Do you find that the books grow with you?

[Darby]

I've re-read the books many times over the years, and each time I notice that they are not quite the same story I read last time. I originally had a single paperback copy of the LOTR with Bakshi's Ringwraiths on the cover.
When I was 12 it was a very cool adventure story. I'd just heard it on the radio, so I had to read the books. Aragorn kicks butt!
When I was 14 it was an escape from a very difficult reality. I found secluded places in the park to read, and memorized the poetry and talked to trees. I wondered if (hoped that) Tom Bombadil might be lurking somewhere just out of sight.
When I was 16, I fell hopelessly in love with Faramir. I wrote highschool essays about the mythic role of the Hero, using LOTR as my main text.
When I was 18, I took my book with me into the Army and read my copy of LOTR under bushes by the light of a masked flashlight (I was supposed to be standing watch - but I'm half blind anyway, so it's not like I was going to see anything out there that I wouldn't hear first. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]). I suddenly had a shocking new appreciation for what the characters must have gone through, eaten by flies, cold, wet, exhausted, etc... PJ's movie is nice, but for me Middle Earth will always be somewhere on the Canadian Shield.
That copy didn't survive, so shortly after I bought myself a nice illustrated hardcover set. And the BBC radio tapes while I was at it.
When I read the books again, I was in University and I found myself very impressed by Frodo's quiet intelligence and decency. I decided he was the real Hero of the story; the heroic Academic, battles fought in the mind and soul.
A couple of years later, I fell in love and the romance of the elves was what attracted me most. I finally read the Silmarillion and I remember long walks in the national park with my true love as we deconstructed the history of Middle Earth.
Then, a few more years passed, and I found myself reading the stories aloud to my own child. This time it was Sam's character that spoke to me the most. His patient service to Frodo. The fact that he's the perfect servant, not in the grovelling sense, but in the same sense that the Gardener in the proverbs is God's perfect servant, tending to his crops (which are the people for whom he has responsibility). It's honorable service. Maybe, it's really Sam's story after all?
Every time I read this book, it's a different story. Different themes, different characters, come into focus.

Have any of you noticed this, in your readings? Do you find your own life reflected in these books? How?

[Lord of Angmar]

Well, I first picked up a copy of JRR Tolkien's the Lord of the Rings at the age of 22, having just completed my collegiate career at Oxford, where JRR Tolkien taught philology and English. I must say that I agree with your views that the story changes and in many ways reflects different parts of your own life as you read it. At first I thought it no more than a delightful if a tad gloomy bit of fantasy writing. But I must say that it has profoundly changed my life and my views on the world, and I find parallels between my own struggles and the struggles of the characters in LotR (if I may make so bold as to say that anything that happens in my everyday life is comparable to the tragedy that is Lord of the Rings and the Silmarillion). Thank you for the wonderful forum topic, it has brought me back to the first time I read the novel, and I hope to contribute more as this thread continues.

[Lobelia]

What a wonderful post! I envy those who discovered the book early, but I didn't. I bought the three-volume Allen and Unwin edition when I was at university, just out of curiosity, but at the time, my major passion was for the Arthurian legend (I still love it, but have other interests as well) and I was concentrating on "Arthur From Epic Hero to Master of Ceremonies In ME Literature" (my Honours thesis). Interestingly, someone in my year was doing her thesis on Tolkien. She almost didn't make it because the English Department initially told her that - wait for it! - it wasn't academic enough. Fortunately, the English professor disagreed - he had an original Tolkien MS and was a Tolkien freak!

Anyway, you'd think I would have got stuck right into it after that, but I only got halfway through ROTK and stopped. I finally read it in full only three years ago, on a beach, and have re-read it five times since then. As a result, my feelings are fully-formed. Sam is my hero, too. I like the other characters, but at my age, he's the one I can appreciate the most. If I was going husband-hunting in Middle-Earth, and was short enough, he's the one I'd want. And the issue of the environment, which has become so important to me over the years, is something that stands out for me in the novel. Sam is the one who restores the Shire to life and for me, this is profoundly moving. Would I have felt the same way if I'd really discovered it in my uni years? I don't think so. It would probably have been Aragorn or Legolas at that stage, and, yes, just a wonderful fantasy, but hey, I was reading Poul Anderson, Fritz Leiber and Robert E. Howard at the time.

Thank you for posting this thread.

[Gorwingel]

These posts are so beautiful. I applaud everyone on their wonderful writing skills.

Right now I am far too young to have such an experience with the book. Though it has touched me in many ways very similar to what all of you have discribed. For me it has always been (or for the last 2 years since I first finished it) much more than a simple adventure story. That is actually one reason I am very drawn too it. I have not really changed ideas about who I think is the hero of the story, mainly because of too few readings. But I do hope my ideas change and develop in the future.

I hope to hear many more stores from other Barrow-Downs "elders" on this thread.

(Elders are people (for me) who have over a decade of consistant reading or interest in Tolkien's works. They don't exactly have to be people older than me, just people with much more experience [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img] )

Like Gorwingel I am not an 'Elder' either so i cannot say that LOTR has changed through the many years of reading. I can comment on that it does change the more times you read it.

Looking back I really wish I had read LOTR and other Tolkien work when I was younger or at school but like many people only got into it after the FOTR movie.

Since then I have read LOTR twice, The Silmarillian, Unfinished Tales and I am on my third reading of FOTR.

Even though I do notice more details about the characters with each reading I am still drawn to Gandalf, he is the hero for me. He is powerful, sincere, caring and is even willing to sacrifice himself for the good of his friends and ME.

I was reading FOTR yesterday on the bus on my way home from work the part when Gandalf Falls in Moria and it brought a lump to my throat. I even dreamt about it and felt sad when i awoke.

He is the hero to me mainly for the vision and patience he had to plan with the help of others the downfall of Sauron and the ring.

My signiature is something Gandalf says to Frodo about Gollum and I'd like to think this changed my attitude towards certain things.

I'm sure as the years go by i will read it many more times and see different qualities that will change my opinion on other characters.

[Darby]

Lobelia - reading LOTR on a beach must have been an interesting experience!
Something else has occurred to me - where you read the books can have a particular impact on how you interpret them. I find bits of my environment make their way into the story - Lothlorian has a slightly city park air about it (in the nicest sense, of course), while the wild country between Hobbiton and Rivendell seems like (as I've said before) my own Canadian Shield country. The Silmarillion will always be influenced by our walks between the tall flaming red maple trees in the fall.
The plains of Rohan are a bit more academic for me as I've never seen anything remotely like that in person, and it's been too many years since I've seen the ocean to really remember it in any concrete sense. So, the parts of the books that resonate the most for me are the parts that I've pictured in relation to my own world.

[tinewelt]

this is a wonderful thread. I first read the lord of the rings in high school (1996). it was not until the first movie came out, that I really paid attention. The movie gave me visual stimulation, and therefore made the books much more exciting. I have read LOTR about 16 times completely, but have not touched in im probably 5 or 6 months. I am completely absorbed in the letters, the Sil, and other ME topics. I agree with you, it really does grow on me, as I have been seriously reading for 2 years now. I did a literary research paper on tolkien in my literature class here at college. I find that I have a hard time doing my class studies, because the first thing i do when i come in is put in my two towers soundtrack and pick up a book! This will definately be something that sticks with me forever, and god willing I will still be posting on this site when im 80! lol great thread!

~Namarie~

[dancing spawn of ungoliant]

my dad read me the hobbit when i was about 6(hopefully i remember right) and all i thought about the book was:it was a pity that the nice, innocent dragon died!
last year i read it three times (after 11 years) and i noticed that it had become a really sympathetic story about friendship, alliances and finding one's courage.

i have read lotr four times in one and a half years and every time has been different though i haven't grown so much.
at 1st time i fell love with aragorn. i enjoyed every compliment that tolkien had written about him and i envied eówyn and arwen.
at 2nd time i had seen the movie and suddenly all legolas's lines were so lovely(do i have to mention that i think he's quite handsome...)!
at 3rd time i followed the hobbits and at 4th time i focused in linguistic matters and locations.
now i wonder is it me or the book that changes...

[edit:me and my english skills...]

[ July 03, 2003: Message edited by: dancing spawn of ungoliant ]

[Duncariel]

Tolkien has been my inspiration in almost every field of my life for the last four years since I discovered his work. When I first read the books, I was enthralled be the experiences of the characters and their different personalities.
I'm 14, and have memorized all the poetry and talk to trees.
My thoughts now always have a Tolkien gist to them. It's sometimes painful.

[peony_foxburr]

Perhaps a more accurate answer, in my case, is to say that my perception of the books grows with me, both informing and being informed by my ongoing experiences. I could go off into a cloud of similes, but won't--let it suffice to imagine a bottomless spring, and the water has a slightly different flavor with each draught.

Because of this quality, in one sense each re-reading of the trilogy is like reading it for the first time, even though I "know how the story ends."

I had not re-read the books for some years at the time the first film was released. There were many moments of epiphany during that re-reading in 2002, but the most vivid occurred when I re-read "The Grey Havens," and was moved, literally, to tears, by Frodo and Sam's parting.

[Gwaihir the Windlord]

Actually it's slightly unnerving sometimes, to think of the degree to which Tolkien's writings have actually affected my mentality. Just certain things. It can feel as if I'm a member of a sort of cult sometimes [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]. My view of the world, particularly in the area of philosophy and other such matters, has been substantially affected -- certainly for the better -- by being a disciple of Tolkien. Sounds like a cult, doesn't it? [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

And yes, my books have grown with me -- particularly the Sil -- as most of them are now sadly falling apart.

[Arwen Melian]

Wow that was so beautiful Darby...I really appreciated what you wrote because I could relate to it in certain ways. Yes, to answer your question, it does grow with me. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[Arwen Melian]

Now that I have read all your comments ,I would like to contribute my ideas as well. I,for one, feel that my experince changes each time I pick up the book.I am also not ashamed to say that it has changed my life.However, some people say that reading LOTR is a form of "escapism." Well,this is what I say: if Tolkien's work is merely an escapist fantasy, then so be it! The real world can be too serious and drab without the magic of Middle Earth. In reference to a post above, yes people do see it as "cultish." But those people are ignorant, they always try to find some flaw in everything wonderful. Well...actually in 60's and 70's I think there were some actual Tolkien cults out there....but that is different. People will always try to bring something or someone down....it's human nature. And I believe it is something that they have to get over.But seriously...if this is truly an escapist fantasy....I would rather have Middle Earth then the real world (even though life isn't horrible,in light of recent events....it can be nice from time to time). I also find parallels between the real world and Middle Earth every day.Those people who fail to do so are just boring drones...there I said it(of course none of you here are [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]).As some people grow up...they tend to lose grasp on their imaginations......what they need is Tolkien. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[Cúdae]

This is a great thread. And a touching one at that.

For me, the books have both changed with me and changed me. The first time I remember having LotR read to me was when I was about 3 years old and living in India. I thought that it was better than anything I'd ever heard. Better than the Ramayana (which had been my fixation at the time), better even than mother's cooking. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]
When I lived in a place where Americans aren't welcome, the books became my escape. I still didn't have the reading skills to read them on my own, so my brother would read them to me. I equated him with Aragorn- calm, strong, and protecting.
When I finally did start reading them for myself, it was on the plane to America. I realized then that the book was a journey, as my life was (eh...<u>is</u>, I've been hanging around here too much) a journey. I could identify with new lands, new experiences.
After that, I remember reading them just for fun and for once taking them at face value- a great story about Elves and little Hobbit whatsits and talking trees.
Then things happened, tough times ensued, and I grounded myself on the firmness of Gimli. Gimli had always been a rock of a character to me, always there, always willing, always a little tough on you but in a nice way.
When my brother joined the military, I again turned to the books for a foundation. I found it in Mirkwood's favorite elf, Legolas. I took his abilities and made them mine. I took his character and found pieces of it in my own life.
A year after that, my brother went to war. That's when I saw the war side of the story. That's when I was able to put my own feelings into the different characters are they know war rages through their lands, against their kin.
But the books have also changed me. They opened my eyes a little further each time, and I was- and am- always surprised at what that little opening can let in.

I won't even get into the Silmarillion. This post is already going on too long. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

Commenting on Arwen Melian's post,

... But seriously...if this is truly an escapist fantasy....I would rather have Middle Earth then the real world ...

The thing that (subconsciously at least) appeals to so many of us, I think, is the very fact that almost any situation under the sun is also under Middle-Earth's sun. If your wife is annoying you, you can find Aule outsmarting her with a choice comment that his Dwarves will still need wood. If you leave home, you can find that in any one of the Fellowship and in Bilbo in the Hobbit. The difference between Middle-Earth and our own reality, though, is that in Middle-Earth, you can read ahead to make sure verything comes out alright. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

[Morgul Queen]

Its true that you find the books changing constantly, but if you look hard enough you find that its not the books changing it is yourself....basically, as your world and perceptions change your perceptions of the books change.

I first (fully) read the Books in my last year at primary school and to me, as to many of you at the first reading, it was just an adventure story and I only got the basic hint of the world in my mind now I can see the entirety of the landscapes as I see them in my minds eye.

These books have so many different layers that are shown through so many characters - the pain of loss shown through Arwen, Galadriel and Frodo at their departure from Middle-earth, Sam's loyalty and detirmination in the face of death and over whelming odds, quiet strength in the form of Aragorn. You can feel the pain of the land of Middle- earth through the ents and the sadness at the fate of Elven-kind through Legolas. You are kept afloat in this storm of emotion by Merry and Pippin's inextinguishable spirit. Gandalf's wisedom shows us the hope in any situation.

Does anyone else find it hard to believe that this is a made up tale?!!!

[Darby]

Does anyone else find it hard to believe that this is a made up tale?!!!

When I was a teenager I might have agreed with you, but these days, nope. It's a story. I think it's a great story, and it's fun to immerse yourself in the history and speculate about it as if it were real, but it's still just a story.
However, when I say "just" a story, I don't mean that it's not important, only that it's definitely made up. However, stories have real power and I consider LOTR to be among one of the more powerful ones I've ever read.
The Iliad had a similar effect on me. The Iliad was indeed based on the physical reality of Troy, but at its heart it's a literary effort like the LOTR, not a true history - unlike Herodotus who attempted to write real history without any attention to continuity or character development.
I remember trying to explain to a friend of mine who loved to read, but wouldn't read anything but non-fiction, why stories are important.
They're not real, but the best ones are true in the deepest most psychological sense of the word. Stories make sense of our world. They take us out of our current reality, but in doing so, they expand our perceptions of the real world. They don't need to have had physical presence, or to have really happened, to be true.
Erg... I didn't explain it to my friend very well either.