D&D General Are You There D&D? It's Me, J.R.R. Tol-KEEEEN!

[Clint_L]

Tolkien neither overwrite, nor was he underwrote: he wrote precisely as much as he meant to.

Yeah, but Peter Jackson really overwrote the ending to his LotR films. Just watched them again, with my kid.

I teach literature, and am a bit befuddled when trying to critique Tolkien's writing. By conventional standards...yeah, he overwrites! And is too expository! And uses awkwardly anachronistic language, like the King James and Beowulf had a baby! I could go on, but...Tolkien makes it work. Somehow. And did it in the face of Modernism.

It's a singular text. A one of one category. Anyone else tries to write that and it's a bloated mess. Tolkien pulls it off. It's astonishing.

 

[Lanefan]

Where we´re going, we don´t need no rails.

True. As threads go, this might be the sandboxiest of all.

 

[Parmandur]

Yeah, but Peter Jackson really overwrote the ending to his LotR films. Just watched them again, with my kid.

I teach literature, and am a bit befuddled when trying to critique Tolkien's writing. By conventional standards...yeah, he overwrites! And is too expository! And uses awkwardly anachronistic language, like the King James and Beowulf had a baby! I could go on, but...Tolkien makes it work. Somehow. And did it in the face of Modernism.

It's a singular text. A one of one category. Anyone else tries to write that and it's a bloated mess. Tolkien pulls it off. It's astonishing.

The rules for writing are more like...guidelines.

The right author can break the rules, or bend them around their finger.

 

[DrunkonDuty]

Rowling claims to have never read Lord of the Rings, and to dislike the fantasy genre in general (quite sneery in fact). Potter is more of a "reaction to" Mallory Towers.

I call shenannigans, Ms. Rowling.

 

[Joshua Randall]

Have we considered Hogwarts but with thri-kreen instead?

 

[Chaltab]

I call shenannigans, Ms. Rowling.

There are plenty of other things I'd like to call her but that might be off topic.

Have we considered Hogwarts but with thri-kreen instead?

Professor: Something about this incoming freshman class just bugs me.

 

[Hussar]

I call shenannigans, Ms. Rowling.

See this is the main reason I dislike these sorts of conversations. We call Rowlings claims into question and that passes without comment. But we do the same with Tolkien and it’s an instant argument.

I’d probably like Tolkien a lot more if it wasn’t for Tolkien fans.

 

[Parmandur]

See this is the main reason I dislike these sorts of conversations. We call Rowlings claims into question and that passes without comment. But we do the same with Tolkien and it’s an instant argument.

I’d probably like Tolkien a lot more if it wasn’t for Tolkien fans.

I mean, Rowling has a documented history of massaging facts. So, it is fair to be skeptical if she claims to have not read something.

 

[Chaltab]

It also helps that Tolkien never had access to a Twitter account where he aired his most loathsome opinions for the world to see. People are not inclined to see anything Rowling says or does in a favorable light these days.

 

[TiQuinn]

It also helps that Tolkien never had access to a Twitter account where he aired his most loathsome opinions for the world to see. People are not inclined to see anything Rowling says or does in a favorable light these days.

Second this, and don’t even care if that’s fair or not.