August 19, 2002

LotR As the Mythology of England
Jessie

I found Tomas' idea about Tolkien creating a mythology for Britain to be really interesting. I've often thought that the trilogy had to be some sort of metaphor for something, had to be based somewhere in fact or in previously established writing (such as the bible- though I'm pretty sure that Tolkien did not intend LotR to be a metaphor for Christianity). I've always had the impression, for some reason, that the hobbits could represent the english, elves the french, dwarves the germans, etc. Not nessisarily a metaphor for WWI, as some have suggested, but a metaphor for relationships between nations in general. Tolkien's obvious fondness for the hobbits and his idyllic description of the shire seem to be an homage to the english countryside. If Tolkien were creating a mythology for Britain, this would make perfect sense. Or I could be completely off base...What do you think?