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JRR Tolkien

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JRR Tolkien, commonly credited as the ‘father of fantasy’, has developed a unique and individualistic plot set in middle earth-a land of elves, fairies and all that is mystical. Tolkien, a linguist and professor, used literature to create various parallels between his life and the events in his novels. J.R.R Tolkien was inspired by World War I British society, his education, and Roman Catholicism when writing his fantasy novels, such as The Hobbit and The Silmarillion. John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born in South Africa on January 3, 1892 to Arthur Reuel Tolkien and Mabel Suffield. Arthur and Mabel were English and proudly so- therefore when Arthur died on the 15th of February, 1896, the Tolkiens moved to the West Midlands in England. The…show more content…
Industrialization occurred in Britain in the 1750s due to the environmental and social climate prime for mechanization in industries. Due to the change in economic exportations from agricultural to mechanized products, Britain's society began to change as people migrated to work in factories. The migration of the newfound middleclass led to mass urbanization of various areas in England which contrasted the previous quintessential English countryside that had dominated the nation. Through the expansion of mechanical goods, the countryside lost land to factories and the environment was also deeply affected by the influx of smoke climbing into the air. Contrary to the environmental problems, the British were experienced economic glory as the became a superpower in the advancing technologies. Through the industrialization, Britain would develop advanced war machines and would vastly change British society hundreds of years later in 20th century London. JRR Tolkien was profoundly affected by industrialization throughout his time in World War I. Beginning in 1915, Tolkien was enlisted in the war but it did take much time for him to leave: in November of the same year he was sent back to London because he was diagnosed with Trench fever. Although he soon recovered from the illness by christmas it was recurring through 1917 to 1918. Despite this epidemic, Tolkien continued to make camp visits to various army bases in London. In a particular visit to the Hull area, Tolkien and Edith had been walking in the woods when Edith danced for him in a place filled of hemlock. This inspired Tolkien in the Legendarium or The Silmarillion as is is now known, as he described the tale of Beren and Luthien. Furthermore, the warfare in World War I inspired his descriptions of the Wars that take place within the Silmarillion. World
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