[The following article appeared
in The Herald-Sun in December 2001.]
A Guide to Middle-earth
J.R.R. Tolkien's
masterpiece continues to enthrall audiences
By J.P. Trostle
Long before Harry
Potter and Hogwarts and muggles, there were ... Hobbits.
Also
elves and dwarves and dragons and orcs, eagles that could talk and trees
that could walk, the great wizard Gandalf and the Dark Lord Sauron --
and a pesky little ring that could give its wearer dominance over all
of Middle-earth. But especially, there were hobbits.
For
more than 60 years, millions of readers have embraced the imaginary
world created by J.R.R. Tolkien in his novels "The Hobbit"
and "The Lord of the Rings." Millions more will be introduced
to the denizens of Middle-earth Wednesday when "The Fellowship
of the Ring," the first of three films adapting the epic "Lord
of the Rings," comes to the big screen in theaters around the world.
Perhaps
"epic" is too small a word to describe the upcoming trilogy
of films. As directed by New Zealander Peter Jackson, it is by far the
largest movie production ever undertaken. With a reported cost of $275
million and a shooting schedule of 274 days - both records - all three
movies were filmed at the same time in more than 100 locations across
New Zealand with the proverbial cast of thousands. (Adding together
cast, crew and extras, more than 23,000 people have labored on the project
since preproduction began in 1997.) Although principal cinema-photography
is complete, work on the special effects will continue over the next
two years as the second film, "The Two Towers," is released
in December 2002, and "The Return of the King" completes the
story in December 2003.
What
story could inspire so many people to labor so long?
"The
Lord of the Rings" is a sprawling saga of good and evil set in
the mythical realm. Against a backdrop of clashing armies, a small band
of heroes sets out on a desperate quest to destroy a Dark Lord's main
weapon, a magic ring that gives him control over all creation.
Although
Hollywood first approached Tolkien about adapting his work in the 1950s
(he turned them down because they misspelled many of his characters'
names in the proposal), the sheer scale of the project has discouraged
anyone from attempting a live-action film until now.
***
Just what is a
hobbit?
A professor
of language and literature at Oxford University, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien
introduced readers to Middle-earth in 1937 with his publication of "The
Hobbit." Though touted as a whimsical children's story, it had
a sophistication and depth which engaged adult readers on another level.
In
it he tells the tale of Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit of some means who lives
in The Shire. Hobbits, according to Tolkien, are a smallish people a
little over three feet high who love nothing more than to laugh and
eat (up to six meals a day). They are a simple, earthy folk, good at
growing things, living in comfortable tunnels under the ground and padding
about barefoot on large, furry feet.
Bilbo
has no greater ambition than to enjoy the good things in life and certainly
doesn't want any adventures.
Yet
one afternoon he is paid a visit by his friend Gandalf the Wizard, and
against his better judgment, allows himself to be pushed into a quest
that changes his life. He accompanies a band of dwarves hoping to reclaim
their ancestral home under The Lonely Mountain from the terrible dragon
Smaug. Along the way Bilbo has many wondrous and strange adventures
and eventually returns to The Shire with a great treasure, including
a magic sword and a ring that turns the wearer invisible.
"The
Hobbit" was gladly greeted by most critics and had enough commercial
success that Tolkien's publisher wanted more. Tolkien already had an
idea for a sequel but quickly realized it would be far darker and mature
in theme than would be suited for a children's book.
***
A tour of Middle-earth
World
War II and his responsibilities as a professor pushed the delivery date
on his new novel back over a decade and a half, and by the time it was
done "The Lord of the Rings" weighed in at more than 1,200
pages. The publisher decided to break the book into three parts and
part one of the trilogy, "The Fellowship of the Ring," was
released in 1954.
Dealing
with the magic ring Bilbo brought back with him, "The Lord of the
Rings" picks up 60 years after "The Hobbit," and allowed
Tolkien to explore the width and breadth of his creation in amazing
and poetic detail.
Although
breathtakingly beautiful, the medieval-like Middle-earth is a land in
turmoil and decline. Travel and trade have become difficult and dangerous.
The stately, eternal elves, once prevalent throughout the countryside,
have retreated to a few, carefully guarded, wooded enclaves. Stout,
hardy dwarves wander far and wide attempting to recapture their glory
days, before they were driven out of their underground cities by fire-breathing
dragons and demonic Balrogs.
In
the south, the kingdom of Gondor has begun to fight a desperate holding
action against armies of orcs from the nearby land of Mordor, a place
so corrupt and evil nothing there will grow. In the north, where the
kingdoms of Man have long since fallen into ruin, only the self-appointed
Rangers keep the peace, allowing communities like The Shire and Bree
to thrive.
An
ancient evil has returned: Sauron, believed vanquished thousands of
years before, has once again taken form. From his ancient citadel in
Mordor, he seeks the magical ring that was cut from his hand at his
first defeat, and lost to history shortly thereafter.
Though
not initially a best seller, "The Lord of the Rings" met with
rave reviews and continued to sell briskly over the years as word of
mouth spread. When, in the mid-1960s, an unscrupulous American publisher
attempted to exploit a loophole in copyright laws and release a paperback
version in the United States without Tolkien's permission, it sold 100,000
copies.
While
Tolkien was quite incensed, it showed there was growing interest in
the work. His official publisher put out new versions of the books,
and the title became a perennial best seller. Since 1956 when "The
Return of the King," the third part of the trilogy, was released,
"The Lord of the Rings" has sold more than 50 million copies.
***
The Good Professor
J.R.R.
Tolkien grew up near Birmingham, England, at the turn of the century.
Early in his education Tolkien became fascinated with mythology and
began to experiment with creating his own legends and poems. While convalescing
after contracting trench fever in World War I, Tolkien began to write
the first stories that would make up the history of Middle-earth.
After the war his first job was as an assistant lexicographer on the
"Oxford English Dictionary," and he eventually became a professor
at the University of Leeds, teaching Middle English and medieval mythology.
Tolkien loved words and their origins and embraced linguistics with
great enthusiasm. As a mental exercise, he invented his own languages.
Knowing full well language doesn't exist in a vacuum but is affected
by time and place and the interactions of people, he began to knit together
many of his tales and ideas and imaginary tongues into a single, comprehensive
setting.
By the late 1920s, Tolkien had earned a coveted teaching position at
Pembroke College in Oxford. During this time he helped form The Inklings,
an informal group of teachers and writers that included his good friend
C.S. Lewis. The group would meet to socialize and often read to each
other from works in progress. It was here he received feedback and encouragement
in his continuously growing project.
Tolkien was a prolific writer and he had already mapped out in his mind
a loose history of three "ages" of his mythical land. But
he was also a perfectionist and did not like to publish anything before
it had been finely polished. After "The Lord of the Rings"
was finished he continued to work on, but never finished, several books'
worth of stories set in Middle-earth. Indeed, his son Christopher has
practically made a career out of editing and publishing Tolkien's copious
notes, putting out more than 14 volumes of material since his father's
death in 1973.
What accounts for the long-term appeal of J.R.R. Tolkien's work? It
has a widespread popularity beyond that of a mere "sword and sorcery"
tale.
Perhaps it is his incredible attention to detail - including nine fully
formed languages and elaborate maps and timelines - which help makes
his creation so believable. ("The Return of the King" comes
with six appendices alone, covering everything from how to properly
pronounce the elven and dwarfen tongues to complete family trees of
hundreds of characters. It should be noted, none of these are required
reading, but add greatly in persuading readers they are looking at a
real history and not a work of fiction.)
In creating his own epic, Tolkien drew heavily on his knowledge of existing
sagas such as "Beowulf" and "King Arthur," and many
of the ideas in his writings were inspired by stories from Celtic and
Norse legends. As stated by Ruth Noel in her book, "The Mythology
of Middle-earth," "The sense of depth in Tolkien's works has
its source in the author's understanding and selective use of the ancient
themes from mythology. [This] has a profound effect on the reader [and]
is not accidental. Mythic themes deal with basic challenges that face
man universally ... such as love, fate and death."
Beyond such high ideas however, J.R.R. Tolkien loved nothing more than
spinning a good yarn. As he said in the foreword to "The Fellowship
of the Ring," he relished the opportunity to "try his hand
at a really long story that would hold the attention of readers, amuse
them, delight them and at times maybe excite them or deeply move them."
Millions of readers - and now moviegoers - will agree he succeeded.
***
Who's
Who in The Fellowship
To prevent the One Ring from falling into the hands of the Dark Lord,
nine heroes join together on a desperate quest:
Gandalf. A wizard of great renown, it has fallen to him to rally the
many peoples of Middle-earth against the return of Sauron.
Aragorn. A ranger of the north - and the last heir to the throne - he
must rid the land of evil before he may claim his birthright.
Legolas. A skilled archer and the son of an elven-king, he is chosen
to represent his people in the Fellowship.
Gimli. A stout dwarven warrior, he must put his distrust of elves aside
in this time of strife.
Boromir. A warrior of Gondor, he has come north seeking aid against
the creatures that pour forth from Mordor in increasing numbers.
Frodo. A hobbit from The Shire, he is about to discover the true nature
of the ring he inherited from his cousin, Bilbo.
Samwise. Frodo's gardener and faithful servant, Sam will protect his
master against any threat, even if it costs him his life.
Merry and Pippin. Frodo's cousins and closest friends, they are determined
to help the Ringbearer on his journey, no matter where it takes him
- even into the evil wastelands of Mordor itself.