Recent Suite101 Tolkien/Middle-earth essays

Hello, everyone,

I've been a stranger for the past two or three months because I have moved to Houston, TX and started working a new job. Since I haven't had to work for several years, this has been a big change for me and my personal time is very limited these days.

And that has impacted my schedule at Suite101. Well, finally, this week I've pretty much caught up on my weekly essays. I thought I'd summarize them here rather than post an individual announcement for each.

I hope to get back to a more normal personal schedule over the next few weeks (as far as the job allows).


So, here are my last three Suite101 articles:

26 Jul 2001
Browsing the compleat Middle-earth library
The study of J.R.R. Tolkien's life and works is an ever-expanding field. Here is a road-map for readers new and old to help them navigate their way through the winding paths of Tolkiendom.

www.suite101.com/article....kien/75755


22 Jul 2001
Tolkien's time machine: when literary worlds collide
Most readers agree that The Lord of the Rings is a unique book. And though J.R.R. Tolkien is credited with helping launch the modern fantasy literary genre, there are no other books which approach LoTR in quality and perfection. Why? Could it be that Tolkien was pursuing a goal which no one else has yet attempted?

www.suite101.com/article....kien/75420

16 Jul 2001
In Feanor's Footsteps
Could Tolkien have fully visualized the War of Wrath as he provided details for so many other events, or was it necessarily a legend about which little could or should be known?

www.suite101.com/article....kien/74847

I'll try to check back here soon, but among other things I have company coming this weekend.

Glad to see you back MM! We thought you might have decided not to come back because your last post here got "corrupted" due to Tater playing a little joke.....he will be pleased to know that that's not the case.

Well I hope that everything goes well with your new job down in Houston, and welcome back.

Great to see you back here . You will be happy to hear that Tolkien discussion has been revived here after a slight slump, due in part to the leadership of Inoldonil/Ranadwelt/Falmaion, who was made an admin. At one point he was even making posts about your articles the way you did!

Glad to see things are doing well here.

Moving to Texas? I thought you got lossed in Florida, trying to find the book stand. Glad to know you're alive and well! Last I talked to you, I believe I told you I was making my way to New Mexico in June for the book signing. I tried to convince my parents, my mother told me it was a testimony to my father's love he considered it. I suppose I didn't fully take in the distance, but I would have gone if it were up to me.

I believe I made a post somewhere in response to your essay on the Wise. Somewhere on the Middle-earth forum, I'll see if I can unearth it.

Edited:Unearthed it:

'As usual the wise Martinez has written an insightful article with great skill. I can't give any praise has hasn't heard before.

So I'm going to throw some niggles at him.

I find it very bizarre the Istari are not mentioned. The Wise were not exclusively Eldarin, the Istari are included among them.

The other oddity I find in the essay is about Lindir of Imladris. MM seems to speak of him as if there is a good deal more known about him than I have gathered from his (brief) appearance in Book II. He's not at the Council of Elrond, he's just a friend of Bilbo's we meet after the latter chants his poem of Earendil. Have I missed something?'

I'll have to look at the essay again some time to see what I was getting at. But there is a place where Tolkien says the Wise were the Lords of the Eldar (more than one). If he included the Istari in the category of the Wise, I don't remember where.

Nice to know that Ben's blaiming me for EVERYTHING isn't always right welcome back!

I'm sure there's more than one place, but a notable example is the III 1100 entry in the Tale of Years:

The Wise (the Istari and the chief Eldar) discover that an evil power has made a stronghold at Dol Guldur. It is thought to be one of the Nazgûl.

Very good example.

What were we discussing?

Michael, I enjoyed your "Browsing the compleat Middle-earth library" and found the way you divided Middle-earth literature into 'levels' interesting and, in my opinion, accurate. Your individual book descriptions/analyses were also good. I think you've created a great and useful starting point for would-be Tolkien scholars.