JRR — Archive — Archive Gals

J. R. R. Tolkien (or John Ronald Reuel Tolkien) died 42 years ago today, after creating one of the most magical worlds of all time, captivating audiences for the ages. Orphaned at age twelve, Tolkien and his brother were then raised by the parish priest. Tolkien proved gifted with language at an early age, and started making his own up while in his teens. He went on to study English Language and Literature at Oxford, and graduated in 1915; but with World War I booming, his literary career was put on hold and Tolkien enlisted as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Lancashire Fusiliers. He fought on the Western Front in the trenches for four months, until he came down with trench fever and was sent back to England to recover. His experiences in France would help color the epic battles, and some of the bleaker lands (Mordor, anyone?) he created.

After the war, Tolkien worked as the Assistant Lexicographer at the Oxford English Dictionary, before starting his career in academia. Tolkien taught first at the University of Leeds, then at his alma mater, Oxford. The Hobbit grew from stories he invented for his children. After an unfinished manuscript fell into the hands of a publisher, The Hobbit was published in 1937, to immediate success. Eager to have more popular children’s novels, Tolkien’s publishers asked what other material he might have. They rejected The Simarillion for being too complex and poetic, but asked that the author take a crack at writing a sequel to The Hobbit.

Tolkien took sixteen years to write The Lord of the Rings, and it was published in 1955. Much more than a sequel to a children’s book, the trilogy had mixed reviews, but huge sales. During the 60s and 70s, the trilogy was embraced by the youth counterculture-its great influence can been seen in the numerous Middle Earth references in Led Zeppelin songs, and the classic Ballad of Bilbo Baggins by Leonard Nimoy. It was, and remains, so popular, that even the discarded Simarillion became a best seller when it was published after Tolkien’s death.

We’re giving a big salute, and a huge thank you to a man who expanded our minds, and taught us so many important life lessons. So remember “if more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” And, “never laugh at live dragons.”