[Child of the 7th Age]

Child - if the documents are in the Bodleian then its not the 'fault' of the Tolkien family if access is restricted. But bear in mind that access does need to be restricted or I'd be hot footing it down there to thumb through them, and I have no scholarly interest in Beowulf, though I could pretend to have. So could a lot of people.

Lal,

I totally agree. I don't think this situation is anyone's "fault". And the term "conspiracy" with all its negative connotations just doesn't apply. These are all people who are trying to do the decent thing. Yet there can be legitimate differences of opinion when it comes to the release or retention of historical and literary documents. Tolkien's papers are no exceptions. The estate is well within its legal rights to make decisions on access (donors generally stipulate to an archives what the limits of access will be), and there is no question that CT is attempting to do what he feels is right.

But it is also true that there are people out there who have a genuine desire to study these materials and who have both the background and the heart to make a contribution, yet have not been able to gain access to the texts. The linguistic papers, for example, have been a bone of contention for many years.

Any historical collection has to have rules about access and restriction. And yes, not everyone can come trampling through the door when the author is as popular as Tolkien. Yet there is still a fine line here. My personal feelng is that you don't want to shut out the very people who can benefit from studying the texts and passing along what they've learned to others. I am extremely happy that the estate opened the doors to scholars/writers like Carpenter, Garth, and Hammond. We would be poorer without their insights. But I do think there have been instances when a slightly more liberal policy would not have been out of line.

Part of the problem is also one of communication. When it was publicly announced that the Beowulf manuscripts would be released, edited, and published, many people who make their living as medievalists were very excited. But then the permission was revoked with no public explanation. Those same scholars, many of whom were also diehard Tolkien fans, were left scratching their heads in puzzlement. Perhaps that communication will improve now that Adam is involved with the translation of some of the papers and also giving interviews.

In this situation, I truly don't believe that the entire burden of "right" or "wrong" rests wholly on one side or the other. CT has done some wonderful, astounding things that should earn him our respect and thanks. But both he and the people serving under him are only human and some of their decisions have been more controversial. Most of the petitioners seeking access to documents(setting aside the few crackpot or strictly commercial interests that could easily be winnowed out) as well as the actual guardians of the estate are motivated by the same basic impulse: on some level they love and respond to the Legendarium and want to make sure that Tolkien's heritage is honored and respected in an appropriate way. For precisely that reason, I would love to see Beowulf in print someday.