The Lord of the Rings

Bibliography: Tolkien, J.R.R. (2002). The lord of the rings. New York: Mariner.

Genre: Fantasy – Adult crossover

Reading Level/Interest Age: 14 and up

Reader's Annotation: The Lord of Mordor has regained much of his strength, and now he longs to repossess the One Ring, the ring of power that controls all others. It is his key to dominating all of Middle Earth; he will stop at nothing until it is his again, and no one, be he man, elf, dwarf, or hobbit, will stand in his way.

Author: John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (1892-1973) was born to English parents in Bloemfontein, South Africa, but moved to England in 1896 when his father died. He was first and foremost a professor of Old and Middle English languages at Oxford University until 1959. During that time, he produced a small number of highly influential scholarly texts and several short tales, the latter written for fun to amuse family, friends and Tolkien himself. His greatest work, The Lord of the Rings, was published in three parts in 1954 and 1955 and soon became the raison d'etre for Fantasy fans, achieving nearly cult status, much to Professor Tolkien's dismay.

Plot Summary: "The novel begins . . . as Frodo Baggins inherits the Ring from Bilbo; both are unaware of its origins. Gandalf the Grey, a wizard, learns of the Ring's history and advises Frodo to take the Ring away from the Shire. Frodo leaves, taking his gardener and friend, Samwise ('Sam') Gamgee, and two cousins, Meriadoc ('Merry') Brandybuck and Peregrin ('Pippin') Took, to help him. . . . [In the town of Bree], they meet Aragorn who calls himself 'Strider' and joins them as guide and protector. . . . On the journey to Rivendell, Frodo is wounded on Weathertop by the Ringwraiths, who continue in close pursuit. At the Ford of Bruinen, Frodo and the others are rescued, as flood waters controlled by Elrond, master of Rivendell, rise up and overwhelm the Ringwraiths, sweeping them away.

Frodo recovers under the care of Elrond. The Council of Elrond reveals much significant history about Sauron and the Ring, plus the news that Gollum has escaped from Mirkwood and Sauron has corrupted the wizard Saruman. The Council decides that the threat of Sauron is too great and that the best course of action is to destroy the Ring. This can be done only by returning it to the Cracks of Doom in Mordor, where it was forged. Frodo volunteers to take the Ring, and a 'Fellowship of the Ring' is chosen to accompany him. The Fellowship is composed of nine members. . . . Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, Gandalf, Gimli - the son of Glóin, one of the dwarves that accompanied Bilbo on his quest, Legolas - an elf from the woodland realm of Mirkwood, and a man - Boromir son of the Steward Denethor from the realm of Gondor." (The Lord of the Rings, Synopsis, Wikipedia)

Critical Evaluation: What a tome. I read The Hobbit when I was a YA, and I've occasionally listened to it again as an audiobook. That experience ill-prepared me for Tolkien's magnum opus. For one thing, the tone is entirely different. Whereas The Hobbit is light-hearted, fun, and fast-paced, The Lord of the Rings is dark and plodding. At times, Tolkien's attention to detail and his fascination with his created world proves tedious. There is little wonder that artists, cartoonists, and film-makers have so little difficulty recreating that world in visual mediums; Tolkien describes every rock along the long, long, long journey undertaken by Frodo and his companions. After about five hundred pages, I began to freely skip any extended passages of description, especially as it related to landscape. To be honest, I don't really care about the lake just outside the gates of Moria, and I am a devoted fan of Fantasy. Furthermore, the separation of the Frodo narrative from the Aragorn narrative that takes place in the second volume was disconcerting. The two parts were almost like completely separate novels with absolutely no interweaving between them. Since I was not very interested in the Frodo narrative (Damn that Gollum!) this narrative form made the novel drag even further, and I had to force myself through much of it.

But this is not to say that I did not appreciate the depth Tolkien offers in many ways. The mythical back-story that finds its way into the novel again and again was fascinating enough for me to order a copy of The Silmarillion, and as a scholar of languages, including Old English, I loved the way Tolkien's linguistic expertise shapes the creation of the many peoples that populate Middle Earth. The characters are rich, and the battles are pleasantly short on detail.

Curriculum Ties:

Book Talk Ideas:
• adapt council of Elrond
• adapt scene at Bree
• focus on Frodo's relationship with Aragorn or with Gandalf
• adapt scene in Loth Lorien
• focus on Gollum/Smeagol

Challenge Issues: violence, use of magic

Challenge Defense:
• Be familiar with context of issues
• Explain library selection policies
• Provide reviews of the book from reputable sources
• Explain library challenge procedures
• Offer challenge form

Why was this text included in this project? Tolkien is more popular than ever, but despite being a fan of Fantasy, I’d never read the “Fantasy Bible” before. This seemed like a good time to do that.