Yet, Mr Davem, would you say that it was Tolkien's wish to create a mythology? He did say that he wanted a mythology for England. Yet at later points he describes Middle Earth as being this earth at 'a different level of imagination'. The constant connections with this world that one finds in the Legendarium (as are mentioned in HoTH1) sort of point to this.
So, coming swiftly to the question of this thread "Did JRRT encourage new ME stories?" I would say... possibly. I do not know if, by the time he had got as far as he had with it, the Legendarium had become something he regarded as set in stone or did not want to be messed with, but the original intention was possibly for a mythology that would grow. Perhaps when Tolkien became more engrossed in his legends, the characters felt more like his own, so to speak. This is all assumptions though.
The thing is, when a tale is so well crafted and complex, it becomes difficult to say what should be added other than details about characters here and there. In some way, that is what tends to happen with most Mythologies, there is a set number of main characters who are explored and investigated through the many tales about them. New characters may come along, but often they only serve as 'scaffolding' to an original character's development by a separate author. Another view to take is that where so much of the story is written from one man's perspective and own views and biases, when others come into the Frey, it is difficult to maintain something that 'fits in' to the world that Tolkien made.
I think that it is probable that Tolkien would originally have wanted his 'mythology' to grow by the hands of others. But I think it has become too much 'his own' and meddling often goes unnoticed. That doesnt mean, I think, that fans should stop exploring or questioning a character from the story, even in the medium of their own story. The thing is, that these new stories just won't become par of the cannon.
|