J.R.R. Tolkien was born 120 years ago today, January 3, 1892.
Libertarians love his fiction, but was he one of us?
In his own words:
"My political opinions lean more and more to Anarchy (philosophically understood, meaning abolition of control not whiskered men with bombs)." – J.R.R. Tolkein
And in others’:
- "Tolkien v. Power" by Alberto Mingardi
- "Tales of Titans and Hobbits" by Juliusz Jablecki
- "J.R.R. Tolkien as Libertarian" (audio) by Jeff Riggenbach
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Tolkien, one of this Libertarian’s favorite authors. His writing was rife with idolatry of benevolent rulers. But these “good” rulers were essentially hands off, laissez-faire types who let their people live their lives as they saw fit and enforced proper common law. One can notice in his fiction that his “bad” rulers were always those seeking more power over others. The ring itself is the ultimate symbol of this.
But his writings were really inspired by a fondness for, in his eyes, a simpler time. He wrote that he hated the fact that his idealic childhood home was industrialized with factories, smoke stacks and urban sprawl. He was a bit of a Luddite and was not for the kind of progress capitalism naturally brings.
So yes, he was an anarchist in the sense that he abhorred the quest for power over others, and he was a capitalist in that he thought people should have their own little plot of land and work as they saw fit, be it farming, milling, shopkeeping or blacksmithing. But it seems he also wanted to freeze time and place into a perpetual blend of medieval and 19th century England. Don’t most of us look back at our childhood with some longing, at least sometimes?
RTB nails it pretty well. Elsewhere in his letters (or in the same letter, perhaps) he called himself an “unconstitutional” monarchist, which is summed up pretty well in “let people live their lives as they saw fit and enforced proper common law.” Although his convictions were monarchist, not republican, there are Jeffersonian echoes in there.
My favorite author, bar none. (Herman Wouk is probably next, along with Twain and T.H. White.) It is interesting that like Lord Acton, Tolkien was Catholic.
I can’t imagine completing the journey from darkness into the Light without Tolkien; however, I also think the same of Ayn Rand. It is disturbing how some will dismiss Tolkien or Rand, usually without actually investing the time to appreciate either. It’s not either/or. (Ja, ja, of course it iz true that Rand was obsessed with power and ubermenschen – vat could one expect of a little russian refugee girl?)
I liken la Rand to an Old Testament prophet, actually.
I also love the LOTR but I am not sure that Tolkein was libertarian. Much of his writing was confused on the issue of technology and capital. I see the ring as representing technology that Tolkien dislikes. It seduces the user and he becomes dependent on it, like a narcotic. The ring/technology also changes the individual, so that his ‘good’ nature is altered. The ring opens the possibility that the controller of the technology can in some way control other users of the technology. The Elven magic, which must be akin to another technology, is somehow pure and not subject to corruption.
His allusions to the West being a place of ‘light’ and the East ‘dark’ is not a concept that I am happy with, but in his lifetime, this may have been true of England.
The issue of money is hardly ever addressed in Tolkien’s world so it seems that he disliked the commodity. Sam Gamgee is Frodo’s manservant, which reflects a class mentality. Sam maintains the role of servant to his friend and master Frodo throughout the books, without any obvious reward (admittedly a free choice). Tolkien seems not to have been capitalist, as he felt there was a ‘proper’ way of using land and resources and people should not abuse their heritage. He seems to have accepted a stewardship mentality over the world, and that we should preserve rather than change the world. Saruman and Sauron’s factories represented the lamentable misuse of land and energy resources, and the pollution that accompanies such activity.
Where Tolkein seems libertarian, is that he rejects ‘power’ as a method of achieving ‘good’ deeds. Good ends cannot be achieved using evil means. Gandalf rejected the ring, knowing that he would become ‘terrible’ under its influence. The concept that power corrupts is a strong concept in Tolkien’s writings. I think he imagines the quest for power and the advance of technology to be linked, and that if the quest for power would stop, then the advance of technology would also stop.
Terry Goodkind, is however clearly libertarian, though much cruder in his writings.
Tolkien was very influenced by Bible readings, and in all of his works can be seen lots of references and parallelisms to the scriptures. In particular, the world he depicts in his novels is based in some kind of “holy anarchism”, the basis of which can be traced to Samuel I, 8, 1-22. Well, just my guess…
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Samuel+8&version=NIV
I like Tolkien, but this is the first I’ve ever heard of any anarchistic leanings.
I have always been impressed by Tolkien’s work, and its emphasis that common people can do great things, just by living their lives as they see fit. While I wouldn’t necessarily credit it to bringing me to a belief in libertarianism, the more libertarian I became, the more I’ve appreciated his works!
I’m thus pleased to see these articles describing the libertarian nature of the Lord of the Rings.
Food for thought.
http://www.mediabistro.com/ebooknewser/supreme-court-rules-for-copyright-on-old-foreign-titles_b19551
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