HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth'' is a collection of stories and essays by
J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...
that were never completed during his lifetime, but were edited by his son
Christopher Tolkien Christopher John Reuel Tolkien (21 November 1924 – 16 January 2020) was an English and naturalised French academic editor and writer. The son of the author and academic J. R. R. Tolkien, Christopher edited 24 volumes based on his father's P ...
and published in 1980. Many of the tales within are retold in ''
The Silmarillion ''The Silmarillion'' () is a book consisting of a collection of myths and stories in varying styles by the English writer J. R. R. Tolkien. It was edited, partly written, and published posthumously by his son Christopher in 1977, assisted by G ...
'', albeit in modified forms; the work also contains a summary of the events of ''
The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually d ...
'' told from a less personal perspective. The collection received a cautious welcome from scholars and critics. They noted Christopher Tolkien's warning that a good knowledge of the background was needed to gain much from the stories. Others noted that the stories were among the best of Tolkien's writing; Warren Dunn expressed a wish for the whole of the history in such a format. The book, with its commentary, was commercially successful, indicating a market for more of Tolkien's work and leading to the 12-volume ''
The History of Middle-earth ''The History of Middle-earth'' is a 12-volume series of books published between 1983 and 1996 by George Allen & Unwin in the UK and by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Houghton Mifflin in the US. They collect and analyse much of J. R. R. Tolkien' ...
''. On "The Quest of Erebor" in Part Three, Christine Barkley comments that the perspective is the knowledgeable
Gandalf Gandalf is a protagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is a Wizards (Middle-earth), wizard, one of the Istari order, and the leader of the Company of the Ring. Tolkien took the name "Gandalf" fr ...
's, contrasting sharply with the Hobbit
Bilbo Baggins Bilbo Baggins (Westron: ''Bilba Labingi'') is the title character and protagonist of J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 novel ''The Hobbit'', a supporting character in ''The Lord of the Rings'', and the fictional narrator (along with Frodo Baggins) of m ...
's narrower point of view in ''The Hobbit''.
Peter Jackson Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand filmmaker. He is best known as the director, writer, and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy (2012–2014), both of which ar ...
used the story to enrich the narrative for his 2013 film '' The Desolation of Smaug''.


Overview

Unlike ''
The Silmarillion ''The Silmarillion'' () is a book consisting of a collection of myths and stories in varying styles by the English writer J. R. R. Tolkien. It was edited, partly written, and published posthumously by his son Christopher in 1977, assisted by G ...
'', also published posthumously (in 1977), for which the narrative fragments were modified to connect them into a consistent and coherent work, the ''Unfinished Tales'' are presented as Tolkien left them, with little more than names changed (the author having had a confusing habit of trying out different names for a character while writing a draft). Thus some of these are incomplete stories, while others are collections of information about
Middle-earth Middle-earth is the Setting (narrative), setting of much of the English writer J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy. The term is equivalent to the ''Midgard, Miðgarðr'' of Norse mythology and ''Middangeard'' in Old English works, including ''Beowulf'' ...
. Each tale is followed by a long series of notes explaining inconsistencies and obscure points. As with ''The Silmarillion'', Tolkien's son
Christopher Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...
edited and published ''Unfinished Tales'' before he had finished his study of the materials in his father's archive. ''Unfinished Tales'' provides more detailed information about characters, events and places mentioned only briefly in ''
The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually d ...
''. Versions of such tales, including the origins of
Gandalf Gandalf is a protagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is a Wizards (Middle-earth), wizard, one of the Istari order, and the leader of the Company of the Ring. Tolkien took the name "Gandalf" fr ...
and the other Istari (Wizards), the death of
Isildur Isildur () is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, the elder son of Elendil, descended from Elros, the founder of the island Kingdom of Númenor. He fled with his father when the island was drowned, becoming in his turn Kin ...
and the loss of the
One Ring The One Ring, also called the Ruling Ring and Isildur's Bane, is a central plot element in J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'' (1954–55). It first appeared in the earlier story '' The Hobbit'' (1937) as a magic ring that grants the ...
in the Gladden Fields, and the founding of the kingdom of Rohan, help expand knowledge about Middle-earth. The commercial success of ''Unfinished Tales'' demonstrated that the demand for Tolkien's stories several years after his death was not only present but growing. Encouraged by the result, Christopher Tolkien embarked upon the more ambitious twelve-volume work entitled ''
The History of Middle-earth ''The History of Middle-earth'' is a 12-volume series of books published between 1983 and 1996 by George Allen & Unwin in the UK and by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Houghton Mifflin in the US. They collect and analyse much of J. R. R. Tolkien' ...
'', which encompasses nearly the entire corpus of his father's writings about Middle-earth.


Contents


Part One: The First Age

* "Of Tuor and his Coming to
Gondolin In J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium, Gondolin is a secret city of Elves in the First Age of Middle-earth, and the greatest of their cities in Beleriand. The story of the Fall of Gondolin tells of the arrival there of Tuor, a prince of Men; of th ...
", an account of the central character of '' The Fall of Gondolin'' * "''Narn i Hîn Húrin'' (The Tale of the Children of Húrin)" is a long story of what happened to Húrin and his children
Túrin Turambar Túrin Turambar (pronounced ) is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Tolkien's legendarium, legendarium. ''Turambar and the Foalókë'', begun in 1917, is the first appearance of Túrin in the legendarium. Túrin is a Man (Middle-earth ...
and Nienor, after Húrin was cursed by the Dark Lord
Morgoth Morgoth Bauglir (; originally Melkor ) is a character, one of the godlike Vala (Middle-earth), Valar and the primary antagonist of Tolkien's legendarium, the mythic epic published in parts as ''The Silmarillion'', ''The Children of Húrin'', ...
. The story elaborates on what is told of these characters in the published ''Silmarillion'', starting with the childhood of Túrin, continuing through the captivity of his father in the Nírnaeth Arnoediad, and Túrin's exile in Doriath, to Túrin's time in Nargothrond, his incestuous relationship with his sister Nienor, and ultimately ending with suicide by his sword after killing the dragon who caused much of his problems. A shorter version is given in ''The Silmarillion'' as the chapter "Of Túrin Turambar". A complete version is published in the 2007 ''
The Children of Húrin ''The Children of Húrin'' is an epic fantasy novel which forms the completion of a tale by J. R. R. Tolkien. He wrote The Lay of the Children of Húrin, the original version of the story in the late 1910s, revising it several times later, but ...
''.


Part Two: The Second Age

* "A Description of the Island of
Númenor Númenor, also called Elenna-nórë or Westernesse, is a fictional place in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings. It was the kingdom occupying a large island to the west of Middle-earth, the main setting of Tolkien's writings, and was the greatest civil ...
", an account of the
Atlantis Atlantis () is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'' as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world ...
-like island that supported a proud civilisation of Men * "Aldarion and Erendis: The Mariner's Wife", a tale of a King of Númenor who was more interested in the stars and voyaging than ruling a country, provoking a split with his father Tar-Meneldur. * "The Line of Elros: Kings of Númenor", a chronicle listing all the Kings of Númenor from its foundation to its destruction * "The History of
Galadriel Galadriel () is a character created by J. R. R. Tolkien in his Middle-earth writings. She appears in ''The Lord of the Rings'', ''The Silmarillion'', and ''Unfinished Tales''. She was a royal Elf (Middle-earth), Elf of both the N ...
and Celeborn", a group of texts related to Galadriel's origins and exile


Part Three: The Third Age

* "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields", an account of how
Isildur Isildur () is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, the elder son of Elendil, descended from Elros, the founder of the island Kingdom of Númenor. He fled with his father when the island was drowned, becoming in his turn Kin ...
came to be killed in the
River Anduin The geography of Middle-earth encompasses the physical, political, and moral geography of J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional continent Middle-earth on the planet Arda, but widely taken to mean all of creation ('' Eä'') as well as all of his writings ...
, and the
One Ring The One Ring, also called the Ruling Ring and Isildur's Bane, is a central plot element in J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'' (1954–55). It first appeared in the earlier story '' The Hobbit'' (1937) as a magic ring that grants the ...
lost * "Cirion and Eorl and the Friendship of
Gondor Gondor is a fictional kingdom in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings, described as the greatest realm of Men in the west of Middle-earth at the end of the Third Age. The third volume of ''The Lord of the Rings'', '' The Return of the King'', is largel ...
and Rohan", an account of the relationship of those two peoples; it is an extract from " The Rivers and Beacon-Hills of Gondor". * "The Quest of Erebor" has
Gandalf Gandalf is a protagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is a Wizards (Middle-earth), wizard, one of the Istari order, and the leader of the Company of the Ring. Tolkien took the name "Gandalf" fr ...
narrate to
Frodo Baggins Frodo Baggins ( Westron: ''Maura Labingi'') is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings and one of the protagonists in ''The Lord of the Rings''. Frodo is a hobbit of the Shire who inherits the One Ring from his cousin Bilbo Bag ...
how and why he arranged for the retaking of the
Lonely Mountain In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the Lonely Mountain is a mountain northeast of Mirkwood. It is the location of the Dwarves' Kingdom under the Mountain and the town of Dale lies in a vale on its southern slopes. In ''The Lord of the Rings'', ...
(''Erebor'' in
Sindarin Sindarin is one of Languages constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien, the constructed languages devised by J. R. R. Tolkien for use in his fantasy stories set in Arda (Tolkien), Arda, primarily in Middle-earth. Sindarin is one of the many languages spoke ...
), resulting in the adventure told in ''
The Hobbit ''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ...
''. It was written long after that book had been published, sometime after Tolkien had the page proofs for ''
The Fellowship of the Ring ''The Fellowship of the Ring'' is the first of three volumes of the epic novel ''The Lord of the Rings'' by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien; it is followed by ''The Two Towers'' and ''The Return of the King''. The action takes place in th ...
''. * "The Hunt for the Ring", an account of how
Sauron Sauron () is the title character and the main antagonist of J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'', where he rules the land of Mordor. He has the ambition of ruling the whole of Middle-earth, using the power of the One Ring, which he ...
's Black Riders searched for the One Ring between the time that Sauron released
Gollum Gollum is a Tolkien's monsters, monster with a distinctive style of speech in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world of Middle-earth. He was introduced in the 1937 Fantasy (genre), fantasy novel ''The Hobbit'', and became important in its sequel, ' ...
and the time that Frodo left
the Shire The Shire is a region of J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, described in ''The Lord of the Rings'' and other works. The Shire is an inland area settled exclusively by hobbits, the Shire-folk, largely sheltered from the goings-on in the ...
, with details of other versions of the story, and details of the Wizards Gandalf and Saruman and their interest in the Shire. * "The Battles of the Fords of Isen", an account of two battles in Rohan, when the King's son Théodred was killed defending the Fords of Isen from Saruman's Orcs just before the
Battle of Helm's Deep The Battle of Helm's Deep, also called the Battle of the Hornburg, is a fictional battle in J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'' that saw the total destruction of the forces of the Wizard (Middle-Earth), Wizard Saruman by the army of Rohan ...
.


Part Four

* "The
Drúedain The Drúedain are a fictional race of Men, living in the Drúadan Forest, in the Middle-earth legendarium created by J. R. R. Tolkien. They were counted among the Edain who made their way into Beleriand in the First Age, and were friendly ...
", an account of the wild men of the woods * "The Istari", an account of the Wizards sent to Middle-earth * "The
Palantír A palantír (; ) is one of several indestructible crystal balls from J. R. R. Tolkien's high fantasy, epic-fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings''. The word comes from Quenya 'far', and 'watch over'. ''The Lost Road and Other Writings'', p ...
i", an account of the magical seeing stones


Analysis


General

The scholar Paul H. Kocher, reviewing ''Unfinished Tales'' in ''
Mythlore ''Mythlore'' is a biannual (originally quarterly) peer-reviewed academic journal founded by Glen GoodKnight and published by the Mythopoeic Society. Although it publishes articles that explore the genres of myth and fantasy in general, special a ...
'', noted that all the stories are linked to either ''The Silmarillion'', '' Akallabeth'' or ''The Lord of the Rings'', and extensively annotated, mainly by Christopher Tolkien. In Kocher's view, the stories contain "some of Tolkien's best writing" (and he summarized them in some detail), though he found much of interest in the editorial material also. He noted the revised map with the additional place names used in the tales, and that the book does not address Tolkien's poetry. The independent scholar Douglas C. Kane writes that Christopher Tolkien chose to include not just narrative tales, despite the book's title, but "a taste of some of the descriptive and historical underpinnings of those heretofore uncharted vistas", and that indeed he suggested he might "dive even deeper into the history of his father's legendarium", as he eventually did with his 12-volume ''
The History of Middle-earth ''The History of Middle-earth'' is a 12-volume series of books published between 1983 and 1996 by George Allen & Unwin in the UK and by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Houghton Mifflin in the US. They collect and analyse much of J. R. R. Tolkien' ...
''. The Tolkien scholar Corey Olsen notes that Christopher Tolkien chose to present the incomplete tales as they were, adding a commentary to help readers grasp how they fitted in to his father's Middle-earth legendarium. Olson comments that the book's commercial success demonstrated the existence of a market for more of Tolkien's writings, opening up a route to publication of ''The History of Middle-earth''. The Christian philosopher
Peter Kreeft Peter John Kreeft (; born March 16, 1937) is an American professor of philosophy at Boston College and The King's College. A convert to Catholicism, he is the author of over eighty books on Christian philosophy, theology and apologetics. He a ...
wrote in ''Christianity & Literature'' that many readers had felt disappointed by ''Unfinished Tales'', as some had felt about ''The Silmarillion''. Perry Bramlett adds that the book is not for the reader new to Tolkien, nor even one who has read only ''
The Hobbit ''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ...
'' "or perhaps some or even all of the ''Lord of the Rings''." He notes Christopher Tolkien's warning that the stories "constitute no whole" and that much of the content "will be found unrewarding" to those without a good knowledge of ''Lord of the Rings''. More positively, he cites
David Bratman David Bratman is a librarian and Tolkien scholar. Biography Bratman was born in Chicago to Robert Bratman, a physician, and his wife Nancy, an editor. He was one of four sons in the family. He was brought up in Cleveland, Ohio, and then in Cali ...
's comment that much of it is as well-crafted as any of Tolkien's writings, and that readers who found ''The Silmarillion'' "a little too high and distant" would welcome it. The
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
author Warren Dunn, writing in 1993, described the book as engaging, and that every section contained "something of interest", but he cautioned that it required "an intimate knowledge" of ''The Silmarillion'', ''The Lord of the Rings'', and its appendices "for full enjoyment" of the book. He commented that "I really do wish we could have seen the whole history like this, even if it took up twelve volumes to get through the first, second and third ages before the ''Lord of the Rings''!"


"The Quest of Erebor"

Christine Barkley, writing in ''Mythlore'', notes that the point of view in ''The Quest of Erebor'' is Gandalf's, sharply contrasting with Bilbo's far less well-informed point of view in ''The Hobbit''. That book, she states, uses a third-person, limited-knowledge narrator, supposedly written from Bilbo's diary after the adventure. Where Bilbo is interested in food and comfort, and sometimes other familiar things such as riddles, she writes, Gandalf is concerned with defending the West against the Shadow (
Sauron Sauron () is the title character and the main antagonist of J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'', where he rules the land of Mordor. He has the ambition of ruling the whole of Middle-earth, using the power of the One Ring, which he ...
). Further, the ''Quest'' actually pretends to be Frodo's memory of a conversation he had with Gandalf, rather than Gandalf actually writing, so there is uncertainty about how much of what Gandalf said may have been recorded. And when Frodo asks if he has now heard the full story, Gandalf replies "Of course not", so the narration is explicitly incomplete. From the reader's point of view, the point of the story is to explain how ''The Hobbit'' fits into the background of ''The Lord of the Rings'', or more precisely, in Barkley's words, "why Bilbo was included in the dwarves' plans at Gandalf's suggestion." Frank P. Riga and colleagues, also in ''Mythlore'', write that
Peter Jackson Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand filmmaker. He is best known as the director, writer, and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy (2012–2014), both of which ar ...
used the ''Quest'' to enrich the story when transforming ''The Hobbit'' from novel to film for his 2013 film adaptation, '' The Desolation of Smaug''. Among other things, the film opens with the meeting between Gandalf and Thorin at The Prancing Pony. Elements of Gandalf's motivations and previous discussions with Thorin also find their way into the 2012 film '' An Unexpected Journey'' as dialogue, particularly in the meeting held in Bilbo's house. In their view, the ''Quest'' "closely and thoroughly connects the action of ''The Hobbit'' with the larger, cosmic concerns of its sequel, showing how the Dwarves' struggle to regain their homeland became crucial in frustrating Sauron's plan to attack Lorien and
Rivendell Rivendell (') is a valley in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional world of Middle-earth, representing both a homely place of sanctuary and a magical Elf (Middle-earth), Elvish otherworld. It is an important location in ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of ...
." They explain that the quest had to succeed, or the actions described in ''The Lord of the Rings'' could not have occurred. Jackson used the connections, they state; for instance, making Saruman order Gandalf to stop the quest, and making Gandalf refuse, supported by
Galadriel Galadriel () is a character created by J. R. R. Tolkien in his Middle-earth writings. She appears in ''The Lord of the Rings'', ''The Silmarillion'', and ''Unfinished Tales''. She was a royal Elf (Middle-earth), Elf of both the N ...
.


Notes


References


Sources

* {{Authority control Middle-earth books Collections of works by J. R. R. Tolkien Unfinished books Books published posthumously Allen & Unwin books