a new shadow

8/14/2019 A New Shadow

1/8

A LANDOFSHADOWS

JRR Tolkiens Lord of the Ringsis perhaps the most popular book of the lasthundred ears! One of the reasons for this is the sense the stor "i#es of takin"

pla$e in a real %orld& %ith a "reat depth of histor& lan"ua"e and $ulture of %hi$hthis tale is 'ust a part!

Tolkiens %ork has inspired hundreds of authors to $reate their o%n ima"inar%orlds as settin"s for their stories! Some are more su$$essful than others! Fe%$ome $lose to Tolkien in the $reation of a belie#able %orld that $on#in$es thereader it is real!

CreativityWhat are the in"redients that make for a su$$essful in#ented %orld(

Myth-MakingWhat elements did Tolkien use to $reate )iddle*earth(

Imaginary Lands+f ou %ant to $reate an ima"inar %orld& ho% $an ou make it seem real& at leastfor a little %hile(


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)A,S- JO.RN/0S

If you're going to have a complicated story you must work to a map; otherwise you'll

never make a map of it afterwards.

+ma"ine ou ha#e to tell the stor of a 'ourne throu"h an unkno%n $ountr! Ho%$ould ou keep tra$k %here ou are "oin"& %here ou ha#e been& ho% far a%apla$es are and ho% lon" it mi"ht take to "et there( The easiest %a is to use amap!

+f the ne% $ountr is an ima"inar one& ou %ill ha#e to in#ent all the pla$enames! 0ou mi"ht also need to des$ribe the shape of the land1 its ri#ers& hills&mountains& forests and to%ns!

What else %ould ou need to kno%( Ho% far north or south a pla$e is has aneffe$t on the %eather! +t also affe$ts ho% lon" or short the das and ni"hts arethrou"hout the ear!

+n Lord of the RingsTolkien had to keep tra$k of man $hara$ters s$attereda$ross )iddle*earth! Ha#in" a map helped to %ork out ho% lon" it takes to tra#elbet%een pla$es! When people $an onl tra#el on foot or horseba$k& "oin"an%here takes a lon" time!

At times in the stor& $hara$ters noti$e the moon in the sk! The si"htin" of themoon links different strands in the stor! Tolkien used a 2345 diar to find the

phases of the moon on parti$ular das!

The first editions of Lord of the Rin"s %ere issued %ith a lar"e fold*out map&dra%n b Tolkiens son 6hristopher! This helped readers to understand thepla$es and the distan$es and dire$tions in#ol#ed in the stor! +t also set astandard for stories of fantas %orlds! No% e#er ne% ima"inar land $omes$omplete %ith map!


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S,/A7+N8- WR+T+N8

The invention of languages is the foundation. The stories were made rather to provide a

world for the languages than the reverse.

Ho% do people talk to one another in the ima"inar %orld( What lan"ua"es dothe use( +t is unlikel to be /n"lish9

Tolkien %as a philolo"ist& an e:pert in the histor of lan"ua"es and ho% the$han"e o#er time! His 'ob %as also his passion ; he in#ented ne% lan"ua"es forfun! He spent mu$h of his life makin" his in#entions more $ompli$ated andrealisti$& espe$iall the lan"ua"es of the /l#es1


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)ONST/RS- ,/O,L/S

I longed to devise a setting in which the trees might really march to war.

What kinds of $reatures inhabit this ne% land( The $ould be mostl the same asin our o%n %orld! Or mabe somethin" $ompletel ne%! +n )iddle*earth humansare not the onl people! The share the %orld %ith /l#es& D%ar#es& /nts& Trollsand Or$s! Hobbits& thou"h in#ented b Tolkien& are of $ourse 'ust a tpe of smallhuman9

The names of man of these $reatures are taken from older folk tales& butTolkien fitted them to )iddle*earth! The /nts * the tree*shepherds * are hisin#ention& thou"h the name is an old %ord for C"iant! /a$h of these tpes of$reature differs from the others in siEe& appearan$e& lan"ua"e and temperament!

/#en %hen the are on the same side& the ma not "et on! Or$s @uarrel %ithor$s& %hile /l#es and D%ar#es ha#e a "rud"e %hi$h has lasted thousands ofears!

As %ell as people& there ma be monsters! Some ma be no more than e:tra*s$ar animals like the %ar"s and "iant spiders! Others ma be intelli"ent& e#il&s$hemin" and able to talk9 Dra"ons like Smau" are more than 'ust bi" talkin"liEards! The make plans of their o%n to a$hie#e their %i$ked ends!

Tolkien also made up ne% monsters! There are people %ho %ere turned b thepo%er of their rin"s into Wraiths1 the =la$k Riders or NaE"lG the =alro" * a fire

demonG Shelob * a "i"anti$ spiderG and the barro%*%i"hts * e#il spirits li#in" inan$ient tombs!

Like so mu$h that he de#ised& Tolkiens $reatures ha#e be$ome standard infantas %ritin"! )an books in$lude el#es& or$s& trolls and d%ar#es #er similar tothose in Lord of the Rin"s >sometimes %ith those names& sometimes thinldis"uised? alon"side the authors ne%l in#ented $reatures!


5/8

)0THS- H+STOR+/S

Gil-galad was an lven-king. !f him the harpers sadly sing" the last whose realm was

fair and free #etween the $ountains and the %ea.

The e#iden$e of our past is all around us& in the buildin"s& the lands$ape ande#en the lan"ua"e %e speak! ,art of the interest of fantas %orlds is in thefeelin" that outside the stor there is e#en more le"end and histor!

Tolkien had alread %ritten a lot of stories set in )iddle*earth before he %roteeither the Hobbitor The Lord of the Rings! He $ontinued to %ork on themthrou"hout his life! These stories %ere mostl about the histor of the /l#es!The %ere published after his death as The Silmarillion!

The $hara$ters in Lord of the Ringskno% some of this an$ient histor& but it isnot al%as e:plained to the reader! The kno% the stor of =eren and Luthien&and the kno% %hat happened to Numenor& but %e do not! Just as in the real%orld& some thin"s are taken for "ranted be$ause e#erone is familiar %ith them!The stories %e learned as $hildren do not need to be e:plained be$ausee#erbod kno%s that!

Of $ourse for the $reator of a su$$essful ima"inar %orld& this means a hu"eamount of %ritin" %hi$h ma ne#er appear full in the stor!

=ut there are also thin"s mentioned in Lord of the Rings%e %ill ne#er kno%

anthin" more about! +n )oria& Ara"orn sas 8andalf is surer of findin" his %ahome in a blind ni"ht than the $ats of


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I+STAS- I+S+ONS

%trider sitting in the corner at the inn was a shock& and I had no more idea who he was

than rodo.

+f ou %ant to "i#e life to our ima"inar %orld& ou %ill need to let people kno%%hat thin"s look like! What do people %ear( 0ou ma be able to tell $ertainthin"s about a person from the %a the dress! The stle of $lothin" %ill be #erdifferent from %hat ou are %earin" no%! Of $ourse the dont ha#e to look likethe li#e in the )iddle A"es& but it is #er hard to in#ent $ompletel ne% stlesthat ha#e ne#er e:isted an%here before!

The %a people a$t is also important! For e:ample& %hat do the do %hen themeet stran"ers& or %hen the sit do%n to eat( +n 8ondor the stand and fa$e

West in silen$e for a moment before startin" their meal! ,eople a$t differentl inpubli$ to the %a the are %ith their families and friends!

What are their buildin"s like * inside as %ell as outside( D%ar#es seem to prefer#ast mansions $ar#ed from %hole mountains! Hobbits homes are alsounder"round& but mu$h $osier! The 7in" of Rohan has a "rand hall de$orated%ith tapestries and a bri"htl painted floor& %hile the el#es of Lorien sleep onplatforms in the bran$hes of trees! The different kinds of d%ellin" tell ussomethin" about the people %ho li#e in them! +sen"ard has been turned into anindustrialised ruin& %hile shado%s hide =arad*dr& the Dark To%er of Sauron!

When ou are $reatin" an ima"inar %orld there are lots of thin"s ou $an$onsider! )an e#erda thin"s are "oin" to look different! These details of daillife mi"ht help to add a sense of realism! What about their furniture( Ho% do oudes$ribe their art and musi$& their means of transport& their $ro$ker& pots andpans& armour and %eapons( =ut most importantl& ho% mu$h detail do peoplereall need(


7/8

,LANN+N8- ,LOTT+N8

(ing of )ngmar long ago& %orcerer& *ingwraith& +ord of the ,agl& a spear of terror in

the hand of %auron& shadow of despair.

The tale C"re% in the tellin"! Lord of the Rin"s be"an life as a se@uel to TheHobbit! The link bet%een the t%o %as =ilbos ma"i$ rin"& %hi$h turned out to bethe Rulin" Rin"! As Tolkien %rote& the stor took on a life of its o%n& andde#eloped in une:pe$ted dire$tions! +t be$ame darker and its $entral ideas moreserious!

The stor also be$ame mu$h more $ompli$ated! The Fello%ship splits up& andthe stor breaks into se#eral strands! /a$h strand is follo%ed in turn for differento#erlappin" periods of time! This leads to the "reat $liff*han"er at the end of

=ook 4& %hen Frodo is $aptured b the Or$s! We dont find out %hat happensne:t for another 5 pa"es! +t needed $areful plannin" b the author to brin" allthese threads to"ether a"ain in the end!

At the $entre of the stor are the addi$tion of po%er& and the desire to es$apedeath and be$ome immortal! Althou"h the rin"s "i#e mortals e:tended life& oube"in to feel all thin, sort of stretchedlike butter that has been scraped overtoo much bread =ut the rin"s of po%er are addi$ti#e! 6ontinued use in$reasesthe hold on the %earer& until the $annot bear to be %ithout them! The desire touse the po%er of the rin" to do "ood is no prote$tion a"ainst the e#il effe$ts!

=ut the "ood people are not al%as $ompletel "ood! Some& like Saruman the%iEard& be$ome badG others lose hope& like DenethorG or "i#e in to temptation&like =oromir! Are those on the bad side al%as utterl %i$ked( When Sam sa%the dead soldier of Saurons arm& he %ondered Cif he %as reall e#il of heart& or%hat lies and threats had led him on the lon" mar$h from his homeG and if he%ould not reall rather ha#e staed there in pea$e! 8ollum s%as bet%een "oodand bad& before finall fallin" * and sa#in" the @uest in the pro$ess!


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SOLON8- FAR/W/LL

I have something to do #efore the end. I must see it through sir& if you understand.

/ast Lothian 6oun$il )useums Ser#i$e %ould like to thank the follo%in" for theirhelp in the produ$tion of this e:hibition1

The Tolkien /stateG South Lanarkshire 6oun$ilG Alan 6hapmanG /%an WilsonGThe Tolkien So$ietG John Ho%eG +n"er /delfeldtG Ted NasmithG =attleOrders LtdG/ast Lothian 6oun$il Arts Ser#i$eG /ast Lothian 6oun$il Librar Ser#i$eG =odleianLibrarG Omni /le$troni$sG Siobhan )$DadeG SuEanne 8rahamG 8amesWorkshop LtdG 6lanranaldG )i$helle =u"lassG Sheila 6alderG Jennifer 8ibsonG/:$ellen$e in /du$ationG ,eter 8raG Jane =eattieG 7ate )anardG S$ottish Arts6oun$ilG Wend Wel$hG )arion 7enn

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