Letter to Eileen Elgar (24 December 1971): Difference between revisions

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'''Eileen Elgar 24 December 1971''' is a [[Letters not published in "The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien"|letter]] from [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] to Mrs [[Eileen Elgar]], written on [[24 December|December 24]], [[1971]].  
'''Eileen Elgar 24 December 1971''' is a [[Letters not published in "The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien"|letter]] from [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] to Mrs Eileen Elgar, written on [[24 December]] [[1971]].  


*'''Contents:''' Tolkien writes about the death of [[Edith Tolkien|Edith]]. He also writes that he thinks [[Pauline Baynes]]'s ''Hobbit'' poster map is better than ''A Map of Middle-earth''; he is glad Elgar liked the [[The Chronicles of Narnia|Narnia]] books, although he himself is not fond of them; and he discusses the naming of pets after [[Hobbits]] (commenting that [[Hilary Tolkien|Hilary]] has a dog which is called [[Bilbo Baggins|Bilbo]] when being good, and Baggins when being bad).<ref>[[Wayne G. Hammond]] and [[Christina Scull]] (2006), ''[[The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide]]: Chronology'', p. 758</ref>
*'''Contents:''' Tolkien writes about the death of [[Edith Tolkien|Edith]]. He also writes that he thinks [[Pauline Baynes]]'s ''Hobbit'' poster map is better than ''A Map of Middle-earth''; he is glad Elgar liked the [[The Chronicles of Narnia|Narnia]] books, although he himself is not fond of them; and he discusses the naming of pets after [[Hobbits]] (commenting that [[Hilary Tolkien|Hilary]] has a dog which is called [[Bilbo Baggins|Bilbo]] when being good, and Baggins when being bad).<ref>{{CG|C}}, p. 758</ref>
*'''Authenticity:''' High
*'''Publication:''' Descriptions of the letter appeared in ''[[Sotheby's English Literature and English History 6-7 December 1984]]'' and ''[[The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide]]: Chronology''. An excerpt concerning Narnia was published in [[Mythlore 121/122|''Mythlore'' 121/122]].
*'''Publication:''' ''[[Sotheby's English Literature and English History 6-7 December 1984]]''.


==Excerpt==
==Excerpts==


"[Edith] was my ''Lúthien Tinúviel'', with her river [''sic''? as transcribed, for "raven"] hair and fair face and bright starry eyes"
"[Edith] was my ''Lúthien Tinúviel'', with her river [''sic''? as transcribed, for "raven"] hair and fair face and bright starry eyes"
"I am glad that you have discovered Narnia. These stories are deservedly very popular; but since you ask if I like them I am afraid the answer is No. I do not like 'allegory', and least of all religious allegory of this kind. But that is a difference of taste which we both recognized and did not interfere with our friendship."<ref>Quoted in "Disparaging Narnia: Reconsidering Tolkien's View of ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe''" by Josh B. Long, in [[Mythlore 121/122|''Mythlore'' 121/122]], p. 39</ref>
==See also==
==See also==
*[[Eileen Elgar 5 March 1964]]
*[[Eileen Elgar 5 March 1964]]
{{references}}
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[[Category:Letters]]
[[Category:Letters]]

Revision as of 23:12, 11 May 2013

Eileen Elgar 24 December 1971 is a letter from J.R.R. Tolkien to Mrs Eileen Elgar, written on 24 December 1971.

Excerpts

"[Edith] was my Lúthien Tinúviel, with her river [sic? as transcribed, for "raven"] hair and fair face and bright starry eyes"

"I am glad that you have discovered Narnia. These stories are deservedly very popular; but since you ask if I like them I am afraid the answer is No. I do not like 'allegory', and least of all religious allegory of this kind. But that is a difference of taste which we both recognized and did not interfere with our friendship."[2]

See also

References

  1. Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond (2006), The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: I. Chronology, p. 758
  2. Quoted in "Disparaging Narnia: Reconsidering Tolkien's View of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" by Josh B. Long, in Mythlore 121/122, p. 39