[Glenethor]

Greets,

This is gonna be a bit long and rambling. Hopefully something relevant will pop outa my head...
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I haven't read a lot of critiques of Tolkien's work. Only one negative sticks in my mind, the famous 'children's book that got out of hand' comment made by a reviewer when it was released. I am also not a Tolkien scholar. So, I come to this discussion without many external references to this work.

We could get into a detailed philosophical discussion on the nature of knowledge, or epistomology, and try to objectively determine what elements of a work of art are inherent in 'great' art, but first we would all have to agree on the precise meaning of the word 'great' (and 'art') and how it is differentiated from 'not so great' or 'sucks.' In other words, for a scientifically valid premise to be made, those variables deemed to be relevant must be measurable. I don't even try to go there, because, as I said, it will drive me nuts, especially if I try to work out all of the operational definitions with other people.

See, I am not arguing in favour of LoTR being 'The Book of the Century,' I am only pointing out some of the pitfalls (as have others here) in trying to attach such an exclusive label to someone's work. LoTR meets two of my criteria for a great work of art: Cross-cultural/non-cohort popularity; and it is, while not a religious book, spiritually nourishing. I am also not arguing in favour of it not being the 'Book of the Century.' What I am saying is that it will outlive us all.

I agree in principle that you cannot, with any significant validity, argue for one piece of work over another on the basis of 'popularity.' HOWEVER: I think that popularity becomes a significantly valid criterion if it has remained popular for generations. Ideas, art, and other forms of human activity are subject to the same kinds of pressures as organisms are in terms of natural selection. Great works will strike chords across cultures and generations. Those that don't, get pushed to some obscure corner of whatever specialization we are talking about, the subject of arcane archivist discussions of little interest to the vast majority of people. Britney's CDs will be recycled into garbage pails in 40 years, as will most of this century's popular music. What is that spark which gives a work of art and its author immortality? It is an elusive quality that if the beezenus people could formulate, they''d bottle it, patent it, and make a killing. Unfortunately, or fortunately, they haven't a clue about how to do it. That is what I was saying in terms of the creative process: It is often mysterious. If we use Mozart as an example, we are to believe that he pulled the music out of the air and wrote it down without any corrections. As a musician, I fear I have more in common with Salieri than I do with that kind of virtuousity. Yet, what qualities of his music, and that of others, still moves people 230 years later? Every artist who I've ever known has said that they do it primarily for themselves because they have to. It is a compulsion. So, JRR's statements about that are valid, but I think like every artist I have ever known, they want others to enjoy or appreciate their creations. Any artist who says that they don't care what others think of their work is either not terribly self-aware, or lying. That being said, for sure Tolkien didn't pander to a public when he wrote. So, is creating for the sake of creation a relevant variable in defining the relative quality of a work of art? Yes and no. I'd say there was a relationship, but not necessarily a causal one. The greats listen only to themselves when they create, but then, so too do the 'not so greats.'

Another way to define 'Book of the Century' is in terms of cultural impact. How did it affect our inner lives? Our outer lives? How did it affect who we are as human beings in relation to each other and the 'real world?' As the 20th century has just been left behind, it is impossible to definitively argue in favour of one side or another because we are too close to it. That reflects back to my statement about needing some time to settle before we can assess this variable.

Anyways, as I said, I tend not to worry about such things. My brain is starting to hurt...
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