Quote:
Originally Posted by LadyBrooke
Unless I'm wrong, isn't the Turin inspiration in the Kalevala only the Kullervo cycle? Which is 31-36 in the overall thing. There's the wiki summary of that section. I'm not sure where a good translation of it would be. |
There's a much greater inspiration than just the Turin story. Tom Bombadil, as he appeared in the original poem, is very much indebted to the Kalevala's shamanistic hero, Väinämöinen and the Aino story . There's also the possibility of a link with the simarils. But even more so is the concept of a national mythology. Stylistically there's some relationship as well.
Read the edition with the illustrations by Akseli Gallen-Kallela, which are stunning. I don't know if Tolkien knew them, but it's a glorious riot of picture and verse. The edition which first inspired Tolkien to try his hand at Finnish did not have all the illustrations.
03-01-2014, 05:15 PM
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