This is very short — I can’t really get an idea of what your thesis is or how you mean to develop it. Lydia Fish November 11, 2008, at 10:47 PM
Topic: The Ties Between Shakespeare and Tolkien
Introduction: Relate briefly Tolkien’s views of Shakespeare and relate to how Shakespeare may have influenced Tolkien and their respective uses of faërie.
Thesis: Shakespeare heavily influenced Tolkien despite his denial of such a claim.
Background: Tolkien and Shakespeare’s respective histories, displaying the overlap of things like the two being raised in Warwickshire.
Also talk about Tolkien’s knowledge of Shakespeare, haven taught about Hamlet in his early years at Oxford.
Critical: Tolkien’s critical analysis of Shakespeare, an author he “disliked cordially,” while also touching upon how Tolkien felt certain works of Shakespeare were meant only for the stage and some only for reading.
Faërie: Both author’s similarities and differences in their use of faërie, showing the human interaction with elves. Also talking about the history and influences of the authors’ faërie world based upon Celtic and Germanic folklore.
Power: Both authors deal a lot with abuses of power, politics, princes and the lessons of history. Henry V, Hamlet and King Lear provide good examples to correlate with Lord of the Rings.
Magic and Prophecy: Magic serves as a metaphor for power and how characters use such. Wizards like Gandalf and Prospero appear and how Tolkien draws from Merlin and Prospero for Gandalf and Saruman.
The Other: Disguises, mirrors that hide and reveal, glasses filled with light and seeing stones that only reveal part of the truth. Fear of different races reflects the “Otherness” in the stories.
-It took me awhile to post this on account any link I created sent me to a page I had already written.
