Christopher
Tolkien, the youngest of J.R.R. Tolkien’s
three sons, will be 93 this year. He is his father’s literary executor, and he
has spent the years since his father’s death in 1973 poring over papers and
files, considering an array of various texts, different versions of stories and
poems, staying true to his father’s vision and helping publish a considerable
number of books that represent both wonderful stories and insights into The
Hobbit and The
Lord of the Rings. It is because of Christopher that we have The
Silmarillion, The
Children of Hurin, many of the lost tales, the elder Tolkien’s
translation of Beowulf,
and many other works.
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| Christopher Tolkien |
The latest, and possibly the last, is Beren
and Luthien, a love story between Beren, a mortal man in exile after
his father and clanare killed, and Luthien, an Elf princess (the idea of which
was carried over into The Lord of the
Rings). Luthien is also called Tinuviel by Beren, and it is by that name we
see her part in the story. Beren sees Luthien dancing in the woods and falls in
love with her. Her father isn’t exactly pleased, and he agrees to the marriage only
if Beren can steal a Silmaril, a jewel in the crown of Melkor, the Black Enemy,
also known as Morgoth – and a forerunner of Sauron in the trilogy. He’s
captured and enslaved in the kitchen, and Luthien travels to his rescue. With
the help of a giant dog (who tricks an evil cat), she succeeds in Beren, and
then more adventures happen.
To continue reading, please see my post today at Tweetspeak Poetry.
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