Stratford Caldecott - The Power of the Ring: The Spiritual Vision Behind the Lord of the Rings

Endorsements of The Power of the Ring

If anyone asks me what one book about Tolkien is the most worth reading, The Power of the Ring is my reply.

Peter Kreeft, Boston College

A literally wonderfulwonder-fullbook. It will open the eyes of any reader who considers The Lord of the Rings just a gripping yarn in a fantasy world. Tolkiens vision (Caldecott makes it clear the word is just right) draws on deep springs of philosophy and mysticismand, not least, the orthodoxy of the church. Aidan Nichols, O.P.

Stratford Caldecott, who has been delighting discerning readers for years with his sparkling writings on religious and spiritual subjects, has produced a masterful guide to the works of J. R. R. Tolkien. Finally the Christian riches of The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, The Hobbit , and Tolkiens other masterpieces shine forth for all to enjoy. An indispensable guide to the most popular author of modern times. Philip Zaleski, editor, The Best Spiritual Writing series

This book contains profound insights into the theology and spirituality in Tolkiens books. Caldecott gives the background of Tolkiens personality, letters, excerpts from other writings in order to provide a clear picture of whats at work in the Lord of the Rings . The chapter Behind the Stars is among the deepest commentaries on JRRTs work as a whole. Very fine. Definitely worth owning.

Peter A. Kwasniewski, Wyoming Catholic College

Professor Tolkien, the academic philologist, was said to have travelled inside language. Under Caldecotts guidance, here we travel inside the language of Tolkien. One sees at last what he was up to. It is a revelatory book. Church Times

Every Catholic school will want a copy as will anyone interested in Tolkien as a serious writer. Eric Hester, The Catholic Times

This book will be welcomed by those interested in the deep theological underpinnings of Tolkiens works, and is recommended to academic libraries supporting upper level coursework on Tolkien or religion and literature. Daniel Boice, Catholic Library World

Essential reading for those who would like to understand the spiritual background to Lord of the Rings .

Scientific and Medical Network

To the servants of the Secret Fire

The Crossroad Publishing Company

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Copyright 2003, 2005, 2012 by Stratford Caldecott

Second Edition

This book is a revised and expanded edition of Secret Fire: The Spiritual Vision of J. R. R. Tolkien (London: Darton, Longman & Todd, 2003) and a revised second edition of The Power of the Ring: The Spiritual Vision behind The Lord of the Rings (New York: Crossroad, 2005). It also includes revisions that were made for a Russian edition in 2007.

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ISBN: 978-0-8245-4983-1

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012920468

Contents

Acknowledgments

Special thanks are due to my family, including my Elvish wife, Lonie, and our daughters, Tessa, Sophie, and Rosie. (Tessas own independent research on Tolkien was awe-inspiring.) To my mother, the novelist and folklorist Moyra Caldecott, I owe my appreciation of myth and story. My father, Oliver, was one of the publishers of The Lord of the Rings in the early 1960s, and it was thanks to him that I began to read and love it. I am also grateful to Carol and Phil Zaleski for their helpful comments on a draft of the book, and to Yvonne Aburrow for a fascinating discussion of modern Paganism. Fr. Ian Boyd, C.S.B., published several of my articles on Tolkien in the Chesterton Review and has kindly given permission to reuse some of that material here. One of those articles was given as the first in a series of Tolkien Lectures at Bath Spa University under the auspices of the chaplain, Fr. William McLoughlin, O.S.M., and subsequently also appeared as The Heroism of Hobbits in Hidden Presence: The Catholic Imagination of J. R. R. Tolkien (Chesterton Press, 2003). Another paper, The Lord and Lady of the Rings, was published in Touchstone magazine and on the associated website. This and any other recycled material used in the present book has been thoroughly reworked. Inklings admirers in England, America, Spain, and Italy have provided me with many other opportunities to expand my appreciation of Tolkien. I am grateful to the Tolkien Estate for permission to reproduce extracts (though far fewer than I would have wished) from the works of Tolkien himself. Finally, I want to thank the many readers who bought the first edition of this book and thus encouraged the publisher to let me expand it for a new edition (most authors never get such a chance!). Thanks in particular to Gwendolin Herder for making this possible. I must apologize to those original readers who may now feel tempted to buy this improved (I hope definitive) version in place of the one they already own.

Preface to the
Revised Edition

The book is about Tolkiens spirituality, by which I mean his religious awareness and experience, the things he believed about life and death and ultimate truth. Tolkien was a devout Christian, a Roman Catholic. But somehow he managed to write a book that appeals equally to Christian and to Pagan readers, and to people who have no particular beliefs but simply love reading a good fantasy adventure story. As a result, his readership is extremely broad. But whenever a lot of people come to love a particular author, they also love to get together to share their affection and to discuss the books that inspire them so much. The Lord of the Rings gives rise to societies and clubs, and even to academic conferences and journals, dedicated to the study of Tolkiens works. Secondary works, like this one, are written to help others to understand the writer and his background.

But what is it about Tolkiens works that inspire a particular, almost spiritual devotion? When Viggo Mortenson, the actor who played Aragorn in the film trilogy by Peter Jackson, was asked why The Lord of the Rings was so popular, he replied, Because it is a true story. In other words, it is not merely a fantasy, but communicates something that is true, something that people feel and recognize as important for their own lives. That is why I wrote this bookas an attempt to show some of the truth that can be found in Tolkiens writing. It is not about historical truth, despite the fact that the author made the history of Middle-earth remarkably convincing. It is not even about philological truth, or the truth (which was Tolkiens professional concern at Oxford) concerning the real origins and meanings of the words in our language. The truth it is really about is more subtle and much deeper than that. It is a truth about the way people behave, about the moral life of courage and integrity and honesty and the constant battles we have to fight to protect that life. It is also, at an even deeper level, about the reality and value of beauty.