I’m a member of the Tolkien Society, a worldwide literary society based in the UK. Here are some of the various talks and articles I’ve done over the years.
The Lord of the Rings, Chapter by Chapter. (Just Book One, as at 18th September 2018, plus an overview of how Gandalf identifies the One Ring.)
Why Not a Green Great Dragon? A study of language that starts from Tolkien’s observations on the matter.
Defending Tolkien Against Michael Moorcock’s Condemnation. A review of Moorcock’s 1987 book Wizardry and Wild Romance. Saying a lot about fantasy fiction in general, as well as illustrating Moorcock’s errors.
Gollum as Stream-of-Consciousness. A short excerpt taken from my study of Moorcock and Tolkien.
Home Movies of the Soul. Another short excerpt taken from my study of Moorcock and Tolkien.
Tolkien as understood by Peter Jackson, Brian Sibley and Ralph Bakshi. Compairing the film blockbusters to the earler and excellent radio adaptation. And to the “Abomination of Bakshi”, which however did inspire Peter Jackson and also gave him the opening sequences to Fellowship of the Ring.
Tolkien in the language of film. (Ideas for how future films might be made.)
Eyes and Illusions in Tolkien and Le Guin. Including an analysis of how the “back-story” changes a lot in the various novels and short stories of her Hainish Cycle.
Tolkien and British History. The real-world elements he look some of his ideas from.
Power and Politics in Tolkien’s Work. Questions of democracy and economic fairness.
Game of Thrones and Other Filmable Fantasy. The roots of the story and the way it is told. Also what else might be films. Includes a comparison of the Nightwatch oath and Pippin’s oath to Denethor in Lord of the Rings.
A Letter to Private Eye Defending Tolkien. The general matter of Heroic Fantasy and its separate US development.
And here are some photos I’ve taken over the years.
At the Tolkien Society annual gathering, Oxonmoot, photographed before 1990, from 2002 to 2010, and 2011 to the present day. Plus some photos from the Oxonmoot slide show, a mix of the sublime and the ridiculous.
Also the Tolkien 2005 Convention, which had a wider attendance. And a Tolkien Miscellany, including photos whose exact date I no longer remember. The Return of the Ring in 2011. And the 72nd Science Fiction Worldcon, held in London in 2014 and including a showing by the Tolkien Society. And some mediaeval re-enactments.
Long Revolution 