Tolkien, John Ronald Reuel

Typed letter signed ("Ronald Tolkien"), 3 oblong pages (5 1/4 x 7 in.; 134 x 178 mm), Oxford, 31 August 1953, on his embossed Oxford stationery, to "George" (MacDonald?)  

wonderful letter discussing galleys of lord of the rings as well as tolkien's translation of sir gawain. Although he complains about the lack of a tape recorder, which his university has declined to provide, Tolkien is excited about the fothcoming publication of his "Great Work." He thanks the recipient for his support: "I know that all that relates to the Great Work interests you .... The slow work of galleys makes any book seem long-winded, and in the hours of disillusionment when the wretched thing seemed a bore, and it became impossible to think of anything but a brief and scornful review, I buoyed myself up with the thought of you and your wife." Tolkien also describes an experiment in recording part of Sir Gawain in which he reckons that an Oxonian accent "is a good enough modern equivalent of Camelotian."