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The Lord of the Rings

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This article is about the novel. For the film series, see The Lord of the Rings
(film series). For other uses, see The Lord of the Rings (disambiguation).
The Lord of the Rings
First Single Volume Edition of The Lord of the Rings.gif
The first single volume edition
Volumes:
The Fellowship of the Ring
The Two Towers
The Return of the King
Author J. R. R. Tolkien
Country United Kingdom
Language
English
Genre
Fantasy novel (High fantasy)
Adventure
Publisher
George Allen & Unwin (UK)
Published
29 July 1954
11 November 1954
20 October 1955
Media type
Print (hardback and paperback)
Preceded by
The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings is an epic high-fantasy novel written by English author J.
R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 fantasy novel The
Hobbit, but eventually developed into a much larger work. Written in stages betw
een 1937 and 1949, The Lord of the Rings is the best-selling novel ever written,
with over 150 million copies sold.[1]
The title of the novel refers to the story's main antagonist, the Dark Lord Saur
on,[note 1] who had in an earlier age created the One Ring to rule the other Rin
gs of Power as the ultimate weapon in his campaign to conquer and rule all of Mi
ddle-earth. From quiet beginnings in the Shire, a hobbit land not unlike the Eng
lish countryside, the story ranges across Middle-earth, following the course of
the War of the Ring through the eyes of its characters, not only the hobbits Fro
do Baggins, Samwise "Sam" Gamgee, Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck and Peregrin "Pipp
in" Took, but also the hobbits' chief allies and travelling companions: the Men
Aragorn son of Arathorn, a Ranger of the North, and Boromir, a Captain of Gondor
; Gimli son of Glin, a Dwarf warrior; Legolas Greenleaf, an Elven prince; and Gan
dalf, a Wizard.
The work was initially intended by Tolkien to be one volume of a two-volume set,
the other to be The Silmarillion, but this idea was dismissed by his publisher.
[3][4] For economic reasons The Lord of the Rings was published in three volumes
over the course of a year from 29 July 1954 to 20 October 1955.[3][5] The three
volumes were titled The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return
of the King. Structurally, the novel is divided internally into six books, two p
er volume, with several appendices of background material included at the end of
the third volume. Some editions combine the entire work into a single volume. T
he Lord of the Rings has since been reprinted numerous times and translated into
38 languages.
Tolkien's work has been the subject of extensive analysis of its themes and orig
ins. Although a major work in itself, the story was only the last movement of a
larger epic Tolkien had worked on since 1917,[6] in a process he described as my
thopoeia.[citation needed] Influences on this earlier work, and on the story of
The Lord of the Rings, include philology, mythology, religion and the author's d
istaste for the effects of industrialization, as well as earlier fantasy works a
nd Tolkien's experiences in World War I.[7] These inspirations and themes have o

ften been denied by Tolkien himself. The Lord of the Rings in its turn is consid
ered to have had a great effect on modern fantasy; the impact of Tolkien's works
is such that the use of the words "Tolkienian" and "Tolkienesque" have been rec
orded in the Oxford English Dictionary.[8]
The enduring popularity of The Lord of the Rings has led to numerous references
in popular culture, the founding of many societies by fans of Tolkien's works,[9
] and the publication of many books about Tolkien and his works. The Lord of the
Rings has inspired, and continues to inspire, artwork, music, films and televis
ion, video games, and subsequent literature. Award-winning adaptations of The Lo
rd of the Rings have been made for radio, theatre, and film.[10] In 2003, it was
named Britain's best-loved novel of all time in the BBC's The Big Read.
Contents [hide]
1
Plot summary
1.1
The Fellowship of the Ring
1.2
The Two Towers
1.3
The Return of the King
2
Main characters
3
Concept and creation
3.1
Background
3.2
Writing
3.3
Influences
4
Publication history
4.1
Editions and revisions
4.2
Posthumous publication of drafts
4.3
Translations
5
Reception
6
Themes
7
Adaptations
8
Legacy
8.1
Influences on the fantasy genre
8.2
Music
8.3
Impact on popular culture
9
See also
10
Notes
11
References
12
Further reading
13
External links
Plot summary[edit]
See also: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King
plot summaries
Thousands of years before the events of the novel, the Dark Lord Sauron had forg
ed the One Ring to rule the other Rings of Power and corrupt those who wear them
: the leaders of Men, Elves and Dwarves. He was later vanquished in battle by an
alliance of Elves and Men led by Elendil and Gil-galad. Isildur, a ruler of Men
, cut the One Ring from Sauron's finger, claiming it as an heirloom for his line
, and Sauron lost his physical form. When Isildur was later ambushed and killed
by Orcs, the Ring was lost in the River Anduin at Gladden Fields.
Over two thousand years later, the Ring was found by one of the river-folk calle
d Dagol. His friend[11] Smagol immediately fell under the Ring's influence and str
angled Dagol to acquire it. Smagol was banished and hid under the Misty Mountains,
where the Ring extended his lifespan and transformed him over the course of hun
dreds of years into a twisted, corrupted creature called Gollum. He lost the Rin
g, his "precious", and, as recounted in The Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins found it. Mean
while, Sauron re-assumed physical form and took back his old realm of Mordor. Go
llum set out in search of the Ring, but was captured by Sauron, who learnt from
him that "Baggins" in the Shire had taken it. Gollum was set loose, and Sauron,
who needed the Ring to regain his full power, sent forth his powerful servants,
the Nazgl, to seize it.
The Fellowship of the Ring[edit]
The story begins in the Shire, where the Hobbit Frodo Baggins inherits the Ring

from Bilbo Baggins, his cousin[note 2] and guardian. Neither is aware of its ori
gin and nature, but Gandalf the Grey, a wizard and old friend of Bilbo, suspects
the Ring's identity. When he becomes certain, he strongly advises Frodo to take
it away from the Shire. Frodo leaves, accompanied by his gardener and friend, S
amwise ("Sam") Gamgee, and two cousins, Meriadoc ("Merry") Brandybuck and Peregr
in ("Pippin") Took. They nearly encounter the Nazgl while still in the Shire, but
shake off pursuit by cutting through the Old Forest, where they are aided by th
e enigmatic Tom Bombadil, who alone is unaffected by the Ring's corrupting influ
ence. After leaving the forest, they stop in the town of Bree where they meet St
rider, who is later revealed to be Aragorn, Isildur's heir. He persuades them to
take him on as guide and protector. They flee from Bree after narrowly escaping
another assault, but the Nazgl follow and attack them on the hill of Weathertop,
wounding Frodo with a Morgul blade. Aragorn leads the hobbits toward the Elven
refuge of Rivendell, while Frodo gradually succumbs to the wound. The Ringwraith
s nearly overtake Frodo at the Ford of Bruinen, but flood waters summoned by Elr
ond, master of Rivendell, rise up and overwhelm them.
Frodo recovers in Rivendell under the care of Elrond. The Council of Elrond reve
als much significant history about Sauron and the Ring, as well as the news that
Sauron has corrupted Gandalf's fellow wizard, Saruman. The Council decides that
the Ring must be destroyed, but that can only be done by returning it to the fl
ames of Mount Doom in Mordor, where it was forged. Frodo volunteers to take on t
his daunting task, and a "Fellowship of the Ring" is formed to aid him: Sam, Mer
ry, Pippin, Aragorn, Gandalf, Gimli the Dwarf, Legolas the Elf, and the Man Boro
mir, son of the Ruling Steward Denethor of the realm of Gondor.
After a failed attempt to cross the Misty Mountains via the Redhorn Pass across
the flank of Caradhras, the company are forced to try a more perilous path throu
gh the Mines of Moria, where they are attacked by the Watcher in the Water befor
e the gate. Inside, they discover the fate of Balin and his colony of Dwarves. A
fter repulsing an attack, they are pursued by orcs and an ancient and powerful d
emonic creature called a Balrog. Gandalf confronts the Balrog, but in their stru
ggle, both fall into a deep chasm. The others escape and take refuge in the Elve
n forest of Lothlrien, where they are counselled by Galadriel and Celeborn.
With boats and gifts from Galadriel, the company travel down the River Anduin to
the hill of Amon Hen. Boromir succumbs to the lure of the Ring and attempts to
take it from Frodo. Frodo escapes and determines to continue the quest alone, th
ough Sam guesses his intent and comes along.
The Two Towers[edit]
Orcs sent by Saruman and Sauron kill Boromir and kidnap Merry and Pippin. After
agonizing over which pair of hobbits to follow, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas pursu
e the orcs bearing Merry and Pippin to Saruman. In the kingdom of Rohan, the orc
s are slain by a company of the Rohirrim. Merry and Pippin escape into Fangorn F
orest, where they are befriended by Treebeard, the oldest of the tree-like Ents.
Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas track the hobbits to Fangorn, and encounter Gandalf,
resurrected as the significantly more powerful "Gandalf the White" after his mu
tually fatal duel with the Balrog. Gandalf assures them that Merry and Pippin ar
e safe. They then ride to Edoras, the capital of Rohan, where they free Thoden, K
ing of Rohan, from the influence of Saruman's henchman Grma Wormtongue. Thoden mus
ters his fighting strength and rides to the ancient fortress of Helm's Deep, but
en route Gandalf leaves to seek help from Treebeard.
Meanwhile, the Ents, roused from their customarily peaceful ways by Merry and Pi
ppin, attack Isengard, Saruman's stronghold, and trap the wizard in the tower of
Orthanc. Gandalf convinces Treebeard to send an army of Huorns to Thoden's aid.
Gandalf and Rohirrim reinforcements arrive at Helm's Deep just in time to defeat
and scatter Saruman's army. The Huorns dispose of the fleeing orcs. Gandalf the
n parleys with Saruman at Orthanc. When Saruman rejects his offer of redemption,
Gandalf strips him of his rank and most of his powers. Pippin looks into a pala
ntr, a seeing-stone that Saruman had used to communicate with Sauron and through
which he was ensnared. Gandalf rides for Minas Tirith, chief city of Gondor, tak
ing Pippin with him.
Frodo and Sam capture Gollum, who had been following them from Moria, and force

him to guide them to Mordor. Finding Mordor's Black Gate too well guarded to att
empt, they travel instead to a secret passage Gollum knows. On the way they fall
in with Faramir, who unlike his brother Boromir resists the temptation to seize
the Ring and instead helps Frodo on his way. Torn between his loyalty to Frodo
and his desire for the Ring, Gollum eventually betrays Frodo by leading him to t
he great spider Shelob in the tunnels of Cirith Ungol. Frodo is felled by Shelob
's sting, but Sam fights her off. Sam takes the Ring and leaves Frodo, believing
him to be dead. When orcs find Frodo, Sam overhears them say that Frodo is only
unconscious, and chases after them.
The Return of the King[edit]
Sauron unleashes a heavy assault upon Gondor. Gandalf arrives at Minas Tirith to
alert Denethor of the impending attack. The city is besieged, and Denethor, dec
eived by Sauron, gives up hope and commits suicide, nearly taking his remaining
son Faramir with him. Aragorn feels he has no choice but to take the Paths of th
e Dead in order to reach Gondor in time, accompanied by Legolas, Gimli and the Dn
edain Rangers from the North. There Aragorn raises an undead army of oath-breake
rs bound by an ancient curse that said they could not rest until they had fulfil
led their vow to the king of Gondor. The ghostly army helps them to defeat the C
orsairs of Umbar who are invading southern Gondor. Commandeering the ships of th
e Corsairs, Aragorn leads reinforcements up the Anduin to relieve the siege of M
inas Tirith, and the forces of Gondor and Rohan defeat Sauron's army in the Batt
le of the Pelennor Fields.
Meanwhile, Sam rescues Frodo from the tower of Cirith Ungol, and they set out ac
ross Mordor. In order to distract Sauron from his true danger, Aragorn leads the
armies of Gondor and Rohan in a march on the Black Gate of Mordor. His vastly o
utnumbered troops fight desperately against Sauron's forces. Reaching the edge o
f the Cracks of Doom, Frodo is unable to resist the Ring any longer, and suddenl
y and fiercely claims it for himself. But Gollum suddenly reappears, struggles w
ith Frodo and seizes the Ring by biting off the finger on which Frodo wears it.
Celebrating wildly, Gollum accidentally falls into the fire, taking the Ring wit
h him; and so Frodo's mission is completed. With the destruction of the One Ring
, Sauron is permanently shorn of his power, the Nazgl perish, and his armies are
thrown into such disarray that Aragorn's forces emerge victorious.
With the end of the War of the Ring, Aragorn is crowned Elessar, King of Arnor a
nd Gondor, and marries his long-time love, Arwen, daughter of Elrond. Saruman es
capes from Isengard and, seeking vengeance on the hobbits, enslaves the Shire. T
he four hobbits, upon returning home, raise a rebellion and overthrow him. Grma t
urns on Saruman and kills him in front of Frodo's house, and is slain in turn by
hobbit archers. The War of the Ring thus comes to its true end on Frodo's very
doorstep.
Merry and Pippin are acclaimed heroes, while Sam marries Rosie Cotton and uses h
is gifts from Galadriel to help heal the Shire. Frodo, however, remains wounded
in body and spirit after having borne the oppressive weight of the One Ring so l
ong.
Several years later, accompanied by Bilbo and Gandalf, he sails from the Grey Ha
vens west over the Sea to the Undying Lands to find peace. After Rosie's death,
Sam gives his daughter the Red Book of Westmarch, containing the account of Bilb
o's adventures and the War of the Ring as witnessed by the hobbits. Sam is then
said to have crossed west over the Sea himself, the last of the Ring-bearers.
Main characters[edit]
Protagonists:
Frodo Baggins, bearer of the One Ring, given to him by Bilbo Baggins
Samwise Gamgee, gardener and friend of the Bagginses
Meriadoc Brandybuck (Merry), Frodo's cousin
Peregrin Took (Pippin or Pip), Frodo's cousin
Gandalf the Grey, a wizard, leads the Fellowship until his fall in Moria, return
s from death as Gandalf the White to lead the armies of the West against Sauron
Aragorn, descendant of Isildur and rightful heir to the thrones of Arnor and Gon
dor
Legolas Greenleaf, an Elf prince and son of King Thranduil of the Silvan Elves o

f Northern Mirkwood
Gimli, son of Glin, a dwarf
Denethor, ruling Steward of Gondor and Lord of Minas Tirith
Boromir, the eldest son and heir of Denethor
Faramir, younger brother of Boromir
Galadriel, Elf co-ruler of Lothlrien, and grandmother of Arwen
Celeborn, Elf co-ruler of Lothlrien, husband of Galadriel, and grandfather of Arw
en
Elrond Half-Elven, Half-elven Lord of Rivendell and father of Arwen
Arwen Undmiel, daughter of Elrond, love interest of Aragorn
Bilbo Baggins, Frodo's cousin[note 2]
Thoden, King of Rohan, ally of Gondor
omer, the 3rd Marshal of the Mark and Thoden's nephew. Later King of Rohan after T
hoden's death.
owyn, sister of omer, who disguises herself as a male warrior named Dernhelm to fi
ght beside Thoden
Treebeard, oldest of the Ents
Antagonists:
Sauron, the Dark Lord and titular Lord of the Rings, a fallen Maia who helped th
e Elves forge the Rings of Power in the Second Age.
The Nazgl or Ringwraiths, men enslaved by Sauron when they accepted his treachero
us gifts of Rings of Power
The Witch-king of Angmar, the Lord of the Nazgl, and Sauron's most powerful serva
nt, who commands Sauron's army
Saruman the White, a wizard who seeks the One Ring for himself. Originally the c
hief of the order of wizards of which Gandalf is also a member;[12] corrupted by
Sauron through the palantr.
Grma Wormtongue, a secret servant of Saruman and traitor to Rohan, who poisons Tho
den's perceptions with well placed "advice"
Gollum, a river hobbit originally named Smagol
Shelob, a giant spider who dwells in the passes above Minas Morgul
Durin's Bane, a Balrog dwelling beneath the Mines of Moria
Concept and creation[edit]
Background[edit]
The Lord of the Rings started as a sequel to J. R. R. Tolkien's work The Hobbit,
published in 1937.[13] The popularity of The Hobbit had led George Allen & Unwi
n, the publishers, to request a sequel. Tolkien warned them that he wrote quite
slowly, and responded with several stories he had already developed. Having reje
cted his contemporary drafts for The Silmarillion, putting on hold Roverandom, a
nd accepting Farmer Giles of Ham, Allen & Unwin thought more stories about hobbi
ts would be popular.[14] So at the age of 45, Tolkien began writing the story th
at would become The Lord of the Rings. The story would not be finished until 12
years later, in 1949, and would not be fully published until 1955, when Tolkien
was 63 years old.
Writing[edit]
Persuaded by his publishers, he started "a new Hobbit" in December 1937.[13] Aft
er several false starts, the story of the One Ring emerged. The idea for the fir
st chapter ("A Long-Expected Party") arrived fully formed, although the reasons
behind Bilbo's disappearance, the significance of the Ring, and the title The Lo
rd of the Rings did not arrive until the spring of 1938.[13] Originally, he plan
ned to write a story in which Bilbo had used up all his treasure and was looking
for another adventure to gain more; however, he remembered the Ring and its pow
ers and thought that would be a better focus for the new work.[13] As the story
progressed, he also brought in elements from 'The Silmarillion' mythology.[15]
Writing was slow, because Tolkien had a full-time academic position, and needed
to earn further money as a university examiner.[16] Tolkien abandoned The Lord o
f the Rings during most of 1943 and only restarted it in April 1944,[13] as a se
rial for his son Christopher Tolkien, who was sent chapters as they were written
while he was serving in South Africa with the Royal Air Force. Tolkien made ano
ther concerted effort in 1946, and showed the manuscript to his publishers in 19

47.[13] The story was effectively finished the next year, but Tolkien did not co
mplete the revision of earlier parts of the work until 1949.[13] The original ma
nuscripts, which total 9,250 pages, now reside in the J.R.R. Tolkien Collection
at Marquette University.[17]
Influences[edit]
The corner of a street with a public house called The Ivy Bush on the right side
. In the background two tall brick towers can be seen further left.
Mentioned at the beginning of The Lord of the Rings, the Ivy Bush[18] is the clo
sest public house to Birmingham Oratory which Tolkien attended while living near
Edgbaston Reservoir. Perrott's Folly is nearby.
Main article: J. R. R. Tolkien's influences
The influence of the Welsh language, which Tolkien had learnt, is summarised in
his essay English and Welsh: "If I may once more refer to my work. The Lord of t
he Rings, in evidence: the names of persons and places in this story were mainly
composed on patterns deliberately modelled on those of Welsh (closely similar b
ut not identical). This element in the tale has given perhaps more pleasure to m
ore readers than anything else in it."[19]
The Lord of the Rings developed as a personal exploration by Tolkien of his inte
rests in philology, religion (particularly Roman Catholicism[20]), fairy tales,
Norse and general Germanic mythology,[21][22] and also Celtic,[23] Slavic,[24][2
5][26] Persian,[27] Greek,[28] and Finnish mythology.[29] Tolkien acknowledged,
and external critics have verified, the influences of George MacDonald and Willi
am Morris[30] and the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf.[31] The question of a direct inf
luence of Wagner's The Nibelung's Ring on Tolkien's work is debated by critics.
Tolkien included neither any explicit religion nor cult in his work. Rather the
themes, moral philosophy, and cosmology of The Lord of the Rings reflect his Cat
holic worldview. In one of his letters Tolkien states, "The Lord of the Rings is
of course a fundamentally religious and Catholic work; unconsciously so at firs
t, but consciously in the revision. That is why I have not put in, or have cut o
ut, practically all references to anything like 'religion', to cults or practice
s, in the imaginary world. For the religious element is absorbed into the story
and the symbolism."[20]
Some locations and characters were inspired by Tolkien's childhood in Birmingham
, where he first lived near Sarehole Mill, and later near Edgbaston Reservoir.[3
2] There are also hints of the Black Country, which is within easy reach of nort
h west Edgbaston. This shows in such names as "Underhill", and the description o
f Saruman's industrialisation of Isengard and The Shire. It has also been sugges
ted that The Shire and its surroundings were based on the countryside around Sto
nyhurst College in Lancashire where Tolkien frequently stayed during the 1940s.[
33] The work was influenced by the effects of his military service during World
War I, to the point that Frodo has been "diagnosed" as suffering from Posttrauma
tic Stress Disorder, or "shell-shock," which was first diagnosed at the Battle o
f the Somme, at which Tolkien served.[34]
Publication history[edit]
A dispute with his publisher, George Allen & Unwin, led to the book being offere
d to Collins in 1950. Tolkien intended The Silmarillion (itself largely unrevise
d at this point) to be published along with The Lord of the Rings, but A&U were
unwilling to do this. After Milton Waldman, his contact at Collins, expressed th
e belief that The Lord of the Rings itself "urgently wanted cutting", Tolkien ev
entually demanded that they publish the book in 1952.[35] Collins did not; and s
o Tolkien wrote to Allen and Unwin, saying, "I would gladly consider the publica
tion of any part of the stuff."[13]
For publication, the book was divided into three volumes: The Fellowship of the
Ring (Books I, The Ring Sets Out, and II, The Ring Goes South), The Two Towers (
Books III, The Treason of Isengard, and IV, The Ring Goes East), and The Return
of the King (Books V, The War of the Ring, and VI, The End of the Third Age, plu
s six appendices). This was due largely to post-war paper shortages, as well as
being a way to keep down the price of the book. Delays in producing appendices,
maps and especially indices led to the volumes being published later than origin
on 29 July 1954, on 11 November 1954 and on 20 October 1955 respectiv
ally hoped

ely in the United Kingdom, and slightly later in the United States. The Return o
f the King was especially delayed. Tolkien did not like the title The Return of
the King, believing it gave away too much of the storyline. Nor, moreover, was h
e happy with the title The Two Towers, as he felt that books III and IV were not
really related, and as such the eponymous towers could be either Orthanc and Ba
rad-dr, or Minas Tirith and Barad-dr, or Orthanc and Cirith Ungol. Tolkien was, in
fact, opposed from the outset to titles being given to each volume, preferring
instead the use of the book titles: i.e. The Lord of the Rings: Vol. 1 The Ring
Sets Out and The Ring goes South; Vol. II The Treason of Isengard and The Ring G
oes East; Vol. III The War of the Ring and The End of the Third Age. However, du
e to pressure from his publishers, Tolkien considered the titles: Vol. 1 The Sha
dow Grows; Vol. 2 The Ring in the Shadow; Vol. 3 The War of the Ring or The Retu
rn of the King. In a letter to his publishers, Tolkien later suggested: Vol. 1 T
he Shadow Grows; Vol. 2 The Ring in the Shadow; Vol. 3 The War of the Ring or Th
e Return of the King.[36][37]
The books were published under a profit-sharing arrangement, whereby Tolkien wou
ld not receive an advance or royalties until the books had broken even, after wh
ich he would take a large share of the profits.[38] It has ultimately become the
second best-selling novel ever written, with over 150 million copies sold.[1] O
nly A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens has sold more copies worldwide (over
200 million) while the fourth best-selling novel is Tolkien's The Hobbit.[39][4
0][41]
Editions and revisions[edit]
In the early 1960s Donald A. Wollheim, science fiction editor of the paperback p
ublisher Ace Books, claimed that The Lord of the Rings was not protected in the
United States under American copyright law because Houghton Mifflin, the U.S. ha
rdcover publisher, had neglected to copyright the work in the United States.[42]
[43] Ace Books then proceeded to publish an edition, unauthorized by Tolkien and
without paying royalties to him. Tolkien took issue with this and quickly notif
ied his fans of this objection.[44] Grass-roots pressure from these fans became
so great that Ace Books withdrew their edition and made a nominal payment to Tol
kien.[45][46] Authorized editions followed from Ballantine Books and Houghton Mi
fflin to tremendous commercial success. By the mid-1960s the novel had become a
cultural phenomenon. Tolkien undertook various textual revisions to produce a ve
rsion of the book that would be published with his consent and establish an unqu
estioned US copyright. This text became the Second Edition of The Lord of the Ri
ngs, published in 1965.[45] Houghton Mifflin editions after 1994 consolidate var
iant revisions by Tolkien, and corrections supervised by Christopher Tolkien, wh
ich resulted, after some initial glitches, in a computer-based unified text.[47]
Posthumous publication of drafts[edit]
From 1988 to 1992 Christopher Tolkien published the surviving drafts of The Lord
of The Rings, chronicling and illuminating with commentary the stages of the te
xt's development, in volumes 6 9 of his History of Middle-earth series. The four v
olumes carry the titles The Return of the Shadow, The Treason of Isengard, The W
ar of the Ring, and Sauron Defeated.
Translations[edit]
Main article: Translations of The Lord of the Rings
The novel has been translated, with various degrees of success, into at least 38
languages.[48] Tolkien, an expert in philology, examined many of these translat
ions, and made comments on each that reflect both the translation process and hi
s work. As he was unhappy with some choices made by early translators, such as t
he Swedish translation by ke Ohlmarks,[49] Tolkien wrote a "Guide to the Names in
The Lord of the Rings" (1967). Because The Lord of the Rings purports to be a t
ranslation of the fictitious Red Book of Westmarch, with the English language re
presenting the Westron of the "original", Tolkien suggested that translators att
empt to capture the interplay between English and the invented nomenclature of t
he English work, and gave several examples along with general guidance.
Reception[edit]
Main article: Reception of J. R. R. Tolkien
While early reviews for The Lord of the Rings were mixed, reviews in various med

ia have been, on the whole, highly positive and acknowledge Tolkien's literary a
chievement as a significant one. The initial review in the Sunday Telegraph desc
ribed it as "among the greatest works of imaginative fiction of the twentieth ce
ntury."[50] The Sunday Times echoed this sentiment, stating that "the English-sp
eaking world is divided into those who have read The Lord of the Rings and The H
obbit and those who are going to read them."[50] The New York Herald Tribune als
o seemed to have an idea of how popular the books would become, writing in its r
eview that they were "destined to outlast our time."[51] W. H. Auden, an admirer
of Tolkien's writings, regarded The Lord of the Rings as a "masterpiece", furth
er stating that in some cases it outdid the achievement of John Milton's Paradis
e Lost.[52]
New York Times reviewer Judith Shulevitz criticized the "pedantry" of Tolkien's
literary style, saying that he "formulated a high-minded belief in the importanc
e of his mission as a literary preservationist, which turns out to be death to l
iterature itself."[53] Critic Richard Jenkyns, writing in The New Republic, crit
icized the work for a lack of psychological depth. Both the characters and the w
ork itself are, according to Jenkyns, "anemic, and lacking in fibre."[54] Even w
ithin Tolkien's literary group, The Inklings, reviews were mixed. Hugo Dyson com
plained loudly at its readings.[55][56] However, another Inkling, C. S. Lewis, h
ad very different feelings, writing, "here are beauties which pierce like swords
or burn like cold iron. Here is a book which will break your heart." Despite th
ese reviews and its lack of paperback printing until the 1960s, The Lord of the
Rings initially sold well in hardback.[6]
In 1957, The Lord of the Rings was awarded the International Fantasy Award. Desp
ite its numerous detractors, the publication of the Ace Books and Ballantine pap
erbacks helped The Lord of the Rings become immensely popular in the United Stat
es in the 1960s. The book has remained so ever since, ranking as one of the most
popular works of fiction of the twentieth century, judged by both sales and rea
der surveys.[57] In the 2003 "Big Read" survey conducted in Britain by the BBC,
The Lord of the Rings was found to be the "Nation's best-loved book." In similar
2004 polls both Germany[58] and Australia[59] also found The Lord of the Rings
to be their favourite book. In a 1999 poll of Amazon.com customers, The Lord of
the Rings was judged to be their favourite "book of the millennium."[60] The Lor
d of the Rings was awarded the Prometheus Hall of Fame Award in 2009.
Themes[edit]
Main article: Themes of The Lord of the Rings
Although The Lord of the Rings was published in the 1950s, Tolkien insisted that
the One Ring was not an allegory for the atomic bomb,[61] nor were his works a
strict allegory of any kind, but were open to interpretation as the reader saw f
it.[62][63]
A few critics have found what they consider to be racial elements in the story,
generally based upon their views of how Tolkien's imagery depicts good and evil,
characters' race (e.g. Elf, Dwarf, Hobbit, Southron, Nmenrean, Orc); and that the
character's race is seen as determining their behaviour.[64][65][66] Counter-ar
guments note that race-focused critiques often omit relevant textual evidence to
the contrary,[67][68][69] cite imagery from adaptations rather than the work it
self;[70] ignore the absence of evidence of racist attitudes or events in the au
thor's personal life[67][70][71] and claim that the perception of racism is itse
lf a marginal view.[71]
Critics have also seen social class rather than race as being the determining fa
ctor in the portrayal of good and evil.[67] Commentators such as science fiction
author David Brin have interpreted the work to hold unquestioning devotion to a
traditional elitist social structure.[72] In his essay "Epic Pooh", science fic
tion and fantasy author Michael Moorcock critiques the world-view displayed by t
he book as deeply conservative, in both the 'paternalism' of the narrative voice
and the power-structures in the narrative.[73] Tom Shippey cites the origin of
this portrayal of evil as a reflection of the prejudices of European middle-clas
ses during the inter-war years towards the industrial working class.[74]
Other observers have cited Christian and Catholic themes in The Lord of the Ring
s.[75]

The book has been read as fitting the model of Joseph Campbell's "monomyth".[76]
Adaptations[edit]
Main article: Adaptations of The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings has been adapted for film, radio and stage.
The book has been adapted for radio four times. In 1955 and 1956, the BBC broadc
ast The Lord of the Rings, a 12-part radio adaptation of the story. In the 1960s
radio station WBAI produced a short radio adaptation. A 1979 dramatization of T
he Lord of the Rings was broadcast in the United States and subsequently issued
on tape and CD. In 1981, the BBC broadcast The Lord of the Rings, a new dramatiz
ation in 26 half-hour instalments. This dramatization of The Lord of the Rings h
as subsequently been made available on both tape and CD both by the BBC and othe
r publishers. For this purpose it is generally edited into 13 one-hour episodes.
Two film adaptations of the book have been made. The first was J. R. R. Tolkien'
s The Lord of the Rings (1978), by animator Ralph Bakshi,[77] the first part of
what was originally intended to be a two-part adaptation of the story; it covers
The Fellowship of the Ring and part of The Two Towers. A three-issue comic book
version of the movie was also published in Europe (but not printed in English),
with illustrations by Luis Bermejo. When Bakshi's investors shied away of finan
cing the second film that would complete the story, the remainder of the story w
as covered in an animated television special by Rankin-Bass. Stylistically, the
two segments are very different. The second and more critically and commercially
successful adaptation was Peter Jackson's live action The Lord of the Rings fil
m trilogy, produced by New Line Cinema and released in three instalments as The
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Lord of the Rings: The
Two Towers (2002), and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003). Al
l three parts won multiple Academy Awards, including consecutive Best Picture no
minations. The final instalment of this trilogy was the second film to break the
one-billion-dollar barrier and won a total of 11 Oscars (something only two oth
er films in history, Ben-Hur and Titanic, have accomplished), including Best Pic
ture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.
The Hunt for Gollum, a fan film based on elements of the appendices to The Lord
of the Rings, was released on the internet in May 2009 and has been covered in m
ajor media.[78]
Born of Hope, written by Paula DiSante, directed by Kate Madison, and released i
n December 2009, is a fan film based upon the appendices of The Lord of the Ring
s.[79]
In 1990, Recorded Books published an audio version of The Lord of the Rings,[80]
who had previously starred in his own one-man sta
with British actor Rob Inglis
ge productions of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings
reading. A large-scale mu
sical theatre adaptation, The Lord of the Rings was first staged in Toronto, Ont
ario, Canada in 2006 and opened in London in May 2007.
Legacy[edit]
Main article: Works inspired by J. R. R. Tolkien
Influences on the fantasy genre[edit]
The enormous popularity of Tolkien's epic saga greatly expanded the demand for f
antasy fiction. Largely thanks to The Lord of the Rings, the genre flowered thro
ughout the 1960s, and enjoys popularity to the present day. The opus has spawned
many imitators, such as The Sword of Shannara, which Lin Carter called "the sin
gle most cold-blooded, complete rip-off of another book that I have ever read".[
81] Dungeons & Dragons, which popularized the role-playing game (RPG) genre in t
he 1970s, features many races found in The Lord of the Rings, most notably halfl
ings (another term for hobbits), elves (who are distinct from dark elves, follow
ing Tolkien's example), dwarves, half-elves, orcs, and dragons. However, Gary Gy
gax, lead designer of the game, maintained that he was influenced very little by
The Lord of the Rings, stating that he included these elements as a marketing m
ove to draw on the popularity the work enjoyed at the time he was developing the
game.[82]
Because D&D has gone on to influence many popular role-playing video games, the
influence of The Lord of the Rings extends to many of them as well, with titles
such as Dragon Quest,[83][84] the Ultima series , EverQuest, the Warcraft series

, and the Elder Scrolls series of games[85] as well as video games set in Middle
-earth itself.
Research also suggests that some consumers of fantasy games derive their motivat
ion from trying to create an epic fantasy narrative which is influenced by The L
ord of the Rings.[86]
Music[edit]
In 1965, songwriter Donald Swann, who was best known for his collaboration with
Michael Flanders as Flanders & Swann, set six poems from The Lord of the Rings a
nd one from The Adventures of Tom Bombadil ("Errantry") to music. When Swann met
with Tolkien to play the songs for his approval, Tolkien suggested for "Namri" (G
aladriel's lament) a setting reminiscent of plain chant, which Swann accepted.[8
7] The songs were published in 1967 as The Road Goes Ever On: A Song Cycle,[88]
and a recording of the songs performed by singer William Elvin with Swann on pia
no was issued that same year by Caedmon Records as Poems and Songs of Middle Ear
th.[89]
In 1988, Dutch composer and trombonist Johan de Meij completed his Symphony No.
1 "The Lord of the Rings", which encompassed 5 movements, titled "Gandalf", "Lot
hlrien", "Gollum", "Journey in the Dark", and "Hobbits". In 1989 the symphony was
awarded the Sudler Composition Award, awarded biennially for best wind band com
position. The Danish Tolkien Ensemble have released a number of albums that feat
ure the complete poems and songs of The Lord of the Rings set to music, with som
e featuring recitation by Christopher Lee.
Rock bands of the 1970s were musically and lyrically inspired by the fantasy emb
racing counter-culture of the time; British 70s rock band Led Zeppelin recorded
several songs that contain explicit references to The Lord of the Rings ("Ramble
On", "The Battle of Evermore", and "Over the Hills and Far Away"). In 1970, the
Swedish musician Bo Hansson released an instrumental concept album based on the
book titled Sagan om ringen (translated as "The Saga of the Ring", which was th
e title of the Swedish translation of The Lord of the Rings at the time).[90] Th
e album was subsequently released internationally as Music Inspired by Lord of t
he Rings in 1972.[90] The songs "Rivendell" and "The Necromancer" by the progres
sive rock band Rush were inspired by Tolkien. Styx also paid homage to Tolkien o
n their "Pieces of Eight" album with the song "Lords of the Ring," while Black S
abbath's song, "The Wizard", which appeared on their debut album, was influenced
by Tolkien's hero, Gandalf. The heavy metal band Cirith Ungol took their name f
rom a mountain pass in Middle-earth. Progressive rock group Camel paid homage to
the text in their lengthy composition "Nimrodel/The Procession/The White Rider"
, and Progressive rock band Barclay James Harvest was inspired by the character
Galadriel to write a song by that name, and used "Bombadil", the name of another
character, as a pseudonym under which their 1972 single "Breathless"/"When the
City Sleeps" was released; there are other references scattered through the BJH
oeuvre.
Later, from the 1980s to the present day, many heavy metal acts have been influe
nced by Tolkien. Blind Guardian has written many songs relating to Middle-earth,
including the full concept album Nightfall in Middle Earth. Almost all of Summo
ning's songs and the entire discography of Battlelore are Tolkien-themed. Gorgor
oth and Amon Amarth take their names from an area of Mordor, and Burzum take the
ir name from the Black Speech of Mordor. The Finnish metal band Nightwish and th
e Norwegian metal band Tristania have also incorporated many Tolkien references
into their music. A Swedish metal band, Sabaton, based their song "Shadows" on t
he nine ring wraiths.[91] American heavy metal band Megadeth released two song t
itled This Day We Fight! and How the Story Ends which were both inspired by the
Lord of the Rings series, particularly Aragorn's speech in the third film for th
e latter song.[92]
Enya wrote an instrumental piece called "Lothlrien" in 1991, and composed two son
gs for the film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring "May It Be" (sun
g in English and Quenya) and "Anron" (sung in Sindarin).
Impact on popular culture[edit]
"Welcome to Hobbiton" sign in Matamata, New Zealand, where the film trilogy was

shot.
The Lord of the Rings has had a profound and wide-ranging impact on popular cult
ure, beginning with its publication in the 1950s, but especially throughout the
1960s and 1970s, during which time young people embraced it as a countercultural
saga.[93] "Frodo Lives!" and "Gandalf for President" were two phrases popular a
mongst United States Tolkien fans during this time.[94]
Parodies like the Harvard Lampoon's Bored of the Rings, the VeggieTales episode
"Lord of the Beans", the South Park episode "The Return of the Fellowship of the
Ring to the Two Towers", the Futurama film "Bender's Game", The Adventures of J
immy Neutron: Boy Genius episode "Lights! Camera! Danger!", The Big Bang Theory
episode "The Precious Fragmentation", and the American Dad! episode "The Return
of the Bling" are testimony to the work's continual presence in popular culture.
In 1969, Tolkien sold the merchandising rights to The Lord of The Rings (and The
Hobbit) to United Artists under an agreement stipulating a lump sum payment of 1
0,000[95] plus a 7.5% royalty after costs,[96] payable to Allen & Unwin and the
author.[97] In 1976, three years after the author's death, United Artists sold t
he rights to Saul Zaentz Company, who now trade as Tolkien Enterprises. Since th
en all "authorized" merchandise has been signed-off by Tolkien Enterprises, alth
ough the intellectual property rights of the specific likenesses of characters a
nd other imagery from various adaptations is generally held by the adaptors.[98]
Outside any commercial exploitation from adaptations, from the late 1960s onwar
ds there has been an increasing variety of original licensed merchandise, from p
osters and calendars created by illustrators such as Pauline Baynes and the Brot
hers Hildebrandt, to figurines and miniatures to computer, video, tabletop and r
ole-playing games. Recent examples include the Spiel des Jahres award winning (f
or best use of literature in a game) board game The Lord of the Rings by Reiner
Knizia and the Golden Joystick award-winning massively multiplayer online role-p
laying game, The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar by Turbine, Inc..
The Lord of the Rings has been mentioned in numerous songs including The Ballad
of Bilbo Baggins by Leonard Nimoy, Led Zeppelin's Misty Mountain Hop, Over the H
ills and Far Away, Ramble On, and The Battle of Evermore, Genesis' song "Stagnat
ion" (from Trespass, 1970) was about Gollum, and Argent included the song "Lothl
orien" on the 1971 album Ring of Hands.
Steve Peregrin Took (born Stephen Ross Porter) of British rock band T. Rex took
his name from the hobbit Peregrin Took (better known as Pippin). Took later reco
rded under the pseudonym 'Shagrat the Vagrant', before forming a band called Sha
grat in 1970.
See also[edit]