JRR Tolkien

Legacy: the Artists Behind the Legends

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, better known as JRR Tolkien, was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known for writing the incredible and very popular works, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion. Tolkien is considered to be the father of modern fantasy literature, or as it’s been come to be known today, high-fantasy, but what many do not realize is the immense amount of creation that exists behind these literary pieces. In order to construct these alternate worlds, Tolkien invented tales, poems, fictional histories, languages, and literary essays, applying the term Legendarium to this collection of writings. Before his completion of these works, however, Tolkien overcame an early life of setbacks and struggle, and these experiences distinctly impacted his writing and many of the stories told throughout his books and the Legendarium. He also fought in the first World War, stood up to the Nazi regime when not many others would, and as his popularity grew, began to refer to his fans as “the lunatics”, which let’s face it a lot of them were. So let’s get Episode 12 rolling and dive into the life of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien.