Where the Middle Ages Begin
In the spring of 2014 a translation of Beowulf by J.R.R. Tolkien was published. Last week, Andy Orchard, one of the leading scholars of Old English, offered his thoughts about the book and revealed that he will be writing his own translation of the famous medieval poem.
J.R.R. Tolkien, the medievalist who became the father of modern fantasy literature, translated many poems out of Old English, Old Norse and Middle English into carefully versified modern English
The Fellowship of the Ring were supposed to travel from Imraldis to the forges of Mt. Doom in order to destroy the One Ring of Sauron.
Much has already been written about the influence of Norse mythology on The Lord of the Rings. Less research has so far been done about how other aspects of the culture and history of the Vikings and Anglo-Saxons influenced Tolkien’s writing.
Latin riddles depended on knowledge of a specific subject in order to be deciphered, while English riddles were often about common things like the weather.
The literature of war in English claims its origin from the Homeric epics, and the medieval accounts of chivalry and the crusades.
Where did trolls come from? What did medieval and early modern people think of trolls? How did the concept of the modern day troll evolve?
J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth is Beowulf for the twentieth century.
Happy twelvety-third birthday to J.R.R. Tolkien! Let’s go back to the Lord of the Rings and find out which of the brave companions are you?
One of the most famous scenes in the story of The Hobbit is when Bilbo meets up with Gollum in the caves under the Misty Mountains. The two engage in a game of riddles, and Bilbo is able to escape with his life and a magical ring. Here are eight of the riddles they told each other – can you solve them?
That was one long battle scene – however, The Hobbit trilogy ends with a relatively good movie.
This paper seeks to illuminate resonances of medieval swords and sword-lore in Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, where swords and the lore associated with them play important, if largely neglected, roles.
Are you ready to journey into Middle-earth one last time? Come celebrate the final film in Peter Jackson’s epic film series, The Hobbit, with us and find out which member of Thorin’s Company you’re most like!
The books of J.R.R. Tolkien contain multiple Characters, Places and Plots that remind the reader of Old Norse Poetry. This essay gives a short and incomplete overview on the most obvious elements.
Are you an expert on the vast and timeless worlds crafted by Tolkien?
Michael Drout, a professor of English and director of the Center for the Study of the Medieval at Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts believes that Tolkien’s immense and lasting popularity can be explained by a ‘perfect storm hypothesis.’
Considering the scarcity of the Anglo-Saxon influence in modern war-literature in general, one may wonder and stop by a work like The Lord of the Rings or Silmarillion, which few would be willing to categorise as serious war-literature.
Some Tolkien fun – Which one of the nine members of the fellowship are you?
Let’s see how well you know Middle Earth’s most powerful wizard.
I will show how Martin is working against the tradition of marginalized female characters in the fantasy genre.
Nearly 90 years after he first made the translation, J.R.R. Tolkien’s version of Beowulf arrives at bookstores around the world today.
Examining the Middle Ages through modern eyes: movies, TV, stage, tourism and books. How do we perform the Middle Ages?
Tales of kingship in modern fiction, specifically in the work of Neil Gaiman (The Sandman) and George R. R. Martin (A Game of Thrones), are similar to the medieval models, as kingship and the requirements of kingship were popular themes in medieval texts, including Beowulf and King Horn.
In 1926, J.R.R. Tolkien, who would later go on to write The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, completed his own translation of the Old English poem Beowulf. Eighty-eight years later that work is going to be published for the first time
While the first film was mostly criticized for its divergences from the novel, in this second instalment they usually prove to be an improvement.
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