The Gospel According to Tolkien: Visions of the Kingdom in Middle-earth - Ralph C. Wood
I'm a fan of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings—who isn't, really? A particular interest of mine is art (literature, music, movies, visual arts, etc.) which reflects my faith without necessarily being overtly religious in nature. What sort of art is a Christian "supposed" to create? The Lord of the Rings is a superb example of a work that holds its own as literature, yet also shows its roots in Tolkien's own faith. Wood's book examines various aspects of Tolkien's Middle-earth in which Christianity is evident. He shows that the tale is not simply an allegory, but a pre-Christian world which echoes the Gospel without explicitly referring to it.
Fed to jhliu's brain | March 01, 2004
