J.R.R. Tolkien, Scholar and Storyteller: Essays in Memoriam

by Mary Salu (Editor), Robert T. Farrell (Editor)

A moving and thoughtful tribute, this book, originally published in 1979, offers fourteen essays dedicated to the memory of J. R. R. Tolkien (1892–1973). The contributors, a distinguished group of his friends, colleagues, and former students, address a wide and diverse range of subjects. The first part of the book contains material on Tolkien the man and the scholar. It includes his obituary notices from The Times of London and his valedictory address at Oxford in which he points out, eloquently and purposefully, the artificiality of the split between language and literary study. The second part consists of critical essays representing Tolkien’s major scholarly interests―Old Norse, Old English, and Middle English literatures. The last part includes three pieces on Tolkien’s popular writings, particularly The Lord of the Rings, and a bibliography of his published writings.

Genres: Nonfiction

328 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1979

Reviews

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good collection of essays in memory of Tolkien and on a wide range of subjects. The collection is divided into three sections, one on Tolkien, the second collects essays on medieval subjects and the third is on Tolkien's fantasy works. The chapters that stood out for me were the ones by Stanley, Bliss, Robinson and Frankis.

Contents

Preface

Part One

Professor J. R. R. Tolkien: Obituary from The Times, London, 3 September 1973

Valedictory Address to the University of Oxford, 5 June 1959
by J. R. R. Tolkien

1. The Man and the Scholar
by S. T. R. O. d'Ardenne

Part Two

2. Beowulf Lines 3074–3075
by A. J. Bliss

3. Layamon's English Sources
by P. J. Frankis

4. God, Death, and Loyalty in The Battle of Maldon
by Fred C. Robinson

5. Geoweorpa: "Once Held in High Esteem"
by E. G. Stanley

6. Narrative Insight in Laxdœla Saga
by Ursula Dronke

7. Nosce te ipsum: Some Medieval Interpretations
by J. A. W. Bennett

8. Chaucer's Man of Law and His Tale: The Eccentric Design
by Robert T. Farrell

9. Chaucer and "Pite"
by Douglas Gray

10. Make Believe: Chaucer's Rationale of Storytelling in The House of Fame
by Geoffrey T. Shepherd

11. Moral Chaucer and Kindly Gower
by Rosemary Woolf

Part Three

12. The Lord of the Rings as Romance
by Derek S. Brewer

13. The Gospel of Middle-Earth according to J. R. R. Tolkien
by William Dowie

14. Creation from Philology in The Lord of the Rings
by T. A. Shippey

Handlist of the Published Writings of J. R. R. Tolkien
by Humphrey Carpenter

Index

[Mythlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read three essays in the volume: Simone d'Ardenne's "The Man and the Scholar"; Ursula Dronke's "Narrative Insight in Laxdæla Saga"; and Derek Brewer's "The Lord of the Rings as Romance".

d'Ardenne's contribution was brief, but warm and personal, and Dronke's was a nice discussion of saga I studied (in translation) in a class on Norse Myths and Sagas. I liked both a lot.

Brewer's started out promising, but then degenerated into pablum as far as I'm concerned.

I started looking at the following essay, William Dowie's "The Gospel of Middle-Earth according to J. R. R. Tolkien," but it seemed to live up (or down?) to its name, so I left off.

(The Shippey essay is probably good, but based on the subject matter I'd imagine it's essentially an early rough draft of a portion of The Road to Middle-earth, which I just read.)