Gems from the Letters - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

doug*platypus · 01-26-2003, 05:28 AM

I've always been a bit hesitant to find out about my few heroes beyond their works. I wouldn't want my appreciation of their art to be disturbed by a dislike of their personality or their views.

Reading Letters of Tolkien, I have found that with JRRT this is quite the opposite. I am amazed at what a down-to-earth yet intelligent and thoughtful person he was. His condemnations of the Nazis in particular I found very satisfying, but he is by no means blindly patriotic. He seems to be an intellectual who found his own ground, and I am glad to see that none of his letters so far (I'm up to Letter 131) have been coloured by political leanings or prejudice of any type. Even religion is not heaped out by the barrelful (as I'm sure it would be by the preachy C.S. Lewis), and Tolkien comes across as a pious, devoted and thoughtful Catholic rather than a zealot.

I enjoyed reading the correspondence written up to the end of the second world war, and would gladly read many more from the same time period. I think it must have been one the most single shocking time in human history, and I wonder how so many people made it through so courageously. It was refreshing to hear Tolkien's lengthy words on the futility of war. I'll be very quick now to direct anyone who sees the books or even the movies as warmongering, straight to Letters of Tolkien.

Letter 131 is such a wealth of information about The Silmarillion, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings that I am shocked that it has not been repeated anywhere else, say in an introduction to The Silmarillion. It's very rewarding to see a synopsis of how all the tales tie in together written by their creator, and there are gems of information that I haven't seen anywhere else, such as that given on the Rings of Power.

All in all, I've found them a pleasure to read, and I consider myself indebted to Humphrey Carpenter, and especially to Christopher Tolkien for publishing so many letters of an intimate nature, knowing full well the enjoyment that we would get from them. Does anyone know an address that I could write a thank-you to him at?

01-26-2003, 05:28 AM	#11
doug*platypus Delver in the Deep Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Aotearoa Posts: 960	I've always been a bit hesitant to find out about my few heroes beyond their works. I wouldn't want my appreciation of their art to be disturbed by a dislike of their personality or their views. Reading Letters of Tolkien, I have found that with JRRT this is quite the opposite. I am amazed at what a down-to-earth yet intelligent and thoughtful person he was. His condemnations of the Nazis in particular I found very satisfying, but he is by no means blindly patriotic. He seems to be an intellectual who found his own ground, and I am glad to see that none of his letters so far (I'm up to Letter 131) have been coloured by political leanings or prejudice of any type. Even religion is not heaped out by the barrelful (as I'm sure it would be by the preachy C.S. Lewis), and Tolkien comes across as a pious, devoted and thoughtful Catholic rather than a zealot. I enjoyed reading the correspondence written up to the end of the second world war, and would gladly read many more from the same time period. I think it must have been one the most single shocking time in human history, and I wonder how so many people made it through so courageously. It was refreshing to hear Tolkien's lengthy words on the futility of war. I'll be very quick now to direct anyone who sees the books or even the movies as warmongering, straight to Letters of Tolkien. Letter 131 is such a wealth of information about The Silmarillion, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings that I am shocked that it has not been repeated anywhere else, say in an introduction to The Silmarillion. It's very rewarding to see a synopsis of how all the tales tie in together written by their creator, and there are gems of information that I haven't seen anywhere else, such as that given on the Rings of Power. All in all, I've found them a pleasure to read, and I consider myself indebted to Humphrey Carpenter, and especially to Christopher Tolkien for publishing so many letters of an intimate nature, knowing full well the enjoyment that we would get from them. Does anyone know an address that I could write a thank-you to him at? __________________ But Gwindor answered: 'The doom lies in yourself, not in your name'.