The book of lost tales

The Book of Lost Tales is the title of the first two volumes, edited by Christopher Tolkien in 1983 and 1984, of the thirteen-book series. called The History of Middle-earth, in which the author analyzes the unpublished manuscripts of his father, J. R. R. Tolkien.

Contains early versions of stories begun between 1916 and 1917, when Tolkien senior was twenty-five, and abandoned several years later. It is, in fact, the beginning of the entire conception of the mythology of Middle-earth and the first outline of the myths and legends that would constitute The Silmarillion. It is notable that although they are very primitive in style and content, they are very close to later works in many ways. Each of the Tales is followed by detailed notes and commentary by Christopher Tolkien.

Plot

The narrative setting is the long journey west that a sailor undertakes to Tol Eressëa, the lonely island where the elves inhabit. In the first versions of the Lost Tales this man is called Eriol, originally from northern Europe. However, in later versions he is known as Ælfwine, an Englishman from the Middle Ages. There he learns of the lost tales of Elfinesse, in which appear the earliest ideas and conceptions of the Valar, Elves, Dwarves, Balrogs, and Orcs, the Silmarili, the Two Trees of Valinor, Nargothrond, Gondolin, and the geography and cosmology of Earth. Middle Earth and all of Arda.

Analysis

This book shows us the first sketches of what would become the mythological basis for the conformation of "Middle-earth". The Tales related, when accompanied by notes and comments, help the reader to better understand the creative process of J. R. R. Tolkien.

Although many names in the book are identical or close to those that appear in later versions, some of them bear no resemblance to their final forms. J. R. R. Tolkien modified names frequently, often with new (in turn rejected) variants written in a single manuscript. Disconcertingly, sometimes names used for one thing were later used to refer to something else, and the original manuscript was abandoned. For example, the house of elves called "teleri" in The Book of Lost Tales is not the same as in The Silmarillion. Here the "teleri" were what Tolkien later called vanyar while the solosimpi were the later teleri.

There are more visible changes within the book and this is not internally consistent, partly because as Tolkien quietly wrote the stories he began to rewrite and even discard parts of the early ideas as his imaginary world changed. The Tales were eventually abandoned, but were resurrected as part of the "Outline of Mythology" that would become The Silmarillion.

Content

For its publication this book was divided into two volumes, a simple editorial division. Both volumes are separated into several Lost Tales.

Volume 1

1. The Lost Game Cabin
2. The music of the Ainur
3. The arrival of the valar and the construction of Valinor
4. The Melkor Chain
5. The arrival of the elves and the construction of Kôr
6. The theft of Melko and the darkening of Valinor
7. The escape of the Noldoli
8. The story of the Sun and the Moon
9. The concealment of Valinor
10. The story of Gilfanon: the hardships of the Noldoli and the arrival of humanity

Volume 2

1. The tale of Tinúviel
2. Turambar and foalókë
3. The Fall of Gondolin
4. The Nauglafring
5. The story of Eärendel
6. The story of Eriol or Ælfwine and the end of the stories

Criticism

The New York Times admired Christopher Tolkien's tenacity, along with his father's creative power, conceding that "Tolkien devotees will no doubt rejoice, but for uninitiated readers who are not fully familiar with the other works, the comments can be a bit puzzling."