Quote:
Originally Posted by Nerwen
And now, a general comment: it’s best not to get too combative over Tolkien’s use of superlatives. Yes, at some points he'll describe a given character as “the wisest”, or “the fairest” or “the greatest”– but at other times he describes other characters the same way. No doubt– writing as he did over a period of decades– he sometimes forgot what he’d said previously– or else he just didn't mean these statements in the spirit of utter literalism in which people often appear to take them.
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I agree Nerwen. Another possibility [stress possibility] is that Tolkien meant different traditions to clash in this respect, although one can hardly really know, compared to the idea of JRRT just forgetting what he had written elsewhere; or enjoying superlatives.
In the 1930s Tolkien wrote:
'Of these Feanor was the mightiest in skill of word and hand, more learned in lore than his brethren; in his heart his spirit burned as flame. Fingolfin was the strongest, the most steadfast, and the most valiant. Finrod was the fairest, and the most wise of heart.' (Quenta Silmarillion)
Then in the early 1950s Tolkien wrote (Annals of Aman):
'For Feanor was made the mightiest in all parts of body and mind: in valour, in endurance, in beauty, in understanding, in skill, in strength and subtelty alike: of all the Children of Eru, and a bright flame was in him.'
But yet in the 1950s Tolkien
keeps the first passage, even changing Finrod to Finarfin and extending the last sentence (so we know he simply didn't overlook this). If Feanor is the mightiest 'in valour', how then is Fingolfin the most valiant? or if 'in strength' why then is Fingolfin the strongest? Or if 'in beauty' why then is Finarfin the fairest?
Is this a matter of authorship and opinion?
The Annals of Aman were said to be written by Rumil in the Elder Days, and held in memory by the Exiles, and parts remembered were set down in Numenor before the Shadow fell upon it. Could it be that one author esteemed Feanor so highly, while another rather noted the greatness of Fingolfin and Finarfin in certain areas?
Hmm... ahem [cough] or something else
In any event, here's what Tolkien added (and thus published himself) to the second edition of 1965 (in Appendix A):
'Feanor was the greatest of the Eldar in arts and lore, but also the proudest and most self-willed.'