Post by fanuidhol on May 23, 2006 18:13:45 GMT -6
Hi Everybody. I'm back.
I've been reading The Lord of the Rings A Reader's Companion by W. Hammond and C. Scull along with LotR.
This book is amazing and I am so excited about it.
I am currently reading "The Riders of Rohan" chapter of both books.
The first things that the Reader's Companion (RC) tells me in every chapter are the corresponding pages for the drafts and history of that chapter in the History of LotR. Someday, this will come in handy for me.
As it moves through the text the RC: defines archaic and Old English words; gives explanations of all references to the "older history" found in The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, sometimes delving into the Marquette papers that further explain what is found in UT; defines some words, usually names, found in Tolkien's unfinished Index and "Nomenclature" (written to explain some things to translators. The full "Nomenclature" is found at the end of the book); occasionally will give insight from the History of LotR and Letters; sometimes more insight found from external sources such as Road to Middle-earth and Beowulf; provides explanations to some things found in the text proper that are further explained in the Appendices; gives changes between editions and best of all a few tidbits from unpublished work.
For instance:
In the full page explaining "Ents", the RC cites: "Nomenclature", "Letters" twice, Shippey "JRR Tolkien: Scholar and Story-teller" and further says that there is more on another page.
One thing from this chapter that has bothered me for many years is when Aragorn says "He is smaller than the other" when he found Pippin's trail when Pippin tried to escape. RC says that this was how it was written in editions prior to 2004. It now reads "...smaller than the others" with C. Tolkien's blessing, since Aragorn would not have referred to Merry "in such a remote tone".
Included in the book is a previously unpublished portion of Tolkien's letter to Milton Waldman that deals with LotR and a history of the writing of LotR.
I can't wait to get to the Appendices.
Fan
I've been reading The Lord of the Rings A Reader's Companion by W. Hammond and C. Scull along with LotR.
This book is amazing and I am so excited about it.
I am currently reading "The Riders of Rohan" chapter of both books.
The first things that the Reader's Companion (RC) tells me in every chapter are the corresponding pages for the drafts and history of that chapter in the History of LotR. Someday, this will come in handy for me.
As it moves through the text the RC: defines archaic and Old English words; gives explanations of all references to the "older history" found in The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, sometimes delving into the Marquette papers that further explain what is found in UT; defines some words, usually names, found in Tolkien's unfinished Index and "Nomenclature" (written to explain some things to translators. The full "Nomenclature" is found at the end of the book); occasionally will give insight from the History of LotR and Letters; sometimes more insight found from external sources such as Road to Middle-earth and Beowulf; provides explanations to some things found in the text proper that are further explained in the Appendices; gives changes between editions and best of all a few tidbits from unpublished work.
For instance:
In the full page explaining "Ents", the RC cites: "Nomenclature", "Letters" twice, Shippey "JRR Tolkien: Scholar and Story-teller" and further says that there is more on another page.
One thing from this chapter that has bothered me for many years is when Aragorn says "He is smaller than the other" when he found Pippin's trail when Pippin tried to escape. RC says that this was how it was written in editions prior to 2004. It now reads "...smaller than the others" with C. Tolkien's blessing, since Aragorn would not have referred to Merry "in such a remote tone".
Included in the book is a previously unpublished portion of Tolkien's letter to Milton Waldman that deals with LotR and a history of the writing of LotR.
I can't wait to get to the Appendices.
Fan
- 'It's an ill wind as blows nobody no good, as I always say. And All's well as ends Better!'