Tolkien was a magical man. He was always accompanied by an air of lord English, and an almost unpronounceable name: John Ronald Reuel Tolkien. Hence the use of its acronym as a pseudonym. This September 2, 46 years ago he died. He lived a straight life (marked by the dogma of the Catholic Church) and British. He also lived, many times, surrounded by the fantasy that his head produced.
Although we speak of an English aristocrat, what many people surely do not know is that he was actually born in South Africa. His father was assigned to the city of Bloemfontein, due to his work in an English bank, and the whole family moved there to accompany him. Even so, the author returned to England with his mother and brother when he was three years old. Trip that his father would never make, since although he planned to follow them back to his country later, he contracted a rheumatic fever that cost him his life.
«Fantasy is, like many other things, a legitimate right of every human being, because through it there is complete freedom and satisfaction»
Years later, and definitely established in Britain, his mother also died due to the diabetes he suffered. The minor and his brother were under the tutelage of Father Francis Xavier Morgan. A strongly believing figure, Catholic, who marked the dogma of the family thereafter. And that, curiously, was of Andalusian origin. Although the two children lived in an orphanage. It was there that Tolkien met Edith, with whom he would end up marrying, although on Morgan's orders he lost contact with her until he was 21 years old. Age marked by his tutor, because precisely the author would finish his university career. Incredibly, Edith agreed to marry him when she reappeared in her life, although she was already engaged to another man.
«Unfair is he who disappears when the road is dark»
The Great War enlisted many young Englishmen and, although Tolkien initially resisted training in the troops, he eventually yielded to social pressure. Being young and not going to war was very frowned upon, at the level of a betrayal of the homeland. Climbing the military hierarchy, he managed to command an entire squad, although he lost most of his friends. In fact, he was removed from the front because he fell ill due to the so-called ‘trench fever’. This gesture surely saved his life, because his squad was razed within a few days by the enemy army. It was not the only war he lived: during World War II England recruited him and trained to decipher encrypted communication codes of the other side, although they never required their active services.
«If many of us gave more value to food, joy and songs than to treasured gold, this would be a happier world»
In the interwar period and the years after World War II it was when he trained as a philologist, and he even felt the ground of poetry. His mastery of languages was evident from a very early age: he learned the basics of his mother's Latin and Father Morgan's Spanish. His mastery of philology resulted in the creation of a multitude of invented languages and codes. Therefore, in the creation of their works they would acquire a central role. It is clear that each culture has grown on horseback.
«My advice to all those who have the time and willingness to deal with the international language would be: support Esperanto with loyalty»
His peak work is the trilogy of The Lord of the rings. A saga that took ten years to build, although it earned him the fame it deserved. Based on the great world of Arda, and specifically on the continent of Middle Earth, the book is interwoven with different stories and stories connected by a ring. The power ring This fantasy world was built by the author to the last detail. New languages, races and continents were invented. Knowing what he was doing. A cosmic conception of his psychological world.
Although his son, Christopher, continued to publish the adventures that his father had written in rather messy notes. Therefore, if you want to continue exploring the stories and stories of the world of Arda, you can immerse yourself in The Hobbit or The Silmarillion. Although there are two legends that have been highlighted, in two new books: The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún and the story of Beren and Lúthien. The first is a writing based on ancient Icelandic and Norwegian epic poems, even imitating traditional lyric forms. The second tells the legend of two heroes who broke up to Tolkien's bones. In his grave, the name of Beren can be seen written, while in that of his wife, Edith, that of Lúthien appears.
«There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something»
Tolkien's world is inexhaustible. Many consider him the father of modern fantasy, because of its complexity and depth in the construction of new lands. This is a small tribute to the father of the rings. An ode to an incredible world.