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English Language and Literature

1996

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Articles 31 - 60 of 331

Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities

Tolkien As A Post-War Writer, Tom Shippey Oct 1996

Tolkien As A Post-War Writer, Tom Shippey

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

The Lord of the Rings, though unique in many ways, is only one of a series of fantasies published by English authors before, during, and just after World War II, works united in their deep concern with the nature of evil and their authors’ belief that politics had given them a novel understanding of this ancient concept. This paper sets Tolkien in this contemporary context and considers what has been unique in his understanding of the modern world.

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Tales Of Wonder - Science Fiction And Fantasy In The Age Of Jane Austen, Madawc Williams Oct 1996

Tales Of Wonder - Science Fiction And Fantasy In The Age Of Jane Austen, Madawc Williams

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

This paper challenges the accepted view that the works of writers such as Mrs. Radcliffe, “Monk” Lewis, Maturin and Mary Shelley are part of a Gothic tradition deriving from Horace Walpole’s Castle of Otranto. The paper also studies the connection of Jane Austen to these writers and will try to unravel the errors of Brian Aldiss, whose ideas are taken from earlier authors.

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Publishing Tolkien, Rayner Unwin Oct 1996

Publishing Tolkien, Rayner Unwin

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

During the last thirty years of the Professor’s life, but especially towards the end, Rayner Unwin met, talked with, and worked for, J.R.R. Tolkien. It was a business relationship between author and publisher, but increasingly it became a trusting friendship as well. In an ideal world authors and publishers should always act in partnership. This certainly happened between Professor Tolkien and George Allen & Unwin, but in some respects, the speaker explains, the collaboration had very unusual features.

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Frodo And His Spectre: Blakean Resonances In Tolkien, Charles E. Noad Oct 1996

Frodo And His Spectre: Blakean Resonances In Tolkien, Charles E. Noad

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Comparisons between Blake and Tolkien are tempting, not least because of superficial resemblances, but more valid comparisons can be made in their treatment of similar underlying themes. One such is that shown in the opposition of Los and his Spectre (Blake) and of Frodo and Gollum (Tolkien), where a comparison points up the outlooks and limitations of both writers.

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"Less Noise And More Green": Tolkien's Ideology For England, Patrick Curry Oct 1996

"Less Noise And More Green": Tolkien's Ideology For England, Patrick Curry

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

This essay explores Tolkien’s work (especially The Lord of the Rings) in terms of what I identify as his three central concerns, described here as English culture, nature and ethics. I also defend the work against its detractors, especially cultural materialists. I am more concerned with the reception of the work (e.g. its contemporary meanings) than its production.

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Tolkien And The Gawain-Poet, Tom Shippey Oct 1996

Tolkien And The Gawain-Poet, Tom Shippey

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

One of Tolkien’s major academic works was the edition he prepared, with E.V. Gordon, of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Yet this poem is only one of four in identical dialect (an important point to Tolkien) and in the same manuscript. This paper considers the philological issues these poems raise, and shows how the theories, eccentricities and linguistics of the Gawain-poet were read and used by Tolkien.

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Evil And The Evil One In Tolkien's Theology, Tadeusz Andrzej Olszański Oct 1996

Evil And The Evil One In Tolkien's Theology, Tadeusz Andrzej Olszański

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

This paper analyses Tolkien's theological theory of evil: first its cosmological aspect (especially the relation between Eru and Melkor), then the place of evil in the structure of the world, the question of salvation, and finally, the question of the End and the second "Doom of Mandos" announcing Morgoth's fall.

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The Mechanics Of Dragons: An Introduction To The Study Of Their 'Ologies, Angela Surtees, Steve Gardner Oct 1996

The Mechanics Of Dragons: An Introduction To The Study Of Their 'Ologies, Angela Surtees, Steve Gardner

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Dragons are found throughout the history of most civilisations, yet we appear to know little about them. This paper will present a (tongue-in-cheek) introductory analysis of dragons and their place in society, suggesting that perhaps they are not necessarily the terrible and evil creatures they are sometimes portrayed to be . . .

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The Realm Of Faërie, Christine Barkley Oct 1996

The Realm Of Faërie, Christine Barkley

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Middle-earth is not the only glimpse we get of Tolkien’s view of Faërie. This paper examines his definition of Faërie and how it applies to Niggle’s Parish and to the forest in Smith of Wootton Major. Once we are aware of certain aspects of Faërie (for example the double vision possible), we can appreciate them in Middle-earth.

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Tolkien Centenary Banquet Address, Glen H. Goodknight Oct 1996

Tolkien Centenary Banquet Address, Glen H. Goodknight

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

No abstract provided.

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Tolkien, Sayers, Sex And Gender, David Doughan Oct 1996

Tolkien, Sayers, Sex And Gender, David Doughan

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Tolkien’s expressed “loathing” for Dorothy Sayers and her novels Gaudy Night and Busman’s Honeymoon is remarkable considering that Sayers is generally considered to belong to the same milieu as the Inklings. Possible reasons for this are the contrast between the orthodox Catholic Tolkien’s view of male sexuality as inherently sinful, requiring “great mortification”, and Sayers’s frankly hedonistic approach. Another reason may be Sayers’s depiction of an independent Oxford women’s college getting by successfully without men, and her representation of marriage as a source of intellectual frustration for creative women.

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Opening Address, Christina Scull Oct 1996

Opening Address, Christina Scull

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

No abstract provided.

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Sermon At Thanksgiving Service, Keble College Chapel, 23rd August 1992, Robert Murray Oct 1996

Sermon At Thanksgiving Service, Keble College Chapel, 23rd August 1992, Robert Murray

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

No abstract provided.

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Where Do Elves Go To? Tolkien And A Fantasy Tradition, Norman Talbot Oct 1996

Where Do Elves Go To? Tolkien And A Fantasy Tradition, Norman Talbot

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

The departure of the Elves from Middle-earth haunted Tolkien’s imagination, but it has also fascinated many other writers before and since. After Kipling and Tolkien, the twin pivots in recent literary ideas about Elves, the destiny of the Elves is being treated in more and more diverse ways. But Hy Braseal is so hard to imagine, given the Americas in this century: how can the people of the starlight still “go west”? Most go “in” instead, into humanity or into places (and computer programs) with that special Elf-friendly charge.

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Tolkien's Dictionary Poetics: The Influence Of The Oed'S Defining Style On Tolkien's Fiction, Dierdre Greene Oct 1996

Tolkien's Dictionary Poetics: The Influence Of The Oed'S Defining Style On Tolkien's Fiction, Dierdre Greene

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

This paper examines the connections between Tolkien’s writing of fiction and his work as a lexicographer on the Oxford English Dictionary. Some of Tolkien’s most characteristic stylistic flourishes show the influence of the distinctive, charming defining style of the first edition of the O.E.D.

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Tolkien The Anti-Totalitarian, Jessica Yates Oct 1996

Tolkien The Anti-Totalitarian, Jessica Yates

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

A number of critics have looked for a political message in The Lord of the Rings, their dislike of the work, in some cases, apparently leading them to accuse Tolkien of holding extreme, usually right- wing, political views and making The Lord of the Rings a vehicle for them. These critics are particularly vehement about the danger of young people emerging from a reading of Tolkien’s book with extreme right-wing views. I select some examples from my collection of political views, including the opinions of Robert Westall, E.P. Thompson, and Fred Inglis, together with a viewpoint from a member …

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J.R.R. Tolkien And The Clerihew, Joe R. Christopher Oct 1996

J.R.R. Tolkien And The Clerihew, Joe R. Christopher

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

The clerihew, a form of light verse, is part of Tolkien's oeuvre. This study offers (1) a brief history and an elaborate definition of the genre, (2) a discussion of the clerihews that have been written about Tolkien or his works, and (3) an analysis of the clerihews that Tolkien wrote.

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A Mythology For England, Carl F. Hostetter, Arden R. Smith Oct 1996

A Mythology For England, Carl F. Hostetter, Arden R. Smith

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

As J.R.R. Tolkien developed a mythology for his invented languages to dwell and grow in, he found himself increasingly drawn to satisfy himself his desire for a true English epic. Tolkien this encompassed elements of English geography, language, and mythology within his geography, languages, and mythology, as demonstrated through an examination of five figures of Tolkien's mythology, Eärendil, Ermon, and Elmir, Ælfwine, and Ingwë.

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Tolkien's Experiment With Time: The Lost Road, "The Notion Club Papers" And J.W. Dunne, Verlyn Flieger Oct 1996

Tolkien's Experiment With Time: The Lost Road, "The Notion Club Papers" And J.W. Dunne, Verlyn Flieger

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Tolkien’s two time-travel stories. The Lost Road and “The Notion Club Papers”, derive their mode of operation from a theory of time as a field proposed in 1927 by J.W. Dunne. This paper explores the relationship between Dunne’s theory and the fictive psychology of dream and memory that provides a working basis for Tolkien’s time travel.

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An Overview Of The Northern Influences On Tolkien's Works, Gloriana St. Clair Oct 1996

An Overview Of The Northern Influences On Tolkien's Works, Gloriana St. Clair

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

J.R.R. Tolkien studied the Old Norse literature and mythology thoroughly. While knowing Northern literature does not provide a key to unlock the meanings of his major works, his characters, creatures, implements, customs, incidents, and themes do have antecedents in the Eddas and sagas. This paper assesses the extent and impact of those antecedents.

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Power And Knowledge In Tolkien: The Problem Of Difference In "The Birthday Party", Jane Chance Oct 1996

Power And Knowledge In Tolkien: The Problem Of Difference In "The Birthday Party", Jane Chance

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

It is not altogether clear from reading The Lord of the Rings for the first time how political the hobbits Bilbo and Frodo are, even in the introductory chapter “A Long-expected Party”. For there exist power struggles among the different hobbit families in the Shire, absurd in some cases, significant in others. One mark of the ability of Bilbo and Frodo is their sensitivity to the politics of the Shire, a faculty bom of nurture and nature that will enable Frodo’s mission and attract followers. This paper will reveal how Tolkien’s understanding of leadership rests upon what might be termed …

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Problems Of Translating Into Russian, Natalia Grigorieva Oct 1996

Problems Of Translating Into Russian, Natalia Grigorieva

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

The general traditions of Russian literature has been based on the requirement that any literary translation should be good literature in itself as well as preserving the author’s manner of writing. It seems that understanding of J.R.R. Tolkien and his books is growing very slowly in Russia. There have never been any professional literary works on Tolkien or the problems of translating his works. A number of approaches to translating are connected with this fact. A short history of this subject shows that both the author’s attitude and fairy-story reality should be reproduced correctly and with care. I am going …

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Tolkien And Englishness, Chris Hopkins Oct 1996

Tolkien And Englishness, Chris Hopkins

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

This paper discusses ways in which Tolkien draws upon various ideas of Englishness in order to construct his epic fictional world. In particular, Tolkien's combinations of different periods and traditions of Englishness - Anglo-Saxon, nineteenth-century - are explored.

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Tolkien As Reviser: A Case Study, Gloriana St. Clair Oct 1996

Tolkien As Reviser: A Case Study, Gloriana St. Clair

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

The publication of drafts of The Lord of the Rings allows scholars to assess Tolkien as a reviser. A comparison of the early presentations of Gondor in The History of “The Lord of the Rings”, with the finished scenes indicates the nature and direction of Tolkien’s changes. This paper will discuss how the process of revision contributed to the overall effect of the work.

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Open Minds, Closed Minds In The Lord Of The Rings, Christina Scull Oct 1996

Open Minds, Closed Minds In The Lord Of The Rings, Christina Scull

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

A study of prejudice and tolerance, from the insularity of the Hobbits of the Shire to the mistrust between the Elves and Dwarves and the very nationalistic outlook of Denethor. This paper will show how some characters grew and became more tolerant, and that Tolkien was sensible enough to realize that only small steps can be taken at a time. It will also consider the unwillingness of some to believe in anything not witnessed with their own senses, thus leading them to discard as legendary much of the wonder of Middle-earth.

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Reminiscences: Oxford In 1920, Meeting Tolkien And Becoming An Author At 77, Vera Chapman Oct 1996

Reminiscences: Oxford In 1920, Meeting Tolkien And Becoming An Author At 77, Vera Chapman

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Reminiscences of Vera Chapman’s life, including going up to Oxford just after the First World War (between the time when Tolkien was an undergraduate and his return as a Professor).

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Volsunga Saga And Narn: Some Analogies, Gloriana St. Clair Oct 1996

Volsunga Saga And Narn: Some Analogies, Gloriana St. Clair

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

“Narn”, one of the works in the Unfinished Tales, has many parallels with the thirteenth-century Old Norse Volsunga Saga, which Tolkien read and studied. This paper will assess comparisons between the heroes, women, dragons, plots, and tokens for their contribution to understanding Tolkien’s relationship to his sources, and will note Tolkien’s craft in source assimilation.

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Higher Argument: Tolkien And The Tradition Of Vision, Epic And Prophecy, Dierdre Greene Oct 1996

Higher Argument: Tolkien And The Tradition Of Vision, Epic And Prophecy, Dierdre Greene

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

This paper attempts to place Tolkien’s fiction in a distinctively English literary context: a tradition of visionary writing which strives toward national epic, existing from Spenser through Milton (and in certain respects, Blake) to Tolkien.

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Power In Arda: Sources, Uses And Misuses, Edith L. Crowe Oct 1996

Power In Arda: Sources, Uses And Misuses, Edith L. Crowe

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Power and renunciation of power has long been recognised as an important theme in the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. This paper will examine the issue of power with particular attention to Riane Eisler's dominator/partnership model of power relations and the power within/power over dichotomy. It will consider the sources of power: spiritual, political, physical; and how these are wielded by the various peoples and individuals of Middle-earth.

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The Growth Of Grammar In The Elven Tongues, Christopher Gilson, Patrick Wynne Oct 1996

The Growth Of Grammar In The Elven Tongues, Christopher Gilson, Patrick Wynne

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

While some features of Elven grammar go back to the earliest records, such as the “Qenya Lexicon”, others are unique to later works such as the “Secret Vice” poems and the Etymologies, and some do not emerge until after The Lord of the Rings. The Elven languages form an expanding canvas (like Niggle’s), and many of the individual poems and sentences can be examined in terms of how they elaborate or enhance the overall grammar of Elvish.

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