Why did Tolkien not finish Silmarillion?

In the 1992 Tolkien Centennial documentary, Christopher Tolkien said that he felt the task of finishing The Silmarillion had become too large for his father, too daunting: I think one must say it was the last version of The Silmarillion that he couldn't finish.

How close was Tolkien to finishing The Silmarillion?

Tolkien also retired in 1957, so had sixteen years of full-time work on The Silmarillion where he could have finished it but did not do so.

Why do people not like The Silmarillion?

The Silmarillion is difficult to read for several reasons: a huge number of names, archaic language and style, a lack of novel-like plot structure, a very slow beginning. It is also undoubtedly boring at times when the plot lags (cough "Of Beleriand and Its Realms").

Is The Silmarillion The Hardest book to read?

The Silmarillion, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings are the most common ones to be read, though for most fans the first book on this list can be the hardest. Why is that? Tolkien is often criticized in today's culture as being too archaic and hard to read, and for some people out there they'd completely concur.

Why is it so hard to read The Silmarillion?

That is because it talks about the events and histories of the First Age of the Middle Earth, of which only references exist in the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit. Also, the style of writing is slightly different from LOTR, and as a result, it can be a bit hard to follow at times.

What It's Like Reading Tolkien - The Silmarillion vs. LOTR/The Hobbit

Does Gandalf mention The Silmarillion?

Gandalf also appears in the published version of The Silmarillion in a markedly different aspect: that of a semi-divine Maia hidden within the guise of an old man, whom we met in The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings. Tolkien introduces him in The Silmarillion as the Maia Olórin.

Is Amazon Rings of Power based on Silmarillion?

The new Amazon series The Rings of Power is the first attempt to spin fresh dramatic narratives out of the tales in Tolkien's legendarium, but showrunners Patrick McKay and John D. Payne didn't even have The Silmarillion or other posthumously-published Tolkien writings to draw from.

Will The Rings of Power have The Silmarillion?

Another wrench in the works, however, was dropped in the showrunner interviews, when J. D. Payne revealed that the Tolkien Estate still owns the rights to The Silmarillion, which is the primary source text that tells the story The Rings of Power depicts.

What is the longest Tolkien novel?

3) Word count across all of Tolkien's Middle Earth writings

The longest single book Tolkien wrote was The Fellowship of the Ring, but even that's nothing when compared to all three parts of The Lord of the Rings gathered into one volume. No wonder Tolkien's publisher suggested splitting it into a trilogy.

Is Silmarillion bigger than LOTR?

The stories in the Silmarillion are beautiful and complex, probably more so than the Lord of the Rings, but the writing is so dense that it is highly unlikely ever to reach the popularity of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.

Will The Silmarillion ever be filmed?

Peter Jackson will not obtain the rights to make a film adaptation of The Silmarillion in his lifetime, and nor will any other film-maker. Unlike The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, Christopher Tolkien, JRR Tolkien's last surviving son, owns the rights to the book. In fact, Tolkien never finished The Silmarillion.

Does The Silmarillion have Sauron?

The Ainulindalë, the cosmological myth prefixed to The Silmarillion, explains how the supreme being Eru initiated his creation by bringing into being innumerable good, immortal, angelic spirits, the Ainur, including Sauron, one of the lesser Ainur, the Maiar.

Why didn t Peter Jackson do Rings of Power?

According to the report, former Amazon Studios boss Sharon Tal Yguado--who left in 2019--advocated for bringing Jackson on to help with The Rings of Power. The site's sources added that the Tolkien estate did not want Jackson to work on The Rings of Power.

Who owns the rights to Silmarillion?

The Silmarillion has never been adapted to the screen, big or small. Tolkien didn't sell off the rights to it in 1966, mainly because it wasn't done yet, so they remain with the Tolkien Estate.

Why can't Amazon use the word Hobbit?

“We have the rights solely to The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King, the appendices, and The Hobbit. And that is it. We do not have the rights to The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, The History of Middle-Earth, or any of those other books…

What does Tolkien Estate think of Rings of Power?

The Tolkien estate is reportedly very satisfied with The Rings of Power after they kept a close eye on it, and the series lives up to the true potential of what Tolkien wrote by adapting an expansive world and picking up the baton in those places where the writer didn't dive as deep.

Could Halbrand be Sauron?

Galadriel immediately becomes suspicious and soon confronts Halbrand. He concedes that, yes, he is Sauron, and hopes to restore order to Middle-earth. He offers her a place alongside him as his queen. Given the sexual tension these two have shared throughout the series, it's not an unreasonable proposal.

Is Legolas mentioned in The Silmarillion?

Legolas of Gondolinedit

As the Lost Tales were the first embodiment of Tolkien's mythology, and by the time The Lord of the Rings was written much had changed, this in all likelihood is not the same Elf, and he was not included in the published The Silmarillion.

Who was Sauron disguised as in The Silmarillion?

He was also able to sway many nations of Men, such as the Easterlings and Haradrim, to his side. Next, Sauron sought to bring the Elves into his service, so he disguised himself as Annatar, Lord of Gifts, to seduce them.

Is Galadriel mentioned in The Silmarillion?

Stories of Galadriel's life prior to the War of the Ring appear in both The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales. She was the only daughter and youngest child of Finarfin, prince of the Noldor, and of Eärwen, daughter of Olwë and cousin to Lúthien.

Why do people love The Silmarillion?

The sheer scale and detail is breathtaking, and The Silmarillion has a sense of epicness that makes it a bit like reading a book of ancient myths — all gods and monsters, love and death, triumph and tragedy.

What is the saddest moment in The Silmarillion?

The death of Maedhros. After everything he and his brothers did and suffered to retrieve the Silmarils (and they did suffer, he more than the others probably), he finally has one in hand and it burns him for all the evil he's done. The only way he sees to escape the pain is to throw himself into a fiery chasm.

Should I read Lotr or Silmarillion first?

The Silmarillion is quite a dense read, and should probably be tackled a little later. However, an adult may be better starting off with The Lord of the Rings followed by The Children of Húrin, Unfinished Tales, The Silmarillion, and the various volumes of The History of Middle-earth. Even this is a bit prescriptive.

Could Smaug beat a Balrog?

So, one glimpse into Smaug's eyes and the Balrog falls under the spell. Even if it's just for a second—a moment of hesitation or distraction, it'd be enough. Smaug would snatch up Durin's Bane and gobble him up with his sword-sharp teeth (and we know swords can kill Balrogs).