Enough to Make C.S. Lewis Cry
middle earth monday (pt. 10)
“The rest of my time, barring chores in and out door, has been occupied by the desperate attempt to bring "The Ring" to a suitable pause, the capture of Frodo by the Ores in the passes of Mordor, before I am obliged to break off by examining. By sitting up all hours, I managed it: and read the last 2 chapters (Shelob's Lair and The Choices of Master Samwise) to C.S.L. (C.S. Lewis) on Monday morning. He approved with unusual fervour, and was actually affected to tears by the last chapter, so it seems to be keeping up.” J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 72
Happy Middle-earth Monday!
Welcome to Many Meetings, my substack for all things Tolkien! Right now the community here is reading The Lord of the Rings with me and, once a week, we gather to discuss this beloved story together. Even those who’ve already finished their read-through are still coming here to discuss the chapter covered weekly in this newsletter.
This series will be wrapping up this month when we finish The Return of the King and after the first of the year, I plan on exploring other works of Tolkien (namely, The Hobbit and The Silmarillion). You’re welcome to join anytime you like.
This week, we’re wrapping up the last of The Two Towers with all its terror, heroism and glints of beauty woven into the second phase of this book. Below you’ll find a history into the creature of Shelob, discussion points on how Sam became his own master and where exactly Sam first heard tell of Beren and Lúthien and why that story in particular mattered so much to Tolkien himself.
Let’s get into it.