Also by Brian Rosebury and from the same publisher ART AND DESIRE: A STUDY IN THE AESTHETICS OF FICTION

TOLKIEN

Also by Brian Rosebury and from the same publisher ART AND DESIRE: A STUDY IN THE AESTHETICS OF FICTION

TOLKIEN A Cultural Phenomenon BRIAN ROSEBURY Principal Lecturer Department of Humanities University of Central Lancashire

Brian Rosebury, 2003 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2003 978-1-4039-1597- 9 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2003 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 Companies and representatives throughout the world PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan division of St Martin s Press LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries. ISBN 978-1-4039-1263-3 ISBN 978-0-230-59998-7 (ebook) DOI 10.1057/9780230599987 This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Rosebury, Brian. Tolkien : a cultural phenomenon / Brian Rosebury. 2nd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. 1.Tolkien, J. R. R. (John Ronald Reuel), 1892 1973 Criticism and interpretation. 2. Fantasy literature, English History and criticism. 3. Middle Earth (Imaginary place) I.Title. PR6039.O32Z8183 2003 823'.91209 dc21 2003053574 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04

For Janice,Tom and Will

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Contents Acknowledgements and Abbreviations viii Introduction 1 1 The Lord of the Rings: Imagining Middle-earth 11 2 The Lord of the Rings: Achieving the Narrative 60 3 Fiction and Poetry, 1914 73 89 4 Tolkien and the Twentieth Century 134 5 Tolkien in the History of Ideas 158 6 The Cultural Phenomenon 193 Further Reading (and Listening) 221 Notes 225 Index 239

Acknowledgements and Abbreviations I am grateful to HarperCollins Publishers Ltd for permission to quote from their published works of J. R. R.Tolkien. I acknowledge permission from Houghton Mifflin Company for quoting from the following: The Fellowship of the Ring, by J. R. R.Tolkien. Copyright 1954, 1965 by J. R. R.Tolkien. Copyright renewed 1982 by Christopher R.Tolkien, Michael H. R.Tolkien and Priscilla M. A. R. Tolkien. Reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. The Two Towers, by J. R. R. Tolkien. Copyright 1954, 1965 by J. R. R.Tolkien. Copyright renewed 1982 by Christopher R.Tolkien, Michael H. R.Tolkien and Priscilla M. A. R. Tolkien. Reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. The Return of the King, by J. R. R.Tolkien. Copyright 1955, 1965 by J. R. R.Tolkien. Copyright renewed 1983 by Christopher R.Tolkien, Michael H. R.Tolkien and Priscilla M. A. R. Tolkien. Reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. In quoting from Tolkien s principal works I have used the following editions. Abbreviations used in the text and notes are shown here. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd J. R. R.Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings, Second edition, 1966: The Fellowship of the Ring (FR) The Two Towers (TT) The Return of the King (RK) The Hobbit, Fourth edition, 1946 Farmer Giles of Ham, paperback edition, 1983 viii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND ABBREVIATIONS ix Tree and Leaf, Second edition, 1988 The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, paperback edition, 1990. Smith of Wootton Major, 1967 The Silmarillion, 1977 (S) Unfinished Tales, 1980 (UT) Mr Bliss, 1982 Roverandom, 1998 In the case of the series entitled The History of Middle-earth, Ihave used the sole available edition: hardback and paperback versions of these volumes have identical pagination. I have used the following abbreviations: The Book of Lost Tales I: (LT1) The Book of Lost Tales II: (LT2) The Lays of Beleriand: Lays I owe warm thanks to many colleagues, students and friends: not least to Ian Dennis, who introduced me to Tolkien s work at a formative age many years ago, and to Christopher Garbowski, for persuading me to think further abouttolkien in the late 1990s, and for much recent encouragement. The final section of chapter 5 is based on material presented to the English Department at Marie Curie-Skl / odowska University in Lublin, Poland: I am very grateful for their encouragement and hospitality. In expanding the book for this second edition, I have benefited particularly from consultation withterry Hopton on parts of chapter 5, and Christopher Garbowski on both chapters 5 and 6. I have also learned much from the critical enthusiasm and cultural awareness of the students in my Tolkien class. Above all, I am deeply grateful to JaniceWardle, both for intellectual and for personal support, and to our sons Thomas and William, for their enthusiasm and assistance with parts of chapter 6. For all errors and misjudgements, I am alone responsible.