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Something I worth concerning the Tolkien fandom is its wealthy educational legacy. That being mentioned, it may be overwhelming as a fan to know the place to begin with a long time of historical past and loads of articles, books, conferences, and lectures launched within the current.
The sources included right here—podcasts, fan organizations, books, journals, and extra—are all good beginning factors for followers trying to discover Tolkien academia. While the sources included right here talk about Tolkien in depth, none are written by him. For a information to his works, go to the J.R.R. Tolkien Reading Pathway. To keep away from repetition with the Guide to Tolkien Adaptations I wrote in 2022, this information leans extra towards commentary and educational works than direct variations.
Listen to Tolkien Podcasts
Of the avenues to Tolkien scholarship, I take into account this probably the most accessible by way of value and as a gateway. Podcasts are typically free to listeners, and they will introduce you to additional studying via their discussions. Plus, many are hosted by specialists within the discipline of Tolkien research.
The Tolkien Professor, run by Dr. Corey Olsen, is without doubt one of the longest-running and hottest Tolkien podcasts. Each episode is a recording of a lecture given by Dr. Olsen that covers all kinds of Middle-earth matters. The podcast is, as of writing, nearing its 550th episode and nonetheless going robust. Dr. Olsen additionally runs the Mythgard Exploring The Lord of the Rings podcast, which presents a line-by-line deep studying and commentary of LOTR.
While it has extra of a lighthearted relatively than educational focus, The Sillymarillion is a good entry level for followers trying to discover the legendarium past casually studying the books. In it, longtime Tolkien fan Paul and newcomer Tori enterprise via Tolkien’s legendarium, starting with The Silmarillion (therefore the identify) and at present studying via The Two Towers. They usually herald company to share their very own commentary and views on the chapter being mentioned. Listen for the jokes and considerate chapter-by-chapter insights.
Finally, The Tolkien Experience Podcast run by Dr. Luke Shelton, interviews a unique Tolkien scholar each episode on their educational focus and what drew them to it. It’s an amazing useful resource for studying extra about completely different aspects of Tolkien academia and discovering students whose work matches your pursuits.
For extra suggestions, together with considered one of my all-time favorites, The Prancing Pony Podcast, go to The Best LOTR Podcasts.
Join Tolkien Fan Organizations
Fan organizations provide not solely a chance to join with the group surrounding Tolkien’s work (at all times helpful) but in addition to interact with present scholarship via journals, digital or in-person seminars, and educational conferences. The two largest fan organizations are The Tolkien Society and The Mythopoeic Society.
While The Tolkien Society is predicated within the UK, it’s open to worldwide members, with digital and worldwide mailing choices for his or her bimonthly e-newsletter, vacation playing cards, and journals. Its annual convention, Oxonmoot, held yearly in Oxford in the course of the weekend closest to Bilbo and Frodo’s birthday on September 22, is a good alternative to attend lectures by famend Tolkien students. It additionally hosts smials (or in-person branches) across the globe, and you may search right here to see if one is situated close to you.
The Mythopoeic Society, based mostly within the United States but in addition welcoming to worldwide members, is based on a shared love of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and different members of The Inklings literary group. Like The Tolkien Society, it runs educational and fan journals which can be out there to members digitally or by mail. It additionally hosts the annual Mythcon gathering in late summer time in addition to a digital convention referred to as the Online Midyear Seminar in winter.
Subscribe to Journals on Tolkien Studies
Whether you’re trying to learn the newest in Tolkien Studies or a long time of historical past, you may’t do higher than a tutorial journal. Both The Tolkien Society’s Mallorn and The Mythopoeic Society’s Mythlore are peer-reviewed, with over 50 years of points to discover of their archives.
Founded in 2004, the Tolkien Studies journal by West Virginia University Press releases points yearly. Its focus is literary and linguistic criticism.
If you may’t at present afford to subscribe to any journals, attempt The Tolkien Society’s Mallorn archive. There, members and non-members alike can learn a long time of points at no cost up to 2021. Additionally, The Journal of Tolkien Research is an open-access and peer-reviewed publication, with all volumes revealed out there on the Tolkienists web site.
Read Academic Books About Tolkien and His work
Books analyzing Tolkien’s legacy and work have a wealthy educational historical past, with publications reaching again as early as 1977 with Humphrey Carpenter’s J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography. Verlyn Flieger (begin with Splintered Light) and Tom Shippey (begin with The Road to Middle-earth) are two students whose books contributed to the foundations of contemporary Tolkien Studies, and each are nonetheless energetic and revered within the discipline.
If you’re curious about annotated commentary on Tolkien’s legendarium, you’ll need to try The Lord of the Rings: A Readers’ Guide by students Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull. By studying LOTR with it as a reference, readers get a deep, line-by-line evaluation that leads to a recent and well-researched perspective on the textual content.
New books on Tolkien Studies are being revealed yearly, constructing on and providing new interpretations. A few latest guide releases written or edited by Tolkien students embody:
Subscribe to Newsletters by Tolkien Scholars
Like podcasts, newsletters is usually a extra accessible choice for Tolkien scholarship. Many have free subscription tiers, with paid choices out there to entry extra or to assist their work.
Rev. Tom Emanuel is a theologian and PhD scholar on the University of Glasgow whose space of curiosity is the intersection between Tolkien, faith, and fan research. His e-newsletter Queer and Back Again explores these connections, with latest matters together with “Tolkien in a Post-9/11 World,” “Tolkien, AI, and the Temptation of the Machine,” and “Is the Lord of the Rings an Allegory?”
Dr. Robin Reid is a Professor Emeritus on the Texas A&M University whose full-time focus is now unbiased Tolkien scholarship. She runs the Writing from Ithilien e-newsletter, the place she explores Tolkien as a world phenomenon; linguistics and translations of Tolkien’s work; and fan responses to his legendarium over the a long time, together with fanfiction, musical tributes, and visible artwork.
While these sources are actually simply the beginning to a wealthy discipline of academia, they’re all glorious beginning factors for aspiring Tolkien students.
Interested in studying extra concerning the many aspects of Tolkien fandom and discovering your personal nook? Check out this overview by editor and SFF Yeah! host, Jenn Northington.
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