The works of J. R. R. Tolkien

It's interesting that he emphasizes how people apparently tend to feel bogged down in the details of the Silmarillion, or are apparently bewildered or turned off by the construction of the Silmarillion text as "remote" and "archaic."

To me, I in no way found the former offputting, and in fact found the latter appealing. I have always felt this way, and never realized that so many people felt otherwise. And I had to think about this for a while, to sort out why it should be so.

Upon reflection, I believe that my reaction-- apparently atypical-- comes from my having been raised on having considerable portions of the Tanach (the Hebrew Scriptures) read to me (in English translation) as a small child, like any other stories. So I became accustomed at a very young age to stories often involving considerable detail, complex genealogies, archaic modes of thought, and a more remote style than modern novels.

But then again, I am an only child, without cousins, and most of my closest friends have been the oddball quirky ones in their families. So I really kind of don't know how it works for other people. Do you guys think that this kind of early exposure to classical styles of narrative can make such a dramatic difference, or does it really ultimately just come down to some people having an affinity for certain kinds of text and others not so much?

 

To be fair, I have had a number of students over the years find that they love encountering new literature, and they do read novels, short stories, etc., and do not just spend all their time online or playing video games. I might actually have as many or more who love literature and read as who merely tolerate literature/reading and prefer other media.

I will give you, though, that I have yet to meet a kid who takes to Joyce. I myself couldn't make it through Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man until college, couldn't make it through Finnegan's Wake until my late twenties, or Ulysses until my thirties, and I confess I found it hard going even then.

I am filled with sympathetic horror at your description of being discouraged to read when growing up, @Baraka_Guru. Mrs. Levite and I are both deeply passionate about literature and writing, and some of our earliest conversations when we knew Little Levite was en route were about reading to him and encouraging his verbal and literary development. I can't imagine an upbringing that is indifferent or even shuns reading and books, and I feel terrible for you. You deserve so many kudos for developing the thoughtful and literate style you now have!

@snowy, I think your suggestion that it is a nature/nurture question as to whether people exposed to classic narrative styles when young grow to appreciate them more or whether it is innate to certain people is a good one. I suppose you're probably right, which means we may never really know, as it is likely to be some combination of the two.

But in any case, I do think Tolkien was quite deliberate about creating an archaic style, in tone if not in precise detail, and I do think he was fairly clear that either people would like it, or they wouldn't, and he was not at all interested in trying to "persuade" people to appreciate his writing. He was very much a purist, and wrote chiefly for his own satisfaction, which goes a long way toward explaining why it took so long and was so difficult for him to get published before the success of LotR. I have to admit, I like that about him, though. He really was dedicated to his art, and I just always love anyone who takes the attitude of "this is who I am, this is what I do, and if you don't like it, fuck you." Or at least the polite Oxford don version of that. I have a major streak of that myself (surprise, surprise), so it makes me love Tolkien all the more to see how much he had it.

 

I love to read, I read to my children, I encourage them to read and they love to read too. That seems like a fair bit of nurture to me

Back on topic - I'm thinking I need to revisit the Silmarillion - I haven't read it since high school. Maybe, like snowy, I need to add a hard back to my collection (the copy I originally read was my brother's and it is a badly dog eared paperback).

 

I have two copies of Tolkien's major stuff one paperback for reading in bed or traveling, one hardcover for armchair reading and reference. I do also now have the big three on my Kindle, and I don't think I've had major issues with that.

 

My Hobbit is a paperback I picked up in a second hand book store. My LoTR is 3 volume hard cover with illustrations by Alan Lee. I picked this up on sale for about $10 brand new *many* years ago. My wife has the matching single volume hard cover (they are sitting next to each other on the book shelf. The original copy I read was a paperback also my brother's and it has long since fallen apart through overuse!

 

My hardcover LotR is a beautiful single-volume edition bound in red with colorful designs and runes, made to resemble the Red Book of Westmarch. I got it from my late grandmother, who knew how I adored Tolkien, as a gift upon graduation from college.

 

I see many of the more common Tolkien books in my searches at resale shops & thrift stores, but not Silmarillion. If I find a nice edition for a good price--HBs usually run me $1.00-$2.50-- it's yours. I have a very large edition of the triology bundled into one book. I bought it because of the larger print for my poor eyesight, but honestly I don't know that I'll ever read it. Ya want it?