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Originally Posted by littlemanpoet
LotR "proves" that Tolkien favoured Darwinian Meritocracy?  Really now....  |
I say that 'Meritocracy' is a Darwinian political theory, I don't say that Tolkien favoured Darwin's theories, though there's no reason he shouldn't have as he'd have been taught about them in school and seems to have followed the basics in Middle-earth.
Now another thing about Sam I forgot to add. He did indeed rise in his class, but he also grew in wealth. I wonder how much he might have been considered 'nouveau riche' in The Shire? Money is no indicator of class, as seen by our beloved 'Posh' and Becks who might be rolling in Gucci and Ferraris but are still seen as very Working Class. Looking at it from the other side, Tolkien himself as an Upper Middle academic was not well off at all and had to take on extra work as a way of supplementing his income; the lack of money was a constant source of worry while he was bringing up his family. Ironically, he could have passed up University and set up in business and he'd possibly have become exceptionally rich, but he could not have ascended to the level of Upper Middle despite his hypothetical wealth.