The Peoples of Middle-earth: Difference between revisions

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[[Image:The Peoples of Middle-earth.jpg|thumb|Cover of [[Houghton Mifflin]]'s hardback edition.]]
When [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] laid aside ''[[The Silmarillion]]'' in 1937 the extension of the original 'mythology' into later Ages of the world had scarcely begun. It was in the [[Appendices]] to ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' that there emerged a comprehensive historical structure and chronology of the Second and [[Third Age]]s, embracing all the diverse strands that came together in the [[War of the Ring]]. The difficulty that he found in providing these Appendices, leading to delay in the publication of ''[[The Return of the King]]'', is well known; but in '''''The Peoples of Middle-earth''''' [[Christopher Tolkien]] shows that early forms of these works already existed years before, in essays and records differing greatly from the published forms. He traces the evolution of the Calendars, the [[Hobbit]] genealogies, the [[Westron]] language or [[Common Speech]] (from which many words and names are recorded that were afterwards lost), and the chronological structure of the later Ages. Other writings by J.R.R. Tolkien are included in this final volume of ''[[The History of Middle-earth]]'', chiefly deriving from his last years, when new insights and new constructions still freely arose as he pondered the history that he had created. The book concludes with two soon-abandoned stories, both unique in the setting of time and place: ''[[The New Shadow]]'' in [[Gondor]] of the [[Fourth Age]], and the tale of ''[[Tal-elmar]]'', in which the coming of the dreaded [[Númenórean]] ships is seen through the eyes of men of [[Middle-earth]] in the [[Dark Years]].
When [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] laid aside ''[[The Silmarillion]]'' in 1937 the extension of the original 'mythology' into later Ages of the world had scarcely begun. It was in the [[Appendices]] to ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' that there emerged a comprehensive historical structure and chronology of the Second and [[Third Age]]s, embracing all the diverse strands that came together in the [[War of the Ring]]. The difficulty that he found in providing these Appendices, leading to delay in the publication of ''[[The Return of the King]]'', is well known; but in '''''The Peoples of Middle-earth''''' [[Christopher Tolkien]] shows that early forms of these works already existed years before, in essays and records differing greatly from the published forms. He traces the evolution of the Calendars, the [[Hobbit]] genealogies, the [[Westron]] language or [[Common Speech]] (from which many words and names are recorded that were afterwards lost), and the chronological structure of the later Ages. Other writings by J.R.R. Tolkien are included in this final volume of ''[[The History of Middle-earth]]'', chiefly deriving from his last years, when new insights and new constructions still freely arose as he pondered the history that he had created. The book concludes with two soon-abandoned stories, both unique in the setting of time and place: ''[[The New Shadow]]'' in [[Gondor]] of the [[Fourth Age]], and the tale of ''[[Tal-elmar]]'', in which the coming of the dreaded [[Númenórean]] ships is seen through the eyes of men of [[Middle-earth]] in the [[Dark Years]].



Revision as of 02:05, 7 July 2006

When J.R.R. Tolkien laid aside The Silmarillion in 1937 the extension of the original 'mythology' into later Ages of the world had scarcely begun. It was in the Appendices to The Lord of the Rings that there emerged a comprehensive historical structure and chronology of the Second and Third Ages, embracing all the diverse strands that came together in the War of the Ring. The difficulty that he found in providing these Appendices, leading to delay in the publication of The Return of the King, is well known; but in The Peoples of Middle-earth Christopher Tolkien shows that early forms of these works already existed years before, in essays and records differing greatly from the published forms. He traces the evolution of the Calendars, the Hobbit genealogies, the Westron language or Common Speech (from which many words and names are recorded that were afterwards lost), and the chronological structure of the later Ages. Other writings by J.R.R. Tolkien are included in this final volume of The History of Middle-earth, chiefly deriving from his last years, when new insights and new constructions still freely arose as he pondered the history that he had created. The book concludes with two soon-abandoned stories, both unique in the setting of time and place: The New Shadow in Gondor of the Fourth Age, and the tale of Tal-elmar, in which the coming of the dreaded Númenórean ships is seen through the eyes of men of Middle-earth in the Dark Years.

The History of Middle-earth series
i.The Book of Lost Tales: Part One · ii.The Book of Lost Tales: Part Two · iii.The Lays of Beleriand ·
iv.The Shaping of Middle-earth · v.The Lost Road and Other Writings · vi.The Return of the Shadow ·
vii.The Treason of Isengard · viii.The War of the Ring · ix.Sauron Defeated ·
x.Morgoth's Ring · xi.The War of the Jewels · xii.The Peoples of Middle-earth · (Index)