Abstract

During the 1992 J. R. R. Tolkien Centenary Conference, Alex Lewis introduced the idea of The Silmarillion as a work replete with historical bias. Lewis provides evidence suggesting that the bias in The Silmarillion originates with Elrond, who showed favoritism toward his ancestors from Gondolin and Doriath.

This paper picks up Lewis's idea but offers additional evidence from the History of Middle-earth series--which was only partly published when Lewis presented his paper--showing that the bias detectable in The Silmarillion comes not from Elrond but from Pengolodh, an obscure character stricken from the published text by Christopher Tolkien but attributed by J. R. R. Tolkien as the fictional author of much of the material that would become The Silmarillion. To begin, this paper investigates Pengolodh's textual history, details about his character, and briefly, the conflicting evidence regarding the fictional authorship and transmission of The Silmarillion. Next, the paper presents original research and quantitative and qualitative analysis of four aspects of the Quenta Silmarillion: mentions of characters, the establishment of realms, death scenes, and battles. The results of this analysis converge to show that Tolkien expended many more words and presented more positively characters with whom Pengolodh had a positive association--primarily Gondolin and Doriath--and tended to downplay and depict negatively characters like the Fëanorians or groups of characters like the Avari and the Dwarves of whom Pengolodh would have held negative impressions.

The results of this study have important implications. First and least, this research suggests a solution to the question of the mode of fictional transmission of The Silmarillion, suggesting that the "Mannish" mode of transmission was never realized in Tolkien's work on The Silmarillion. Secondly, Tolkien's skilled use of pseudohistorical devices like the consistent representation of the points of view of his fictional narrators--including their likely biases--is one method by which he achieved the depth of worldbuilding for which he is often praised by fans and critics. The impression of bias furthers the impression of untold stories and perspectives, helping to create the "unattainable vistas" that, in a 1963 letter to a reader, Tolkien described as an essential component of successful fantasy. Finally, the deliberate filtering of the story through the point of view of an unseen narrator could have implications for the interpretation of Tolkien's works, as the critic must decide whether narrative choices were intended to illuminate a theme of value to Tolkien or maintain a consistent narrative point of view.

Download "Thus Wrote Pengolodh": Historical Bias, Its Evidence, and Its Implications in The Silmarillion (PDF)