History of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth
In
J. R. R. Tolkien
's
legendarium
, the
history of Arda
, also called the
history of Middle-earth
,
[a]
began when the
Ainur
entered
Arda
, following the creation events in the
Ainulindale
and long ages of labour throughout
Ea
, the
fictional universe
. Time from that point was measured using
Valian Years
, though the subsequent history of Arda was divided into three time periods using different years, known as the Years of the Lamps, the Years of the Trees, and the Years of the Sun. A separate, overlapping chronology divides the history into 'Ages of the Children of Iluvatar'. The first such Age began with the Awakening of the Elves during the Years of the Trees and continued for the first six centuries of the Years of the Sun. All the subsequent Ages took place during the Years of the Sun. Most
Middle-earth
stories take place in the first three Ages of the Children of Iluvatar.
Major themes of the history are the
divine creation of the world
, followed by the
splintering of the created light
as different wills come into conflict. Scholars have noted the
biblical echoes
of God,
Satan
, and the
fall of man
here, rooted in Tolkien's own Christian faith. Arda is, as critics have noted, "our own green and solid Earth at some quite remote epoch in the past."
As such, it has not only an immediate story but a history, and the whole thing is an "imagined prehistory"
[3]
of the Earth as it is now.
Music of the Ainur
[
edit
]
The supreme deity of Tolkien's universe is
Eru Iluvatar
. Iluvatar created spirits named the Ainur from his thoughts, and some were considered brothers or sisters. Iluvatar
made divine music
with them.
Melkor
, then the most powerful of the Ainur, broke the harmony of the music, until Iluvatar began first a second theme, and then a third theme, which the Ainur could not comprehend since they were not the source of it. The essence of their song symbolized the history of the whole universe and the
Children of Iluvatar
that were to dwell in it ?
Men
and
Elves
.
[T 1]
Then Iluvatar created
Ea
, which means "to be," the universe itself, and formed within it Arda, the
Earth
, "globed within the void": the world together with the three airs is set apart from
Avakuma
, the "void" without. The first 15 of the Ainur that descended to Arda, and the most powerful ones, were called Valar; the lesser Ainur were called Maiar.
[T 1]
Years of Arda
[
edit
]
Valian Years
[
edit
]
When the
Valar
entered
Arda
, it was still lifeless and had no distinct geographical features. The initial shape of Arda, chosen by the Valar, was much more symmetrical, including the central continent of
Middle-earth
. Middle-earth was also originally
much larger
, and was lit by the misty light that veiled the barren ground. The Valar concentrated this light in two large lamps, called Illuin and Ormal. The Vala
Aule
forged two great pillar-like mountains, Helcar in the north and Ringil in the south. Illuin was set upon Helcar and Ormal upon Ringil. In the middle, where the light of the lamps mingled, the Valar dwelt at the island of
Almaren
upon the Great Lake.
[T 2]
This period, known as the Spring of Arda, was a time when the Valar had ordered the World as they wished and rested upon Almaren, and
Melkor
lurked beyond the Walls of Night. During this time animals first appeared, and forests started to grow.
[T 2]
The Spring of Arda was interrupted when Melkor returned to Arda, creating his fortress of Utumno or Udun beneath the Iron Mountains in the far north. The period ended when Melkor assaulted and destroyed the Lamps of the Valar. Arda was again darkened, and the fall of the great Lamps spoiled the symmetry of Arda's surface. New continents were created:
Aman
in the West,
Middle-earth
proper in the middle, the uninhabited lands (later called the
Land of the Sun
) in the East. At the site of the northern lamp was later the inland Sea of Helcar, of which
Cuivienen
was a bay. At the site of the southern lamp was later the
Sea of Ringil
. After the destruction of the Two Lamps the Years of the Lamps ended and the Years of the Trees began.
[T 2]
A Valian Year was considerably longer than a solar year.
[T 3]
[b]
Years of the Trees
[
edit
]
After the destruction of the Two Lamps and the kingdom of
Almaren
, the Valar abandoned
Middle-earth
, moving to the continent of Aman. There they built their Second Kingdom,
Valinor
.
Yavanna
made the
Two Trees
, named
Telperion
(the silver tree) and
Laurelin
(the golden tree) in the land of Valinor. The Trees illuminated Valinor, leaving Middle-earth in darkness. The Years of the Trees were contemporary with Middle-earth's
Sleep of Yavanna
(recalled by
Treebeard
as the Great Darkness).
[T 2]
The Years of the Trees were divided into two epochs. The first ten ages, the Days of Bliss, saw peace and prosperity in Valinor. The
Eagles
, the
Ents
, and the
Dwarves
were conceived by
Manwe
,
Yavanna
, and
Aule
respectively, but placed into slumber until the
awakening of the Elves
. The next ten ages, called the Noontide of the Blessed Realm, saw
Varda
kindling the stars above Middle-earth. This was the first time after the Spring of Arda that Middle-earth was illuminated. The first Elves
awoke
in Cuivienen in the middle of Middle-earth, marking the start of the First Age of the
Children of Iluvatar
, and were soon approached by the Enemy
Melkor
who hoped to enslave them. Learning of this, the Valar and the
Maiar
came into Middle-earth and, in the War of the Powers (also called the Battle of the Powers), defeated Melkor and brought him captive to Valinor. This began the period of the Peace of Arda.
[T 4]
After the War of the Powers,
Orome
of the Valar summoned the Elves to Aman. Many of the Elves went with Orome on the
Great Journey
westwards towards Aman. Along the journey several groups of Elves tarried, notably the
Nandor
and the
Sindar
. The three clans that arrived at Aman were the
Vanyar
, the
Noldor
, and the
Teleri
. They made their home in
Eldamar
.
[T 5]
After Melkor appeared to repent and was released after his servitude of three Ages, he stirred up rivalry between the Noldorin King
Finwe
's two sons
Feanor
and
Fingolfin
. With the help of the giant spider
Ungoliant
, he killed Finwe and stole the
Silmarils
, three gems crafted by Feanor that contained light of the Two Trees, from his vault, and destroyed the Trees of the Valar. The world was again dark, save for the faint starlight.
[T 6]
[T 7]
Bitter at the Valar's inactivity, Feanor and his house left to pursue Melkor, cursing him with the name "Morgoth".
[T 8]
While his brother Finarfin chose to stay in Valinor, a larger host led by Fingolfin followed Feanor. They reached
Alqualonde
, the port-city of the Teleri, who forbade them from taking their ships for the journey to Middle-earth. The first Kinslaying thus ensued, and the Noldor that partook were exiled indefinitely. Feanor and his children in return swore an oath to retake the Silmarils, that the Valar turned to a curse over the house of Feanor. Feanor's host sailed on the boats, leaving Fingolfin's host behind ? who crossed over to Middle-earth on the
Helcaraxe
or Grinding Ice in the far north, losing many. The War of the Great Jewels followed, and lasted until the end of the First Age. Meanwhile, the Valar took the last living fruit of
Laurelin
and the last living flower of
Telperion
and used them to create the Moon and Sun, which remained a part of Arda, but were separate from Ambar (the world). The first rising of the sun over Ambar heralded the end of the Years of the Trees, and the start of the Years of the Sun, which last to the present day.
[T 9]
Years of the Sun
[
edit
]
The Years of the Sun were the last of the three great time-periods of Arda. They began with the first sunrise in conjunction with the return of the
Noldor
to
Middle-earth
, and last until the present day.
[T 10]
The Years of the Sun began towards the end of the First Age of the
Children of Iluvatar
and continued through the
Second
,
Third
, and part of the
Fourth
in Tolkien's stories. Tolkien estimated that modern times would correspond to the sixth or seventh age.
[T 11]
Tolkien situated the History of
Arda
as
Earth
's prehistory.
[T 11]
Age
|
Duration
years
|
Events
|
Valian Years
|
Days before days
[T 12]
|
3,500
|
First War:
Marring of Arda
Melkor
flees before
Tulkas
End of the Spring of Arda:
Melkor destroys the Two Lamps
Arda's symmetry broken
Aman
and
Middle-earth
created
The
Valar
move to
Valinor
|
Years of the Trees
|
1,500
|
Yavanna creates the
Two Trees of Valinor
Varda lights the stars, the Elves awaken and the First Age begins
Melkor is defeated and imprisoned
Ungoliant
destroys the Two Trees
Melkor steals the
Silmarils
|
Years of the Sun
|
First Age (cont'd)
|
590
|
Awakening of Men
War of the Jewels
War of Wrath:
Morgoth
's defeat in
Beleriand
Thangorodrim broken
Most of Beleriand drowned
|
Second Age
|
3,441
|
Akallabeth
:
Sauron
's first downfall
World made round
Numenor
drowned
Valinor
removed from Arda
|
Third Age
|
3,021
|
War of the Ring:
Final defeat of Sauron
Destruction of the
One Ring
Elves
depart from Middle-earth
|
Fourth Age and later
|
????
|
Tolkien estimated that the Fourth Age began approximately 6,000 years ago and that we would now be in the 6th or 7th Age
[T 11]
|
Ages of the Children of Iluvatar
[
edit
]
The First Age of the
Children of Iluvatar
, or
Eruhini
, began during the Years of the Trees when the
Elves awoke
in
Cuivienen
in the middle-east of
Middle-earth
. This marked the start of the years when the Children of Iluvatar were active in Middle-earth.
[T 13]
First Age
[
edit
]
The First Age of the Children of Iluvatar, also referred to as the Elder Days in
The Lord of the Rings
, began during the Years of the Trees when the Elves awoke at Cuivienen, and hence the events mentioned above under
Years of the Trees
overlap with the beginning of the First Age.
[T 13]
Having crossed into Middle-earth, Feanor was soon lost in an attack on Morgoth's
Balrogs
? but
his sons
survived and founded realms, as did the followers of his half-brother
Fingolfin
, who reached Beleriand after Feanor's death. In the Dagor Aglareb or Glorious Battle, the armies of the
Noldor
led by Fingolfin and
Maedhros
attacked from the east and west, destroying the invading
Orcs
and laid siege to Morgoth's stronghold Angband. The Noldor for a time maintained the Siege of Angband, resulting in the Long Peace. This Peace lasted hundreds of years, during which time
Men
arrived over the
Blue Mountains
.
[T 14]
Morgoth broke the siege in the
Dagor Bragollach
, or the Battle of Sudden Flame.
[T 15]
The Elves, Men, and Dwarves were all disastrously defeated in the
Nirnaeth Arnoediad
or Battle of Unnumbered Tears,
[T 16]
and one by one, the kingdoms fell, even the hidden ones of
Doriath
[T 17]
and
Gondolin
.
[T 18]
At the end of the age, all that remained of free Elves and Men in
Beleriand
was a settlement at the mouth of the
River Sirion
and another on the Isle of Balar.
Earendil
possessed the Silmaril which his wife Elwing's grandparents,
Beren and Luthien
, had taken from Morgoth. But Feanor's sons still maintained that all the Silmarils belonged to them, and so there were two more Kinslayings.
[T 17]
[T 19]
Earendil and Elwing crossed the
Great Sea
to beg the Valar for aid against Morgoth. They responded, sending forth a great host. In the War of Wrath, Melkor was utterly defeated. He was expelled into the Void and most of his works were destroyed, bringing the First Age to an end. This came at a terrible cost, however, as most of
Beleriand
itself was sunk.
[T 19]
Second Age
[
edit
]
The Second Age is characterized by the establishment and flourishing of
Numenor
, the rise of Sauron in Middle-earth, the creation of the
Rings of Power
and the
Ringwraiths
, and the early wars of the Rings between Sauron and the Elves. It ended with Sauron's defeat by the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.
[T 20]
[c]
At the start of the Second Age, the Men who had remained faithful were given the island of Numenor, in the middle of the Great Sea, and there they established a powerful kingdom. The
White Tree of Numenor
was planted in the King's city of
Armenelos
; and it was said that while that tree stood in the King's courtyard, the reign of Numenor would endure. The Elves were granted pardon for the sins of Feanor, and were allowed to return home to the
Undying Lands
.
[T 20]
The Numenoreans became great seafarers, and were learned, wise, and had a lifespan beyond other men. At first, they honored the Ban of the Valar, never sailing into the Undying Lands. They went east to Middle-earth and taught the men living there valuable skills. After a time, they became jealous of the Elves for their immortality.
Sauron
, Morgoth's chief servant, was still active. As Annatar, in disguise he taught the Elves of
Eregion
the craft of creating
Rings of Power
. Seven Rings were made for the Dwarves, while Nine were made for Men who later became known as the Ringwraiths. He built a stronghold called
Barad-dur
and secretly forged the
One Ring
in the fires of
Mount Doom
to control the other rings and their bearers.
Celebrimbor
, a grandson of Feanor, forged three mighty rings on his own: Vilya, possessed first by the Elven king Gil-galad, then by Elrond; Nenya, wielded by Galadriel; and Narya, given by Celebrimbor to Cirdan, who gave it to Gandalf.
[T 20]
As soon as Sauron put on the One Ring, the Elves realized that they had been betrayed and removed the Three (Sauron eventually obtained the Seven and the Nine. While he was unable to suborn the Dwarf ringbearers, he had more success with the Men who bore the Nine; they became the
Nazgul
or Ringwraiths). Sauron then made war on the elves and nearly destroyed them utterly during the Dark Years, but when it seemed defeat was imminent, the Numenoreans joined the battle and completely crushed the forces of Sauron. Sauron never forgot the ruin brought on his armies by the Numenoreans, and made it his goal to destroy them.
[T 20]
Towards the end of the age, the Numenoreans became increasingly haughty. Now they sought to dominate other men and to establish kingdoms. Centuries after Tar-Minastir's engagement, when Sauron had largely recovered, Ar-Pharazon, the last and most powerful of the Kings of
Numenor
, humbled Sauron ? his armies deserting in the face of Numenor's might ? and brought him to Numenor as a hostage, although this was Sauron's goal. At this time still beautiful in appearance, Sauron gained Ar-Pharazon's trust and became high priest in the cult of Melkor. At this time, the Faithful (who still worshipped the one god,
Eru Iluvatar
), were persecuted openly by those called the King's Men, and were sacrificed in the name of Melkor. Eventually, Sauron convinced Ar-Pharazon to invade Aman, promising him that he would thus obtain immortality.
[T 20]
Amandil, chief of the Faithful, sailed westward to warn the Valar. His son
Elendil
and grandsons
Isildur
and Anarion prepared to flee eastwards, taking with them a seedling of the White Tree of Numenor before Sauron destroyed it, and the
palantiri
, gifts of the elves. When the King's forces set foot on Aman, the Valar laid down their guardianship of the world and called on Iluvatar to intervene.
[T 20]
The world was changed into a sphere and the continent of Aman was removed, although a sailing route from Middle-earth to Aman, accessible to the Elves but not to mortals, persisted. Numenor was utterly destroyed, as was the fair body of Sauron; however, his spirit returned to
Mordor
, where he again took up the One Ring, and gathered his strength once more. Elendil, his sons and the remainder of the Faithful sailed to Middle-earth, where they founded the realms in exile of
Gondor
and Arnor.
[T 20]
Sauron arose again and challenged them. The Elves allied with Men to form the Last Alliance of Elves and Men. For seven years, the Alliance laid siege to
Barad-dur
, until at last Sauron himself entered the field. He slew
Elendil
, High King of Gondor and Arnor, and
Gil-galad
, the last High King of the Noldor in Middle-earth. However,
Isildur
took up the hilt of
Narsil
, his father's shattered sword, and cut the One Ring from Sauron's hand. Sauron was defeated, but not utterly destroyed. Afterward, Isildur ignored the counsel of
Elrond
, and rather than destroy the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom, he kept it as
weregild
for his dead father. But the Ring betrayed him and slipped from his finger as he was escaping from an
Orc
ambush at the
Gladden Fields
. Isildur was killed by an orc arrow, and the Ring was lost in the
Anduin River
.
[T 20]
Third Age
[
edit
]
The Third Age lasted for 3021 years, beginning with the first downfall of
Sauron
, when he was defeated by the Last Alliance of Elves and Men following the downfall of
Numenor
and ending with the
War of the Ring
and final defeat of Sauron, the events narrated in
The Lord of the Rings
. Virtually the entire history of the Third Age takes place in
Middle-earth
.
[T 24]
The Third Age saw the rise in power of the realms of Arnor and
Gondor
, and their fall. Arnor was divided into three petty Kingdoms, which fell one by one in the wars with Sauron's vassal kingdom of Angmar, whilst Gondor fell victim to Kin-strife, plague,
Wainriders
, and
Corsairs
. In this time, the line of the Kings of Gondor ends, with the
House of the Stewards
ruling in their stead. Meanwhile, the
heirs of Isildur
from the fallen kingdom of Arnor wander Middle-earth, aided only by
Elrond
in
Rivendell
; but the line of rightful heirs remains unbroken throughout the age.
[T 24]
This age was characterized by the waning of the
Elves
. In the beginning of the Third Age, many Elves left for
Valinor
because they were disturbed by the recent war. However, Elven kingdoms still survived in Lindon,
Lothlorien
, and
Mirkwood
. Rivendell also became a prominent haven for the Elves and other races. Throughout the Age, they chose not to mingle much in the matters of other lands, and only came to the aid of other races in time of war. The Elves devoted themselves to artistic pleasures, and tended to the lands which they occupied. The gradual decline of Elven populations occurred throughout the Age as the rise of Sauron came to dominate
Middle-earth
. By the end of the Third Age, only fragments of the once-grand Elven civilization survived in Middle-earth.
[T 24]
The
Wizards
arrived around a thousand years
[T 24]
after the start of this period to aid the Free Peoples, most importantly
Gandalf
and
Saruman
. The
One Ring
was found by
Smeagol
but, under the power of the Ring and ignorant of its true nature, he retreated with the Ring to a secret life under the
Misty Mountains
.
[T 24]
Middle-earth's devastating Great
Plague
originated in its vast eastern region, Rhun, where it caused considerable suffering.
[T 25]
By the winter of late
T.A.
1635 the Plague spread from Rhun into
Wilderland
, on the east of Middle-earth's western lands; in Wilderland it killed more than half the population.
[T 26]
In the following year the Great Plague spread into
Gondor
and then
Eriador
. In Gondor the Plague caused many deaths, including king Telemnar, his children, and the
White Tree
; the population of the capital city
Osgiliath
was decimated, and government of the kingdom was transferred to
Minas Tirith
. In Eriador, the nascent
Hobbit
-realm of
the Shire
suffered "great loss" in what they called the Dark Plague.
[T 24]
The so-called Watchful Peace began in
T.A.
2063, when Gandalf went to
Dol Guldur
and the evil dwelling there (later known to be Sauron) fled to the far east. It lasted until
T.A.
2460, when Sauron returned with new strength. During this period Gondor strengthened its borders, keeping a watchful eye on the east, as
Minas Morgul
was still a threat on their flank and
Mordor
was still occupied with
Orcs
. There were minor skirmishes with
Umbar
. In the north, Arnor was long gone, but the
Hobbits
of
the Shire
prospered, getting their first Took
Thain
, and colonizing
Buckland
. The
Dwarves
of
Durin's folk
under Thorin I abandoned
Erebor
, and left for the
Grey Mountains
, where most of their kin now gathered. Meanwhile, Sauron created a strong alliance between the tribes of
Easterlings
, so that when he returned he had many
Men
in his service.
[T 24]
The main events of
The Hobbit
occur in
T.A.
2941.
[T 24]
By the time of
The Lord of the Rings
,
Sauron
had recovered, and was seeking the One Ring. The events of the ensuing
War of the Ring
leading to the end of the Third Age is the subject of
The Lord of the Rings
, and summarized in
Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age
. After the defeat of Sauron,
Aragorn
takes his place as King of the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and
Gondor
, restoring the line of Kings from the
Stewards of Gondor
. Aragorn marries the daughter of Elrond,
Arwen
, thus for the last time adding Elvish blood to the royal line. As the age ends, Gandalf,
Frodo Baggins
and many of the remaining Elves of Middle-earth sail from the Grey Havens to
Aman
.
[T 24]
Fourth Age
[
edit
]
With the end of the Third Age began the Dominion of Men. Elves were no longer involved in Human affairs, and most Elves left for Valinor; those that remain behind "fade" and diminish. A similar fate meets the Dwarves: although
Erebor
becomes an ally of the Reunited Kingdom, there are indications that
Khazad-dum
is refounded together with a colony established by
Gimli
in the
White Mountains
. Together, they disappear from human history.
[T 27]
Eldarion, son of Aragorn II Elessar and Arwen Evenstar, became King of the Reunited Kingdom in F.A. 120. Aragorn gave him the tokens of his rule, and then surrendered his life willingly, as his ancestors had done thousands of years before. Arwen left him to rule alone, passing away to the now-empty land of
Lorien
where she died.
[T 28]
Upon the death of Aragorn, Legolas departed Middle-earth for Valinor, taking Gimli with him and ending the Fellowship of the Ring in Middle-earth.
[T 29]
Tolkien once considered writing a sequel to
The Lord of the Rings
, called
The New Shadow
, which would have taken place in Eldarion's reign, and in which Eldarion deals with his people turning to evil practices ? in effect, a repetition of the history of
Numenor
.
[T 30]
In a 1972 letter concerning this draft, Tolkien mentioned that Eldarion's reign would have lasted for about 100 years after the death of Aragorn.
[T 31]
[d]
His realm was to be "great and long-enduring", but the lifespan of the royal house was not to be restored; it would continue to wane until it was like that of ordinary Men.
[T 32]
Dagor Dagorath
[
edit
]
In a letter, Tolkien wrote that "This legendarium [
The Silmarillion
] ends with a vision of the end of the world [after all the ages have elapsed], its breaking and remaking, and the recovery of the Silmarilli and the 'light before the Sun' ? after a final battle [Dagor Dagorath] which owes, I suppose, more to the Norse vision of
Ragnarok
than to anything else, though it is not much like it."
[T 33]
The concept of Dagor Dagorath appears in many of Tolkien's manuscripts that were published by his son
Christopher
in
The History of Middle-earth
series, but not in the published
Silmarillion
, where the eventual fate of Arda is left open-ended in the closing lines of the
Quenta Silmarillion
.
[T 34]
Analysis
[
edit
]
Creation and sub-creation
[
edit
]
Scholars, noting that Tolkien was a devout
Catholic
, have stated that the
Ainulindale
creation myth
echoes the Christian account of creation
.
Brian Rosebury
calls its prose "appropriately 'scriptural'".
Verlyn Flieger
cites Tolkien's poem
Mythopoeia
("Creation of Myth"), where he speaks of "man, sub-creator, the refracted light / through whom is splintered from a single White / to many hues, and endlessly combined / in living shapes".
[T 35]
She analyses in detail
the successive splintering of the original created light, via the Two Lamps, the Two Trees, and the Silmarils, as the wills of different beings conflict.
[7]
She states that for Tolkien, this creative light was equated with the
Christian
Logos
, the Divine Word.
Jane Chance
remarks on the biblical theme of the conflict between the creator Eru Iluvatar and the fallen Vala
Melkor/Morgoth
, mirroring that between God and
Satan
. Similarly, she notes, the struggles of Elves and Men corrupted by Morgoth and his spiritual descendant Sauron echo those of Adam and Eve tempted by Satan in the
Garden of Eden
, and the
fall of man
.
Flieger has observed that the splintering of the created light is a process of
decline and fall
from a once-perfect state. She identifies a theory of decline that influenced Tolkien, namely
Owen Barfield
's theory of language in his 1928 book
Poetic Diction
. The central idea was that there was once a unified set of meanings in an ancient language, and that modern languages are derived from this by fragmentation of meaning.
Tolkien took this to imply the separation of peoples, in particular the complicated and repeated
sundering of the Elves
.
A dark mythology
[
edit
]
Scholars including Flieger have noted that if Tolkien intended to create
a mythology for England
,
[11]
in the history of Arda as told in
The Silmarillion
he had made it very dark.
John Garth
has identified his experiences in the
First World War
as formative; he began his Middle-earth writings at that time.
[13]
Flieger suggests that Middle-earth arose not only from Tolkien's own wartime experience, but out of that of his dead schoolfriends Geoffrey Bache Smith and Rob Gilson.
Janet Brennan Croft
writes that Tolkien's first prose work after returning from the war was
The Fall of Gondolin
, and that it is "full of extended and terrifying scenes of battle"; she notes that the streetfighting is described over 16 pages.
Greek mythology
[
edit
]
Among
the many influences
that scholars have proposed as possibly important on the history of Arda is
Greek mythology
. The disappearance of the island of
Numenor
recalls
Atlantis
.
[T 36]
[T 37]
The Valar borrow many attributes from the
Olympian gods
. Like the Olympians, the Valar live in the world, but on a high mountain, separated from mortals;
Ulmo
, Lord of the Waters, owes much to
Poseidon
, and
Manwe
, the Lord of the Air and King of the Valar, to
Zeus
.
Tolkien compared Beren and Luthien with
Orpheus
and
Eurydice
, but with the gender roles reversed.
[T 36]
He mentioned
Oedipus
, too, in connection with Turin in the
Children of Hurin
.
[T 33]
Flieger has compared
Feanor
with
Prometheus
: they are associated with fire, and are punished for rebelling against the gods' decrees.
"Imagined prehistory"
[
edit
]
Arda is summed up by the Tolkien scholar
Paul H. Kocher
as "our own green and solid
Earth
at some quite remote epoch in the past."
Kocher notes Tolkien's statement in the Prologue, equating Middle-earth with the actual Earth, separated by a long period of time:
Those days, the Third Age of Middle-earth, are now long past, and the shape of all lands has been changed; but the regions in which Hobbits then lived were doubtless the same as those in which they still linger:
the North-West
of the
Old World
, east of
the Sea
. Of their original home the Hobbits in Bilbo’s time preserved no knowledge.
[T 38]
In a letter written in 1958, Tolkien states that while the time is invented, the place, planet Earth, is not (italics in original):
[T 11]
I have, I suppose, constructed an imaginary
time
, but kept my feet on my own mother-earth for
place
. I prefer that to the contemporary mode of
seeking remote globes
in 'space'... Many reviewers seem to assume that Middle-earth is another planet!
[T 11]
In the same letter, he places the beginning of the Fourth Age some 6,000 years in the past:
[T 11]
I imagine the gap [since
the War of the Ring
and the end of the Third Age] to be about 6000 years; that is we are now at the end of the Fifth Age if the Ages were of about the same length as Second Age and Third Age. But they have, I think, quickened; and I imagine we are actually at the end of the Sixth Age, or in the Seventh.
[T 11]
The Tolkien scholar
Richard C. West
writes that one of the "very final passages" of the internal chronology of
Lord of the Rings
,
The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen
, ends not just with
Arwen
's death, but the statement that her grave will remain on the hill of Cerin Amroth in what was
Lothlorien
"until the world is changed, and all the days of her life are utterly forgotten by men that come after ... and with the passing of [Arwen] Evenstar no more is said in this book of the days of old."
[3]
West observes that this points up a "highly unusual" aspect of Tolkien's legendarium among modern fantasy: it is set "in the real world but in an imagined prehistory."
[3]
As a result, West explains, Tolkien can build what he likes in that distant past, elves and wizards and hobbits and all the rest, provided that he tears it all down again, so that the modern world can emerge from the wreckage, with nothing but "
a word or two
, a few vague legends and confused traditions..." to show for it.
[3]
West praises and quotes Kocher on Tolkien's imagined prehistory and the implied
process of fading
to lead from fantasy to the modern world:
[3]
At the end of his epic Tolkien inserts ... some forebodings of [Middle-earth's] future which will make Earth what it is today ... he shows the initial steps in a long process of retreat or disappearance by which all other intelligent species, which will leave man effectually alone on earth... Ents may still be there in our forests, but what forests have we left? The process of extermination is already well under way in the Third Age, and ... Tolkien bitterly deplores its climax today."
The Tolkien scholar
Stuart D. Lee
and the medievalist
Elizabeth Solopova
make "an attempt at a summary",
[19]
which runs as follows. The
Silmarillion
describes events "presented as factual"
[19]
but taking place before Earth's actual recorded history. What happened is processed through the generations as folk-myths and legends, especially among the (Old) English. Before the
Fall of Numenor
, the world was flat. In the Fall, it became round; further geological events reshaped the continents into the Earth as it now is. All the same, the old tales survive here and there, resulting in mentions of Dwarves and Elves in real Medieval literature. Thus, Tolkien's imagined mythology "is an attempt to reconstruct our pre-history."
[19]
Lee and Solopova comment that "Only by understanding this can we fully realize the true scale of his project and comprehend how enormous his achievement was."
[19]
The poet
W. H. Auden
wrote in
The New York Times
that "no previous writer has, to my knowledge, created an imaginary world and a feigned history in such detail. By the time the reader has finished the trilogy, including the appendices to this last volume, he knows as much about Tolkien's Middle Earth, its landscape, its fauna and flora, its peoples, their languages, their history, their cultural habits, as, outside his special field, he knows about the actual world."
[e]
[21]
The scholar Margaret Hiley comments that Auden's "feigned history" echoes Tolkien's own statement in the foreword to the second edition of
Lord of the Rings
that he much preferred history, true or feigned, to
allegory
; and that Middle-earth's history is told in
The Silmarillion
.
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
Christopher Tolkien called his 12-volume set
The History of Middle-earth
; scholars such as
Brian Rosebury
have noted that it makes more sense to call it the history of Arda, as Middle-earth was just one continent, and the early part of the history largely concerns another continent, Aman (Valinor), not to mention the creation and destruction of the island of Numenor.
- ^
The meaning of "years" in this context is problematic. The Valian years measure the passage of time after the arrival of the
Valar
in Arda. The Valian years were measured in
Valinor
after the first sunrise, but Tolkien provided no dates for events in Aman after that point. Valian years are not used for
Beleriand
and
Middle-earth
. In the 1930s and 1940s Tolkien used a figure which fluctuated slightly around ten before settling on 9.582 solar years in each Valian year. However, in the 1950s, Tolkien decided to use a much greater value of 144 solar years per Valian year.
[T 3]
- ^
"The Tale of Years" in Appendix B of
The Lord of the Rings
outlines the major events of the Second Age, especially as they relate to the Rings of Power and the events and characters of
The Lord of the Rings
.
[T 20]
Appendix A contains genealogies of the royal house of Numenor. Appendix D gives details of the Numenorean calendar, including special
intercalation
in the years 1000, 2000 and 3000, and notes on how this system of intercalation was disrupted by the designation of S.A. 3442 the first year of the Third Age. "After the Downfall in S.A. 3319, the system was maintained by the exiles, but it was much dislocated by the beginning of the Third Age with a new numeration: S.A. 3442 became T.A. 1. By making T.A. 4 a leap year instead of T.A. 3 (S.A. 3444) 1 more short year of only 365 days was intruded".
[T 21]
In addition, several sections of
Unfinished Tales
deal extensively with Numenor and several of its kings.
[T 22]
At the end of
The Silmarillion
, "
Akallabeth
" recounts the fall of Numenor and its kings, and the rise of
Gondor
and Arnor.
[T 23]
- ^
Tolkien wrote "I have written nothing beyond the first few years of the Fourth Age. (Except the beginning of a tale supposed to refer to the end of the reign of Eldarion about 100 years after the death of Aragorn. ...)"
[T 31]
- ^
Auden only had
The Lord of the Rings
to go on in 1956, but he commented that "From the appendices readers will get tantalizing glimpses of the First and Second Ages" and hoped that as the "legend of these" had already been written, readers would not have to wait too long for them.
[21]
References
[
edit
]
Primary
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
Tolkien 1977
, "
Ainulindale
"
- ^
a
b
c
d
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 1 "Of the Beginning of Days"
- ^
a
b
Tolkien 1993
, "Myths Transformed", 9 "Aman"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 3 "Of the Coming of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 5 "Of Eldamar and the Princes of the Eldalie"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 7 "Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 8 "Of the Darkening of Valinor"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 6 "Of Feanor and the Unchaining of Melkor"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 11 "Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 13 "Of the Return of the Noldor"
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
Carpenter 2023
, #211 to Rhona Beare, 14 October 1958, last footnote
- ^
Tolkien 1993
, "The Annals of Aman", §§ 5-10 "Of the Beginning of Time and its Reckoning"
- ^
a
b
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 3 "Of the Coming of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 17 "Of the Coming of Men into the West"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 18 "Of the Ruin of Beleriand and the Fall of Fingolfin"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 20 "Of the Fifth Battle: Nirnaeth Arnoediad"
- ^
a
b
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 22 "Of the Ruin of Doriath"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 23 "Of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin"
- ^
a
b
Tolkien 1977
, ch. 24 Of the Voyage of Earendil and the War of Wrath
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
Tolkien 1955
, Appendix B: The Tale of Years. "The Second Age"
- ^
Tolkien 1955
, Appendix D: "Calendars"
- ^
Tolkien 1980
, part 2: "The Second Age"
- ^
Tolkien 1977
, "
Akallabeth
"
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
Tolkien 1955
, Appendix B: The Tale of Years, "The Third Age"
- ^
Tolkien 1955
, Appendix A part I(iv), p. 328
- ^
Tolkien 1980
, part 3 ch. 2(i) pp. 288?289
- ^
Tolkien 1996
, "The Making of Appendix A", '(IV) Durin's Folk', p. 278.
- ^
Tolkien 1955
, Appendix A:
The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen
- ^
Tolkien 1955
, Appendix B: "Later events concerning the members of the Fellowship of the Ring"
- ^
Tolkien 1996
, "The New Shadow"
- ^
a
b
Carpenter 2023
, #338 to Fr. Douglas Carter, 6 June 1972
- ^
Tolkien 1996
, "The Heirs of Elendil"
- ^
a
b
c
Carpenter 2023
, #131 to Milton Waldman, late 1951
- ^
Tolkien 1986
, ch. 3: "Quenta Noldorinwa"
- ^
Tolkien 2001
, pp. 85?90
- ^
a
b
Carpenter 2023
, #154 to
Naomi Mitchison
, September 1954
- ^
Carpenter 2023
, #227 to Mrs Drijver, January 1961
- ^
Tolkien 1954a
"Prologue"
Secondary
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
West 2006
, pp. 67?100
- ^
Flieger 1983
, pp. 6?61, 89?90, 144-145 and passim.
- ^
Chance 1980
, Title page and passim.
- ^
Garth 2003
, Preface, pp. xiii?xviii, 309, and passim.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Lee & Solopova 2005
, pp. 256?257
- ^
a
b
Auden, W. H.
(22 January 1956).
"Books: At the End of the Quest, Victory"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
3 July
2020
.
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(1980) [1979].
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978-0-333-29034-7
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(2004).
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