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Tolkien: Man and Myth: A Literary Life

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I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about the man behind the LOTR, The Hobbit, and the Silmarillion. Largely based on Tolkien's own letters, as well as perspectives from critics, friends and family, Pearce's book offers a fresh and insightful perspective of Christianity's influence on Tolkien's philosophy and use of myth. I have seen no other work that provides such an articulate and well documented linkage between the man's faith and his works. Pearce succinctly and effectively dismantles claims that Tolkien is either reactionary or escapist, while furthering the case that the creative genius is one of the most important and influential authors of this century. As a Christian, I am inspired by Pearce's description of Tolkien's Theocentric approach to life and to his work. Traveling in Christian "fundamentalist" circles, I too often see Tolkien's name associated with occult and New Age activity. Of all criticisms leveled at the man and his works, I'm sure that these unfair allegations would hurt this devout Christian more than all others. Only a profound misunderstanding of the man and his myth ( and Myth, in general ) could lead to such a confused opinion. T:M&M also educated me as to the profound impact Tolkien had on his fellow Inkling, C.S. Lewis, the renowned Christian apologist, whose own works, including the Narnia tales ( which were heavily influenced by Tolkien), are staples in every Christian bookstore. And yet Tolkien's name is often pronounced with contempt in Christian circles. Again, this book may help to silence this kind of calumny. Furthermore, Pearce's book has prompted me to read the works of G.K. Chesterton ( another noted apologist ) , as well as more of the letters, essays, and unfinished tales of Tolkien himself. T:M&M reminded me of my early days as a born again Christian. Having discovered Tolkien two years before I "discovered" Christ, I now recall the odd sense of familiarity and recognition when I read the Bible for the first time. At the time I simply attributed this to a primitive recognition of the Truth which is hardwired into the hearts of all men. I still believe that, but I also recognize that I was "remembering" my previous experience with Tolkien. His myths were just as he had intended them - a variation on the theme of the "True Myth" of Christ Jesus. Thanks to Mr. Pearce for helping me recognize this.

"The Lord of the Rings is of course a fundamentally religious and Catholic work" (Tolkien, in a letter to Robert Murray)

These words might not be to the liking of many Tolkien critics, analysts or pseudo-writers that have been trying to unravel the Tolkien Myth. I believe that many of them have been at least partially unsuccessful due to the simple fact that they underestimated or totally overlooked the main essence of Tolkien's life which was his spiritual faith as a Catholic.

Of course, this is by no means popular for a writer. Indeed , being a Catholic can mean instant "unpopularity" in certain cases; a paradox considering that Tolkien is by all means an extremely popular personality. Probably popularity has been helped by misunderstanding the man as a consequence of so many superfluous opinions by wrongly called "Tolkien experts".

It is thus with great enthusiasm that I read this essay by Joseph Pearce. It is a well documented and objective work that reaches on to the very deep roots of Tolkien's motivations and perceptions of the world which were based on his Christian beliefs and his life as a convinced Catholic.

The essay begins with a lively description of the turbulence caused when several reader polls established Tolkien as "The Author of the Century". Although this is an interesting (even fun) part, the most valuable comes from the rest of the book where we discover a proper view of Tolkien as essentially a Catholic author. Pearce , convincingly achieves this through an impartial presentation of documents, facts and original testimonials that permits us to glimpse the "Real Tolkien".
Written in an agile and practical style, it permits a clear and pleasant reading without falling into the usual dull academicism of many essays.

I consider this, along with "The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien" a most illuminating source to enjoy and truly understand the creator of such beauty as "The Lord of the Rings". Regarding beauty, let me end quoting Tolkien again: "...Our Lady, upon which all my own small perception of beauty both in majesty and simplicity is founded"

The truth is that "The Lord of the Rings" didn't just win in one poll, it won in several, and Tolkien himself won "author of the century". What really upset the literati was that he won again, and again, and again. Burned 'em up, it did. What this said was that "The Lord of the Rings" was not 'the greatest' book of the century, but it was the one people loved the most, the one they cherished and gave their children, the one that had the most meaning for them in the quiet places of their hearts. Which hurt the establishment even more, I expect, and which leads us to Mr. Pearce's book.

Part of the problem with writing biographical material now nearly 30 years after a seminal biography (and a dozen or more literary critiques) have come to press regarding one of the century's most popular writers, is that it's all pretty much been said. So don't be surprised when Carpenter's excellent and justly famous biography is footnoted many, many times. This isn't meant to be an entirely original biography. The biographical section does in 4 pages what Carpenter does in 40 - this book is about something else. Tolkien distrusted traditional biography and doubted very seriously that just because something happened to an artist that it was necessarily important to him or her. Tolkien's own list of the most important events of his life and art is pretty short...the Catholic Church and growing up in the pre-industrial English countryside. Not much there for a biographer to go on, seemingly. But Mr. Pearce wisely lifts these and a very few other aspects out of the white noise of every life and uses them to illuminate the life and work of a singular and impressive man. His unshakeable Catholic faith, his tireless devotion to his family, his love of the unspoilt countryside: there you have Tolkien in a nutshell. It's Pearce's assertion that many modern readers don't really want to hear all that. Often looking more for excuses rather than examples, they want to know all the cracks in the plaster. What were his indiscretions? His debaucheries? His infidelities? Was he gay? What is most important is that, even after losing both beloved parents in childhood, spending a difficult and poverty stricken youth moving from one shabby apartment to another, struggling to obtain an education, losing two of his greatest friends in the meat grinder of the Somme in WW1, making it home himself by sheer luck, he remained decade after decade a tireless and devoted father and husband, a fount of instruction for generations through his teaching, and the writer of one of the most entrancing and beguiling works ever to be written in the English language. He didn't devolve into a drunk or a wife beater as did many another self absorbed artist dealing with his "issues" or carrying around post traumatic stress. So where's the fun in reading about him then, you ask? Pearce's delightful book shows how Tolkien did it, how he lived the life he did, based on the things that were important to the man himself. And Tolkien ought to be allowed an opinion, don't you think?

J.R.R. Tolkien's work and life have been misconstrued by critics who never understood a modern man's devotion to faith. He was misconstrued even by his "authorized" biographer. Pearce pierces through the crusts of insult and mischaracterization of Tolkien (the first chapter reprints some of the fiercest critical comments by those who lack the imagination to see past the mundane in literature and who write "Lord of the Rings" off as a childish fantasy), and his study is an excellant overview of Professor Tolkien's life and works. Though Pearce's book can be read in a day, it has sufficient grounding and insight to explain why Middle-Earth is so full and satisfying when so many other very-well-thought-out subsequent fantasy worlds appear hollow. This book is must for Tolkien's fans and for anyone interested in the intertwining of faith and literature; and a quick, fun, and enlightening read for anyone interested in twentieth-century literature, who is undogmatic about what that literature must be. Those who brand religious faith (particularly Tolkien's devout Christianity) as irrelevant and/or literature as nothing more than a tool mirroring their own Nihilistic mindset will not understand this book at all. "The Lord of the Rings" will probably be read into the Fourth Millenium, and this fine study of its author dispenses with the patronizing and pseudo-Freudian claptrap that so often surrounds Tolkien and his sub-creation like a dreary fog, directing sunshine into areas many critics and academics wish were left foggy.

This is an excellent look into J.R.R. Tolkien's life. Joseph Pearce tries (and succeeds) to explain the works of Tolkien by looking at the beliefs the man held. This biography especially focuses on the Christian faith held by Tolkien and how that factored into the development of his philosophy on life and life beyond death (and hence into his fictional works). A very interesting read if one is curious about the man behind such wonderful literature like the Lord of the Rings. It also does a fantastic job of showing how friends and acquaintances helped encourage him to keep writing (particularly C.S. Lewis). Highly recommended.

Few writers have inspired such extremes of opinion as J.R.R. Tolkien and the work that has become synonymous with his name, the fantasy epic <I>The Lord of the Rings

Pearce looks at the whole of Tolkien's work and at key events in his life as a guide to unveiling how Tolkien made sense of the world around us. He gives us the understanding of myth that lies at the heart of Tolkien's Middle Earth, the elaborate, sub-created reality that is the home of <I>The Lord of the Ring's

elves, dwarves, hobbits, and men.

Though the tale of Tolkien's public reception is by no means the focus of the work, he does devote a fair amount of attention to weaving the fascinating tale of both the approbation and opprobium surrounding the critical and public debate over <I>The Lord of the Rings.

He finds that the contention has often generated as much heat as light. More importantly Pearce gives us--straight from Tolkien's pen--the two things that Tolkien's fans take delight in and that so many of his critics have been missing all along:

"[T]here are a few basic facts, which however drily expressed, are really significant. For instance I was born in 1892 and lived for my early years in "the Shire" in a pre-mechanical age. Or more important, I am a Christian (which can be deduced from my stories), and in fact a Roman Catholic."

To be sure, Middle Earth gives no explicit mention of Christianity, thus seeming to contradict Tolkien's claim in the above quote that "my Christianity can be deduced from my stories. Pearce shows that, nonetheless, an orthodox Christian understanding of the cosmos is the cornerstone of Tolkien's "subcreated" reality: Man (or elf, or dwarf, or hobbit) was created by God (the people of Middle Earth call him "Iluvatar"--the All-Father), and through the rebellion of Morgoth (aka. Satan) and his temptation of man, sin and death entered into the world.

When choosing which biography to read on Tolkien, I chose this one because the author seemed to have great respect for Tolkien...so great that he was willing to take on the intelligentsia of England. As Pearce explains, in 1997 a poll was done in England to see what the best books of the century were. When "Lord of the Rings" turned up on top, the literary critics all over England (as well as the professors) were up-in-arms. They thought the craze for this work had come and gone. They thought that Tolkien only had a small, cult-like remnant left to his following (Tolkien's official biographer being among these scoffers). They condemned this work on many fronts.

And so another poll was taken...and another. But, no matter who did the poll and how, "Lord of the Rings" kept turning up on top. What horrified the "experts" even more was that Tolkien himself was voted as the best author of the century. What could possibly be contained in his works that led to such unanimous support from the people and such criticism from the experts?

That is what Pearce explores in this well-crafted biography. And, if you like Tolkien, you have to admire Pearce's approach from the beginning. He knew that Tolkien despised pop-psychology type biographies that tried to analyze an author's works based on his upbringing and life's events. Thus, while giving a sketch of Tolkien's life, Pearce respects Tolkien's wishes to not be dissected psychologically.

Rather, Pearce took on the rather large task of helping laymen understand how Tolkien's faith - a particularly Catholic faith - influenced his writings. When I first read "Lord of the Rings" myself, I wondered how one man (Tolkien) could come up with all the depth expressed in this work. (For instance, I was in awe of the depth of the idea that Sauron could never anticipate Frodo's journey to DESTROY the ring because Sauron was so evil that he couldn't anticipate selfless acts.) What Pearce helped me realize was that much of the depth came from Tolkien's reading the likes of St. Augustine and other church fathers. I believe that Tolkien himself would say that he stood on the shoulders of Giants in order to get anywhere near the understanding he portrays.

In addition to such fascinating accounts of how Tolkien's faith manifests in his work, Pearce has a particular knack for addressing subjects that a reader would be curious about...without ever going too far. In this book, he writes about such things as Tolkien's marriage, his work, his experience in WWI, his friendship with C.S. Lewis, his critics, and his advice to his son when his son was getting disillusioned with the church. In all these things, Pearce gives you a full picture while retaining a delicacy for the the people involved.

As someone who wanted an overview of Tolkien and an understanding of how his faith intersected with his life and work, I felt I had found the perfect source in Pearce's book.

The further I delved into Tolkien: Man and Myth, the more I realized that calling it a "biography" is a misnomer. I came to this conclusion because only a minor portion of the book presents biographical information. Instead, the book could better be described as a work of "apologetics". Apologetics, in its most classic sense, uses writings and examples to both clarify a philosophy and refute critical comments about that philosophy. This method is exactly what Pierce employed to near perfection in Tolkien: Man and Myth. Pierce uses the writings of Tolkien and others to refute the criticisms of Tolkien's works. In the process, he provides the reader with a thorough understanding of the philosophy that shaped Tolkien's writings, how Tolkien arrived at this philosophy, and how it influenced his interactions with others. The result is a deeper appreciation for Tolkien's efforts.

Pierce deserves much credit for using the writings of the "man" to dispel many of the "myths" surrounding Tolkien and his books. By taking an apologetics approach to Tolkien's life and works, Pierce provides the reader with a better understanding of his subject than any standard biography could provide. Consequently, Tolkien: Man and Myth is an essential work for anyone studying the life of this literary giant.

Joseph Pearce's biography on J.R.R. Tolkien is a short, yet fully engrossing and insightful read about one of the greatest literary minds of anytime. For those who disagree with my statement, imagine a man who not only rights a fantasy, but creates a new world even to the extent in creatng a language, and yet, thoroughly entertaining and teaching his readership. Pearce's book delves into the reasons why Tolkien developed the art he did while avoiding teh overly Freuden' psychological pitfalls of reading too much into the subject.

There are no deep secrets here, just good common sense by listening to Tolkien's life, letters and writing. One gets to pierce Tolkien's Middle Earth and his Roman Catholic life and how is religious faith ineteracted with everything he did, from his marriage to his friendships. This is not a re-hash of facts and show-and-tale sensasonalism, but instead, a look into the man and the true nature of myths. An outstanding read!

"On the occasions when Lewis came to the Northmoor Road, the children liked him because he did not talk condescendingly to them; and he gave them books by E. Nesbit, which they enjoyed. But with Edith he was shy and ungainly" (Carpenter 1977:159).

"Lewis was popular with the Tolkien children, never talking condescendingly to them and giving them books by E. Nesbit which they enjoyed, but he was shy and ill at ease with Edith" (Pearce 1998:52-53).

Joseph Pearce's "Tolkien: Man and Myth" provides a glimpse of Tolkien's faith, crucial in understanding his mythologies. Pearce states, "to employ a lisping pun, Tolkien is a misunderstood man because he is a mythunderstood man" (Pearce 1998:XIII). But this is not a deep investigation, and the beautifully written book by Humphrey Carpenter, J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography, is the unwitting blueprint for Pearce's book. In areas describing Tolkien's life, Pearce repeatedly lifted whole sentences out of Carpenter's biography without consistent citation. There is very little rewriting of the material utilized or borrowed. Pearce's commentaries on Anglicanism and Catholicism are interesting. But insightful exploration of Newman's influence on Tolkien's faith is almost entirely missing, as is any in-depth description of Tolkien's faith practice, or the flavour of English Catholicism during his mother's life, or at while at work in Oxford. It may be worthwhile to slog through Pearce's repeats of Carpenter's words to get to some critical analysis on Tolkein's Catholic faith that Carpenter missed; maybe the author will do a better edit in the future. The intended subject matter is worth it.

Pearce criticizes Carpenter and the supposed "shallowness of Carpenter's approach" (Pearce 1998:22), which draws attention to connections between the books. Carpenter: "She was remarkably pretty, small and slim, with grey eyes, firm clear features and short dark hair" (1977:46). Compare the Pearce version: "She was very pretty, small and slim, with grey eyes and short dark hair parted in the middle" (1998:26). Carpenter: "In fact she was illegitimate" (1977:46). Pearce: "In fact, she was illegitimate" (1998:27). Carpenter: "But traffic was limited to an occasional farm cart or tradesman's wagon, and it was easy to forget the city was so near" (1997:28). Here is Pearce: "Traffic in the village was limited to an occasional farm cart or tradesman's wagon so it was easy to forget the proximity of the industrial city" (Pearce 1998:14). As you follow paragraphs, this goes on throughout the book. The examples are too numerous to mention here, as whole biographical chapters clumsily outline Carpenter's, topic by topic, with several sentences at a time used in the same order, unchanged or barely altered in Pearce's work. The author should have known that Tolkien researchers might have more than only his book on hand whilst reading about Tolkien and his fascinating imagination. I am amazed that the publisher is unaware of this incursion, however possibly unintended, into Carpenter's work.

Even if this wasn't a problem, Pearce skips over Tolkien's WWI experience, missing an important narrative in the formation and expression of Tolkien's faith and later works. He tries to force-feed G.K. Chesterton down Tolkien's creative throat, while Tolkien the philologicist invented languages; he likely found much of Chesterton's verbiage overwraught and clumsy. He found GKC's language filled with "smash and glitter...mere loud colors" (Carpenter 1981:92). As well, Pearce's description of how Tolkien aided Lewis's conversion is far more limited that the lucid and beautiful argument more fully described in Carpenter's work. Carpenter's book contains a great deal more detail on Tolkien's whole life, his service in WWI, student years in Oxford, and teaching. The real examination of faith is contained in Tolkien's letters, which Pearce does use, but a better source for these, yet again, is contained in Carpenter's The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien.