Letter to David Masson (12 December 1955): Difference between revisions
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'''David Masson 12 December 1955''' is a [[Letters not published in "The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien"|letter]] from [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] to Mr David I. Masson (librarian at the [[University of Leeds]]<ref name=PE17>{{PE|17}}, p. 40</ref>), written on [[12 December]] [[1955]].<ref>{{CG|C}}, p. 482</ref> | '''David Masson 12 December 1955''' is a [[Letters not published in "The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien"|letter]] from [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] to Mr David I. Masson (librarian at the [[University of Leeds]]<ref name=PE17>{{PE|17}}, p. 40</ref>), written on [[12 December]] [[1955]].<ref name=CG>{{CG|C}}, p. 482</ref> | ||
*'''Subject:''' Reactions to a review of ''[[The Return of the King]]'' published in the ''Times Literary Supplement'' (25 November 1955). | *'''Subject:''' Reactions to a review of ''[[The Return of the King]]'' published in the ''Times Literary Supplement'' (25 November 1955).<ref name=CG/><ref name=TS/> | ||
*'''Publication:''' Quotations from the letter have been published in ''[[The Road to Middle-earth]]''.<ref name=TS>[[Tom Shippey]], ''[[The Road to Middle-earth]]'' (Grafton 2nd ed., p. 132n; HarperCollins 3rd ed., p. 164)</ref> | *'''Publication:''' Quotations from the letter have been published in ''[[The Road to Middle-earth]]''.<ref name=TS>[[Tom Shippey]], ''[[The Road to Middle-earth]]'' (Grafton 2nd ed., p. 132n; HarperCollins 3rd ed., p. 164)</ref> | ||
==Excerpt== | ==Excerpt== | ||
{{Blockquote|Tolkien remarked that the reviewer should not have made such a fuss over giving quarters to orcs. 'Surely how often "quarter" is given is off the point in a book that breathes Mercy from start to finish: in which the central hero is at last divested of all arms, except his will? "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil", are words that occur to me, and of which the scene, in the [[Cracks of Doom|Sammath Naur]] was meant to be a "fairy-story" exemplum ...'|<ref name=TS/>}} | {{Blockquote|Tolkien remarked that the reviewer should not have made such a fuss over giving quarters to [[orcs]]. 'Surely how often "quarter" is given is off the point in a book that breathes Mercy from start to finish: in which the central hero is at last divested of all arms, except his will? "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil", are words that occur to me, and of which the scene, in the [[Cracks of Doom|Sammath Naur]] was meant to be a "fairy-story" exemplum ...'|<ref name=TS/>}} | ||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
Revision as of 17:11, 18 August 2013
David Masson 12 December 1955 is a letter from J.R.R. Tolkien to Mr David I. Masson (librarian at the University of Leeds[1]), written on 12 December 1955.[2]
- Subject: Reactions to a review of The Return of the King published in the Times Literary Supplement (25 November 1955).[2][3]
- Publication: Quotations from the letter have been published in The Road to Middle-earth.[3]
Excerpt
Tolkien remarked that the reviewer should not have made such a fuss over giving quarters to orcs. 'Surely how often "quarter" is given is off the point in a book that breathes Mercy from start to finish: in which the central hero is at last divested of all arms, except his will? "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil", are words that occur to me, and of which the scene, in the Sammath Naur was meant to be a "fairy-story" exemplum ...'
—[3]
See also
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Words, Phrases and Passages in Various Tongues in The Lord of the Rings", in Parma Eldalamberon XVII (edited by Christopher Gilson), p. 40
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond (2006), The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: I. Chronology, p. 482
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Tom Shippey, The Road to Middle-earth (Grafton 2nd ed., p. 132n; HarperCollins 3rd ed., p. 164)
