[Download] "Two Views of Faerie in Smith of Wootton Major: Nokes and His Cake, Smith and His Star (Critical Essay)" by Mythlore " eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Two Views of Faerie in Smith of Wootton Major: Nokes and His Cake, Smith and His Star (Critical Essay)
- Author : Mythlore
- Release Date : January 22, 2008
- Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines,Books,Professional & Technical,Education,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 204 KB
Description
SMITH OF WOOTTON MAJOR, like many of Tolkien's other works, is a fairy tale. (1) It is about both Faerie (the region) and fairies (the fantastical creatures); though in Tolkien's own understanding of the word, the latter is not a qualification of the genre. What is most remarkable about Smith is how it reveals Tolkien's comprehension of the world of Faerie; in other words, it tells us how Tolkien specifically wanted his stories to be read and how he wanted generally wanted fairy tales to be written. One might say Smith is a handbook on how to write a well-written Tolkienian story. In this respect, it is perhaps best viewed as an epilogue or addendum to "On Fairy-Stories." (2) The richness of the text is due to the fact that the story functions at two levels. At the narrative level, Tolkien is simply presenting a story that embodies the literary aesthetics of what he believes to be necessary for a good fairy tale. However, at a deeper level, he uses the story as a framework to discuss the theory of "On Fairy-Stories." To do so, he positions the characters of Nokes and Smith as antithetical counterparts in order to show the writer and reader alike what Faerie should and shouldn't look like. (3) One does not have to look far to see that the characters of Nokes and Smith are readily comparable; the thrust of the story largely rests on these two characters's differing attitudes towards Faerie. In order to distinguish between their points of view, Tolkien deliberately employs two variant spellings of the word--Nokes uses the modern spelling fairy, while Smith employs the more archaic form Faery. (4) In an endnote to her edition of Smith, Verlyn Flieger observes, "It is worth noticing that the word is consistently spelled 'Fairy' when used by old Nokes, while the preferred spelling, 'Faery', is standard usage for the story's narrator as well as for Smith, the Queen, and Alf" (143). (5) Tolkien did not include different spellings for mere variety; his purpose was to present two contrasting views of the word--the proper historical understanding and the modern mistaken notion. (6)