Capitalization of Middle-earth races

[axecrazy]

I've noticed some people capitalize the races and some don't. I've been switching to see which mode I like better, but which is correct? The recent interview with greendragon is a good example of two people using different modes at the same time. Are they both correct? Is there such a thing as correct when it comes to this?

 

[CuriousG]

They almost always are in the books. I think hobbits are the exception. I do both because sometimes I just forget to capitalize them. My books aren't handy, and I'm trying to remember if he cap's race names in The Hobbit. But he definitely does in LOTR and The Silmarillion.

 

[ryouko]

But that's more because I prefer it, rather than which is correct. I do the same for the races of Middle-Earth, the way someone would when stating person's nationality.

 

[Elizabeth]

...Men (the race) from men (the gender). But, generally, it was Tolkien's practice and should be ours.

 

[grammaboodawg]

I've wondered the same thing! I'm curious to see the responses. Here are some examples...

from The Prologue: Concerning Hobbits:
... "It is plain indeed that in spite of later estrangement Hobbits are relatives of our: far nearer to us than Elves, or even than Dwarves. Of old they spoke the languages of Men, after their own fashion, and liked and disliked much the same things as Men did."

from The Passage of the Marshes:
... "'I saw them: grim faces and evil, and noble faces and sad. Many faces proud and fair, and weeds in their silver hair. But all foul, all rotting, all dead. A fell light is in them.' Frodo hid his eyes in his hands. 'I know not who they are; but I thought I saw there Men and Elves, and Orcs beside them.'
... 'Yes, yes,' said Gollum. 'All dead, all rotten. Elves and Men and Orcs. The Dead Marshes. There was a great battle long ago, yes, so they told him when Sméagol was young, when I was young before the Precious came. It was a great battle. Tall Men with long swords, and terrible Elves, and Orcses shrieking.'"

Then a race is used with both caps and no caps in the same paragraph!

from The Black Gate Is Closed:
..."Then he knew that the hope that had for one wild moment stirred in his heart was vain. The trumpets had not run in challenge but in greeting. This was no assault upon the Dark Lord by the men of Gondor, risen like avenging ghosts from the graves of valour long passed away. These were Men of other race, out of the wide Eastlands..."

 

[SirDennisC]

[Link]

John Ratcliff had this to say:

As you say, Tolkien's not consistent on this point. But then again, given how long a span of time his legendarium materials cover, and the various states he left them in, complete consistency would have been hard to achieve. I personally don't feel that imposing a standardization onto his works is necessary or desirable...

Wayne Hammond said this:

Our editorial brief for The Lord of the Rings was that we should follow Tolkien's intentions, when known or perceived with sufficient confidence. Unfortunately, there were too many ambiguous or uncertain instances of hobbits/Hobbits and other variously capitalized names of peoples (also of sun/Sun, moon/Moon) in The Lord of the Rings to impose a general rule, so we left things as they stood in our copy-text...

I suppose it matters what audience or purpose you are writing for. Around the boards, I'm fairly inconsistent though am more likely to capitalize nouns than I am adjectives. For instance, "elven blade" vs "a blade made by Elves." When I'm copying text, say for a pants thread or something, I try to type Tolkien's text as it appears.

As you will see at the above link, Mr. Hammond went on to say that in his own commentary he capitalised the names of races.

 

[zarabia]

This was no assault upon the Dark Lord by the men of Gondor, risen like avenging ghosts from the graves of valour long passed away.

Maybe in this case Tolkien was using "men" in the sense of a group of males rather than male Gondorans who are of the race of Men...if you take my meaning[tongue] This seems to be more the case in the second part.

These were Men of other race, out of the wide Eastlands..."

 

[axecrazy]

I skimmed The Hobbit, the The Silmarillion, and the Lord of the Rings last night, and found that in his later works the Professor did tend to capitalize the names of the races. I never really took notice before because I never discussed the books with anyone... at least not on a forum. I'll bear all the above in mind. Thanks again.