The Nature of Middle-earth : Late Writings on the Lands, Inhabitants, and Metaphysics of Middle-earth

by J. R. R. Tolkien

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The first ever publication of J.R.R. Tolkien's final writings on Middle-earth, covering a wide range of subjects and perfect for those who have read and enjoyed The Silmarillion, The Lord of the Rings, Unfinished Tales, and The History of Middle-earth, and want to learn more about Tolkien's magnificent world. It is well known that J.R.R. Tolkien published The Hobbit in 1937 and The Lord of the Rings in 1954-5. What may be less known is that he continued to write about Middle-earth in the show more decades that followed, right up until the years before his death in 1973. For him, Middle-earth was part of an entire world to be explored, and the writings in The Nature of Middle-earth reveal the journeys that he took as he sought to better understand his unique creation. From sweeping themes as profound as Elvish immortality and reincarnation, and the Powers of the Valar, to the more earth-bound subjects of the lands and beasts of Númenor, the geography of the Rivers and Beacon-hills of Gondor, and even who had beards! This new collection, which has been edited by Carl F. Hostetter, one of the world's leading Tolkien experts, is a veritable treasure-trove offering readers a chance to peer over Professor Tolkien's shoulder at the very moment of discovery: and on every page, Middle-earth is once again brought to extraordinary life. show less

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7 reviews
Definitely only for Tolkienistas, as it delves into the minutiae of the Professor's creative process which will, I think, be of zero interest to the causal reader. Divided into three parts, the first of which is the driest, having lengthy lists, tables and calculations of Elvish population growth and lifespans. The other two parts I found juicier and more expansive of the legendarium. It's much in the style of Unfinished Tales and The History of Middle-earth, so if you enjoyed those books, this will be right up your street
4⭐, one deducted for list-fever (which I nevertheless recognise as academically important).
"Obra inédita de J.R.R Tolkien, editada por Carl F. Hostetter, um dos maiores especialista no autor do mundo, apresenta escritos nunca publicados sobre o universo da Terra-média e abrange assuntos que vão muito além da história de O Senhor dos Anéis, respondendo algumas das dúvidas que os fãs debatem há anos.

Mesmo após a publicação de O Hobbit e, posteriormente, O Senhor dos Anéis , J.R.R. Tolkien jamais deixou de escrever sobre seu mundo imaginário. Para ele, a Terra-média era parte de um mundo inteiro a ser explorado, e os escritos compilados em A natureza da Terra-média revelam alguns de seus esforços para compreender e aprimorar sua criação única.

Tratando de temas mais abrangentes, complexos e profundos, como a show more metafísica da imortalidade, a reencarnação élfica e os poderes dos Valar, até assuntos mais específicos, como a fauna e a flora de Númenor, as especificidades geográficas de Gondor e quais espécies tinham barba, este livro é um verdadeiro tesouro que oferece aos leitores a chance de observar de perto a imaginação de um dos mais brilhantes escritores de fantasia da História." show less
Not a book for a casual Tolkien reader, this work includes scraps of writings by Tolkien who was exploring various "scientific" explanations for his world. These may include esoteric and etymological meanings of life (the joining of one's body (hröa) and spirit (fëa)), complex chronologies of the ages before the sun and moon, explanations of elven lifespans, reincarnation, etc. There are no stories here, but fragments of Tolkien's thought processes as he developed and reworked his world.
A great look into the mind of Professor Tolkien
ibaldone di scritti - per me hanno grattato il fondo del barile.
L'unico brano che ho trovato realmente interessante, ma non è inedito, è "fate and free will"

Leggetelo solo se avete apprezzato i Racconti Incompiuti e almeno gli ultimi tre volumi della History of Middle-earth

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A writer of fantasies, Tolkien, a professor of language and literature at Oxford University, was always intrigued by early English and the imaginative use of language. In his greatest story, the trilogy The Lord of the Rings (1954--56), Tolkien invented a language with vocabulary, grammar, syntax, even poetry of its own. Though readers have show more created various possible allegorical interpretations, Tolkien has said: "It is not about anything but itself. (Certainly it has no allegorical intentions, general, particular or topical, moral, religious or political.)" In The Adventures of Tom Bombadil (1962), Tolkien tells the story of the "master of wood, water, and hill," a jolly teller of tales and singer of songs, one of the multitude of characters in his romance, saga, epic, or fairy tales about his country of the Hobbits. Tolkien was also a formidable medieval scholar, as evidenced by his work, Beowulf: The Monster and the Critics (1936) and his edition of Anciene Wisse: English Text of the Anciene Riwle. Among his works published posthumously, are The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún and The Fall of Arthur, which was edited by his son, Christopher. In 2013, his title, TheHobbit (Movie Tie-In) made The New York Times Best Seller List. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

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Nasmith, Ted (Cover artist)

Common Knowledge

Canonical title
The Nature of Middle-earth : Late Writings on the Lands, Inhabitants, and Metaphysics of Middle-earth
Original title
The nature of Middle-earth : late writings on the lands, inhabitants, and metaphysics of Middle-earth
Alternate titles
The Nature of Middle-earth
Original publication date
2021-09-02
Important places
Middle-earth; Arda; Valinor
Dedication
Enyalien
CHRISTOPHER REUEL TOLKIEN
21 Nov. 1924 – 16 Jan. 2020

and for
Alex, Aiden, Collin, and Caylee
First words
The yên, which is merely a mode of reckoning, has nothing to do with the life of the Elves.
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Doubtless had he come back from the war his tomb would have been far away in the North, but Arnor has withered, and Fornost is desolate, and the heirs of Isildur have gone into the shadows, and no word of them has come to us for many lives of men."
Original language
English
Canonical DDC/MDS
823.087661

Classifications

Genres
Fantasy, Fiction and Literature
DDC/MDS
823.087661Literature & rhetoricEnglish & Old English literaturesEnglish fictionBy typeGenre fictionAdventure fictionSpeculative fictionFantasy fictionHigh fantasy
LCC
PR6039 .O32 .N38Language and LiteratureEnglishEnglish Literature1900-1960
BISAC

Statistics

Members
900
Popularity
29,891
Reviews
6
Rating
(4.05)
Languages
7 — English, Finnish, German, Polish, Portuguese (Portugal), Russian, Spanish
Media
Paper, Ebook
ISBNs
16
ASINs
4