Tolkien's Characters

[Neferchoirwen]

the characters were introduced as part of the story, that's all

You lost me there...aren't the characters part of the story, and that without the characters, a story would never exist?

But I agree with you that the events are what seem to be the most important thing in the books, though the sole purpose is to "house" the languages that Tolkien has created.

And returning to the topic of characters...Middle Earth is also a character in itself. And the people that well, people it are also what gives it life, making it very credible and very believable. Its history gives it a specific feel that is exclusive to itself.