Interesting Facts About J.R.R. Tolkien

Cybersecurity major Mason Bird is an accomplished student with a wide range of interests, including literature. Mason Bird enjoys reading books in a variety of different styles. Some of his favorite authors include Ted Dekker and J.R.R. Tolkien.

J. R. R. Tolkien is best known as the author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. While some fans may think that they know nearly everything there is to know about him, there are still many interesting things to be learned about his life and work.

1. Viewing himself as a scholar whose writing grew out of his academic interests, Tolkien was often skeptical of his fans. Lord of the Rings and his other books were written in an effort to create a full body of myth, and Tolkien spent years criticizing adaptations that did not fit his purpose. The huge success of the books led him to believe that most of his readers missed the point and did not truly appreciate the work.

2. Many people know that Tolkien was a scholar of linguistic history and structure, and loved creating new languages. However, fewer readers know that instead of creating languages to fill the worlds he made, Tolkien created worlds to complete his invented languages. He created a wide variety of languages for his books, including multiple Elvish languages, and languages for the servants of Mordor, the dwarves, and the Ents.

3. Tom Bombadil originally appeared in a story Tolkien wrote for his children, and later featured in a poem published 20 years before the Lord of the Rings. The character embodied Tolkien’s desire to keep the countryside idyllic and free of urbanization.