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Full-Text Articles in Christianity
"Just A Fool's Hope": J.R.R. Tolkien's Eucatastrophe As The Paradigm Of Christian Hope, Margaret A. Bush
"Just A Fool's Hope": J.R.R. Tolkien's Eucatastrophe As The Paradigm Of Christian Hope, Margaret A. Bush
Senior Honors Theses
In his essay titled “On Fairy-Stories,” J.R.R. Tolkien uses the term “eucatastrophe” to describe the unexpected, fortunate turn of events for the protagonist in a fantasy story. Tolkien applies the word beyond its literary context to signify the Christian’s experience of joy, especially resulting from the Incarnation and Resurrection. Such an explicit link between fiction and theology seems absent from his more well-known work, The Lord of the Rings. Yet both Tolkien himself and critics of his writing have labeled the novel a modern-day classic of Christian literature. This thesis will defend the Christian label of The Lord of …
Truth And Reality In Tolkien’S Middle Earth: The Role Of Fantasy In The Christian’S Life, Geoffrey A. Matthews
Truth And Reality In Tolkien’S Middle Earth: The Role Of Fantasy In The Christian’S Life, Geoffrey A. Matthews
Senior Honors Theses
Fantasy literature can express truths found in the physical world and in the Christian faith. J.R.R. Tolkien’s trilogy, The Lord of the Rings is one example of fantasy that does so. In his essay, “On Fairy-Stories” Tolkien introduces four traits of fantasy: subcreation, recovery, escape, and consolation. Beginning with a defense of fantasy, this paper identifies the presence of these traits in the trilogy and how they correlate truth between the Primary and Secondary Worlds. A careful examination of how Tolkien’s worldview is evident in his works follows with a detailed analysis of the portrayal of human nature shown most …