[Child of the 7th Age]

Just a minute here, SpM . If we ask Moorcock and Pullman, surely we must invite Tolkien as well! I enjoy the writings of all three authors, but my personal sympathies are closer to Davem's on this issue.

Is LotR a fundamentally right wing work (and I am not talking about the extreme right here)? Is it more likely to be appreciated by those with conservative, traditionalist political leanings? Spiritually and socially, Tolkien does come across as rather orthodox but, from his Letters, he seems to be rather politically radical (although his politics seem closer to anti-big state “enlightened Toryism” than anything else).

This has always been a fascinating question to me. Years ago, when I first read the books, those who enjoyed the stories tended to be people who could be labelled "leftish", at least by the standards of American culture in the sixties. This was at a time when the environmental movement was just starting up, and many sympathized with Tolkien's "green" views. Perhaps this is in contrast to the situation today, when many Christians read Tolkien and see echoes of their beliefs in his writing. At least some of these readers would probably regard themselves as conservative on many social issues.

Still, we have to be careful with this labelling. The odd thing is that, a work labelled reactionary in one era can be viewed as liberal in another. Even in the same time period, one critic can have a different take than another. Tolkien's "pro-rural, anti-technology" message can be regarded as reactionary. Yet, another critic might argue that Tolkien was one of the earliest authors who challenged readers to consider the implications of man's indifference and/or manipulation of the environment.