Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Keyword
-
- Tolkien, J.R.R.—Theology (2)
- Anglo-Saxon literature—Influence on J.R.R. Tolkien’s works (1)
- Celtic mythology—Influence on J.R.R Tolkien’s works (1)
- Charles Williams, Russell Kirk, Horror (1)
- Christ-figure in literature (1)
-
- Christian Theology (1)
- Christian postmodernism (1)
- Classical literature—Influence on J.R.R Tolkien’s works (1)
- Dionysus (mythical figure) (1)
- Eucatastrophe (1)
- Felix Culpa (1)
- Felix culpa (Fortunate fall) (1)
- Foucault, Michel—Literary theories (1)
- Happy Fault (1)
- Harrowing of Hell (myth) (1)
- Heaven (1)
- Heaven in fantasy literature (1)
- Hell (1)
- Hell in fantasy literature (1)
- Hermeneutics (1)
- Jewish theology (1)
- King, Stephen. Doctor Sleep (1)
- King, Stephen. The Shining (1)
- Kirk, Russell—Concept of timeless moments (1)
- Middle English literature—Influence on J.R.R. Tolkien’s works (1)
- Orpheus and Eurydice (myth) (1)
- Orpheus, Harrowing of Hell, Sir Orfeo, Ovid, Virgil, Plato, Dionysus, Bacchus, Christ, Beren, Lúthien (1)
- Paganism (1)
- Postmodernism (1)
- Purgatory (1)
Articles 1 - 9 of 9
Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
Timeless Moments: Russell Kirk, Charles Williams, And Stephen King On The Afterlife, Camilo Peralta
Timeless Moments: Russell Kirk, Charles Williams, And Stephen King On The Afterlife, Camilo Peralta
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
What happens to us after death is one of the oldest and most difficult questions. Even the standard response of many Christians, that we go to either Heaven, Hell, or Purgatory, can only partly satisfy, because while we experience the passing of time in a linear manner, those places are said to exist completely outside of time. How, then, can it make sense to speak of “going” to Heaven or Hell after death? Must we not always and forever be there—even during our lifetimes? Russell Kirk, a Catholic historian from Michigan who often speculated about the afterlife in his fiction …
Orpheus And The Harrowing Of Hell In The Tale Of Beren And Lúthien, Giovanni Carmine Costabile
Orpheus And The Harrowing Of Hell In The Tale Of Beren And Lúthien, Giovanni Carmine Costabile
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
Critics have observed that Beren and Lúthien’s tale is a Christian retelling of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. The “Harrowing of Hell” tradition is widespread in Italy as attested by the mosaic of San Marco among others, but it is in France that the Ovid Moralized reconnects it to Orpheus who descended into the Underworld to save Eurydice (an already late antique parallel) and therefore attests a happy ending version of the story that can be found in medieval England and also in various classical sources, perhaps even in the original legend of Orpheus. The apocryphal Harrowing is also …
The Lion's Country: C.S. Lewis's Theory Of The Real By Charlie W. Starr, Mark-Elliot Finley
The Lion's Country: C.S. Lewis's Theory Of The Real By Charlie W. Starr, Mark-Elliot Finley
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
Book review for Charlie Starr's The Lion's Country: C.S. Lewis's Theory of Reality
Tolkien Dogmatics: Theology Through Mythology With The Maker Of Middle-Earth By Austin M. Freeman, Alex (Oleksiy) Ostaltsev
Tolkien Dogmatics: Theology Through Mythology With The Maker Of Middle-Earth By Austin M. Freeman, Alex (Oleksiy) Ostaltsev
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
The powerful and highly informative definitions that Freeman applies to Tolkien’s Middle-earth phenomenon in the title of his book create a productive interpretational framework. Myth and mythology in Inklings’ writing were always understood, in an almost Jungian way, as a cultural paradigm flexible enough to embrace the free creativity of the playful human mind and a philosophical postulate, or credo, of the humanistic religious intuition of Christianity. In Freeman’s interpretation, Tolkien’s literary myth in some ways requires a theological background, which, in its turn, leads to inevitable dogma, a statement that reveals the sensitive mechanics of literary myth as it …
"It Is 'About' Nothing But Itself": Tolkienian Theology Beyond The Domination Of The Author, Tom Emanuel
"It Is 'About' Nothing But Itself": Tolkienian Theology Beyond The Domination Of The Author, Tom Emanuel
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
There is a broad stream of Christian interpretation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fiction, especially The Lord of the Rings, which views it as the intentionally, essentially Christian work of an intentionally, essentially Christian author. This reductive, exclusivist approach does not do justice to the complex, generative interactivity between Tolkien’s faith, the faith of his readers (or lack thereof), and the text itself. Building on work by Veryln Flieger, Michael Drout, and Robin A. Reid, this paper interrogates how Christian Tolkien scholarship drafts Tolkien the human sub-creator to perform Foucault’s author-function by suppressing his contradictions and painting a figure whose life …
The Felix Culpa In Tolkien's Legendarium: A Catalyst For Character And Reader Transformation, Nathan C J Hood
The Felix Culpa In Tolkien's Legendarium: A Catalyst For Character And Reader Transformation, Nathan C J Hood
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
Examines the role of the felix culpa, or ‘happy fault’, in J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium. The article argues that this motif, originating within the Christian theological tradition, was adapted by Tolkien into the guiding structure of Middle-earth’s grand narrative. It shows the importance of the felix culpa in Tolkien’s secondary world by analysing the trope’s role in the Ainulindale and The Silmarillion. It then moves to consider the ways in which the presence of happy faults in The Lord of the Rings has a transformative impact upon the morality and spirituality of its characters and readers.
"Delight In Horror": Charles Williams And Russell Kirk On Hell And The Supernatural, Camilo Peralta
"Delight In Horror": Charles Williams And Russell Kirk On Hell And The Supernatural, Camilo Peralta
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
Charles Williams has always been one of the more overlooked members of the Inklings, and the continued neglect of his poetry and “supernatural thrillers” suggests that he is not likely to experience a dramatic increase in popularity anytime soon. Similarly, Russell Kirk is an American historian who will always be better known for writing The Conservative Mind in 1953 than for any of the dozens of short stories and novels he wrote, many of which deal with ghostly or supernatural themes. In fact, Kirk acknowledged Williams to be an important influence on his fiction; this influence is perhaps most evident …
"No Pagan Ever Loved His God": Tolkien, Thompson, And The Beautification Of The Gods, M. Fontenot
"No Pagan Ever Loved His God": Tolkien, Thompson, And The Beautification Of The Gods, M. Fontenot
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
Alexei Kondratiev award for best student paper, Mythcon 49. Many scholars have commented on the influence of Catholic mystic Francis Thompson’s poetry on J.R.R. Tolkien’s early forays into creative writing. However, few critical studies have addressed possible connections between Tolkien and Thompson’s prose work. This paper suggests that if anything is comparable between Tolkien and Thompson, it is their respective understandings of art, creation, and the significance of artists, regardless of the form of poetic (or prosaic) expression these sentiments induced. Thompson’s essays on art, paganism, and the immortality of beauty come together to form backdrop against which we might …
C.S. Lewis And Christian Postmodernism: Word, Image, And Beyond. Kyoko Yuasa, Peter G. Epps
C.S. Lewis And Christian Postmodernism: Word, Image, And Beyond. Kyoko Yuasa, Peter G. Epps
Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature
In C. S. Lewis and Christian Postmodernism, Kyoko Yuasa has managed to advance the cause of careful reading and discussion of Lewis’s novels as contemporary cultural artifacts, rather than mere ciphers for apologetics or mere fluff for children, for both Japanese and American audiences. This is no mean feat, not only in terms of translation but also in terms of trans-Pacific discourse, and Yuasa deserves great credit for the accomplishment. Her close reading of several of Lewis’s major fiction works in a comparative frame she derives from works by Iris Murdoch, Muriel Spark, Doris Lessing, and John Fowles yields …