Service and Sacrifice, a Somber Reflection: Tolkien Reading Day 2024

The Battle of Sudden Flame, by Alan Lee

You smug-faced crowds with kindling eye
Who cheer when soldier lads march by,
Sneak home and pray you’ll never know
The hell where youth and laughter go.

From “Suicide in the Trenches”, by Siegfried Sassoon

Service and self-sacrifice are honorable qualities that many strive to have. Tolkien’s works are full of characters who display such noble traits in various capacities, withstanding storms and tribulations for the sake of higher goals or others. However, the more grounded qualities of his works also reflect the bitter realities: that service and sacrifice sometimes did not lead to fulfilling conclusion.

The bitter honesty in Siegfried Sassoon’s poems, quoted in various academic works related to Tolkien, seems to reflect a meaningful term that Tolkien put in his wartime letter to one of his friends, G. B. Smith, about the death of their best friend Robert Gilson in the World War One front: “…something has gone crack.” (Letter 5, 12 August 1916). An interesting choice of phrase, which sounds like a mixture of uncertainty and faint understanding at the same time.

This was also the time when the soldiers of the Great War started to criticize, scoff at, and even demonize “war-time propaganda and its consumers.” (Garth, 2003). The soldiers, many of them young and eager to defend their country in the spirit of heroism, service, and sacrifice, were hit by the realities of it all: horrifying deaths, merciless destructions of human bodies and spirits, the realities of the trenches, the false promises of propaganda, and the fact that their friends died while those who profited from the war (or celebrated it in jingoist spirit) got to live in comfort and safety.

The Silmarillion, The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings are not lacking of characters showing admirable acts of sacrifice and heroism. Frodo dan Sam are often cited as fine examples of these ideas, with Sam showing an extra layer of humility in his demonstration of humble service and sacrifice that ask no praises. However, as fantasy works created during an uncertain, dispirited age, we could see the way Tolkien inserted elements of nuance that showed the realities behind what it means to “serve”, “sacrifice”, and “become a hero” in these stories.

Interestingly, similar ideas emerged from another side of the globe during similar timeframe. As an Indonesian, hearing the words “sacrifice” and “service” immediately brought me to two notable works of literature and cinema created during similarly precarious age: Bukan Pasar Malam (It’s Not an All Night Fair, 1951) by Pramoedya Ananta Toer, and Lewat Djam Malam (After the Curfew, 1954) by Usmar Ismail. Two works that forced the audience at that time to reexamine their imagination of nationalism and heroism, and what many of the country’s youths experienced after the battles and the effects on their psyche.

“Something Has Gone Crack”: the Great War and Tolkien, from Multiple Perspectives (Review)

“Tolkien’s major achievement, one could argue, was in fact to create a new-style image of heroism for an uncertain and dispirited age.”

Shippey and Bourney: A Steep Learning Curve: Tolkien and the British Army on the Somme

World War One left its mark in Tolkien’s works as the source of motifs and imagery, like philosophical and historical themes, contemplation on death and destructions, and reflection on relationships between people of different roles and groups. Additionally, the elements of personal experiences and daily observations helped bridging the gap between the image of the Great War and the realities of being in one. In Something Has Gone Crack: New Perspectives on J.R.R. Tolkien in the Great War (2019), notable contributors in Tolkien studies provide sixteen essays exploring different perspectives regarding of war and its effects on Tolkien’s works and personal life.

Ode to the Horses: Tolkien Reading Day 2023 (2)

A single soldier on his horse, during a cavalry patrol in World War I. From The Atlantic, courtesy of the National Library of Scotland

Horses and ponies appeared frequently in Middle-earth legendarium, and just like in any fantasy world or real world, characters could not achieve their goals without their presence. However, despite the fact that they were among the most important native animals of Middle-earth, horses here were mostly mentioned as means for the characters to reach their destinations. Even with the frequent mentions of notable horses and their deeds inform us that Tolkien had great appreciation toward these creatures beyond seeing them as beasts to ride.

In This Journey, Always Have Humility: Tolkien Reading Day 2023 (1)

The Cottage of Lost Play, by Armani Warrington

In The Cottage of Lost Play, the first chapter of The Book of Lost Tales part one, we met Eriol, a great mariner who traveled to the Elvish Isle of Tol Eressëa and gathered tales and history of its inhabitants. When he was looking for a lodging, he saw a peculiar house built on a cliffside, a tiny house called Cottage of the Lost Play. When he wondered how he could enter, the house seemed to perceive his mind, and said,

“Small is the dwelling, but smaller still are they that dwell here-for all who enter must be very small indeed, or of their own good wish become as very little folk even as they stand upon the threshold.”

Eriol responded by expressing his wish to experience the kindness of Lindo and Vairë, the hosts of the cottage, and humbly wishing to be small enough to walk past the door. His wish was granted as the house suddenly grew into great spaciousness, and he experienced more joy in the house than in his wanderings around the island (which had been joyful enough on their own). His humility and willingness to make himself smaller, not his physical prowess, were the ones that allowed him to enter this magical cottage.

Sorrowful Love, Hopeful Love (Tolkien Reading Day 2022)

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“For long years he (Amroth) had loved her, and taken no wife, since she would not wed with him. She loved him indeed, for he was beautiful even for one of the Eldar, and valiant and wise; but she was of the Silvan elves, and regretted the incoming of the Elves from the West, who (as she said) brought wars and destroyed the peace of old. She would speak only the Silvan tongue, even after it had fallen into disuse among the folk of Lorien; and she dwelt alone beside the falls of the river Nimrodel to which she gave her name.”

Unfinished Tales Part 2, Ch. 4: The History of Galadriel and Celeborn and of Amroth King of Lorien

Great love stories are tinged with sorrow. That’s one thing to notice when you read about the stories of lovers in Middle-earth legendarium. Even the legendary love tales, like between Beren and Lúthien, have this bittersweet quality that seeps into your heart, long after the story is supposed to end at the blissful “happily ever after”. Dig deeper into Tolkien’s “love stories”, and you will see characters languishing because of the lack of love, displaying the twisted form of “love”, or losing their loved ones. Many couples had their love unrequited, nipped at the bud, turned sour, or doomed.

The Worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien: Inspirasi Middle-earth di Dunia Nyata (Ulasan Buku)

The Worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien: The Places That Inspired Middle-earth (Princeton University Press, 2020). Koleksi pribadi. Gambar sampul oleh Flo Snook

“Banyak pembaca sepertinya mengira Middle-earth berada di planet lain!”

The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien, surat nomor 11, 14 Oktober 1958

John Garth mengawali bab pembuka The Worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien dengan kutipan surat Tolkien untuk Rhona Beare, tertanggal 14 Oktober 1958. Kutipan tersebut hanya awal dari penjelasan panjang tentang asal-usul kata Middle-earth; versi modern atau perubahan dari kata dalam bahasa kuno yang merujuk ke dunia yang dihuni Manusia. Menurutnya, kata middle (“tengah”) merujuk pada pemikiran bahwa dunia tersebut dikelilingi oleh Lautan, diapit negeri es di Utara dan api di Selatan. Dalam surat tersebut, Tolkien juga menambahkan kata Inggris Kuno dan Abad Pertengahan (middan-geard dan midden-erd), menegaskan bahwa Middle-earth terinspirasi oleh dunia nyata.

The Worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien: Explore the Real Places That Inspired Middle-earth (Review)

The Worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien: The Places That Inspired Middle-earth (Princeton University Press, 2020). Cover art by Flo Snook

“Many reviewers seem to assume that Middle-earth is another planet!”

The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien: Letter 211, 14 October 1958

John Garth aptly started the Introduction chapter of The Worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien with a quote from Tolkien’s letter to Rhona Beare, written on 14 October 1958. This line followed Tolkien’s explanation about the origin of Middle-earth; a modernization or alteration of an old word for the inhabited world of Men. The world “middle”, according to the same letter, is because the world is thought of vaguely as set amidst the encircling Seas between ice of the North and the fire of the South. Tolkien also added the Old English and Medieval English versions of the word “middle” (middan-geard, midden-erd), further emphasizing his notion that Middle-earth is based on his own world.

Review: Laughter in Middle-earth: Humour in and Around the Works of J. R. R. Tolkien

Anyone without the slightest idea of how J. R. R. Tolkien was like in real life perhaps would assume that he was a stiff, serious professor-type; well-read and charming enough, but not exactly a humorous one, judging from his photos. This, of course, was a wrong assessment, since Tolkien was known for being quite a jolly figure, fond of laughter and even silly jokes. This was a person who threw sugar cubes to people’s hats from teahouse balconies with his date, went to parties dressed as a polar bear, and irritated his neighbors by dressing up as Anglo-Saxon warrior and chased them down the street.

Niphredil, Snowdrops: the Blooms of Courage and Hope

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The grass was studded with small golden flowers…. Among them, nodding on slender stalks, were other flowers, white and palest green: they glimmered as a mist amid the rich hue of the grass…. “Behold! You are come to Cerin Amroth…. Here ever bloom the winter flowers in the unfading grass: the yellow elanor, and the pale niphredil.”

J. R. R. Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Book 2, Chapter 6: Lothlórien

Following the theme of Courage and Hope in Tolkien Reading Day 2021, I found myself reverting from the grand ideas, preferring to peer at the smaller, humbler things that are also parts of Middle-earth legendarium. Just like how the home-loving Hobbits turned into unexpected heroes in Tolkien’s stories, the presence of small, seemingly insignificant objects like flowers symbolized grander meaning than their humble appearances. One that received meaningful treatments in Middle-earth legendarium is niphredil, a small white flower that first grew in the magically hidden land of Doriath, and could be found among the golden trees of Lothlórien.

The Sea-Bell (Frodos Dreme): Puisi Tolkien tentang Laut, Ilusi, dan Rasa Terasing

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The Lord of the Rings memuat lebih dari 60 puisi, namun mereka bukan satu-satunya puisi karya Tolkien. Sejak tahun 1910, Tolkien telah menulis puisi dengan beragam tema, seperti mimpi, laut, dunia “faerie“, rasa kehilangan, hingga keterasingan. The Sea-Bell adalah satu di antara beberapa puisinya yang bernada muram walau masih mengandung elemen mimpi dan dunia dongeng yang kental. Bahkan jika Anda hanya membaca karya populer seperti The Hobbit dan The Lord of the Rings, Anda tidak akan kesulitan menemukan kemiripan tema serta atmosfer yang mewarnai karya-karya Tolkien.