Some have considered J.R.R. Tolkien's fiction, and especially the Lord of the Rings trilogy, to be some of the finest fiction of the twentieth century. With the movies that are so prominent today, attention has been focused in on this timeless classic. His amazing cronicles of fiction deserve investigation in their own right because of the their immense literary value. But they also have great value when investigated from a theological perspective. There is an amazing theological depth to these writings which is to be found in the books, and less so, in the movies. It is to a discussion of these elements of this great imaginative world that we shall now turn.
Our first task is to look at the way Tolkien presents his theology, how he weaves it into the story. This means we begin by stating what the Middle-Earth writings are not. They are not allegory. Middle-Earth isn't simply the working out of the Christian story with different names for the characters in a thinly disguised retelling. There is no Christ or John the Baptist, no Apostle Paul, no King David. Tolkien differed somewhat with his friend Lewis as to the character of Christian fantasy fiction. Lewis, in the Chronicles of Narnia, wrote an extremely popular allegory of the Christian faith, translating the Christian story into a world of fawns and other fantasy creatures. Tolkien's writing is also clearly written from a Christian perspective, by it takes on a distinctly different character. Whereas Lewis's writing has a roughly one-to-one correspondence with the Christian story, Tolkien's writing is much more a parable, constructed in a world that has rules all its own, drawing on the insights and realities of a Christian world view, but expressing them in a new and different way. Tolkien's writing seems to be permeated by Christian imagination, but is not directly Christian.
The Lord of the Rings conveys a lot of Christian truth in a way that may be best described as "indirect," reminiscient of Kierkegaard's way of communicating philosophical and theological truth through "indirect communication." What does this mean for Tolkien's fiction? It means that amazing similarity can be seen between the Christian story and Tolkien's stories. One striking example is the creation narrative in the Silmarillion. Tolkien begins the Ainulindale, one of the tales collected in the Silmarillion, by recounting the creation of the world by Eru, called Iluvatar. This being, "the One," created out of thought a group of holy beings. Iluvatar then gives them music, which they sing. It is this music, originating from Iluvatar, which constitute the creation. Iluvatar has begun the theme, but has given to the Ainur, the holy ones, music to add. But one of these holy ones, Melkor, desires for things of his own, and begins to weave his own themes into the music in his own violent tune. It isn't difficult to see the creation stories of the Bible at the foundation of this narrative. From the creation of all things by the One God, YHWH, and the giving over of creative initiative to that creation to be fruitful and multiply, to the power grab by one of the highest of the created beings, there are a number of parallels. The theme of music also weaves a beautiful picture of what Christians might otherwise speak of as Logos. Thus, Tolkien chronicles the beginnings of Middle-Earth in a way that evokes quite strongly the Christian story. This is only one of a number of ways that the influence of Tolkien's Christianity (Roman Catholicism, to be precise) influenced his fiction.
Of the many truths that can be gleaned from the world Tolkien has constructed, one of the most perceptive is his portray of the human race. The story of man weaved through Tolkien's writing is one of corruption and failure. The examples abound throughout the Lord of the Rings. Isildor is overtaken by the power of the ring when he has an opportunity to forever destroy it, instead keeping it for himself in pursuit of his own power. This leads to his own death, and the unleashing of Sauron's power in Middle-Earth. Boromir, the son of the Stewart of Gondor, is likewise loured by the power of the ring, wanting it to insure the power of Gondor, and seeks to seize it from Frodo.
Even apart from the possession of the ring, men do not put forth a very positive impression. Denethor is so corrupted by the power of his position as stewart that he cannot bear to hear that the rightful heir to the throne is returning, and takes his own life, and tries to also take the life of his son. Other examples abound, from the men of the Westfold to Butterbur at the Prancing Pony, there is failure and corruption throughout.
It is difficult in today's world to communicate the idea the humanity is corrupted by sin, and that humans are bent in upon themselves from the start. But in Tolkien's writing, this is an idea than is "indirectly" communicated. We get a clear picture of the fallen nature of humanity, and the need for redemption from the encroaching shadow, which is seeking to overtake us. |
