The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum - View Single Post - Transmission theory: what the heck was Tolkien thinking?

William Cloud Hicklin · 11-16-2016, 08:33 AM

The letter mentioned in a recent discussion led me to realize something very odd. In it, Tolkien (or his amanuensis) mentioned that the Silmarillion would lay out the history of the earlier Ages "as passed down by the Numenoreans." Well, this is all well and good; it's hardly a secret that Tolkien had resolved by this time that the only way to square his cosmology with "true science," which the Valar and thus the Noldor certainly would have known, would be to pass off his legendarium as garbled Mannish traditions.

But wait- that letter was written in 1965, at the same time the Revised Edition of the LR was being prepared. And what did T do in that revision? Why, he doubled down on the Bilbo-transmission theory, making it more explicit than the 1st Ed. had been that the Silmarillion was Mr Baggins' "Translations From the Elvish"- seemingly a complete contradiction of the Numenorean-legend theory.

Who can read this riddle?

(Incidentally, this would not be the first time Tolkien entertained two contradictory ideas simultaneously- for a while in the writing of Book V, he seemingly had Frodo look out at the moon over the Forbidden Pool at the same time as Pippin aboard Shadowfax *and* Pippin on the battlements of Minas Tirith!)

11-16-2016, 08:33 AM	#1
William Cloud Hicklin Loremaster of Annúminas Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 2,301	Transmission theory: what the heck was Tolkien thinking? The letter mentioned in a recent discussion led me to realize something very odd. In it, Tolkien (or his amanuensis) mentioned that the Silmarillion would lay out the history of the earlier Ages "as passed down by the Numenoreans." Well, this is all well and good; it's hardly a secret that Tolkien had resolved by this time that the only way to square his cosmology with "true science," which the Valar and thus the Noldor certainly would have known, would be to pass off his legendarium as garbled Mannish traditions. But wait- that letter was written in 1965, at the same time the Revised Edition of the LR was being prepared. And what did T do in that revision? Why, he doubled down on the Bilbo-transmission theory, making it more explicit than the 1st Ed. had been that the Silmarillion was Mr Baggins' "Translations From the Elvish"- seemingly a complete contradiction of the Numenorean-legend theory. Who can read this riddle? (Incidentally, this would not be the first time Tolkien entertained two contradictory ideas simultaneously- for a while in the writing of Book V, he seemingly had Frodo look out at the moon over the Forbidden Pool at the same time as Pippin aboard Shadowfax and Pippin on the battlements of Minas Tirith!) __________________ The entire plot of The Lord of the Rings could be said to turn on what Sauron didn’t know, and when he didn’t know it.