[Petronski]

I don't really care for the genre, but even I know that Tolkien is literate and Potter is empty.

[Petronski]

An early dust jacket design
by Tolkien himself.

[dead]

Who would win in a fight:

Ernest Borgnine or Bea Arthur?
Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington or Jimmy "Dyno-mite" Walker?
HK Rowlings or JR Tolkien?
Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf or Beetlejuice?
Ally McBeal or George Stephanopoulis?
Charles Manson or John Wayne Gacy?

[js1138]

I shouldn't have to point out that Potter is written for 8-12 year olds and LOTR appeals to a much older crowd. The fact that people of all ages read both should not overwhelm this fact.

[Arkinsaw]

I don't really care for the genre, but even I know that Tolkien is literate and Potter is empty.

Potter is meant as eccentric entertainment. Tolkien was meant as literature. Comparing is sort of like saying that Monday Night Football is empty while Shakespeare is literate. Of course, but they do not have the same intentions.

[js1138]

Besides, Tolkien stole the entire story from Wagner.

<];^)

[jimt]

They're different, and incomparable.

Tolkien didn't write his book for young children. It's an epic tale, using time honored techniques to build suspense and dread over a long time period. I think late teens is about the earliest most would be attracted to it and understand it.

Harry Potter on the other hand, is a much easier read and isn't as heavy in the portrayal of the villains. Interactions are quick and sharp, and over in a few pages. It's well written and a great deal of fun. Much younger kids can read and understand it.

The author of this article might as well have said that submarines aren't anything as grand prix racers. Or that you can make better lemonade from lemons than apples. Both the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the Harry Potter series fit my definition of "classic".

[RadicalRik]

I saw a 1/2 hour program on FOX last night at 8:00 p.m. on the making of the trilogy and it is fantastic.
The man making these movies wants Tolkien to be as proud of him as if he himself were overseeing the making of the movies.
I've read the book series several times and every time they are as good or better than before. They're kind of like those movies you watch every Christmas and never get tired of.
I believe that these movies will do the books justice

[SamAdams76]

Gee, we might as well compare Charles Dickens and Dr. Suess while we're at it. Does Oliver Twist measure up against Green Eggs And Ham? Let's discuss.

Comparing Tolkien to Rowling is silliness. J.K. Rowling is the author of children's books. Tolkien writes for an adult audience (though many older children can enjoy his works as well).

[ctdonath2]

"MY wizard can beat YOUR wizard."

[DallasMike]

But J.K. Rowling is writing in a tradition too, a literary one reaching back even further -- of heroic sagas and mythic battles between the forces of light and of darkness.

Gee, from all of the anti-Potter posts on FR the past few weeks I would have thought that Rowlings herself was the personification of evil. Maybe those folks never read the books in the first place, or maybe they read with preconceived notions garnered from some wacko website, or maybe they just weren't capable of recognizing common literary metaphors in Western literature.

The Potter books aren't half bad. If you're looking for entertainment and aren't expecting Shakespeare or even Tolkien, you won't be disappointed.

[Grig]

I marvel at the timing for the release of LOTR. A story telling us that evil cannot be appeased, but must be opposed and destroyed, even at great personal cost, is so right for our times.

[Sir Gawain]

I'm not impressed with a Ring of Invisibility. I would rather have a Deck of Many Things or a Vorpal Sword +5 with some Silenced Elven Chain Mail (only 5 known suits in existence). Wish spells are a lot of fun also.

[proxy_user]

The reason Tolkien is better is that he had a much deeper intellectual background. He was a full professor at Oxford, and was steeped in Germanic philology. He could read Anglo-Saxon, Old Norse, Old High German and Gothic as easily as Rowling can read the newspaper. His Latin and Greek wasn't too shabby either.

I love his scholarly work, even though he wrote relatively little. Check out "Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics" and his edition of The Fight at Finnsburgh (caution: in order to read this intelligently, YOU need to be able to understand written Anglo-Saxon, Old Norse, and Latin).

[Caipirabob]

NEWBORN LURTZ BUMP!

[Alberta's Child]

I need to find the source of a great quote:

"Making a movie out of The Lord of the Rings is like putting Disneyland in the Grand Canyon."

Any help here?

BTW, Tolkien's masterpiece was recently named the best work of fiction of the 20th Century by some literary group. It will be a cold day in hell before any Harry Potter book can tie the proverbial sandals of this book.

[Dominic Harr]

The Potter books are just written for a much younger crowd. I've got a 4 year old and a 10 year old. Both loved the Potter books. I read all 4 to them.

About 3 months ago, I started reading Hobbit/'LOTR' to them because of the movie coming out. My 4 year old got bored quick. My 10 year old daughter is interested, altho she drifts from time to time during some of the longer prose. We're just up to the part where Gandalf explains to Frodo that his is the one ring. That was many pages of dialog, and my daughter dozed off during it.

But I personally like the LOTR far more, altho I enjoyed Potter too. It's just that Tolkien adult lit, and Potter is kiddie lit. And believe me, for kiddie books, Potter is *hands and shoulders* above all the competition.

Kids by far prefer Potter.

[Billthedrill]

Welllll....not fair. Kittens and tigers.

[william clark]

You haven't learned, have you? Comparisons between Rowling and Tolkien are only allowed when trying to convince parents that they should be perfectly fine with their kids cozying up to the occult.

[HarryDunne]

Tolkien is doubtful of man's ability to resist the temptation of absolute power
I can't wait to see how this plays out on the screen. I'm curious to see how they portray Boromir's fall. It's a shame they won't have Tom Bombadil's immunity as a contrast.

[MrConfettiMan]

ping