Bring the five parts of the book together into a single chronology and learn to keep the ages, peoples, names, and central themes in mind.
Why you need a map after reading
Not one story but a legendarium
“The Silmarillion” is hard to read not because it has no plot but because the plot is spread across myths, kindreds, ages, and songs. This is not a novel with one protagonist but a legendarium: the history of a world from the Music of the Ainur to the departure of the Elves and the beginning of the age of Men.
To keep your bearings, hold three levels at once:
— the structure of the book: five parts, from the making of the world to the Rings of Power;
— the movement of light: the light of the Trees passes into the Silmarils, then is lost, returns through Eärendil, and leaves the world;
— the repetition of mistakes: a maker's pride, the wish to possess, the fear of death, alliance with evil for the sake of power.
This closing review is here so that you stop remembering only separate names and see why the stories of Fëanor, Túrin, Númenor, and Sauron rhyme.
Lesson notes
Not one story but a legendarium
“The Silmarillion” is hard to read not because it has no plot but because the plot is spread across myths, kindreds, ages, and songs. This is not a novel with one protagonist but a legendarium: the history of a world from the Music of the Ainur to the departure of the Elves and the beginning of the age of Men.
To keep your bearings, hold three levels at once:
— the structure of the book: five parts, from the making of the world to the Rings of Power;
— the movement of light: the light of the Trees passes into the Silmarils, then is lost, returns through Eärendil, and leaves the world;
— the repetition of mistakes: a maker's pride, the wish to possess, the fear of death, alliance with evil for the sake of power.
This closing review is here so that you stop remembering only separate names and see why the stories of Fëanor, Túrin, Númenor, and Sauron rhyme.