The Fall of Arthur recounts in verse the last campaign of King Arthur, who, even as he stands at the threshold of Mirkwood, is summoned back to Britain by news of the treachery of Mordred. Already weakened in spirit by Guinevere’s infidelity with the now-exiled Lancelot, Arthur must rouse his knights to battle one last time against Mordred’s rebels and foreign mercenaries. Powerful, passionate, and filled with vivid imagery, this unfinished poem reveals Tolkien’s gift for storytelling at its brilliant best.
Christopher Tolkien, editor, contributes three illuminating essays that explore the literary world of King Arthur, reveal the deeper meaning of the verses and the painstaking work his father applied to bring the poem to a finished form, and investigate the intriguing links between The Fall of Arthur and Tolkien’s Middle-earth. The Fall of Arthur
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Bas sam uzivao u ovoj knjizi.
Tolkinovi nedovrseni stihovi (verses) o Arturovom posednjem pohodu, Mordredovom izdajstvu, Sir Gawain-ovom junastvu, Lanselotovoj i Gvinervinoj kratkoj ljubavi su zaista ocekivano dobri. Oni jesu okosnica ove knjige i razlog njenog nastanka ali podjednako zadovoljstvo mi je pricinilo i sve ono sto je sledilo iza njih. Konacno sam na jedan dobar, mogao bih reci ispravan nacin upoznao mit o Arturu i Avalonu, njegovu radnju i mesto u mitologiji. Hvala Kristoferu Tolkinu na tome. 9780007489947
La Caída de Arturo, única incursión de J. R .R. Tolkien en las leyendas del rey Arturo de Bretaña, puede ser considerado su mayor logro en el uso del metro aliterado en inglés antiguo. Una obra en la que consiguió comunicar la sensación de inevitabilidad y de gravedad de los acontecimientos: de la expedición de Arturo a las lejanas tierras paganas, de la huida de la reina Ginebra de Camelot, de la gran batalla naval al regreso de Arturo a Bretaña.
Esto es lo que nos cuenta la sinopsis, y es lo que habría sido de haber sido un trabajo terminado. Pero, y aunque lo indica como tal en el propio libro, no deja de ser una obra inacabada, o más bien dicho, abandonada. Y es una pena, puesto que lo que podemos ver es muy bueno, una lástima que no siguiese con ello (o quizá no, si hubiese repercutido en tener otra versión de El señor de los anillos)
Este libro es un trabajo de Chistopher Tolkien en el que nos presenta parte del poema que sí estaba finalizado, y luego nos va contando su evolución a raíz de otros textos iniciales, notas manuscritas que lo van corrigiendo, o comentarios sobre lo que pretendía hacer para el final. Es muy similar en formato a otras obras como Beren y Lúthien o La caída de Gondolin, aunque su mayor valor radica en la forma de escribirlo, que en este caso particular es, según se indica, usando el verso aliterativo del inglés antiguo. Mi conocimiento en poesía es nulo, por lo que no sé si es plenamente cierto, pero durante el análisis se hace mucha referencia a ello, incluso comparando el poema con otras obras. También decir que el poema viene en el libro tanto en su versión original como en la traducida, para poder ver ambas formas a la vez.
En otra de las partes de libro se compara este poema con posteriores obras de Tolkien, en las que toma ideas y formas, así como nombres y palabras que luego podemos reconocer en El Silmarillion o en Las Baladas de Beleriand. Cierra la obra un apéndice y una nota de los traductores explicando un poco el proceso, que fácil no ha debido ser, y de dónde vienen ciertas referencias que se usan durante toda la obra.
En el apartado negativo, tengo una queja particular, que no sé si es cosa mía o de la obra, y es que en las múltiples comparativas entre unas versiones y otras, se dan las referencias de las páginas para poderlo consultar, pero no coincide ni una, y no sé si lo miro yo mal o es cosa de la edición. Además, es una obra complicada por el escaso material de origen, por lo que solo es para gente muy interesada en el tema, o como se dice, café para muy cafeteros. No ha sido mala lectura para nada, pero no es para todo el mundo.
Para cerrar, una imágen de la que se toma el sello principal para la portada, que me ha gustado mucho:
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The Fall of Arthur, the only venture by J.R.R. Tolkien into the legends of Arthur, king of Britain, may well be regarded as his finest and most skillful achievement in the use of Old English alliterative meter, in which he brought to his transforming perceptions of the old narratives a pervasive sense of the grave and fateful nature of all that is told: of Arthur’s expedition overseas into distant heathen lands, of Guinevere’s flight from Camelot, of the great sea battle on Arthur’s return to Britain, in the portrait of the traitor Mordred, in the tormented doubts of Lancelot in his French castle.
This is what the synopsis tells us, and it is what it would have been if it had been a finished work. But, and although it is indicated as such in the book itself, it is still an unfinished work, or rather, abandoned. And it is a pity, since what we can see it is very good, a pity that he did not continue with it (or maybe not, if it had an impact on having another version of The Lord of the Rings)
This book is a work by Christopher Tolkien in which he presents us with part of the poem that was finished, and then tells us about its evolution as a result of other initial texts, handwritten notes that correct it, or comments on what J.R.R. Tolkien intended do to with the ending. It is very similar in format to other works such as Beren and Lúthien or The Fall of Gondolin, although its greatest value lies in the way of writing it, which in this particular case is, according to the book, using the Old English alliterative verse. My knowledge of poetry is nil, so I don't know if it's completely true, but during the analysis a lot of reference is made to it, even comparing the poem with other works. Also (in my edition, translated into spanish) the poem comes in the book both in its original version and in the translated one, to be able to see both forms at the same time.
In another part of the book, this poem is compared with later works by Tolkien, in which he takes on ideas and writing forms, as well as names and words that we can later recognize in The Silmarillion or in The Ballads of Beleriand for example. The book closes with an appendix and a note from the translators explaining a bit about the process, it shouldn't have been easy, and where certain references that are used throughout the work come from.
In the negative section, I have a particular complaint, which I don't know if it is mine or the book, and that is that in the multiple comparisons between some versions and others, the page references that are given so it can be consulted does not coincide, and I don't know if I'm looking at it wrong or it's a matter of editing. In addition, it is a complicated work due to the scarce source material, so it is only for people who are very interested in the subject, or as they say, coffee for very coffee lovers. It's not a bad read at all, but it's not for everyone.
As a closure, the cover detail is a part of a sarcophagus, which I really liked, so I leave here the full image:
9780007489947 Αισθάνομαι άσχημα που βάζω 4 σε βιβλίο που φέρνει το όνομα του καθηγητή Tolkien. Δυστυχώς όμως το σύνολο του βιβλίου δεν ήταν για 5.
Οι πρώτες 57 σελίδες είναι το κανονικό ποίημα το οποίο αξίζει 5 αστέρια. Γραμμένο σε παρηχητικό μέτρο και με εξαίσιο (αν και αρκετά δύσκολο) λεξιλόγιο καταφέρνει ν�� σε μαγέψει όπως κάθε άλλη δουλειά του Tolkien.
Το υπόλοιπο βιβλίο είναι σχόλια του Christopher Tolkien (γιος του συγγραφέα) ο οποίος αναλύει το έργο, μεταφέρει παραπάνω πληροφορίες και παρουσιάζει διάφορες επιπλέον σημειώσεις του πατέρα του για το ποίημα. Όχι ότι αυτές οι σελίδες είναι βαρετές, αλλά δυστυχώς φαίνεται ότι δεν είναι γραμμένες εξ ολοκλήρου από το χέρι του καθηγητή.
Ελπίζω το Beowulf να είναι καλύτερο σαν σύνολο βιβλίου :) 9780007489947 I really enjoyed the J.R.R. Tolkien portions of this book. Not to say that Christopher Tolkien is a bad writer, on the contrary, his analysis is very well thought out and interesting. It's just that when you are reading the pieces written by the master, you certainly know it.
Fair warning to the casual reader out there, this offering is a poem purposely written to emulate the meter an feel of an old piece of English literature. Only about a quarter or less of the book is actually material produced by J.R.R. Tolkien, the rest is an in-depth analysis of the poem and it's fit with other classic Arthurian literature by his son, Christopher Tolkien. Unless you get into the inner workings of literature and poetry and enjoy reading excerpts of Olde English, I wouldn't recommend this book to just anybody.
Overall, I found this to be a fairly fascinating book. I think that Christopher does a very admirable job of breaking down and analyzing his father's work and tying it into the other classic literature. I also appreciate the connections that he makes to his fathers penultimate masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings. Even thought this is a seemingly unrelated work, Christopher has managed to find some interesting similarities between it and his father's writings of Middle Earth.
Where this truly shines is in allowing the Tolkien fan to read a previously unpublished piece of Tolkien literature that we may not have otherwise seen. Make no mistake, this is a piece of what would have been a larger work but was for one reason or another abandoned by the author. What we are offered is a fragment and may not have ever looked even remotely like the piece we are presented with in its final form, but we will never actually know. A huge thank you to Christopher Tolkien for bringing us what he could of this work. My only real complaint in the layout that Christopher presented is that I would have put the second study directly after the poem as it deals more with the notes of things that were to come and I think would have provided a more satisfying feel to read while the actual work was still fresh to my mind.
On a side note one thing that I did find interesting is that, even though Christopher is a great analyst and very detailed in his research, he presents a small excerpt of a lecture that his father gave at some point. This small excerpt of lecture illustrates just how talented his father is as it literally jumps off the page. He's not talking about anything of particular interest unto itself, but the nuances and the wording make the excerpt come alive. Not to take anything away from his son, but this piece really made me realize what the difference is between someone who is an expert and very good at what he does and a true master of the written word. 9780007489947 Not to make you jealous or anything, but I bought this at the Bodleian Library gift shop after going through the Tolkien art exhibit. I had no idea what it was, except that it was recently published, and was touted as the only time he took on the Arthurian legend. I am not at all disappointed in this purchase, just as I am not disappointed in the bookmark, bracelet, and print I also purchased . . . but that's another story!
The first sixty pages or so are the poem, written in Saxon alliterative style, of the last days of Arthur. After there, son Christopher takes over and talks about the different drafts, where the ending might have headed, what the sources were, and so forth. Fascinating stuff, whether you're into Tolkien, poetry, Old English, King Arthur . . . there's really a lot going on for all kinds of people. I thought the little moments of Christopher's frustration (with his father quitting the poem, with his father's handwriting) were quite great. But what I really liked was the appendix, largely taken from one of Tolkien Senior's own lectures about Anglo Saxon poetry. That was truly fascinating stuff, and I had no idea about any of it. (And I say this as someone who has read the Norse sagas in the original language.) 9780007489947
I've read a great many of Tolkien’s works, many of which were published posthumously. This does not always detract from the value of the work. The Children of Hurin and Beren and Luthien are both still fantastic pieces of writing despite the fact that Tolkien never really finished them.
However, they were completely drafted; the entire stories were told and they just needed a final polish and an edit: they were almost ready. Unfortunately, The Fall of Arthur was far from ready. What we have here is but a fragment, the setting of the stage if you like, of what would have been a fully developed epic. This book, and the forty pages of poetry we are given, provides a mere curiosity for the most enthusiastic of Tolkien’s fans, and for the casual reader it would only provide bitter disappointment.
This is not the only case of such a thing in the world of Tolkien fiction, thought it was the worse I have come across. Despite the small amount of original work some of the books contain, they still feel like they belong to Tolkien. This, on the other hand, felt more like a commentary on Tolkien’s work. The writing of his son dominates the book as he tracks the creation and history of the very small amount of writing his farther created here. All in all, Christopher Tolkien is the real author here.
And that saddens me. He has dug deep into the treasure troves of his father’s work, and he has pulled out many shinny gems but on this occasion he has pulled out a piece of pewter, tarnished and grey, and not at all ready for fine company. The glimpse of the epic we see here provides just enough content to demonstrate how fully fleshed out it would have been had Tolkien wanted to finish it. And there’s the rub: it’s all one big tease. I truly would have loved Tolkien to write the entire thing, I think it could have been fantastic.
The Fall of Arthur then is only worth it if you are really invested in Tolkien and even then I think most readers will be dissatisfied with it. Not one I recommend. 9780007489947 This is the first time I read Tolkien. I'm one of those heartless people that haven't read The Lord of the Rings yet. This book caught my attention because I love the legend of King Arthur. I became a bit obsessed with it during my early years (actually, anything Middle Ages related; again, yes, I was a very popular kid at school, you can imagine...; I sang BSB songs to seem more normal—yes, that was normal back then!). I even created a website and wrote a couple of short stories that never saw the light of day (and never will). So, I thought this book was going to be an amazing ride. However, it was more like those little walks you take after eating an enormous amount of food and you can hardly move a toe.
There are few pages written by Tolkien and the rest is all about notes, and footnotes and handnotes and necknotes written by his son, Christopher. I must admit I skipped some of those fascinating notes, but others were quite helpful. This was written in Old English and three verses contained a lot of words I've never heard of. So you can imagine how I suffered, considering that I can barely write a couple of coherent sentences in this language (or my language, for that matter). After reading those notes, I understood more.
There are several aspects of the Arthurian legends that are not in the poem. Here we have Arthur, Gawain, his nephew and other knights that went to fight the Saxons but had to come back thanks to good old pal Mordred. Aww, family. Sweet Guinevere made an appearance also, like a beautiful woman world walking for the woe of men without shedding any tear. Something that interested Mordred, quite a bit.
His bed was barren; there black phantoms of desire unsated and savage fury in his brain had brooded till bleak morning.
The Fifty Shades of Grey of those days, apparently.
All in all, the poem is beautiful, powerful and evocative.
Cold blew the wind, keen and wintry, in rising wrath from the rolling forest among roaring leaves. Rain came darkly, and the sun was swallowed in sudden tempest.
It's like we're privileged witnesses of those detailed descriptions, those vivid images that Tolkien is narrating. I imagined every verse. I loved it; it's a shame he couldn't finish it. And, well... I kind of forgot about the rest of the book.
I just can't help the feeling of being tricked.
Jan 09, 14
* Also on my blog. 9780007489947 It wasn't a book that I really enjoyed much.
NEW MATERIAL BY TOLKIEN!
I was really eager to read it since I found so awesome the idea of reading a new book by JRR Tolkien.
Something that I'd never think that it could be possible.
Of course, I know that it was thanks to the editing of his son, Christopher Tolkien.
But still, it was a new book by Tolkien.
A SWORD HARD TO TAKE OUT FROM STONE
I found interesting some information of the legend of King Arthur in the further notes by Tolkien's son, however the verses themselves by JRR Tolkien were written in an English so old that I hardly could make some sense out of was happening in the narrative. In all cases, they were the afternotes by Tolkien's son were I understood what supposed to happening on the verses.
Also, a key factor of reading this book was the mention that there was a connection between the events here and the epic saga of The Lord of the Rings.
However, I was expecting something more insightful about the connection of Arthur's legend and the Middle-Earth's stories, but the connection mentioned here was something that I already figured it out before and I heard it in some other TV documentary about it.
Nevertheless, it's great to add of some Tolkien's work in my list of already read books.
9780007489947 Who wrote this blurb? Seriously?
The Fall of Arthur, the only venture by J.R.R. Tolkien into the legends of Arthur King of Britain -- What's his translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight? Chopped liver?
...his finest and most skillful achievement in the use of the Old English alliterative metre... -- Old English metre? Not from what I've seen. Where're the half-lines? Not sure the stresses work either.
I'm sure it is a wonderful, skillful work, but more likely in Middle English alliterative metre -- like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight -- which is rather more relaxed.
I've been looking forward to this since I found out this poem existed, and once swore I could write my PhD on it. Guess we'll find out soon.
--
Okay, I admit I seem to have been wrong -- it is Old English metre, the sample I looked at didn't reproduce the formatting. I'm still not sure the alliteration is right, though: I'll need to look it up to be sure, but I think there's too much alliteration. I could, however, be remembering the rules for Skaldic verse, which are not dissimilar, but more strict.
I have my copy in hand and a dental appointment later, so I shall stick my nose into these pages studiously until I am dragged to the dentist's chair...
--
Finished the poem itself, now to the additional matter. But why has he written a poem about the fall of the British (Celtic) Arthur in battle against the Saxons... in Saxon metre? Conquerors have certainly claimed Arthur before now, but... I wish he'd published this in his lifetime, with his own notes, with his attentiveness to every detail, his concern with the provenance of texts and his invented histories for them. Perhaps he would have recognised the irony in his choice of metre, even explained it.
Onward, anyway, to Christopher Tolkien's bit.
...Which I found less than enlightening, really, since I wasn't interested in a play-by-play of the evolution of the poem and I don't need a primer on the Arthurian legends.
Anyway, in summary: fascinating to me as an academic, but I'm not sure how it'll strike non-academics. I wish I could write a PhD on this, but there doesn't seem to be enough material. 9780007489947 I now have a YouTube channel that I run with my brother, called 'The Brothers Gwynne'. Check it out - The Brothers Gwynne
My full review for this wonderful creation is on BookNest - BookNest - The Fall of Arthur
The Fall of Arthur is an epic poem recounting the end of the tale of Arthur, left unfinished, but still managing to feel complete and amazing.
Wild rode the wind though the West country.
Banners were blowing, black was the raven
they bore as blazon. Blaring of trumpets,
neighing of horses, gnashing of armour,
in the hoar hollows of the hills echoed .
Mordred was marching; messengers speeding
northward and eastward the news bearing
through the land of Logres. Lords and chieftains
to his side he summoned swift to hasten
their tryst keeping, true to Mordred,
faithful in falsehood, foes of Arthur,
lovers of treason and freebooters
This epic poem is about one of my favourite subjects and legends of all time. I have always been obsessed and enamoured by the tales of Arthur, and this is no exception.
Tolkien's prose in this epic poem is purely exceptional. Inspiring, immersive, beautiful. Just so brilliant. I loved every page of it. Really cannot give it enough praise. The characters are instantly given an incredible depth that made me fall in love with the characters, despite the short time spent with them.
This is a tale of heroism and tragedy, not made boring by the context of former tales. Tokien adds his own spin and image to the tale, making it different, while containing all that is brilliant and wonderful within the stories.
To any lovers of Arthurian tales, which I imagine is most, I would recommend this poem. It is easy to comprehend, and is only short. Please read it!
5/5 STARS 9780007489947