Unfinished Tales - Part Two - IV - The History of Galadriel and Celeborn
Does the title of this chapter remind you of The History of Middle-earth? You'll find the style quite similar - bits and pieces of JRRT's own writing connected by Christopher Tolkien's comments and notes. Those of us who would have preferred a cohesive narrative about Middle-earth's most fascinating couple may be disappointed, but we must admit that it was hardly possible to combine so many conflicting ideas, written at various times of the author's life and imagination.
However, this chapter is invaluable for research, including as it does so many references to other characters as well as to the title heroine and hero: Amroth and Nimrodel, Celebrimbor, and Sauron, to mention the most important. There is background information on the Elessar and the Rings of Power.
The Appendices provide information on the Silvan Elves and their speech, the Sindarin princes, the boundaries of Lórien, the port of Lond Daer, and the names of Celeborn and Galadriel. (The first version of Celeborn's name is a neverending source of amusement for modern fans...)
What is your impression of this chapter? Do you enjoy reading it, or usually just skim it for information? Have you used it as a source for something you've written? What is missing that you would have liked the chapter to include?
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'Mercy!' cried Gandalf. 'If the giving of information is to be the cure of your inquisitiveness, I shall spend all the rest of my days in answering you. What more do you want to know?' 'The whole history of Middle-earth.. .'
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