Magic review – the science of Middle-earth

Your morning cup of coffee is now only available on Mastodon at @BlumeEvolution @sueden.social. And she has other things too The positive impact of Twitter time significantly on the attitude towards life: I find more time to read again. And some of you will know that fantasy studies, games, and Tolkien are some of the areas that make me really happy. This is a radio segment on mythology written by a philologist-professor. JRR Tolkien which was a precious pleasure to write and produce in the studio with professionals:

So, fortunately, I accepted an offer to review a neat folder from wbg-Theiss-Verlag: “The Science of Middle-earth. How JRR Tolkien Created the Greatest Fantasy World of All Time”.

How beautiful and weighty the book is in your hands! It is finely crafted, but threatens to break easily at the ends and must be handled with care.

“The flag of Middle-earth“,” wbgTheiss, € 50. Photo: Michael Blum

Admittedly, the book is, as the second sentence of the title might suggest, not the myriad biopic of Tolkien, who led a rather peaceful scholarly life. Instead, it presents a literal map of Middle-earth, relating the different regions primarily to scientific disciplines. What about the botany of Fangorn, the volcanology of Mordor, and the sociology of the Shire?

The book begins with a beautiful science map of Middle-earth. Photo: Michael Blum

After the editors honored Professor Tolkien as the “Lord of Science,” Isabelle Pantin bridges Tolkien’s formulation of myths and his love of science with an introduction that is as clever as it is beautifully written and illustrated. She and the following authors succeeded in making many discoveries, for example of letters and sketches by the author of the world, which tend to get lost in the ‘big’ biographies. Who has read what Tolkien wrote about the spirit of inquiry and the aesthetics of the elves? Or how his youthful love of atlases led to the intense development of maps—which were only later joined by legends and stories?

Incredibly Beautiful and Incredible: A Climatic and Botanical Map of Middle-earth. Photo: Michael Blum

And finally when Vivian Stoker showed me the connection between Númenor and ancient Egypt, which was new to me, I was drawn to the book. Hardly anyone reads them in chronological order: with chapter titles and sometimes full-page graphics and drawings, they entice you to wander around and explore. Have you ever read about Tolkien’s ingots of rings and shields, or his fondness for emeralds? We can imagine the book as a large exhibition under the theme “Middle-earth” where the most diverse scientific disciplines are full of discoveries. Warning, tested for you: never start under time pressure, you won’t find your way out so quickly!

Book pages are like treasure chambers. Photo: Michael Blum

The book is charming and suffers from only one weakness: while philosophy and mythology are referenced again and again, the perspective of theology and religious studies is missing. Tolkien posited that we make imaginary worlds as sub-creators of the One, that every good fictional story moves by nature towards the gospel, and that he explicitly cast the dwarves in accordance with his (positively turned) idea of ​​the determined Jews—these aspects are touched on at best, and often not. mention it.

However, for both Tolkien and science lovers, this is no shortcoming – what matters here is the sudden and often visually and linguistically beautiful discovery, especially of the unknown. And where a chemist can finally contemplate the feeding paths of Ents and evolutionary biologists can marvel at a Hobbit family tree (pg. 223, beautiful!), flow is guaranteed.

And so I can strengthen myself while immersed in fantasy and science With lawyers Chan-jo Jun and HateAid adjudicating LG Frankfurt in “Blume vs. Twitter International” on December 14. I’m looking forward to.

So the following applies: Peoples of Middle-earth, do not allow yourself to be subject to any power! We hear, see and read each other!