The king of Elfland's daughter
by Lord Dunsany · first published 1924
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The lord of Erl is told by the parliament of his people that they want to be ruled by a magic lord. Obeying the immemorial custom, the lord sends his son Alveric to fetch the King of Elfland's daughter, Lirazel, to be his bride. He makes his way to Elfland, where time passes at a rate far slower than the real world, and wins her. They return to Erl and have a son, but in the manner of fairy brides of folklore, she fits uneasily with his people. She returns to the waiting arms of her father in Elfland, and her lovesick husband goes searching for her, abandoning the kingdom of Erl and wandering
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Dunsany is wonderful too. The King of Elfland’s Daughter is charming and a masterpiece. Oh to go beyond the fields we know.
on “Rarely Seen Paintings by J.R.R. Tolkien” ↗Elves and dwarves didn't strictly mean children's fairy tales prior to Tolkien. There's plenty of semi-popular prior art where they feature, like the Worm Ouroboros or The King of Elfland's Daughter. Poul Anderson also published The Broken Sword the same year as LOTR, which shows a lot of the same influences as written by a very different author. Tolkien's importance is that the specific kinds of…
on “Selling 'Ghost in the Shell'” ↗