Description
J. R. R. Tolkien's classic works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion comprise a legendarium with a complex world-system presented through an array of poetic forms. Through historical, geopolitical, and multicultural detail, combining elements of myth, romance, and the modern novel, Middle-earth is seen as much more than an adventure tale.
This book analyzes Tolkien's narrative form and its relation to social contexts, while also exploring his broader philosophical conception of history and the role of individual and collective subjects within it. Tolkien's published and posthumous writing, the film adaptations, and recent scholarship are all examined to provide an enlarged and refined critical perspective of these major works. Drawing upon Marxist literary theory and criticism, traditional views of race, class, morality, escapism, and general fantasy are called into question. Close reading mixed with theoretical speculation lets readers see Middle-earth, as well as our own world, in a new way.
About the Author
Robert T. Tally Jr. is a professor of English at Texas State University in Austin, Texas.
Book Information
ISBN 9780786470372
Author Robert T. Tally Jr.
Format Paperback
Page Count 277
Imprint McFarland & Co Inc
Publisher McFarland & Co Inc
Details
Subtitle: |
Tolkien, Form and Ideology |
Imprint: |
McFarland & Co Inc |
