LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2006 October Grand Format Autographs #629  / 

25749

Tolkien: The Fellowship of the Ring, 1st Edition

Currency:USD Category:Books / Antiquarian & Collectible Start Price:1,000.00 USD Estimated At:4,000.00 - 5,000.00 USD
Tolkien: The Fellowship of the Ring, 1st Edition
<B>J.R.R. Tolkien: <I>The Fellowship of the Ring,</B></I> First Edition.</B></I> (London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd., 1954), first edition, 423 pages, original red cloth, 8vo (5.75" x 9"), dust jacket. There is really no debate as to whether the <I>Lord of the Rings</B></I> trilogy is one of the best fantasies ever written. Tolkien was not just a writer; he was a master of fusion and weaving. He took the best parts of Homer, Sophocles, Norse mythology, and many others to create a salmagundi that has yet to be duplicated in modern literature. His deep love of philology and language laid the foundation for a world, whose intricacies and people are so vivid and detailed that it is hard for many to believe it does not really exist. His lasting influence has spread into many of the newer science fiction and fantasy series; that mythology and language cannot be separate. Auxiliary languages were viewed as dead and not worth bothering with according to Tolkien since they never had any mythology to go along with the grammar. His worlds always had firm traditions rooted not only in the anthropological culture but the linguistic matrix as well. Language was not the only area where Tolkien was able to capture the mind; parageographically he was able to create landscapes, cities, and landmarks that are written and described as though he were standing among the hobbits and elves. Structuralist thinking would say that this was due to the culture he created from language and lore. Whatever the academic school, his work shines with nothing short of genius. With the popularity of the recent motion picture trilogy this series can only increase in collectability. It is amazing to think that one of the most influential series of all time was legendarily started on the back of a student's term paper. In very good condition; light soiling on the dust jacket; corners of dust jacket lightly torn. The book itselfhas moderate foxing and transference from the text on the dust jacket on the inside free front endpapers; maps all intact; corners lightly rounded.
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