Review of Tolkien's Faith: a spiritual biography by Holly Ordway (2023)
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
1d ago
Word on Fire publishers deserve congratulation for producing such a handsome and well-made volume Holly Ordway. Tolkien's Faith: a spiritual biography. Words on Fire: Washington, DC, USA. 2023. pp 480 total: 365 pages of text, plus appendices and index; plus 72 photographic plates.  The publication of Tolkien's Faith is a significant event, because it provides substantially more information on JRR Tolkien's biography than has existed before about an aspect of his life - and work - that he himself often stated to be of prime importance.  It also provides a properly contemporary Rom ..read more
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Notice of the expanded - but underwhelming - new edition of selected Letters by JRR Tolkien (2023)
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
1M ago
The main benefit of this new, expanded, version of the original 1981 selection of The Letters of JRR Tolkien, edited by Humphrey Carpenter and Christopher Tolkien; is that it induced me to "read the whole thing" again, from beginning to end, without skipping (except for a few paragraphs of technical linguistics).  And the main benefit of this thorough re-reading (probably the third) was to realize how much I had forgotten of this indispensable gem of Tolkien's secondary literature. I really ought to have gone through the volume again, long before now; and for making me do it, I am very gr ..read more
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The elvish strain in Mankind, and the motivation of Men and elves
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
1M ago
For JRR Tolkien, "elvishness" is a quality that first entered Mankind by heredity from the rare "interbreeding" of Men with Elves; especially Beren and Luthien, Tuor and Idril and Aragorn and Arwen - but perhaps also from one or more unions of Men with Silvan (i.e. "lower") elves such as happened in Dol Amroth.  After which, the "half-elven" strain was transmitted in part by a kind of heredity (which is not strictly genetic); and also by close-association-with and even the love of elves - via the phenomenon of "Elf Friends".  Indeed, this second "associational" rather then hereditary ..read more
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A joke quoted by JRRT
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
1M ago
From letter 97b, of the 2023, expanded, edition of Letters by JRR Tolkien*:  Mother discovered her small daughter drawing. "What are you drawing, darling" said she. "I am drawing God."  "Oh, but you can't draw God, dear. Nobody knows what he's like."  "Well they will now." *I got this for my birthday recently, and am avidly reading it; but - because it is so dense and interesting - only at a rate of 30-40 pages per day. With a total of more than 600 pages (not including index), it'll be a couple of weeks before I can write a review of the whole thing...   ..read more
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Free, high quality e-books of Charles Williams and CS Lewis - downloadable from fadedpage.com
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
1M ago
I have recently discovered the excellent Fadedpage web site; which is done by volunteers, and provides free, high quality, downloadable e-books from a variety of authors in the public domain of Canada (which, sensibly, has 50 year copyright laws).  I stumbled across it in search of Biggles books; but have since discovered a remarkably rich seam of Charles Williams's works (some them very hard, or expensive, to get in hard copy); plus a large number of CS Lewis texts - also including some rarities!  Even if you already have these books on paper, Fadedpage could provide handy port ..read more
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Valedictory Address: The only published piece by Tolkien that I dislike
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
1M ago
Of course I do not enjoy everything by JRR Tolkien that has been published; but - with one exception - I do find all his works (finished and incomplete) to be worthwhile and respect-worthy...  Except for one thing.  That is the lecture entitled "Valedictory address to the University of Oxford" and included as final piece in the collection The Monsters and the Critics, and other Essays (Paperback, 1987; Edited by Christopher Tolkien).   This was a public lecture delivered on the occasion of Tolkien's retirement in June 1959, after reaching the age of sixty-seven. Tolkien ha ..read more
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"Broad Relic" in the Notion Club Papers is the island of Flat Holm in the Bristol Channel
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
2M ago
JRR Tolkien. The Notion Club Papers - in "Sauron Defeated" The History of Middle Earth Volume 9, HarperCollins: London, 1993.   [p277]. The Danes attack Porlock that night. They are driven off and take refuge by swimming out to the ships and so to 'Broad Relic'.[Note 106]* A small 'cnearr' [ship] is captured. It is not well guarded. AElfwine tells Treowine that he has stores laid up. They move the boat and stock it the following night and set sail West. [p288]. Danes attack that night but are driven off. AElfwine and Treowine are among those who capture a small ship that had v ..read more
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Ramer contra Lowdham - comparing Tolkien's alter ego characters in The Notion Club Papers
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
2M ago
Christopher Tolkien published the surviving material of The Notion Club Papers (in The History of Middle Earth - Volume Nine) in two parts, each of which has a particular character who serves as the main mouthpiece for Tolkien's own ideas; an alter ego. These characters are Ramer in Part One, and Lowdham in Part Two.  Ramer and Lowdham divide between them several of Tolkien's major personal characteristics, motivations and interests - so that put-together they would represent something quite close to Tolkien himself. Furthermore, there is a progression between Ramer and Lowdham in the sto ..read more
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The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and other verses from The Red Book by JRR Tolkien, 1962 - a review of 50 years re-reading
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
2M ago
When I first read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings some half century ago, I didn't much enjoy the poetry - mostly because I did not enjoy any poetry at all at that time in my life.  Or, more exactly, I didn't enjoy poetry qua poetry, but for other reasons. For instance, I enjoyed Middle English poetry such as Chaucer or Sir Gawain, but because I enjoyed the language rather than from any reason specifically poetic.  But as the decades have rolled-by; I have come to appreciate and enjoy Tolkien's poems and verses more and more - indeed, more each year; until now I would have to ..read more
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Numenor and the insufficiency of mortal life in this-world
The Notion Club Papers
by Bruce Charlton
4M ago
The recent collection of Tolkien's Numenor material into a single volume The Fall of Numenor (edited by Brian Sibley, 2022) has triggered considerable further thought concerning one of Tolkien's most profound mythic themes.  The significance of Numenor is something that I only gradually recognized, and which has increased over the years.  The reason is not hard to discover; because Numenor addresses Tolkien's core theme of "death"; because Numenor enables Tolkien to explore Man's response to death in a very pure situation of this-worldly bliss: an earthly paradise.  In Numenor ..read more
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