|
|
J.R.R. Tolkien
|
|
|
J.R.R. Tolkien
English author
in full John Ronald Reuel Tolkien
born January 3, 1892, Bloemfontein, South Africa
died September 2, 1973, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England
Main
English writer and scholar who achieved fame with his children’s book
The Hobbit (1937) and his richly inventive epic fantasy The Lord of the
Rings (1954–55).
At age four Tolkien, with his mother and younger brother, settled
near Birmingham, England, after his father, a bank manager, died in
South Africa. In 1900 his mother converted to Roman Catholicism, a faith
her elder son also practiced devoutly. On her death in 1904, her boys
became wards of a Catholic priest. Four years later Tolkien fell in love
with another orphan, Edith Bratt, who would inspire his fictional
character Lúthien Tinúviel. His guardian, however, disapproved, and not
until his 21st birthday could Tolkien ask Edith to marry him. In the
meantime, he attended King Edward’s School in Birmingham and Exeter
College, Oxford (B.A., 1915; M.A., 1919). During World War I he saw
action in the Somme. After the Armistice he was briefly on the staff of
The Oxford English Dictionary (then called The New English Dictionary).
For most of his adult life, he taught English language and literature,
specializing in Old and Middle English, at the universities of Leeds
(1920–25) and Oxford (1925–59). Often busy with academic duties and also
acting as an examiner for other universities, he produced few but
influential scholarly publications, notably a standard edition of Sir
Gawain and the Green Knight (1925; with E.V. Gordon), a landmark lecture
on Beowulf (Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics, 1936), and an edition
of the Ancrene Wisse (1962).
In private, Tolkien amused himself by writing an elaborate series of
fantasy tales, often dark and sorrowful, set in a world of his own
creation. He made this “legendarium,” which eventually became The
Silmarillion, partly to provide a setting in which “Elvish” languages he
had invented could exist. But his tales of Arda and Middle-earth also
grew from a desire to tell stories, influenced by a love of myths and
legends. To entertain his four children, he devised lighter fare, lively
and often humorous. The longest and most important of these stories,
begun about 1930, was The Hobbit, a coming-of-age fantasy about a
comfort-loving “hobbit” (a smaller relative of Man) who joins a quest
for a dragon’s treasure. In 1937 The Hobbit was published, with pictures
by the author (an accomplished amateur artist), and was so popular that
its publisher asked for a sequel. The result, 17 years later, was
Tolkien’s masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings, a modern version of the
heroic epic. A few elements from The Hobbit were carried over, in
particular a magic ring, now revealed to be the One Ring, which must be
destroyed before it can be used by the terrible Dark Lord, Sauron, to
rule the world. But The Lord of the Rings is also an extension of
Tolkien’s Silmarillion tales, which gave the new book a “history” in
which Elves, Dwarves, Orcs, and Men were already established. Contrary
to statements often made by critics, it was not written specifically for
children, nor is it a trilogy, though it is often published in three
parts: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the
King. It was divided originally because of its bulk and to reduce the
risk to its publisher should it fail to sell. In fact it proved
immensely popular. On its publication in paperback in the United States
in 1965, it attained cult status on college campuses. Although some
critics disparage it, several polls since 1996 have named The Lord of
the Rings the best book of the 20th century, and its success made it
possible for other authors to thrive by writing fantasy fiction. It had
sold more than 50 million copies in some 30 languages by the turn of the
21st century. A film version of The Lord of the Rings by New Zealand
director Peter Jackson, released in three installments in 2001–03,
achieved worldwide critical and financial success.
Several shorter works by Tolkien appeared during his lifetime. These
include a mock-medieval story, Farmer Giles of Ham (1949); The
Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book (1962),
poetry related to The Lord of the Rings; Tree and Leaf (1964), with the
seminal lecture “On Fairy-Stories” and the tale “Leaf by Niggle”; and
the fantasy Smith of Wootton Major (1967). Tolkien in his old age failed
to complete The Silmarillion, the “prequel” to The Lord of the Rings,
and left it to his youngest son, Christopher, to edit and publish
(1977). Christopher likewise compiled The Children of Húrin (2007; also
published as Narn I Chin Hurin: The Tale of the Children of Hurin) from
his father’s unfinished manuscripts; it too is set in Middle-earth prior
to The Lord of the Rings. Among other posthumous works by Tolkien are
The Father Christmas Letters (1976), Unfinished Tales of Númenor and
Middle-earth (1980), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (1981), Mr. Bliss
(1982), and Roverandom (1998). The History of Middle-earth (1983–96)
traces the writing of the “legendarium,” including The Lord of the
Rings, through its various stages.
Wayne G. Hammond
|
|
|
|
|
The Lord of the Rings
J.R.R.Tolkien
1892-1973
The Lord of the Rings is actually three books—The Fellowship of
the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King. It follows
on from the story of The Hobbit, which Tolkien had published
well over a decade earlier, further exploring the world of
Middle Earth and war that would determine the fate of all men.
Like The Hobbit, it is the story of an unlikely hero—a
childlike, unassuming hobbit, Frodo—whom fate has destined for
greater things. At the beginning, elves, dwarves, hobbits, and
men come together under the wizard Gandalf's watchful eye to set
off on a journey to destroy the magic ring, which Bilbo Baggins
had found in The Hobbit. The ring holds inside it the essence of
evil and therefore must be destroyed before Lord Sauron can find
it and plunge Middle Earth into darkness. Through a series of
misadventures, the fellowship either die or become separated.
Only Frodo, his loyal friend Sam, and the wasted creature
Gollum—who had fallen for many years under the ring's power and
is now its slave— are left to return the ring to the fires of
Mount Doom, which is the only way to destroy it.
The book is about power and greed, innocence, and enlightenment.
Ultimately, it describes an old-fashioned battle of good against
evil, of kindness and trust against suspicion, and of fellowship
against the desire for individual power. Tolkien's evil is an
internal force—most evident in the"good"and "bad"sides of the
character Gollum,who epitomizes the struggle to be good. This is
also a story about war, no doubt drawn from Tolkien's own
experience, and how enemies in life are united in death, the one
great equalizer. If there is a message, it is that there is
little point to war and that the search for ultimate power is
futile in a world where togetherness will always (justly) win
out.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The
Lord of the Rings
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lord of the Rings is an epic high fantasy novel written
by philologist and Oxford University professor J. R. R.
Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier,
less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit (1937), but
eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written
in stages between 1937 and 1949, much of it during World War
II.[1] Although known to many readers as a trilogy, the work
was initially intended by Tolkien to be one volume of a
two-volume set along with The Silmarillion; however, for
economic reasons the publisher decided to omit the second
volume, and published The Lord of the Rings itself in
1954–55 as three volumes rather than one.[2][3][4][5] It was
divided internally into six books, two per volume; and
several appendices of background material, much abbreviated
from Tolkien's originals, were included at the end of the
third volume. The work has since been reprinted numerous
times and translated into many languages, becoming one of
the most popular and influential works in 20th-century
literature.
The title of the
book refers to the story's main antagonist, the Dark Lord
Sauron, who had in an earlier age created the One Ring to
rule the other Rings of Power as the ultimate weapon in his
campaign to conquer and rule all of Middle-earth. From quiet
beginnings in the Shire, a hobbit land not unlike the
English countryside, the story ranges across Middle-earth,
following the course of the War of the Ring through the eyes
of its characters, notably the hobbits Frodo Baggins,
Samwise Gamgee (Sam), Meriadoc Brandybuck (Merry) and
Peregrin Took (Pippin), but also the hobbits' chief allies:
Aragorn, a ranger, Gimli, a dwarf, Legolas, an elf, and
Gandalf, a wizard.
The Lord of the
Rings has been the subject of extensive analysis of its
themes and origins, as have Tolkien's works in general.
Although a major work in itself, the story was only the last
movement of a larger work Tolkien had worked on since 1917,
in a process he described as mythopoeia.[6] Influences on
this earlier work, and on the story of The Lord of the
Rings, include philology, mythology, religion and the
author's distaste for the effects of industrialization, as
well as earlier fantasy works and Tolkien's experiences in
World War I.[7] The Lord of the Rings in its turn is
considered to have had a great effect on modern fantasy; the
impact of Tolkien's works is such that the use of the words
"Tolkienian" and "Tolkienesque" has been recorded in the
Oxford English Dictionary.[8]
The enduring
popularity of The Lord of the Rings has led to numerous
references in popular culture, the founding of many
societies by fans of Tolkien's works,[9] and the publication
of many books about Tolkien and his works. The Lord of the
Rings has inspired, and continues to inspire, artwork,
music, films and television, video games, and subsequent
literature. Award-winning adaptations of The Lord of the
Rings have been made for radio, theatre, and film.
Synopsis
The story takes place in the context of historical events in
Middle-earth. Long before the start of the novel the Dark
Lord Sauron forges the One Ring to gain power over other
rings held by the leaders of Men, Elves and Dwarves. He is
defeated in battle, and Isildur cuts off his Ring and claims
it as an heirloom for his line. Isildur is later killed by
Orcs, and the Ring is lost in the river Anduin. Over two
thousand years later, the Ring comes into the hands of the
hobbit Sméagol, who hides under the mountains, where the
Ring transforms him over the course of hundreds of years
into a suspicious, corrupted being called Gollum. Eventually
he loses the Ring, and, as recounted in The Hobbit, it is
found by Bilbo Baggins. Meanwhile Sauron takes a new
physical form and reoccupies Mordor, his old realm. Gollum
sets out in search of the Ring, but is captured by Sauron,
who learns that Bilbo has the Ring. Gollum is set loose, and
Sauron, who needs the Ring to regain his full power, sends
forth the Ringwraiths, his dark, fearsome servants, to seize
it.
The novel begins in
the Shire, as Frodo Baggins inherits the Ring from Bilbo.
Both are unaware of its origin, but Gandalf the Grey, a
wizard, learns of the Ring's history and advises Frodo to
take it away from the Shire. Frodo leaves, taking his
gardener and friend, Samwise ("Sam") Gamgee, and two
cousins, Meriadoc ("Merry") Brandybuck and Peregrin
("Pippin") Took, as companions. They nearly encounter the
Ringwraiths while still in the Shire, but shake off pursuit
by cutting through the Old Forest, where they are aided by
the enigmatic and powerful Tom Bombadil. After leaving the
Forest, they stop in the town of Bree, where they meet
Aragorn, Isildur's heir, who joins them as guide and
protector. They leave Bree after narrowly escaping attack,
but the Ringwraiths follow them to the look-out hill of
Weathertop, and wound Frodo with a magical blade. Aragorn
leads the hobbits toward the refuge of Rivendell, while
Frodo gradually succumbs to the wound. At the Ford of
Bruinen, the Ringwraiths attack again, but flood waters
controlled by Elrond, master of Rivendell, rise up and
overwhelm them, saving the company.
Frodo recovers in
Rivendell under the care of Elrond. The Council of Elrond
reveals much significant history about Sauron and the Ring,
as well as the news that Sauron has corrupted the wizard
Saruman. The Council decides that the threat of Sauron is
too great and that the best course of action is to destroy
the Ring by returning it to Mount Doom in Mordor, where it
was forged. Frodo volunteers to take the Ring, and a
"Fellowship of the Ring" is chosen to accompany and protect
him: Sam, Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, Gandalf, Gimli the Dwarf,
Legolas the Elf, and the man Boromir, son of the Ruling
Steward Denethor of the realm of Gondor.
The company pass
through the Mines of Moria, where they are attacked by Orcs.
Gandalf perishes while fighting the ancient and terrible
Balrog, allowing the others to escape. The remaining company
take refuge in the Elven forest of Lothlórien. With boats
and gifts from the Lady Galadriel, the company then travel
down the River Anduin to the hill of Amon Hen. There Boromir
succumbs to the lure of the Ring and attempts to take it
from Frodo, who breaks from the Fellowship to continue the
quest to Mordor alone, though Sam insists on coming to
assist and protect him.
Meanwhile, orcs sent
by Sauron and Saruman kill Boromir and kidnap Merry and
Pippin. Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas pursue the orcs into the
kingdom of Rohan. Merry and Pippin escape when the orcs are
slain by the Rohirrim. The hobbits flee into Fangorn forest,
where they are befriended by the tree-like Ents. In Fangorn
forest Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas find not the hobbits but
Gandalf, resurrected after his battle with the Balrog and
now the significantly more powerful "Gandalf the White".
Gandalf assures them that Merry and Pippin are safe, and
they travel instead to rouse Théoden, King of Rohan, from a
stupor of despair inflicted by Saruman, and to aid the
Rohirrim in a stand against Saruman's armies. Théoden makes
a stand at the fortress of Helm's Deep. Gandalf rides off to
gather more soldiers while Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli ride
with Théoden to Helm's Deep. They are besieged by orcs, but
Gandalf arrives with reinforcements, and the orcs are
defeated.
The Ents attack
Isengard, trapping Saruman in the tower of Orthanc. Gandalf,
Théoden and the others arrive at Isengard to confront
Saruman. Saruman refuses to acknowledge the error of his
ways, however, and Gandalf strips him of his rank and most
of his powers. Merry and Pippin rejoin the others and Pippin
looks into a palantír, a seeing-stone that Sauron had used
to communicate with Saruman, unknowingly leading Sauron to
think that Saruman has captured the Ring-bearer, so Gandalf
takes Pippin to Gondor.
On their way to
Mordor, Frodo and Sam capture Gollum, who has been following
them from Moria, and force him to guide them to Mordor.
Finding Mordor's main gate impassable, they travel toward a
pass known to Gollum. Gollum betrays Frodo by leading him to
the great spider Shelob in the tunnels of Cirith Ungol.
Frodo is left seemingly dead by Shelob's bite, but Sam
fights her off. Sam takes the Ring, and forces himself to
leave Frodo. Orcs find Frodo's body, and Sam learns that
Frodo is not in fact dead, but unconscious. Frodo is carried
to the tower of Cirith Ungol, and Sam determines to rescue
him.
Sauron begins his
military assault upon Gondor. Gandalf arrives at Minas
Tirith in Gondor with Pippin, to alert Denethor of the
impending attack. Minas Tirith is besieged, and Denethor,
under the influence of Sauron through another palantír,
loses hope and commits suicide. Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli
come to Gondor by the Paths of the Dead, where Aragorn
raises an undead army of oath-breakers in fulfilment of an
old prophecy. The ghostly army help him to defeat the
Corsairs of Umbar invading southern Gondor, and the forces
freed from the south, along with Rohan's cavalry, help break
the siege at Minas Tirith.
Sam rescues Frodo,
and they journey through Mordor. Frodo weakens as they near
Mount Doom, but is aided by Sam. Meanwhile, in the climactic
battle at the Black Gate of Mordor, the vastly-outnumbered
alliance of Gondor and Rohan fight desperately against
Sauron's armies, with the intent of diverting Sauron's
attention from Mount Doom. At the edge of the Cracks of
Doom, Frodo is unable to resist the Ring, and claims it for
himself. However, Gollum reappears, struggles with Frodo for
the Ring, and bites off Frodo's finger, Ring and all, but in
so doing falls into the fire, taking the Ring with him. The
Ring is thus unmade. In the instant of its destruction,
Sauron perishes, his armies retreat, his tower crumbles into
dust, the Ringwraiths disintegrate, and the War of the Ring
seemingly ends. Aragorn is crowned Elessar, King of Arnor
and Gondor, and marries his long-time love, Arwen, the
daughter of Elrond.
Meanwhile, however,
Saruman has escaped his captivity and enslaved the Shire.
The four returning hobbits raise a rebellion and overthrow
him. Saruman is killed by his former servant Grima, who is
in turn killed by Hobbit archers. The War of the Ring thus
comes to its true end on Frodo's very doorstep. Merry and
Pippin are acclaimed heroes. Sam uses his gifts from
Galadriel to restore the Shire, and marries Rosie Cotton.
Frodo remains wounded in body and spirit, and some years
later, accompanied by Bilbo and Gandalf, sails from the Grey
Havens west over the Sea to the Undying Lands to find peace.
Sam returns home, and eventually becomes Mayor of the Shire.
After Rosie's death, Sam gives his daughter the Red Book of
Westmarch, containing the story of Bilbo, Frodo, Sam, Pippin
and Merry. He crosses west over the Sea, the last of the
Ring-bearers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
