Well, for me, I remember when "The Silmarillion's" publication was eagerly anticipated, and my First American Printing a treasure for me to this day. It is great, but simple telling tales gets a little old compared to the rich characters, dialogue and plot of "The Lord of the Rings." I also wish that it could be redone as a complete, unannotated version that incorporates all appropriate parts from at least "The Unfinished Tales" and LotR App. I & II, with the best possible reconcialiation of what are really very few inconcruencies.
I am also beginning to understand the point of many of the most knowledgeable amongst the Barrow-Downers, in that in many cases this version of "The Silmarillion" misses critical improvements and ideas that JRR Tolkien later intended to include, as he better understood the Red Book, of course. Nevertheless, I'm only now about to start HoME III, myself, so that full judgement still waits.
Nevertheless, we can only blame JRR. He did have plenty of time after the LotR to get it together, and his son really had nothing but the current Silm that could be merely edited and made ready for publication as a coherent and internally complete story. I don't think his father gave any one permission to actually rewrite or amend his work And any discrepancies with the LotR are of only the most subjective and tentative variety.
So, despite my love for the "The Silmarillion", I must at this time give it only an Eight (8), with the LotR being of course the 10.
__________________
The hoes unrecked in the fields were flung, __ and fallen ladders in the long grass lay __ of the lush orchards; every tree there turned __ its tangled head and eyed them secretly, __ and the ears listened of the nodding grasses; __ though noontide glowed on land and leaf, __ their limbs were chilled.
|