Tolkien: A Cultural Phenomenon, 2nd Edition [Paperback]

Brian Rosebury (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 17, 2004

This comprehensive and discriminating account of Tolkien's work has been revised and expanded to take account both of recent developments in scholarship, and of the recent films directed by Peter Jackson. Tracing the development of Tolkien's creative technique over several decades, it explores the bewildering profusion of shorter works, as well as devoting an extended analysis to The Lord of the Rings. Chapters consider Tolkien's contribution to the history of ideas, and review the critical reception of the Lord of the Rings film adaptations and other popular adaptations of his work.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Brian Rosebury is Principal Lecturer in English, University of Central Lancashire.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan; Revised and Updated edition (January 17, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1403912637
• ISBN-13: 978-1403912633
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,585,426 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A true modernist literary criticism of Tolkien, August 6, 2004

By 

David Bratman (San Jose, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tolkien: A Cultural Phenomenon, 2nd Edition (Paperback)

A lucid, insightful, sympathetic discussion of Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" as a 20th-century novel with the values appropriate to canonical 20th-century novels. To Rosebury, Tolkien has flaws but is a significant, though not great, literary figure with much to offer. His other work is also discussed, as is his place in literature.

Most of his argument is that there is no excuse for critics to dismiss "Lord of the Rings" as a bestseller and therefore bad: it has the literary qualities in conception and narrative that these critics should be looking for and appreciating.

Tom Shippey says much the same in "J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century." But the books differ: Shippey is more concerned with broad cultural context, while Rosebury focuses more narrowly on the text as an object of literary art. He writes a cool analysis with only occasional touches of exasperation at wrong-headed criticism, where Shippey is a polemicist.

Rosebury is equipped to tell critics why they should be reading Tolkien. Ane he does his telling in plain English, so we may all follow him and learn a great deal.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars an improvement and a fresh outlook, June 13, 2004

By 

Ted Carlson (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tolkien: A Cultural Phenomenon, 2nd Edition (Paperback)

I read this book in its previous incarnation (from the early 90's) and was put off by its sneering attitude toward the legions of fans who had embraced all things Middle-earth, assuming somehow that their devotion was lowering the standards by which Tolkien would or should be judged by those with higher taste and academic credentials. Anyway, some of that attitude is gone in this edition.

What I thought was a strength of Rosebury's study is still there and in some places elaborated on, namely, an actual study of Tolkien's writing style (as opposed to a study of his sources). Rosebury's discussion of the "high style" found in The Silmarillion and some passage of The Lord of the Rings is thought-provoking. I agree with his assessment of the writing in the story "The Fall of Gondolin" from The Book of Lost Tales, that Tolkien writes with "ruthless energy" and a strength that evokes "panic and disorder while maintaining narrative coherence."

I also found his chapter on the films interesting. I have to totally agree with his assessment of Galadriel's temptation scene - her transformation resembles a "roaring seagreen hellhag." Exactly my feeling about that not-so-special effect!

This new edition improves an already worthwhile book, but could have used one final proofing polish. You expect to find a few typos in any book on Tolkien because of the complicated spellings and names, but this edition seemes to have a bit more than its share.

Anyway, I do recommend this edition of Rosebury's book.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars STAND OUT INSIGHT, December 24, 2007

By 

Kerry Leimer (Makawao, Hawaii United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tolkien: A Cultural Phenomenon, 2nd Edition (Paperback)

This is an excellent appraisal of Tolkien's work and its reverberance throughout contemporary culture. Just as remarkably, it is very distinct from the growing body of Tolkien scholarship, offering an original perspective and context for the evaluation Tolkien's complex and beloved works. That said, there are only two points I can add to the reviews already here, and they both might easily be worthless.

First, Rosebury expends a good deal of thought and energy articulating the manner in which the literary establishment categorizes, accepts or rejects "The Lord of the Rings". As in a similar attempt by Marjorie Burns, this opening chapter is excellent in its linearity, breadth of information and depth of context. But in the end it shapes up as either preaching to the choir or another apologia to the critics who refuse to apply their own attention to the work. I'm happy that Rosebury seems unable to admit that the only threshold to cross in accepting or rejecting Tolkien is, right or wrong, simply one of taste -- even though such acknowledgment does nothing to diminish Tolkien's accomplishment. And to be fair to those critics who do not grasp what a singular accomplishment The Lord of the Rings is, I have to confess that despite the esteem I have for that work it is possible to see the opposition's point. The analogy might be this: while much of 20th Century literature is safely viewed as the work of artists, Tolkien's work -- implicated as it is with his professorial status in language -- can be seen from that vantage as the accomplishment of a highly gifted engineer.

Just as some self-taught painters are categorized as "outsider artists" there is no shame in leaving Tolkien --to his credit -- an outsider. Take into account his late-in-life doubts about "creativity" (not to mention his willful addition of the prefix "sub") and we see a very Catholic doubt that was most recently repackaged and forcibly dragged into the 21st Century by no less a figure than Pope Ratzinger in his 2006 screed against this innately human pursuit. And I doubt the distinction would mean much to Tolkien personally -- we owe at least as much to the brilliance and creativity of engineers as we do artists and often the distinction can be artificial.

Second, Rosebury is manifestly at his best in evaluating the Jackson film version of the book. But there is another nagging nit here, and that is Rosebury's willingness to chime in with the conventional wisdom claiming dramatic necessity concerning some of Jackson's less questionable indiscretions with the text. Perhaps we all need to understand that the more questionable indiscretions were decided purely for reasons of commerce, not for drama. The amount of money involved in the production of Jackson's three films -- and the volumes of profit they were designed to generate -- is all you need to know about what shaped such decisions in making the film version of the book. There is certainly no legitimate cinematic reason for the distortions: you need look no further than the films which comprise the art house canon to see that cinematic form is more pliable than Hollywoodland would have you think. Resorting as Jackson's films do to overt and routine cliff-hangerism, the only explanation remains this: neither cinematic nor dramatic concerns but Popular Cinema and Commercial concerns were the guideposts. A book as eccentric and disdainful of contemporary forms as "The Lord of the Rings" does not demand to be made into a film of such nakedly conventional form. Place that in the context of Tolkien's own views on matters of either commerce or form and you can reasonably conclude that the only "Return" of importance here was good ol' ROI -- "Return on Investment" safely remains King.

Don't get me wrong: I love the books and I appreciate and enjoy the films. Rosebury makes a good argument in support of the idea that the film versions will not ultimately subsume the text, as has been the outcome in other cases where movies dumb down their sources. In the end, "Tolkien: A Cultural Phenomenon", is one of the clearest and most contemporary assessments of the works and their influence: highly recommended to anyone wishing to delve into the text and the cultural interactions with it.