[The Squatter of Amon Rûdh]

I'm still not entirely clear about what constitutes "fantasy" literature. Would Gormenghast or Dracula, for example be counted among fantasy? Are Kadath and Ulthar part of the same genre as Tirion and Minas Tirith? People seem to make a distinction between some writers of fantastic fiction and others, classing Tolkien as Fantasy and Lovecraft as horror but granting others, such as Sir Thomas More, William Shakespeare and Jonathan Swift the honorific "Literature".

I make no such distinctions. To me, an aspect of great writing is that it should tell us something of the human condition; strike a chord with something more fundamental than an amorphous notion of normality or propriety, or the imperative to "succeed", whatever that means. "Fantasy", "Science Fiction" and "Thriller", to name but three, are convenient classifications that are intended to distinguish different flavours of fiction that are not seen to be worthy of the blanket definition "classic"; which seems to be applied by critics to guide the chattering classes in their choice of books to display on their coffee tables.

I read for many reasons: better to understand people and life; because the title looked interesting when I saw the book; as something to do on the train, or while I'm waiting for the washing machine to complete its cycle; but mainly I read because I just enjoy it. Nobody ever spends time agonising over why they watch television, or why they go out with their friends, or why they listen to music: they simply do those things because they're pleasurable, and that's why I read. Frankly, the genre isn't important: good reading is where you find it in my opinion.

As should be obvious from my presence in this discussion, I find Tolkien's work to be rather an enjoyable read: his command of language is absolute; his characters are engaging and well-defined; his locations are awesome and yet believable, and his plots are intriguing. And there are maps. And swords. And prophecies. Wise sages, venerable kings, mighty warriors, beautiful princesses, epic battles and quests, and all the fun of the Faërie fair. What is there not to enjoy? But Tolkien goes one further: he juxtaposes this against everyday pettiness in such a way that it becomes obviously petty and pathetic; he also portrays the various gradations of good and evil, wisdom and foolishness, and so forth. He tackles difficult issues such as suicide, premature senility and schizophrenia with delicacy and taste. He shows us passion without vulgarity, war in all its guises: spectacle, tragedy, necessary evil and the fruit of greedy self-interest. He shows us friendship crossing barriers of class and race; love in its purest form; heroism, cowardice and, sometimes, utter depravity. One might say that he has it all.

Now, to my mind Tolkien could have set a story anywhere that had all of those qualities. The fact that he invented a set of locations, languages and cultures is to me merely a reflection of how fertile was his imagination; and although this adds a great deal to his work, it is not fundamental to the basic themes that he addresses. This means that, far from being escapist, he simply redecorates and renames the world we know, changing the superficial things, such as language and social convention as though reality had come under new management and was being refurbished without any change to its basic services. This enables him to show us the most basic elements of humanity, and like all mythology, to guide us in making the right decisions.

Since I really should be doing something else at the moment, I shall leave you now with a thought from Thomas Bulfinch. Some of you may remember it from a long-deceased signature:

If no other knowledge deserves to be called useful but that which helps to enlarge our possessions or to raise our station in society, then Mythology has no claim to the appellation. But if that which tends to make us happier and better can be called useful, then we claim that epithet for our subject. For Mythology is the handmaid of literature; and literature is one of the best allies of virtue and promoters of happiness.