20 more years
 

If Tolkien would have been granted twenty more years of life to live..what do you think he would have done with it? Do you think he would have filled in some of the gaps of his mythology? Finished stories from the 4th age? Or spent more time with his family than his writing.

If Tolkien had lived for twenty more years he would have continued to change the mythology and the chronicles of the First and Second Age. It's quite likely that the history of Middle Earth would have been very different.

Since this is an opinion topic, not a book discussion, it has been moved to the Novices and Newcomers forum. Please continue to read and post there. Thanks!

it feels strange to know that the history of ME would have been completely different when Tolkien had live a little longer. i mean, even though there are still some less clear parts in Silmarillion and the other books concerning the previous ages, it appears to me as a very understandable - and very natural development, exactly the same way real history cannot be changed just because one chronicle writer passed away to early.
but perhaps i take Tolkiens work to serious too [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

namárië

I think he would have finished out life in the Shire. Maybe he would write a book about the rest of Sam's life {including Merry and Pippin of course}. He probably would have taken all of the brief stories in the Appendixes and wrote them out in books. He probably would have done much more beyond that also.

I don't know why, but I feel as though Tolkien would be the type of person who would die when his time came. I don't think he would want to live for another 20 years. However, he might have used those 20 years if he had the chance, or use whatever would suffice for him to do what he needed to do.

So if he did use some of the years, I don't think that he would write any books. I think that he would tie up some loose ends. I also think that he would leave somethings to remain a mystery, like Tom Bombadil. But maybe he would write a book. If he did, I could really only see it as a book with recollections of his life, and significant events, good or bad or anything else. And it wouldn't really tell any stories about Middle-earth, or explain any thing about the history of ME. It would probably only talk about how writing about ME affected his life in any way shape or form. That is something that I would really enjoy. It would give everyone a better chance to understand part of Tolkien and to sort of get to know him.

I think that the books that he did write were a process. It took him years to finish LOTR. If he had lived longer, I think he would have finished the Sil, and also finished other writings. I don't know how much it would change, but I am sure it would. Tolkien seems to me the type of person who is never satisfied with his work. He would have continued shaping the stories, and writen more to explain those ones and then gone to what happened after.

write books
alter the history of the first and second ages
write about the passing of the fellowship in more detailed stories than how it was said in the appendixs
write what happened in the fourth age

hopefully he would have written more detail on legolas, gimli, arnor, etc. things we ont have much on, more details on lesser characters, and anything extra on major characters also

I think he would probably just add more detail to the stories, becasue the main story frame was in there but he probably would have added some more dates and stuff.

If Tollers would have lived on
His heart would have waned
Like an elf gazing at a western dusk
But he would have completed
The Sil, his true life's work
And spent his remaining days
Musing on the beauty and truth
His Creator revealed in his own stories

Call me lmp, everyone does [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

Ah yes..very very well said Grayhame :::applauding:::

Alas, if only he was an immortal Elf. But then we would have more answers to our questions and hsi views on the movie, plus a complete Silmarillion but as a downside less intresting dscussions and wild guessings.

[/QUOTE]write what happened in the fourth age [QUOTE]

I don't think so. He attempted to write a story set in the F.A, 'The New Shadow' but soon abanoned it, saying it wouldn't be very intresting and would only work as a thriller. It seems that he would have left the beggining of the dominion of Men to rest.

[ February 03, 2003: Message edited by: Inderjit Sanghera ]