J.R.R. Tolkien and the Legacy of Middle Earth
The title “Father of Modern fantasy” is a lofty one indeed. A label burdened with the countless hardships of creating a world so detailed an individual would be forgiven for thinking it a recollection of ancient history, a time before recorded time. A world of monsters and magic, of Elves and Dwarves and Men, of wizards and dark lords. And most importantly and memorably, of Hobbits.
This is the timeless legacy that J.R.R Tolkien toiled day and night, through the mud stained stretches of world war one to the idyllic flower ridden paths of the English countryside to create. His lasting impression upon the world is one of an unfettered imagination so grand in scope, it stands as a lesson to all who have been moved by his work and chosen to follow in his footsteps.
The realm of Middle Earth is a wide and varied one. Filled with countless cultures, languages and peoples spanning three recorded ages and nearly 11,000 years of history. It is from this deep font that many of those enraptured by Tolkien's various stories draw their greatest enjoyment. To delve into the annals of this “Secondary World” as Tolkien called it, is where a majority of hardcore fans spend their time.
For many, Either The Hobbit or The Lord Of The Rings are their first interactions with Middle Earth. And admittedly many of these are through the masterfully crafted movies directed by Peter Jackson (I'm well aware that many do not like the Hobbit Trilogy, however there are still merits to be found in each).
While these movies fundamentally tell the same story that Tolkien's originals do, save one (I'm looking at you Battle Of The Five Armies), There is still a great bit changed from the novels they are based upon. And in a Fandom filled with more scholars then I believe any other, this is the cause of a fair bit of friction. Tolkien has written many other works, such as The Silmarillion, Beren and Luthien, etc. However at this current moment in time these have yet to be adapted to film
It is no mystery that a number of individuals within the Tolkien fandom are, for lack of a better word, snobs. This however seems to be primarily relegated to the older crowd who were alive in the latter half of the 20th Century. Luckily, younger generations seem to have a more open minded and forgiving mindset, working together to decipher many of the unfinished works penned by Tolkien, and even going so far as to create compendiums where one can go to learn the multitude of languages Tolkien created to fill Middle Earth. (Sindarin | The One Wiki to Rule Them All | Fandom).
Tolkien's works have been used to cover a number of scholarly topics such as Research on Flora (Forest-Hill, Lynn), as well as Middle Earth's connection to stories of mythology dating back to the times of ancient Europe (Michelson, Paul E.)
Many members of the Tolkien Fandom have gone on to use his stories as ways to explain a number of popular literary tropes and devices, and explain how the idea of modern fantasy as it is known today developed. A fine example of this are many of the videos made by creators such as Hello Future Me - YouTube, Men of the West - YouTube, and History of the Ages - YouTube. The latter two being channels solely dedicated to explaining the wide world Tolkien created in easily digestible portions.
To mark an exact date when the fandom emerged is nearly impossible, however a good springboard is likely around the time Tolkien began exchanging letters with his fans. The contents of which mainly pertain to further questions or clarifications about the various characters and histories present in, mainly, the Lord of The Rings. These letters themselves were actually collected and recorded in a compendium very applicably titled, The Letters of J.R.R Tolkien. This report that formed between author and reader, I feel is what contributed highly to the success of The Hobbit and The Lord of The Rings, and cemented it in the mind of the public for generations after its initial (ironically, at least in the eyes of literary professionals of the time, lackluster) debut.
It has yet to be seen the full extent of Tolkien's influence on the genre of fantasy. However with the intense dedication and passion that has already arisen surrounding the realm of Middle Earth and beyond, its safe to say that the road ahead is a long and fruitful one. Filled with boundless adventure, and no shortage of wonder.
WORKS CITED
Forest-Hill, Lynn. “Flora of Middle-Earth: Plants of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Legendarium by Walter S. Judd and Graham A. Judd (Review).” Tolkien Studies, vol. 17, no. 17, Oct. 2020, pp. 215–224.
MICHELSON, Paul E. “J.R.R. Tolkien on Faërie and Faërie-Stories.” Linguaculture, vol. 10, no. 2, July 2019, pp. 81–99.
Sindarin | The One Wiki to Rule Them All | Fandom
"Hello Future Me." YouTube. 24 Feb. 2021.
"Men of the West." YouTube. Web. 24 Feb. 2021.
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