Wood-sunshine: Wood-Elves Dance

Wood-sunshine: Wood-Elves Dance, or Wealdielfa geláe, is a poem written by J.R.R. Tolkien in JulyThe J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: "Chronology", pg. 19 (entry "July 1910") of 1910 when he was still at King Edward's School in Birmingham. It notably contains one of Tolkien's earliest references to "fairy things" and sprites. It is the first known work where Tolkien took "an interest in fairies".Tales from the Perilous Realm, "Introduction by Tom Shippey", pg. ix
== Final version excerpt ==
:Come, sing ye light fairy things lilting so gay,
:On this magical carpet; nor hasten away
:All fashioned of radiance, careless of grief
:Like visions, like glinting reflections of joy
:…
:O! come to me! sing to me! elves of the glade,
:O! come to me! dance to me! once ere ye fade.The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien, Volume I, no. 4: Wood-Sunshine (1910-14)
== First version excerpt ==
:Come sing ye light fairy things tripping so gay,
:Like visions, like glinting reflections of joy
:All fashion’d of radiance, careless of grief,
:O’er this green and brown carpet; nor hasten away.
:…
:O! come to me! dance for me! Sprites of the wood,
:O! come to me! Sing to me once ere ye fade!John Garth, Tolkien and the Great War: The Threshold of Middle-earth, Part One: The immortal four, One: "Before"
==Background==
The earliest draft was written on a page containing The Sirens Feast. Tolkien rewrote the poem not too long afterwards. Tolkien revised the poem again in 1914, creating three textually identical manuscripts with the first being done on a copy of The Dale-lands and the second being done on May 11. The third manuscript had the words Wood-Elves Dance and Wealdielfa geláe added to the title.
On May 16 of 1914, Tolkien rewrote the poem again.The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: "Chronology", pg. 52 (entry "16 May 1914") Later, he made a typescript in early 1915, eventually sending it to his friend Christopher Wiseman in April, who enjoyed reading it.The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: "Reader's Guide", pg. 1106 (entry "Wiseman, Christopher Luke")
On April 25 of 1915, Wiseman sent a letter to Tolkien, saying that Wood-sunshine was his second favorite after As Two Fair Trees.
The Tolkien scholar John Garth theorized that the poem was influenced by the poetry of William Morris and Francis Thompson, a Catholic mystic.
The full poem was published for the first time in The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien.
== References ==
Category:Poems by J.R.R. Tolkien