Tolkien applied the word legendarium to the totality of these writings. Most of the posthumously published books were compiled from Tolkien's notes by his son Christopher Tolkien. While fantasy authors such as William Morris, Robert E.
Howard and E. Eddison preceded Tolkien, the great success and enduring influence of his works have led to him being popularly, if perhaps inaccurately, identified as the " father of modern fantasy literature". Tolkien's other published fiction includes stories not directly related to his legendarium, some of them originally told to his children. Biography The Tolkien family As far as is known, most of Tolkien's paternal ancestors were craftsmen. The Tolkien family had its roots in Saxony Germany , but had been living in England since the 18th century, becoming "quickly and intensely English".
The surname Tolkien is Anglicized from Tollkiehn i. Tolkien's maternal grandparents, John and Edith Jane Suffield, lived in Birmingham and owned a shop in the city centre. The Suffield family had had a business in a building called Lamb House since From William Suffield ran a book and stationery shop there; Tolkien's great-grandfather, also John Suffield, was there from with a drapery and hosiery business. Tolkien had one sibling, his younger brother, Hilary Arthur Reuel, who was born on 17 February While living in Africa he was bitten by a baboon spider in the garden, an event which would have later parallels in his stories.
Thornton S. Quimby cared for the ailing child after the rather nasty spider bite, and it is occasionally suggested that Doctor Quimby was an early model for characters such as Gandalf the Grey. When he was three, Tolkien went to England with his mother and brother on what was intended to be a lengthy family visit. His father, however, died in South Africa of rheumatic fever before he could join them. This left the family without an income, so Tolkien's mother took him to live with her parents in Stirling Road, Birmingham.
Soon after, in , they moved to Sarehole now in Hall Green , then a Worcestershire village, later annexed to Birmingham. He enjoyed exploring Sarehole Mill and Moseley Bog and the Clent Hills and Malvern Hills, which would later inspire scenes in his books along with other Worcestershire towns and villages such as Bromsgrove, Alcester and Alvechurch and places such as his aunt's farm of Bag End, the name of which would be used in his fiction.
Mabel tutored her two sons, and Ronald, as he was known in the family, was a keen pupil. She taught him a great deal of botany , and she awakened in her son the enjoyment of the look and feel of plants. Young Tolkien liked to draw landscapes and trees.
But his favourite lessons were those concerning languages, and his mother taught him the rudiments of Latin very early. He could read by the age of four, and could write fluently soon afterwards.
His mother got him lots of books to read. Tolkien: A Biography by Humphrey Carpenter. Interestingly, this is also the name of the father-in-law of Tobias in the book of Tobit. Perhaps there is some significance relating to fathers-in-law?
It is unlikely that any of the Tolkiens or Suffields were aware of this when the baby was named, since the book of Tobit is not accepted as a legitimate part of the Bible by non-Catholic Christians. Catholics, however, do accept the book of Tobit as inspired Scripture. One wonders if Mabel and her sons would later come to notice and appreciate this. The name apparently did mean something to Tolkien, as he gave it to all of his children, including his daughter:.
But if we mean "fame and fortune":. Tolkien was a hard-working professor with four children, and both he and his wife were orphans, so he was not by any means well-off until late in his life.
The Hobbit was published in , when he was already 45 years old. And he was nearing retirement age when The Lord of the Rings was published in , but he was alive to see the 'first wave' of celebrity in the 's, when the books also enjoyed huge success with their American readers.
The later global fame of the 'Tolkien' name, and the confusion that has resulted between the man, the author, the professor, the books, the worlds he invented, and the adaptations they have enjoyed, is a far more recent phenomenon, due in the main part to the huge success of Peter Jackson's film adaptations, but also, we like to think, to the enduring quality and depth of J.
Tolkien's storytelling. The first and best place to look remains the collection of Letters published after his death, and containing, among other correspondence, letters addressed to his family and friends, discussions with his editors, and detailed answers to questions sent by readers. As such, this work offers a uniquely personal window into how he went about writing the books that made him famous and creating the characters that populate them , while answering many questions that, up until then, had remained open for debate.
For more on this, see our Letters section. Tolkien is known to have confided his views. Biographical Information J. Biographical Information To learn more about J.
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