargir • fornost erain

The Wild, Wild, Wood-elf West
A discussion of the complex history of the Wood-elves, exploring their roots and various cultural sources.
wood-elves • silvan elves • eldar • noldor • minyar

Celeborn Unplugged
Taking another look at Celeborn, we find he is not quite so cut-and-dried as his detractors would have us believe. But is what Tolkien told us about Celeborn nearly as important as what he implied?
celeborn • galadriel • fangorn forest • treebeard • lothlorien

How did Tolkien actually portray the Rohirrim?
A discussion of how Tolkien portrayed the Rohirrim, comparing and contrasting them with the peoples of the Icelandic sagas and ancient Germanic tribes.
j.r.r. tolkien • middle-earth • rohan • iceland • sagas

Magic by Melkor, No Returns Accepted
How did magic work in Middle-earth, and was it really as unlimited as some people believe?
magic • goiteia magia • melkor • morgoth • the lord of the rings

There Are Games Afoot!
How have role-playing games tried to depict Tolkien's world in the past? With the prospect of a new role-playing game based on The Lord of the Rings facing us, are there perhaps better methods of depicting Tolkien's vision while retaining playability?
iron crown enterprises • middle-earth role-playing game • new line cinema • peter jackson • the lord of the rings

Shhh! It's a Secret Ring!
Who knew about the Rings of Power at the end of the Third Age? It requires some historical detective work to figure out who knew about them in the first place, who learned about them later, and who would have been around to forget about them.
rings of power • the one ring • numenor • eregion • noldor

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