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| How The Lord of the Rings was thought up is a fantastic story itself. The way it goes is that Professor John Ronald Reuel Tolkien of the University of Oxford was sitting at his desk one day in the summer of 1930. Wearily he sat correcting exam papers when he came upon an answer book that had been left blank. He wrote on the page, "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." At that time he didn't know what a hobbit was, nor why is would live in a hole in the ground but he had to find out. During his free time, he sat at his desk and developed and story about a creature named Bilbo Baggins, who befriended some dwarves thanks to the wizard Gandalf the Grey and faced various adventures with them on a quest to steal back gold protected by a great dragon. When he finished his story he let some of his students read it. He did not know that one of his pupils was an employee for Stanley Urwin from the publishing firm Allen and Unwin. She introduced the book to Mr. Unwin and in 1937, 'The Hobbit' was published by Allen and Unwin. Professor J R R Tolkien was suddenly an author. It was an instant hit, popular with both the critics and the public and it very quickly became a classic. Soon the readers and publishers asked for a sequel. For many years, nothing was ever presented. But then, in 1954, Professor Tolkien stunned the world with 'The Lord of the Rings'. It was the complete opposite of 'The Hobbit' despite being the sequel and was nearly fifteen years in the making. Professor Paul H. Kocher wrote in 'Master of Middle Earth', "The Hobbit is a story for children and the stealing of a dragon's hoard by some dwarves with the reluctant aid of a little hobbit. The Lord of the Rings, on the other hand, stretches the adult imagination with its account of a world in peril. Each work has virtues proper to its kind, but they had better be read independently of each other as contrasting, if related, specimens of the fantasy writer art...The Hobbit was never mean to be a wholly serious tale, nor his young audience to listen without laughing often. In contradistinction, The Lord of the Rings does on occasion evoke smiles, but most of the time its issues go too deep for laughter." Immediately it was decided by the publisher that 'The Lord of the Rings' was to be told through three, separately released books due the post World War II paper shortage. It took a while for the public to understand 'The Lord of the Rings', but in the 1960's the popularity of the books rocketed. At that same time, J R R Tolkien retired from Oxford and he enjoyed the retirement years until 1973, when he passed away, aged 81. (A little fact for you. The desk the he wrote the book on is now in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. And on top of that is the original manuscript of 'The Hobbit'.) Information thanks to J.W's LOTR Fansite |
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| ~*~This page is just temporary. Clara is at the moment typing a complete biography for the professor. We'll tell you when it's been changed~*~ |