A safe fairy-land is untrue to all worlds. J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 17 to Stanley Unwin The concept of ‘Faerie’ in Tolkien’s writings and philosophy is as important as it is nebulous. It is a state of enchantment, of belief in some secondary reality as guided by a sub-creator – yet it is also that Secondary World itself, and the things that dwell therein. Yet if On Fairy Stories is to be believed, these Faerie tales of Faerie are themselves concerned chiefly with the adventures of men in Faerie – ie, these mortals are themselves less of Faerie than Faerie itself…
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Faërie is a perilous land, and in it are pitfalls for the unwary and dungeons for the overbold…. …The realm of fairy-story is wide and deep and high and filled with many things: all manner of beasts and birds are found there; shoreless seas and stars uncounted; beauty that is an enchantment, and an ever-present peril; both joy and sorrow as sharp as swords. On Fairy Stories, J.R.R. Tolkien To the budding Tolkien scholar, doubtless one of the first concepts encountered is that of ‘faerie.’ It is, in Tolkien’s works, a nuanced, layered, and complex term, encapsulating and hinting at…
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Something that’s long struck me as being worthy of investigation and consideration is the subtle and quiet character journey that Aragorn undergoes throughout The Lord of the Rings. It’s something I might dip into a few times this year, as (despite the not infrequent criticisms that he is a flat and uninteresting character in the books) I truly believe there is much of merit to be gleaned. Aragorn may seldom serve as the point of view character, and is undeniably already fully realised as a hero when he meets the hobbits in Bree…yet he does have an arc, I think.…
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Having dealt with Tolkien’s Lesser Tales over the last month, there was really only one piece of Tolkien’s fiction that we could possibly turn to as a postscript to this series – what may very well be the Least Tale of Tolkien, as it were. Mention ‘Goblin Feet’ to a Tolkien lover, and you’ll get one of two reactions. The first (and much more common) is likely bafflement, a “huh?” and subsequent inquiry as to whether this is some sort of evidence about the origin of Orcs? The rarer, and desired, reaction, is a wry chuckle and a raise of…
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For the last post in this year’s September Series, it only seems natural to discuss the last work Tolkien published in his life, and the last of the tenuously-connected ‘Lesser Tales’ – Smith of Wootton Major. And discuss it we will – in a manner of speaking. Because this choice of mine to write about Smith is, alas, also a critical error of judgement on my part. Smith might be my favourite thing Tolkien ever wrote. Ever. There’s nothing like the richness of The Lord of the Rings, and On Fairy Stories might have had a more profound influence on…
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