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Tolkien's Time Machine: When Literary Worlds Collide - Page 5

© Michael Martinez

In fact, in the essay, Tolkien admonishes, "Let us not divide the human race into Eloi and Morlocks: pretty children -- 'elves' as the eighteenth century often idiotically called them -- with their fairy-tales (carefully pruned), and dark Morlocks tending their machines. If fairy-story as a kind is worth reading at all it is worthy to be written for and read by adults." He had already violated this cardinal rule by writing The Hobbit for his children, and it was not the only such fairy-story to leave Tolkien's hand in that style. And there are other cardinal rules in the essay which Tolkien proceeded to violate with The Lord of the Rings, such as the requirement for a happy ending. He almost had one with the Epilogue, in which Sam, Rosie, and the kids anticipated Aragorn's visit to the Shire. But Tolkien was persuaded to drop the Epilogue in favor of Sam's unforgettable and bittersweet, "Well, I'm back." Although whole volumes of analysis have been published which correctly point to various Anglo-Saxonisms in The Lord of the Rings, particularly with respect to nomenclature in The Shire and Rohan, a world of Greek influences has been overlooked in an apparently zealous attempt to convert The Lord of the Rings into a modern Anglo-Saxon anthem. Tolkien studied other languages, other stories. He made reference to them. He buried their elements in his own stories. For example, you won't find mention of a staff in "Beowulf", but Theoden and Gandalf both lean on staves, which are symbols of their authority: Gandalf the self-acclaimed steward and Theoden the king of the Homeric Rohirrim. But where would Tolkien find inspiration to use a staff as the symbol of authority, especially royal authority among the Rohirrim? How about "The Iliad"?

King Agamemnon stood up, holding his staff,
one fashioned by Hephaestus' careful craftsmanship.
That god had given it to lord Zeus, son of Cronos.
Later Zeus had presented it to Hermes,
the guide, killer of Argus. Hermes, in his turn,
gave it to King Pelops, the chariot racer,
who passed the staff to Atreus, the people's leader.
This man, as he lay dying, left it for Thyestes,
who owned many flocks. Thyestes, in his turn,
passed it on to Agamemnon, who held it
as ruler of all Argos and many islands.
With this staff as his support, Agamemnon spoke:

Source: Homer, The Iliad: a new translation by Ian Johnston.

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