J.R.R. Tolkien's Utopianism and the Classics

J.R.R. Tolkien's Utopianism and the Classics
Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages : 225
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781350241473
ISBN-13 : 1350241474
Rating : 4/5 (73 Downloads)

Book Synopsis J.R.R. Tolkien's Utopianism and the Classics by : Hamish Williams

Download or read book J.R.R. Tolkien's Utopianism and the Classics written by Hamish Williams and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2023-02-09 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book opens up new perspectives on the English fantasy writer J.R.R. Tolkien, arguing that he was an influential thinker of utopianism in 20th-century fiction and that his scrutiny of utopias can be assessed through his dialogue with antiquity. Tolkien's engagement with the ancient world often reflects an interest in retrotopianism: his fictional places – cities, forests, homes – draw on a rich (post-)classical narrative imagination of similar spaces. Importantly for Tolkien, such narratives entail 'eutopian' thought experiments: the decline and fall of distinctly 'classical' communities provide an utopian blueprint for future political restorations; the home as oikos becomes a space where an ideal ethical reciprocity between host and guest can be sought; the 'ancient forest' is an ambiguous, unsettling site where characters can experience necessary forms of awakening. From these perspectives, tokens of Platonic moderation, Augustan restoration, Homeric xenophilia, and the Ovidian material sublime are evident in Tolkien's writing. Likewise, his retrotopianism also always entails a rewriting of ancient narratives in post-classical and modern terms. This study then explores how Tolkien's use of the classical past can help us to align classical and utopian studies, and thus to reflect on the ranges and limits of utopianism in classical literature and thought.


J.R.R. Tolkien's Utopianism and the Classics Related Books

J.R.R. Tolkien's Utopianism and the Classics
Language: en
Pages: 225
Authors: Hamish Williams
Categories: Literary Criticism
Type: BOOK - Published: 2023-02-09 - Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book opens up new perspectives on the English fantasy writer J.R.R. Tolkien, arguing that he was an influential thinker of utopianism in 20th-century ficti
Tolkien and the Classical World
Language: en
Pages: 458
Authors: Hamish Williams
Categories: Literary Criticism
Type: BOOK - Published: 2021-01-16 - Publisher:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

While scholars have often cited the influence of medieval texts and society on J.R.R. Tolkien's seminal fantasy creations, the role of the classical world - the
Utopian and Dystopian Themes in Tolkien’s Legendarium
Language: en
Pages: 205
Authors: Mark Doyle
Categories: Literary Criticism
Type: BOOK - Published: 2019-11-08 - Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Utopia and Dystopia in Tolkien’s Legendarium explores how Tolkien’s works speak to many modern people’s utopian desires despite the overwhelming dominance
thersites 18
Language: en
Pages: 182
Authors: Pia Düvel
Categories:
Type: BOOK - Published: 2024-05-08 - Publisher: Universitätsverlag Potsdam

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

thersites is an international open access journal for innovative transdisciplinary classical studies edited by Annemarie Ambühl, Filippo Carlà-Uhink, Christia
The Ancient Sea
Language: en
Pages: 328
Authors: Hamish Williams
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 2022-11-17 - Publisher: Liverpool University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In the ancient Mediterranean world, the sea was an essential domain for trade, cultural exchange, communication, exploration, and colonisation. In tandem with t