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J.R.R. Tolkien Appreciation Thread
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Post by
Laihendi
There needs to be one. J.R.R. Tolkien is the man who defined modern fantasy. Unfortunately, his works are grossly under appreciated these days. Many people are so ignorant of his contributions to fantasy literature that it is disheartening.
Yes,The Hobbit was a nice book and all, but really it was his epic The Lord of the Rings that really made modern fantasy what it is today, and when I say epic, I mean in the literary sense. Not only did he invent hobbits (though "hobbits" are not used in any other books but his, there are creatures called halflings which appear frequently in various fantasy novels), but he created orcs as well. True, goblins were around before him, but he is the author who changed them into the creatures they are imagined as today, in fact, Tolkien is the one who first labeled them as
orcs
. Before Tolkien, elves were largely seen as little 3-foot tall fairies that made shoes and crap like that. Tolkien added substance, lore, history, and even culture to them. All elves in modern fantasy are based on the elf that
he
envisioned, including those in Dungeons & Dragons, the books of the Inheritance Cycle, and even in WoW to a certain extent.
Many people don't understand that Tolkien's contributions to fantasy actually go quite deeper than The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien created what was essentially an entire mythology of the creation of Arda, of Middle Earth, and a history of the events that happened in those lands for thousands of years. Even people who consider themselves fans of Tolkien's don't really understand the enormity of what Tolkien did. He explained every last detail of everything that ever happened in this world he created. There are countless books that he wrote, most of which the vast majority of people have never heard of. Many of which have not even been released yet.
And there is more. Tolkien created numerous languages to add a sense of authenticity to his work. Yes, that one man created entire languages himself.
If not for Tolkien, fantasy today would not be what we know it as. Unless there was some other revolutionary author who came along, fantasy would be limited to childish fairy tails without real substance. If you have not given Tolkien a chance in the past, I strongly urge you to read The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion. They are all three classics, and any fan of fantasy literature would absolutely love them, because they are so much richer than most of what people read these days.
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149406
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Post by
Laihendi
I love all of Tolkien's works. I have a special love for the Hobbit, one of the first novels I read. I'm still enthralled by that book, as well as the other Lord of the Rings books, every time I read it (working through the 4 dozenth-or-so time now).
Did you enjoy The Silmarillion? I remember talking to my old english teacher about it and he thought it was boring somehow... I always thought it was fascinating.
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85162
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182246
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Post by
Queggy
Tolkien was the first author that got me started in the fantasy genre. I used to almost worship him. :) My favorite out of all his books is probably The Hobbit, but I have read all the others (including the Silmarillion). Personally, I had no problem understanding The Silmarillion and I enjoyed reading it, but anyways . . .
/nostalgia
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184848
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152645
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Post by
Aedalas
I've read a few Tolkien books (Hobbit, LotR, Silmarillion, The Children of Hurin) and loved most, but I just didn't care for The Silmarillion. Not sure why, just couldn't really get into it, like someone said earlier, I found it rather boring. The rest were very good though, even though I'm not a big fan of posthumous releases (though I'm still going to read the newest Hitch Hikers ofc).
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119742
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Post by
Laihendi
The Silmarillion is amazing
/thread
It is moderately painful to read though with all the details, but that's what makes it incredible
This... minus the painful parts. :D
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184848
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237025
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Post by
Laihendi
I remember one time I was reading the Silmarillion at school, and this girl asked what it was about. I gave a very detailed explanation, much to her dismay :)
Post by
Laihendi
Tolkien needs more appreciation :-/
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