Often people talk about how a writer’s style ‘evolves’ throughout their books, a natural progression and change as an author gets to grip with the world which he has created, and fine tunes his vision. It is something that is noticeable in all great writers as well as the indistinguishable ones. J.R.R Tolkien by consensus fits into the former category and this weekend the Hall of Fire staff are discussing the different styles of Tolkien and what is his finest work.
On the most fundamentary level, there is a stark contrast in the maturity and style of The Lord of the Rings to the style of The Hobbit, the latter originally a story told to his children and his first publication. Similarly, there is a contrast to The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion, the latter much more ideologically and mythologically driven.
Anyone who has read most of his works can attest to the majorly different styles of his earliest writings also, for example The Lost Tales 1 and 2 with their archaic language; lucious description of things like nature and jewels; and Unfinished Tales with its stunning vision of Tuor as he first sets sights on the Kingdom of Gondolin. This weekend, join us in the Hall of Fire as we discuss the various styles of J.R.R and which one is most fondly received by fellow Tolkien fans.
Upcoming Discussions
June 8 & 9: TTT Chapter Discussion: Treebeard
June 15 & 16: The (Ir)Responsibility of Elves in Middle-earth
June 22 & 23: TTT Chapter Discussion: The Return of Gandalf
June 29 & 30: Ask the Experts: A Q&A on Tolkien’s Work
Place:
#thehalloffire on theonering.net server; come to theonering.net’s chat room Barliman’s and then type /join #thehalloffire .
Saturday Chat: 5:30 pm ET (17:30) [also 11:30 pm (23:30) CET and 7:30 am Sunday (07:30) AET]
Sunday Chat: 7:00 pm (19:00) CET [also 1:00 pm (13:00) ET and 4:00 am (04:00) Monday morning AET]
ET = Eastern Time, USA’s East Coast
CET = Central European Time, Central Europe
Questions? Topics? Send ‘em here.
