My article on the Catholicism of The Hobbit has just been published by the Imaginative Conservative:
The Hobbit and the Habit of Virtue
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About the Author: Joseph Pearce
Joseph Pearce is a Catholic author and biographer who has written about subjects as various as GK Chesterton, economics, and Shakespeare.
It was a good piece. Thanks. I just read The Hobbit between Christmas and New Year’s, and like Lord of the Rings, which I’ve read a couple of times, I found it enjoyable and worthy of study. Here’ my issue, and it’s not so much an issue with the works themselves, but with the genre. Wouldn’t a jouney to grace be so much more powerful if it were set in realism rather than fantasy? Doesn’t the fact that there are elves and goblins and dwarves and wizards trivialize the themes somewhat? I find Brideshead Revisited, also a journey to grace, so much more satisfying as a work of art. It just resonates more. Frankly I couldn’t care less about goblins.
Have you ever addressed why it’s in fantasy and why it should be set in fantasy?
Manny, I understand and sympathize with your preference for the “realism” of Brideshead over Lord of the Rings. I have a great love for both works. To answeer your quesiton, there are three chapters in my forthcoming book, Beauteous Truth, which answer your quesiton more fully than is possible here. Dare I suggest and request that you purchase a copy? The chapters in quesstions are as follows:
Children’s Literature: Wisdom in Wonderland
How we Rediscover Reality through Fantasy
Apocalyptic Visions: Faith and Science Fiction
@Manny
I’ll leave that to Mr.Pearce to explain, but FWIW, fantasy, myth, legend, ancient history, have a far more powerful effect on me than everyday, average affairs.
While I thought Brideshead Revisted was a masterpiece, I find Tolkien’s work to be the more satisfying, and it resonates with me on a deeper level.
Also, that was a good article Mr.Pearce, thanks!
Thank you both. And I will certainly get you new book Joseph.