Gollum and Eagles: Deux ex machina?

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Very nice post Bêthberry.

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

Tolkien chose a different kind of text and style for TH sequel than he used in his private papers about his Legendarium; Tokien hints rather than states directly; to infer the continuity is to make readerly acts, to take up the hints and veiled references which, for most readers, are to a tantalizing half-glimpsed idea.

Could it be that he played to the psychological need for discovery (not sure that this actually exists, and so far my searches have proved fruitless, but I would guess that it's real)? You know, the desire to find out what's out there, in there, over there, under there, etc. Isn't there a thrill when you first meet someone unique and cool, or start reading a book that's a real page-turner, or hear a song that makes you stop and think? The adrenaline levels may vary, but they are examples of moments when you think: Hey, I need to look into him/her/this/that a little more. You get in gear, engaged as it were, and start digging.

M-Y-S-T-E-R-Y.

Don't you just hate it when, at the end of a book, everything is just wrapped up ever so neatly and conveniently, and nothing is left to ponder? Isn't this the reason for d e m, to fill in the plot holes and finish off the story lines?

Discovery. Wonder.

Tolkien, in LotR, gives us a glimpse at times that there's more to Middle Earth than just the book in our hands. In the Appendices (added in subsequent publishing because readers wanted to know more?) more of the story is given, but even that is just a teasing draught from the sea of material. The more you explore, the greater your rewards. You still have to dig, as it's not all laid out. And even better, the additional material is (mostly) consistent and valid across the whole. The letters mor signify something dark or black (Moria, Mordor, Moriquendi, etc), whether they're seen in the First or Third Age. Other authors cobble together appendices or additional stories, but these are hacks, not part of nor grown from the whole. Your exploration is put off as it's all a cheap facade, not the real deal archeology of Tolkien's works.

So again, as I've stated before, we never get to read about Eru, but occasionally see large fingerprints in LotR, and get the pleasure of playing CSI:ME.