Tuesday, July 20, 2010

What's Happening to Tolkien in Modern Day

Today, (yes, today, and even more, only an hour or so ago), one of my sisters said to my youngest sister, "Tolkien practically made up tall Elves." They were discussing LOTR. Although, to my utter dismay and disappointment, none of them have actually read it... most of them have seen the movies, however.

My youngest sister burst out and said, "Nuh-uh! He did NOT make it up!" (Her basis for this was Eragon, which she and all of my siblings had read--by my introduction. :D ) She was genuinely convinced that Tolkien, (she was the only one who hadn't seen the movies) must have stolen the idea from someone else--Paolini, perhaps.

I was surprised. Tolkien, in my opinion, was one of the most masterful fantasy writers that had ever lived. His plot; flawless. His worldmaking; unrivaled. His characters have lived on through the decades, read by many people young and old. It was one of the most epic fantasies of all time. If I ever wanted to write like anyone, it would be Tolkien.

Tolkien, with all of the new fantasy books of vampires and werewolves (or dragons, Elves and dwarves, for that matter), is slowly slipping away from the new generation. Most young writers like me, of course, are of the same mind; that J. R. R. Tolkien was one of the greatest fantasy writers ever. But other readers, especially those who read mostly secular books, are overlooking Tolkien, and dismissing him as another old-fashoned 'classic' that they might have to read in school.

Which brings me to another point; 'Classic' is a term used nowadays to describe old, dusty books no one can understand. In reality, classics, like LOTR, are the greatest books, books that have endured the scrutiny of generations. These are the ones that are unique, these are the ones that have laid the foundation of all plots, characters, and books in general. Without LOTR, there might not BE an Eragon.

So the main point of this entire post? Well, it was mostly for me to write my thoughts, but BESIDES that, it is this;

Remember Tolkien.

--
Jake

2 comments:

RED~Scribe said...

I totally know what you mean. I know lots of people who have seen the movies but have never read the books. Personally, I read the books long before I was allowed to even watch the movies. Although the movies are good, I enjoy the books more, since they reach a level of detail that the movies ever could.

Mackenzie A. Lockhart said...

I pledge my utmost agreement 100%

Squeaks.