It is easy for the reader who enters the enchanted realm of Tolkien's own work to be lost in the magic of the Middle-Earth and to forbear to ask questions. Surrounded by elves, hobbits, dragons and orcs, wandering the pristine fields and woods, described with such loving care they seem almost real, it is easy to forget there is another world outside, the world in which John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, an Oxford don, lived and wrote his monumental series of fantasy novels. It is, after all, natural to want to escape humdrum reality. Literature that offers a simple pleasure of a different time, a different place has nothing to be ashamed of. Tolkien in the same essay describes "escape and consolation" as one of the chief functions of the fairy-tale by which term he understands also what we would call "literary fantasy" today. "Escape and consolation" seem to be self-evident terms. What is there to discuss? Perhaps all that I have to do today is to praise Tolkien's fertile imagination and to step modestly aside.
But the sentence I just quoted suggests that asking questions about the fairy-tale realm is not so much unnecessary as dangerous. You risk not merely boredom and disenchantment but the actual expulsion from the Fairyland. Why? Is there, perhaps, more to the magic land than meets the eye? What if the "escape" it offers is fake; what if Middle-Earth lies not "in a galaxy long ago and far away", as Star Wars put it, but much closer to home, right on the border with Tolkien's war-stricken England of the 1940s and perhaps even not so far from our own turbulent Middle East. What if the further away we travel, the more inevitably we come home? These are the questions I want to discuss today.And if the result of this inquiry will be the loss of the key to the gates of Paradise, I'm willing to take this risk.
Therefore the focus of this talk will be the question that Tolkien himself emphasized as central to our perception of works of fantasy: what is "the effect produced now by these old things in the stories as they are" (32); in other words, how are the elves, orcs, the Dark Lord and the magic ring relevant to the here and now? However, I do not believe that the answer to this question should be sought in the circumstances of the author's own life.
From July 1st to July 3rd, 1863, the most famous and most important Civil War Battle took place in the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Confederates under Robert E. Lee advanced on the Union in hopes of taking the major city of Philadelphia, Baltimore, or even Washington D.C. Union commander General George Meade was sent to make sure none of this would happen. General Robert E. Lee was determined to invade the North and win a victory important for southern morale, leads his army toward Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he hopes to destroy railroad bridges linking east with west. He is unaware that a large union force headed by General Meade is headed in the same direction.
It will be the contention of this paper that much of Tolkien's unique vision was directly shaped by recurring images in the Catholic culture which shaped JRRT, and which are not shared by non-Catholics generally. The expression of these images in Lord of the Rings will then concern us.
Quoting the Gettysburg Address: “The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but can never forget what they did here…”, states just how important the incidents at Gettysburg were. The impact of the Battle of Gettysburg on the Civil War, and on the United States of America as a whole, will never be disregarded. It resulted in the Confederate never being able to reach the military strength they had in Adams County again. In the viewpoints of the two sides, this battle left the North to rejoice, and the South to mourn. Despite the fact that the Battle of Gettysburg was a defining moment in the nation’s history, it would not nearly end the Civil War, as it ran on for another 2
Throughout the American Civil War there were several important battles. Each with its own significance towards the outcome of the Civil War. Although the Battle of Gettysburg was known as the changing of the Civil War, it was not as important as the Battle of Vicksburg. “It was also very probably the most important part of the Confederacy at the time” (Lepa pg. 16). The Battle of Gettysburg was not located along the supply route between the two southern regions. It was an attempted invasion into northern states. Both battles ended around the same time but because it was General Lee that lost it was a bigger story. While Lincoln and the Union celebrated both victories, the one in Vicksburg was the actual game changer. The battle or siege
Gettysburg was the turning point of the American Civil War. This is the most famous and important Civil War Battle that occurred over three hot summer days, July 3, 1863, around the small market town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. More importantly Gettysburg was the clash between the two major American Cultures of their time: the North and the South. The causes of the Civil War, and the Battle of Gettysburg, one must understand the differences between these two cultures. The Confederacy had an agricultural economy producing tobacco, corn, and cotton, with many large plantations owned by a few very rich white males. These owners lived off the labor of sharecroppers and slaves, charging high dues for use of their land. The Southern or Confederate Army was made up of a group of white males fighting for their independence from federal northern dictates (The History Place Battle of Gettysburg 1).
The Civil War is one of the defining wars in the history of this great nation. The Battle of Gettysburg was the bloodiest battle in American history, and a turning point in the four year war. At the time, Gettysburg was a small, quiet town generally unaffected by the war. General Robert E. Lee of the Confederate States of America and General George Meade of the Union converged in Gettysburg, and a conflict quickly arose. After three long days of battle the Union pulled away with a victory, though not an easy one. This essay will outline the six themes of history; in essence the who, what, when, where, why, and who cares of this infamous battle.
The battle would cost the lives of over 50,000 men. (Battle of Gettysburg. July 1-3, 1863. Summary and facts). Gettysburg is left ravished and is left to pick up the pieces of anything that was left behind. The war would wage another two years before the south is finally defeated.
In the American Civil War, there were many major battles that contributed to the Union army proving victorious and the Confederacy suffering defeat. One of which that could be considered the most significant was the Battle of Gettysburg. A three day scuffle that essentially led to the dismantling of the entire southern war effort, Gettysburg is highly remembered as the biggest and bloodiest battle of the war. However, the final assault by the Confederate army on the third day of warfare was detrimental to the overall outcome of the battle. This brutal strike is also a perfect testament to the Confederate soldier’s courage and passion for their respective cause and ideals. In other words, it takes sincere discipline to march across open grasslands in clear sight, and rush headlong into a heavily fortified position held by the enemy. This attack is most widely known as Pickett’s Charge, an all-out Confederate offensive resulting in immense casualties for both sides involved.
The paper will begin with a look at the life of Tolkien. This will serve the purpose of providing some context for the novel. Looking into the life of Tolkien will also serve to give the reader some insight into the mind that gave birth to such a rich land and why the novel may have some importance for sufferers of mental illness. Next will likely be a short summation of the
the Union won the Battle of Gettysburg, and the battle itself was largely determined by the Battle of Little Round Top. From the famous Civil War speech by
Music is an art that seems subjective. After all, some like classical music, others like pop, and some even enjoy country. Different genres and pieces of music appeal to different people, dependent on the tastes of the individual. However, there is a sort of musical standard that must be upheld, for a collection of random pitches without pattern or cohesion can hardly be called music as it is currently understood. There must be a certain order to a piece, though the order does not have to be universal. Old Gregorian chant pieces, such as Responsorium: Libera me, do not necessarily follow a specific time signature, and don’t even use the same scale as that which is most recognized today. Another piece, Introitus from St. Matthew’s Passion by
"Three Rings for the Eleven-kings under the sky, Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone, Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die, One for the Dark Lord on his Dark throne, In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie. One Ring to rule them all, One ring to find them, One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them, In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie(Tolkien)." Master of storytelling J.R.R. Tolkien continues the lives of the fictitious creatures that he introduced in The Hobbit, in his modern classic The Fellowship of the Ring. He artfully illustrates the truths of the evil that plague the hearts of man. He tells a story of greed, destruction and how mortal men are enslaved by their delusions of grander and how they feast upon the misery of others to elevate their own pitiful egos, that prove to be their worst vices.
It is likely for one to assume that a classic piece of literature set in a fantasy oriented stage will have no merits to the youths of today. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, however, with its crafty of usage symbolism, displays its relevance to issues that often trouble teens. As the story progresses from a children’s tale to an epic, the main character Bilbo undergoes a series of development, his experiences often overlapping with ordinary people. Reading the Hobbit will provide teens with opportunities of exploring the importance of several common but serious topics. People may encounter many of the themes presented in the book elsewhere repeatedly, but it’s possible that they never appreciated the applications it might have on themselves. When teens read the Hobbit, they perceive it as a simple fiction of adventure. Under proper guiding, they will be able to recognize and utilize the lessons of the Hobbit, and improve their attitudes and ideas about life.
Divorce should be harder to obtain due to the effect that it has on children the main effect it has on the children is depression. “ In the short term divorce is always troublesome for children Mavis Hetherington videotaped and scrutinized the workings of 1400 divorced families since the early 1970’s. Hetherington pinpoints a crisis period of about two years in the immediate aftermath of separation when the adults, preoccupied with their own lives, typically takes their eye off parenting just when their children are reeling from loss and feeling bewildered” (Hethrington 2). This article states that the short term effect of divorce affects the kid deep because they feel that they lost one forever and in those 1400 many of the kids felt the effect of the divorce. “Wallerstein has told us that divorce abruptly ends kids’ childhood, filling it with loneliness and worry about their parents, and hurting them prematurely and recklessly into adolescence. (Wallerstein 2).” This later affects the kids life because they try to think of happy memories they had but really all they can think about is the parent that they loss due to the divorce. “Contrary to the popular perceptions, the alternative to most divorces is not life in a war zone. Though more than 50 percent of all marriages currently end in divorce, experts tell us that only about 15 percent of all unions involve high levels of conflict. In the vast number of divorces, then, there is no gross strife or violence that could warp a youngster’s childhood. The majority of marital break-ups are driven by a quest for greener grass—and in these cases the children will almost always be worse off. (Zinsmeister 2)” this proves to me that when people get a divorce they most of the time don’t ...
In the The Lord of the Rings, by J. Tolken, there are many things that make the story symbolic of a Christian influence. The constant emphasis of good vs. evil brings forth reason to suspect that this novel has a Christian basis. In this paper I will prove and backup my personal opinion through sighting specific examples of the influences from the book.