Greatest Fantasy Author of the Century

J.R.R. Tolkien was the quintessential author of the 20^th century. Tolkien’s creativity was revolutionary, his uniqueness foundational, and his book’s popularity radical! He had tremendous influence on future fantasy writers and many have taken his ideas and made them his own. J.R.R. Tolkien, in many ways, set the standards for future fantasy books.

J.R.R. Tolkien’s creativity caused him to be dubbed the “Master of Imaginary Worlds.” Tolkien had a love for mythology, so he created his own; developing new languages and a complex history for the races that spoke them. He was very passionate about it, but never thought that anyone else would be very interested. He was very, very wrong. His detailed world convinced us that it was real. But, the world in which the events in Tolkien's books take place is not real, and some people think because of that, they aren't relevant, but Tolkien used Middle-Earth to make points about the real world. It wasn’t just his new world he created that still floors us, but also his skill at naming his characters. Nobody, before or after, matched Tolkien's in-depth skills at coming up with new words for things that actually had a real meaning, and weren't just random letters put together. He took care in every name he created and made sure that the meaning was representative to the character or place. For example, ringwraiths are, by definition, "shadowy, disembodied creatures who are nonetheless armed horsemen." Tolkien came up with their name from the Old-English word writhan, to twist, essentially the root word for the words wraith and wrath. The ringwraiths are thus described, simply by their name as "an anger that is twisted up inside.” In the end, Tolkien gave us orcs, balrogs, and hobbits. He also created a new idea of Elves, making them immortal soldiers and poets, not woodland sprites or Santa's helpers. He had an imagination that was, and still is, lacking in most fantasy books.

Tolkien did many things that make him unique in the writing world. Tolkien was the first to make a world made sense by itself. And before Tolkien, it was rare that a bookstore had a fantasy section. Tolkien was one of the first to write a book as long as The Lord of the Rings, and there still haven't been very many books that can match its length. Another thing that Tolkien made popular was the idea of twin storylines, which now appear in books written by his followers and their followers. His style and detailed writing was, and still is, very unique even in modern literature, so it was unheard of in its day. Tolkien didn't just stick with one style when writing his books; he used a variety of style. The Hobbit is written in a simple way, easy for even children to understand, whereas The Lord of the Rings was written in almost a biblical sort of way, using more ancient styles of speech and wording. The Lord of the Rings was such an unheard of style of writing that his publisher didn't think it would be popular at all, and when The Lord of the Rings came out, most critics didn't like it because it didn't fit into the criteria of usual adult fiction. It was more like a children's book that was too mature for children to understand. But after Tolkien, an appetite for fantasy literature was sparked among readers, and thus a new genre of 'adult fantasy' was created. Tolkien also sculpted his books to fit the needs of a modern audience. He combined the fairy tale and the epic. Being genius enough to realize that it was hard for people of the modern world to identify with heroes that had amazing strength and abilities, he made some of his characters ordinary people who were thrown into extraordinary situations, like Frodo or Bilbo, while others were heroes, such as Aragorn. He blended the fairy tale and the epic, versus just copying one or the other. He also blended fantasy with a feel of medievalism.

J.R.R. Tolkien is considered to be the author of the 20^th century. Both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings sold over 100 million copies separately! By 1968, The lord of the Rings had become a Bible for alternative society, and is loved by both children and adults. Knowing this, it would be a surprise to discover that Stanley and Rayner Unwin were the only publishers brave enough to put The Lord of the Rings into print. It was a smart move because it became one of the best sellers ever and what is still amazing is the diversity of people who loved it. Preps, jocks, hippies, and nerds finally shared common ground in a love for Tolkien's books. Although Tolkien didn't want to be noticed or popular, he really had no choice but to because a cult had started of fantasy literature that he inspired. Even with the popularity of Harry Potter and His Dark Materials series, Tolkien is still the favorite to win for best series, best author, ect. British bookmakers Ladbrokes' spokesperson said, "Nobody wants to go back to anybody other than Tolkien-even the Harry Potter money has dried up.”

Tolkien caused fantasy to flourish, and many authors afterwards used Tolkien’s work as a guide for writing their own fantasies. Tolkien was one of the first to incorporate changing gender roles in his books, in that Eowyn disguises herself as a man to fight in the war in Gondor. Many books after this incorporated gender changing roles into their books as well. "So many writers think fantasy is easy," says Peter S. Beagle, author of The Last Unicorn "All you have to do is rip off some elves, goblins and a few other things from Tolkien and spend about 10 minutes making up imaginary words and another 10 minutes working up a rough idea of the country and a little local history and bingo, you're in business. You're a fantasist. It's not at all like that. What made Tolkien unique is that he spent 50 years building his world, and he built it from the inside out.” Tolkien created the appetite for fantasy by which many authors have prospered. Some of these authors include, C.S. Lewis, J.K. Rowling, Alan Garner, Jane Yolen, Robin McKinley, David Eddings, Christopher Poalini, and many, many more. In The Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter has to solve a riddle in the maze, this is incredibly similar to the all-famous riddle-duel that Gollum and Bilbo have in The Hobbit, and some have openly wondered if even the great C.S. Lewis, inventor of Narnia, copied from Tolkien's The Hobbit. Since Tolkien, his successors have created their own fictional worlds, filled with a variety of creatures and races, though none have gone as in-depth as Tolkien. Games such as Dungeons and Dragons wouldn't exist without Tolkien and there are websites dedicated to proving all the ways that Star Wars copied Lord of the Rings. There is nothing in fantasy the Tolkien didn’t do both first and better.

Tolkien’s writings had a great deal of influence. He is considered by many to be the most influential fantasy writer of the 20th century. No other author can stack up to how much influence Tolkien had on future generations. Essentially, Tolkien created the modern fantasy epic and there hasn't been a book since the release of Lord the Rings that matched its influence among readers and writers. He is still an inspiration to aspiring authors today.

All of these things combined; his creativity, his uniqueness, his book’s popularity, and his influence have made a lasting effect on fantasy and set the standards for future fantasy literature. Tolkien’s name will ever be connected with fantasy literature and vice versa. One of Tolkien’s rules of fantasy can only be described in his own words, "Fantasy cannot tolerate any frame or machinery suggesting that the whole story in which they occur is a figment or illusion. The moment disbelief arises, the spell is broken.”

Due to the astounding influence Tolkien’s works have had on future generations and aspiring authors, the study of his works is important. He changed the face of literature with his creativity and his unique and revolutionary ideas.