Putin resembles Sauron in various unsettling ways–and like as with Sauron, the world had a chance to stop him early and failed.
Tag Archives: Lord of the Rings
Vladimir Putin as Sauron
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Hitler, J.R.R. Tolkien, Stalin, Ukraine invasion, Vladimir Putin Comments closed
Tucker Carlson’s Insidious Influence
Satirist Alexandra Petri wonders why Fox News’ Tucker Carlson aspires to no more than Hungary. Why not shoot for Mordor?
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged autocracies, Fox News, Hungary, J.R.R. Tolkien, Tucker Carlson Comments closed
Is a Fair Election Fight Still Possible?
“Prince Caspian” has a fight that foregrounds the issues the U.S. confronts regarding free and fair elections.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged 2020 election, C.S. Lewis, GOP, J.R.R. Tolkien, January 6 insurrection, Prince Caspian, voter suppression Comments closed
Tolkien’s Key to Entering the Internet
A Stanford computer science student writes in to apply a “Lord of the Rings” passage to a vexed internet question.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Internet, J. R. R. Tolkien, Mines of Moria, youtube Comments closed
GOP Oath Breakers Inhabit Twilight World
Only Romney honored his Senate oath in Trump’s trial, inviting comparisons with Thomas More & John Proctor. The other senator? Tolkien’s Dead Men of Dunharrow.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Arthur Miller, Constitution, Crucible, GOP, J. R. R. Tolkien, Man for All Seasons, Robert Bolt, Trump Senate Trial Comments closed
Think of Trump Enablers as Wormtongue
GOP legislators slavishly parroting Trump (and Putin) talking points in the impeachment inquiry reminds me of Wormtongue and Saruman.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Donald Trump, GOP, J. R. R. Tolkien, Trump impeachment inquiry, Trump Ukraine Scandal Comments closed
Beowulf Transcends Tolkien’s Racism
“Beowulf” and “Lord of the Rings” have blind spots but they are transcendent works for all that.
Fantasy Adventure, an Aid to Hiking
Monday Literary Hub has alerted me to an article on the importance of Lord of the Rings to long-distance hikers. According to a Rebecca Booroojian Outsider essay, many people have Lord of the Rings trail names (especially Gandalf), and inscriptions from the trilogy can be found in abundance. For instance, one will find everywhere Bilbo’s […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Appalachian Trail, hiking, Hobbit, J. R. R. Tolkien Comments closed
Fantasy and the Problem of Violence
Thursday Today I will be delivering the following talk as part of Sewanee’s Lifelong Learning series, delivered in a venue that used to be my high school and where I spoke 50 years ago. It may sound strange to some of you that a literary scholar such as myself would talk about fantasy. Aren’t we […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Beowulf, Beowulf poet, Carl Jung, fantasy, J. R. R. Tolkien, Joseph Campbell, Sigmund Freud, violence Comments closed
