Voronwë_the_Faithful wrote:
However the statement that "the rest of is just not necessary" is (with all due respect) demonstrably untrue. For LOTR could not even exist without what came before it. Much of what makes LOTR so special is the deep sense of depth that one gets from those "glimpses of a yet more ancient history" that preceded the War of the Ring. It was have been impossible for Tolkien to have created that sense of depth with such a high degree of verisimilitude if that history didn't actually exist to a large extent. On the other hand, it was with the writing of The Hobbit that the missing piece was added. Adding the element of the small, unassuming hobbits was the perfect counterpoint to the high, remote tone of his mythology. It was the combining of the two that created that masterpiece that is The Lord of the Rings.
I strongly agree with this summation. I think that this is precisely why it is difficult (many would contend impossible) to find any work that truly compares to the Lord of the Rings. There are many wonderful storytellers out there; there are many wonderful tales that juxtapose a macro, "epic" history with a captivating "micro" tale and characters. However, in my view, they fail to satisfy in the same way precisely because the authors have usually only sketched in the pieces of the "epic" history that they actually needed to write their tale. In a sense, the authors try to deceive you into believing that a larger history actually exists, when it was never actually created. LOTR possesses a certain authenticity because the "glimpses of a yet more ancient history" are both visible and REAL. The histories, languages, cultures, and people were created - at least sketched in great detail. Their sketching by Tolkien was absolutely necessary; I suppose their review is only necessary by readers who wish to appreciate the full context within which LOTR (and the Hobbit) developed.
Al - I actually skipped the introductory materials the first time I read LOTR, in middle school, and read them the second time (when I was in college.) I think that's actually a fairly good approach; it feels as though Tolkien is speaking to readers who have already traversed Middle Earth and will not be spoiled.