[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by SpM

Yet not, for Tolkien, inevitably so. In Tolkien's works, power corrupts if employed in the service of evil. But power and authority can be exercised in the service of good, too, as in the case of Aragorn's rule. Manwë's rule is another example. I suspect that Moorcock and Pullman would take a different view, namely that power and authority is almost always a corrupting influence. I find myself rather in agreement with that approach, when considering the "real world", although I do not find Tolkien's treatment of the issue as lacking credibility, in the context of Middle-earth.

Yes Tolkien gives us some examples (of Men in particular, but its not isolated to them as a race) of figureheads who do not allow thier power to corrupt them. But they are quite pointedly rare, and even with Aragorn we see occasions which demonstrate how easily such a great Man could tip into arrogance. I think Tolkien makes it clear that power can even corrupt a very good man (or elf). Even where power is ostensibly being used for 'good' as in the case of Galadriel and Lothlorien, scratch the surface and there is a nasty side. So I think Tolkien is not that far away from Moorcock and Pullman in this respect, though he will allow that sometimes, just sometimes, a person might come along who isn't like that - Tolkien allows some occasional, fleeting hope.

Originally Posted by SpM

I take the point made by Child about different values within the text being ascribed differing value over time and between different readers/critics.

This, I like to think, is because Tolkien's work goes beyond mere prose in style. It is poetic and visual; the images, characters and ideas he draws can be quite mercurial as opposed to the fixed images we sometimes get from fiction.

Originally Posted by SpM

But, as I understand it, on the basis of Tolkien's own statements (as expressed in his Letters) and on many commentators on his works, he did have an agenda of sorts. Not political, maybe, but certainly religious (consciously so in the revision) and, to a degree, social/environmental. That is not to say that he wrote LotR to "preach" or to persuade anyone to his own viewpoint. But, to my mind, his agenda certainly influenced what he wrote. Pullman and Moorcock dislike LotR not because they perceive no agenda but because they see it, at best, as irrelevant and, at worst, as dangerous.

If Tolkien had any clear religious agenda then it would be more apparent and obvious - I think the fact that people are still arguing over this is proof that his text was not meant to be taken as some kind of religious lesson or allegory. Yes it might be there, I don't think we can deny that his Catholicism influenced much of what he wrote, but it is not there as part of a religious agenda. Tolkien may have gone over his work at a later stage and identified the religious analogies (especially when questioned by letters from readers), but this has to be put into the context of his public image as a Catholic academic. Though I don't want to go opening cans of worms about Religion in LotR - I'll leave it at saying that yes, his religion must have influenced what he wrote, but any 'agenda' was sketchy and indirect at best/worst.

Originally Posted by SpM

I do not disagree about the diverse appeal of Tolkien's works. But I do wonder why his most vociferous critics (Greer, Hari, Moorcock etc) are those with left-wing leanings. I also wonder why it seems to be the case that those who seek to criticise Tolkien's writings are always so vociferous in doing so. Is it, as has been suggested, a consequence of frustration at their widespread and enduring appeal? Are there any critics of Tolkien who adopt a more reasonable, constructive approach? Based on what I have read, Pullman would appear to be the most reasonable of them all ...

Why are they vociferous? Because you'd have to shout loud to be heard over all our fan-worship, over the massive sales and over the lists which have placed Tolkien as 'the best....ever!" Anyway, about those with leftist leanings. Having leftist leanings myself I can honestly say that there is a sector on 'that side' who are terribly earnest and like everything to be as PC as humanly possible; they also like 'challenging' Arts - which sadly often translates into cruddy poetry, unwatchable films and inedible food. However, there is also a significant 'leftist' grouping who are likely to be Tolkien-obsessed - the New Agers, the greenies and not least, the outdoorsy types, those who like nothing better than nearly being killed by high gales halfway up Helvellyn on a weekend.