“Most English-speaking people, for instance, will admit that cellar door is ‘beautiful’, especially if dissociated from its sense (and its spelling). More beautiful than, say, sky, and far more beautiful than beautiful. Well then, in Welsh for me cellar doors are extraordinarily frequent.” ~J.R.R. Tolkien On the appearance and sounds of words

This is referenced in the movie Donnie Darko:

“This famous linguist once said that of all the phrases in the English language, of all the endless combinations of words in all of history, that Cellar Door is the most beautiful. “

What is so special about these two words?  J.R.R. Tolkien said that is has an extraordinary sound, and from the words “Cellar Door”, he thinks of the name Selador, and begins to create a character.

Is that the meaning of the quote, or is there more to it?  Does anyone have any input as to why ‘Cellar Door’ is so special?

-Justin

[tags]Donnie Darko, J.R.R. Tolkien, quotes, jfcapasso[/tags]