Posted on 09/02/2023 2:54:47 PM PDT by Kartographer
Hobbits, elves and Middle-earthlings across the globe will mark the 50th anniversary of J.R.R. Tolkien’s death this weekend. The English scholar and author best known for the worlds he created in “The Lord of the Rings” and other books died of pneumonia on Sept. 2, 1973, at age 81.
Tolkien had a remarkable career, one which continues to touch lives, not only in his literature, but through the relationships he fostered, including one with his fellow Oxford don C.S. Lewis. Last year, an article in the lifestyle magazine Town & Country said “It is impossible to overstate how much Lewis and Tolkien’s friendship impacted the shape of fantasy literature.”
(Excerpt) Read more at deseret.com ...
LOTR does a very good job at teaching many Christian subtleties, such as God using the weakest of society to accomplish great things or how power used for the sake of power, even when doing good, leads to tyranny.
I recommend that everybody read it at least once, if not twice.
I’m about due to read it again
He was a master storyteller… And his stories were amazing.
And he was a veteran of WWI.
CS Lewis credited his close friend Tolkien with the key human role in his salvation, by witnessing to him so winsomely.
Deseret News, Eh!
He also studied ancient languages and literature. He was considered an authority on Beowulf. IIRC, he created The Hobbit and LOTR to bring back the elements of ancient storytelling.
I have never been convinced that Tolkien ever evidenced a Christian theology.
I’m not saying that he was trying to teach Christianity in a fantasy garb, but the themes are there.
Too abstract, too subtle, easy to miss now, when most people are unfamiliar with the metaphorical allusions that people in the early 20th century took for granted. Ultimately, he could not stem the post-Christian rot that has infected the West for the past 150 years.
Well, I didn’t miss it. :)
You do have to have some familiarity with Christianity to catch themes. Otherwise, to the unfamiliar secularist, it’s just a deep book with some good lessons when analyzed.
I read that Tolkien and Lewis belonged to a literary club, and they wanted to write secular stories with Christian themes.
That is, The Hobbit & LOTR were not written as allegories, but the stories did explore themes like honor and duty, good versus evil, and so on.
I believe you, Sir. I am little read in Tolkien because like much fantasy, I had no patience for his work. And I failed to see a strong theology. C. S. Lewis, on the other hand. Thank you for your observation. Hats off :)
I appreciate that, thank you.
Yes, Tolkien and Lewis, along with some other writers, met every week at a pub in Oxford called The Eagle and Child. They would hoist a few pints and read their current writing projects to the group.
I love that they called themselves The Inklings.
Had the good fortune to have a pint in that very pub in 2019.
You may be looking at him through a Reformation lens and thus missing much of his Catholic symbolism.
Gratned, he was not a theologian as Lewis was, but the theological content is there.
IIRC, that pub was pointed out to me on a trip 30 years ago. I wish I’d gone inside to have a pint!
Aren’t the books stronger than the movies?
The books are stronger in teaching Christian themes, yes.
He also included commentary on the Soviet Union, when he created Mordor and the idea that imposed good can be tyranny, which is basically a commentary on socialism in my opinion.
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