Tolkien deserves the reverence, but I’m not sure fantasy is helped by treating him as permanently unsurpassable. The useful lesson is not “be more like Tolkien.” It is that fantasy needs moral weight. The world has to feel old, and the choices have to mean something. Honouring Tolkien should mean carrying that seriousness forward, not endlessly measuring every fantasy novel against Middle-earth.
Wonderful write-up! Thank you.
Thanks for reading Rod!
Read The Name of the Wind.
I love that essay by Tolkien. It brings to me a sense of longing and joy.
https://martinesavage.substack.com/p/the-king-of-elflands-pizza?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=78cqd0
Tolkien deserves the reverence, but I’m not sure fantasy is helped by treating him as permanently unsurpassable. The useful lesson is not “be more like Tolkien.” It is that fantasy needs moral weight. The world has to feel old, and the choices have to mean something. Honouring Tolkien should mean carrying that seriousness forward, not endlessly measuring every fantasy novel against Middle-earth.
Loved this paragraph:
For reality itself, in its fullness, has the structure of a fairy story — one that moves toward a final eucatastrophe.
Beautiful — and true.
I think Tolkein is a master of lore but there are authors emerging with truly fantastic worlds like Samantha Shannon and Leigh Bardugo.
https://substack.com/@karlvoss/note/c-236520090?r=7xctdi&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action