FRIENDSHIP AND FREEDOM in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings

Because of the length and richness of the text, we will closely read Tolkien’s central work, The Lord of the Rings in three courses. The Fall 2021 course will focus exclusively on The Fellowship of the Ring and the subsequent courses will continue the journey through The Two Towers and The Return of the King. We will examine how Tolkien’s work directly addresses modernity’s rejection of fundamental truths and its paradoxical elevation and diminishment of the human person. Particularly, Tolkien’s work keenly addresses the nature of evil and presents the extent of human autonomy before superhuman, evil forces. He returns his reader to an understanding of the centrality of community, the existence of providential powers that prevail over demonic ones, and the fundamental dignity of the human person. Questions the course will consider: What is the role of the person before overpowering evil? Does human freedom exist and to what extent? How does Tolkien’s presentation of friendship and community counter our present postmodern view of the isolated individual? Why is the Christian God not made explicit in Middle-earth? How is God both nowhere and everywhere to be found in Middle-earth? Why does Tolkien’s work continue to resonate with contemporary readers? How does Tolkien’s story offer hope amidst the cultural and religious despair both for his own generation and also our own?

THIS COURSE HAS CONCLUDED. THE FOLLOWING LESSONS ARE PRE-RECORDED VIDEOS FROM THE LATE FALL OF 2021.