Ask me about "Lord of the Rings" and all things Tolkien rela

[Frothwith]

I did my senior thesis on the life, work, and influence, of J. R. R. (John Ronald Reuel) Tolkien. I might be able to tell you almost half of everything there is to know. But because I'm actually a musician, my thesis has proved rather useless until recently. So please, ask me anything you might be wondering about.

(Oh, and incase you're wondering: Yes, I enjoyed the movie. I think Christopher Jackson did as much justice as a movie-maker can to such a literary masterpiece.)

[Link, the Hero of Time]

the movie and books were great..

[Dr. Jetrel]

in howfar do you think tolkien was influenced by his participation in WW I?

[Frothwith]

In his "Foreward to the Second Edition" of the Lord of the Rings, Tolkien says, quote: "It is neither allegorical nor topical. ...The real war does not resemble the legendary war in it's process or its conclusion. If it had inspired...the legend, then certainly the Ring would have been seized and used against Sauron; he would not have been annihilated but enslaved, and Barad-dur would not have been destroyed but occupied. Saruman, failing to get possession of the Ring,...would have made a Great Ring of his own with which to challenge the self-styled Ruler of Middle-earth. In that conflict both sides would have held hobbits in hatred and contempt: they would not long have survived even as slaves." He goes on for a few pages and describes that even though he was affected by his experience, it was not in his mind to express it through his work. Any connections made by are left solely up to the reader, and the reader alone......

[Dr. Jetrel]

what do you think influenced him caus there must be some things?

[Frothwith]

I think he was most influenced by his peers: Tolkien was a member of a group called The Inklings, which included several other influential British authors of the time, such as C.S. Lewis and (forgive me, that's the only name I can remember). Anyway, this small group met regularly and read each other their newest stories. This is where he got much of his inspiration.

[Dr. Jetrel]

I last read this vision that LOTR of the rings was kind of like WOII, I know which is immpossible cause he wrote it way before that but still Mordor lies in the east and Sauron is a figure you could compare to Hitler

[Dr. Jetrel]

do u have any other fantasy writers that u like?

[Frothwith]

Well Tolkien is by far my favorite, but I also enjoy Lewis Carroll, Ray Bradbury, Stephen King, Anne McCaffrey, Neil Gaiman, and probabaly more that I can't think of right now. I think J.K. Rowling has done a good job with the "Harry Potter" books; I enjoy them. I'd like to start reading some of the Anne Rice novels, but I haven't had the time.

[Dr. Jetrel]

I like Robert Jordan and Terry Pratchett and that new writer but I cant think of her name right now she wrote that bookIm not sure if the title is the samein english but its called women of the lake or something like that

[Frothwith]

Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman teemed up to write a book a few years ago called "Good Omens." I haven't read it yet, but it's next on my list. Have you heard about it before?

[Dr. Jetrel]

well im really just starting on the pratchett books

[admiral_paris]

[Link, the Hero of Time]

The Story of The Hobbit was ment for a bedtime story for his kids, but as they grew up Tolkien stopped writing it. only later did he finally finish it.

Oh and Tolkien also lost most of his friends before the age of 21