Christopher Tolkien Dies at 95

[Deflope]

Christopher Tolkien was the son of JRR Tolkien and after his father’s death, spent the better part of the last 40 years analyzing his father’s notes and drafts on Middle Earth and trying to create a cohesive narrative out of it.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/jan/16/jrr-tolkiens-son-christopher-dies-aged-95

 

[dirac]

Thank you for posting, Deflope. He sounds like a lovely man. I am not a devoted reader of Tolkien but I know many who are.

Quote

He also said: “Tolkien has become a monster, devoured by his own popularity and absorbed by the absurdity of our time,” and that “the commercialisation has reduced the aesthetic and philosophical impact of the creation to nothing”.

I see Christopher Tolkien was not a fan of the Peter Jackson film adaptations, which were discussed at some length in the Other Arts forum here, for any who are interested.

[pherank]

On 1/17/2020 at 9:44 AM, dirac said:

Thank you for posting, Deflope. He sounds like a lovely man. I am not a devoted reader of Tolkien but I know many who are.

I see Christopher Tolkien was not a fan of the Peter Jackson film adaptations, which were discussed at some length in the Other Arts forum here, for any who are interested.

Many Tolkien readers were not fans of the Jackson blockbuster films.  😉

The sad thing is, the Tolkein characters, themes, etc. are set to be made into an enormous expanding franchise (a la Star Wars and Star Trek) without Christopher Tolkien around to defend his father's vision. May he rest in peace.

"Tolkien has become a monster, devoured by his own popularity and absorbed into the absurdity of our time," Christopher Tolkien observes sadly. "The chasm between the beauty and seriousness of the work, and what it has become, has overwhelmed me. The commercialization has reduced the aesthetic and philosophical impact of the creation to nothing. There is only one solution for me: to turn my head away."

"They eviscerated the book by making it an action movie for young people aged 15 to 25," Christopher says regretfully. "And it seems that The Hobbit will be the same kind of film."