A Real World, a Pseudo-History

Tolkien ended his response to Auden by emphatically re-stating this proposition. "Mine is not an 'imaginary' world, but an imaginary historical moment on 'Middle-earth' - which is our habitation." (ibid.)

Skeptics, critics and detractors may pooh-pooh Tolkien's assertion by pointing out that events within the 'real' world are not contingent upon the influence of magic items nor by the performance of miracles or feats extrinsic to the physical universe as they are in Middle-earth. Such a statement could only stand as a detrimental argument to Tolkien's claim of the verity of his Middle-earth if we were to studiously disallow the application of this assertion to the miraculous tales related in the Bible and the myths and legends of every culture around the world. Most assuredly, the world of the Bible, the Poetic Edda and the Olympian myths are of this world, 'oikoumene' the "abiding place of Men". Events within the aforementioned narratives, whether of miraculous or natural motivation, are all applicable to the human condition (or were meant to be) and all of them dissertate on life, death and immortality.

Tolkien's tales of 'midden-erd' do as well and, perhaps, are additionally weighted with a more direct applicability to modern life. If Tolkien had solely populated his stories with human beings (no Balrogs, Ringwraiths, Istari, orcs, or Ents - perish the thought!) the events of the Third Age of Middle-earth, his pseudo-history, would resonate and reflect the early Middle-ages in Western Europe. This approach would have probably been more acceptable to readers of 'serious' fiction.

Let's be thankful that 'the Professor' chose a more imaginative world than the one envisioned by literary critics.

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