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J.R.R. Tolkien, one of the world's most beloved authors, was a World War I signaling officer who survived the Battle of the Somme, and two of his sons served during World War II. Such experiences and events led Tolkien to a complex attitude toward war and military leadership, the themes of which find their way into his most important writings. His fiction, criticism, and letters demonstrate a range of attitudes that would change over the course of his life. In the end, his philosophy on human nature and evil, and the inevitability of conflict, would appear to be pragmatic and rational, if regretful and pessimistic. Croft explores the different aspect of Tolkien's relationship with war both in his life and in his work from the early Book of Lost Tales to his last story Smith of Wootten Major, and concentrating on his greatest and most well-known works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. This valuable consideration of war in the life of Tolkien is essential reading for all readers interested in deepening their understanding of this great writer.
Includes seven classic articles as well as seven new examinations of women in Tolkien's works and life bringing together not only perspectives on Tolkien's most commonly discussed female characters -- aEowyn, Galadriel, and Lauthien -- but also on less studies figures such as Nienna, Yavanna, Shelob, and Arwen.
World War I has been called "the poets' war," as it was characterized by a massive outpouring of works of literature during and after the war. Much of this literary harvest, as Paul Fussell brilliantly demonstrated in The Great War and Modern Memory, hinged on an ironic response to the deadly absurdities of World War I. Yet, Fussell also acknowledges that fantasy could be a legitimate literary response to the war, a way of transforming the horrible experiences of the war into something more bearable, applicable, and relevant; into myth and "Escape" in the sense that Tolkien used the term in "On Fairy-stories." This present volume sprang from a desire to examine selected examples of the fantastic response to World War I among British authors. The contents comprise a mix of five classic articles from the pages of Mythlore and twelve new essays. The first half of the book considers the Inklings, the Oxford literary group centered on J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, while the second half deals with other authors.
Tolkien and Shakespeare: one a prolific popular dramatist and poet of the Elizabethan era, the other a twentieth-century scholar of Old English and author of a considerably smaller body of work. Though unquestionably very different writers, the two have more in common than one might expect. These essays focus on the broad themes and motifs which concerned both authors. They seek to uncover Shakespeare's influence on Tolkien through echoes of the playwright's themes and even word choices, discovering how Tolkien used, revised, updated, "corrected," and otherwise held an ongoing dialogue with Shakespeare's works. The depiction of Elves and the world of Faerie, and how humans interact with them, are some of the most obvious points of comparison and difference for the two writers. Both Tolkien and Shakespeare deeply explored the uses and abuses of power with princes, politics, war, and the lessons of history. Magic and prophecy were also of great concern to both authors, and the works of both are full of encounters with the Other: masks and disguises, mirrors that hide and reveal, or seeing stones that show only part of the truth.
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"Something has gone crack," Tolkien wrote about the first death among his tight-knit fellowship of friends in 1916, and the impact of the war haunted his writing for the rest of his life. In his work, the Great War serves as a source of imagery, motifs, themes and of personal trauma to be worked out in meaningful symbolic form throughout his life.
Widely considered one of the leading experts on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, Thomas Alan Shippey has informed and enlightened a generation of Tolkien scholars and fans. In this collection, friends and colleagues honor Shippey with 15 essays that reflect their mentor's research interests, methods of literary criticism and attention to Tolkien's shorter works. In a wide-ranging consideration of Tolkien's oeuvre, the contributors explore the influence of 19th and 20th century book illustrations on Tolkien's work; utopia and fantasy in Tolkien's Middle-earth; the Silmarils, the Arkenstone, and the One Ring as thematic vehicles; the pattern of decline in Middle-earth as reflected in the diminishing power of language; Tolkien's interest in medieval genres; the heroism of secondary characters; and numerous other topics. Also included are brief memoirs by Shippey's colleagues and friends in academia and fandom and a bibliography of Shippey's work.
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"The playful artistry of the Waldorf Alphabet Book speaks to the heart of childhood. These lively illustrations, so filled with color, movement, eloquent gesture, and invention conjure up long-forgotten memories of books from a time when pictures were still alive and spoke with power. Each page is a magical door, opening to the bright realm where stories are enacted, a realm of wonders accessible to children, artists, and ll those in whom the light of imagination shines. "The most important thing as you peruse the delightful pages of the Waldorf Alphabet Book with your child is the engaging conversation that flows between you as you search among the pictures for words." (from the afterword) ...
This group of new critical essays offers multidisciplinary analysis of director Peter Jackson's spectacularly successful adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002) and The Return of the King (2003). Part One of the collection, "Techniques of Structure and Story," compares and contrasts the organizational principles of the books and films. Part Two, "Techniques of Character and Culture," focuses on the methods used to transform the characters and settings of Tolkien's narrative into the personalities and places visualized on screen. Each of the sixteen essays includes extensive notes and a separate bibliography. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.