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From Middle Earth to Planet Earth

The Lord of the Rings is an iconic, and genre defining series of books that began with the

publication of The Fellowship of The Ring in 1955. Even now, many years after the series has

been completed people are still reading and analyzing these books. This is largely due to the

longevity and constant appeal of fantasy. Some might consider reading this genre a form of

escapism, but when examined under specific lenses, new meanings are soon discovered and can

be applied directly to our own lives. By taking Tolkien’s fantastic world of Middle Earth and

relating it to the happenings in our own culture, we can start to see the world around us in a

different light. Issues and thought patterns present in the world soon become apparent in the

text. Likewise, responses and solutions to these ideas can be readily found and examined. This

being said, it is extremely beneficial to read The Lord of the Rings with special regard to the land

and characters' interaction with it.

Reading a story while paying special attention to the environment is what it means to use

the method of literary analysis called ecocriticism. In his article The fading of the World:

Tolkien’s Ecology and Loss in ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Chris Brawley talks about the

fundamental point of ecocriticism saying, “For ecocritics, literature is a means to a paradigm

shift… this paradigm shift replaces anthropocentric worldviews with ecocentric worldviews,

where the environment is viewed with respect” (293). The genre of fantasy in particular lends

itself to this type of analysis and paradigm shift because the environments, as well as the people,

in these types of stories are fantastic. By seeing these unreal and mystifying landscapes in our

minds, it is only natural that readers have a sense of awe as they travel along with the main

characters. This makes reading The Lord of the Rings an experience that is extremely immersive

and impactful. It is also important for an ecocritical reading because it helps recover a sense of
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wonder in the natural world. This idea of recovery, originally expressed by Tolkien himself, is

summed up by Lucas Niiler in his article Green Reading: Tolkien, Leopold and the Land Ethic as

recovering, “a sense of the unique, a sense of wonder at and respect for everyday phenomena”

(279). With this rekindled interest in the environment one begins to notice how characters

interact with the land around them, as well as the effects of these interactions with the land. This

shows how characters relate to nature and in turn makes readers question their own relationship

with the earth.

Since recovering a sense of wonder in nature is such a key component to an ecocritical

reading of The Lord of the Rings, it’s no surprise that the characters in the book find a renewed

sense of wonder at nature themselves. Even though the characters of the story already live in a

fantastic world, they are still enthralled and affected by new sights. In Fellowship of the Ring for

instance, Frodo and his companions are astounded upon entering the elven forest of Lothlorien.

Afterwards, in The Two Towers, Gimli and Legolas are awe struck by two very different displays

of nature. Gimli is enthralled by the ancient Fangorn forest, and Legolas by the beautiful caverns

behind Helms Deep. In the same book Pippin experiences a very direct encounter with nature

through the character of Treebeard. This is perhaps the most apparent instance of a character

marveling at nature. When pippin looks into the eyes of Treebeard he attempts to describe the

experience saying,

One felt as if there was an enormous well behind them, filled up with ages of memory

and long, slow steady thinking; but their surface was sparkling with the present; like sun

shimmering on the outer leaves of a vast tree, or on the ripples of a very deep lake… it

felt as if something that grew in the ground… had suddenly waked up, and was now
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considering you with the same slow care that it had given to its own inside affairs for

endless years. (Two Towers 452)

If nothing else, hopefully an ecocritical reading is able to provide this recovery of wonder, or at

least give motivation enough to seek it out. For that sense of wonder is where any sort of

ecological movement or paradigm shift begins.

This paradigm shift that can be brought about by recovery is exhibited strongly through

the curious character of Tom Bombadil. This man, if you would call him such, acts as a sort of

nature spirit or God figure in middle earth. He only appears in a short section of The Fellowship

of the Ring but his presence has a massive impact on Frodo and his companions. Tom meets

Frodo and Sam as they are trying to save their friends from a possessed willow tree in the Old

Forest. The hobbits’ first idea was to either cut or burn the tree down, Tom however steps in and

sings to the willow, commanding it to let the hobbits go. The willow complies and Tom then

takes the hobbits to recover in his home, where he gives them food and rest and tells them tales

of the forest and creatures within it. Bombadil acts as a teacher of sorts, taking away the hobbits'

preconceived fears of the forest and replacing them with a sense of understanding and wonder.

“As they listened, they began to understand the lives of the Forest, apart from themselves, indeed

to feel themselves as the strangers where all other things were at home”(Fellowship, 147). Tom

is essentially helping the Hobbits to see themselves as a part of the whole of nature, rather than

strangers separated from the environment. This idea of balance with nature is further

exemplified by Tom. When Frodo asks who he is, Bombadil answers Frodo with the question;

“Don’t you know my name yet? That’s the only answer. Tell me, who are you, alone, yourself

and nameless” (Fellowship 148)? A tricky question to be sure. It seems, however, that Tom is

trying to further the idea of oneness with nature. For what are humans, or hobbits in this case,
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without a name attached to them? Without labels and names, everything simply becomes a part

of nature, living in accord with everything else. This balance and harmony exhibited by

Bombadil and his way of life instills in the hobbits respect and wonder for the environment.

It is, however, not easy to live like Tom Bombadil and this becomes clear as the story

progresses. Sauron and Saruman are both representations of how feelings such as greed and

hatred affect the land. Mordor, of course, is the foremost example of this. The country inhabited

by Sauron and his followers is a desolate wasteland, devoid of thriving plants and offering only a

faint trickle of tainted water, “The water was cool but not icy, and it had an unpleasant taste, at

once bitter and oily” (Return of the King 900). Similarly, Saruman creates his own wasteland in

his fortress of Isengard. Here he amasses a force of orcs to cut down all the trees in the

surrounding area. He then uses the land and fallen trees to make machines and implements of

war. Saruman’s betrayal is perhaps the scariest part of the entire story, especially when looked at

in terms of ecocriticism. This is because it is so easy to see aspects of our own culture in this

wise wizard gone wrong. How often do people today sacrifice the environment in exchange for

material gain? When a culture begins to reflect the ideals of a mad wizard, something has

certainly gone amiss.

Luckily, Tolkien provides a very evident contrast to the evil deeds of Sauron and

Saruman. Indeed, he provides a multitude of contrasts all emphasizing the opposing forces of

good and evil. The best example of this contrast can be seen through Gandalf and Saruman.

Both are wizards, beings meant to aid middle earth, but when Sauron rises to power Saruman

sides with him, falling to the allure of power and turning his back on the people of middle earth.

Due to this, these two wizards contrast each other perfectly. Other similar contrasts that

represent good and evil include Frodo and Gollum, Orcs and elves, even Gandalf’s eagles and
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the winged mounts of the nazgul show these two opposing forces. These contrasts are meant to

exemplify the greater theme of good vs. evil in the story. When paired with ecocriticism this

contrast serves as an indicator as to how ethics go hand in hand with treatment of the

environment. It is plain to see that Sauron and other evil characters do not treat the land with

respect. Instead they exploit it as they would other people and use it for their own gain. The

good characters on the other hand, live in harmony with the land. Hobbits literally live in holes

and their lifestyle is based primarily on agriculture. Elves and Dwarves also live in nature, going

so far as to call the trees and mountains their homes. Even men live in a pre-industrial setting, at

peace with the environment around them. Examining how the characters interact with the land

makes it clear that the good characters in this story treat the land with respect, and the bad

otherwise.

It is interesting to look into what happens to Sauron and Saruman as a result of their ill

treatment of the land. Sauron of course is destroyed when Gollum falls into the fires of Mount

doom with the ring. The dark lord is ironically destroyed by the very nature of greed which the

ring instills in those who carry it. Sauron’s own creation proves to be his downfall. Likewise,

Saruman’s fortress is destroyed and his evil plots foiled by the very trees he uprooted. Treebeard

and the ents of Fangorn, after much deliberation, rise up and storm Isengard, flooding it with the

previously dammed waters of the river Isen and returning the fortress to nature. On the surface,

this victory of the ents over Saruman appears to be a triumph of good over evil. Treebeard

however, does not see the situation in such black and white terms. When asked by Merry and

Pippin which side he is on the ent responds saying, “I don’t know about sides. I go on my own

way; but your way may go along with mine for a while” (Two Towers, 455). Treebeard and the

ents are quite similar to Tom Bombadil in this way. Both are so closely entwined with nature
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that they find it hard to involve themselves in matters of good or evil, there is simply balance.

This is out of place, especially in a book that is essentially about good vs. evil or light vs. dark.

The ents show the powerful and unpredictable side of nature. The part of nature that rises up

when man becomes corrupt.

Both the nature of the trees and the natural human emotion of greed play into the

downfall of evil in The Lord of the Rings. This acts as both a warning to readers, and a sign of

hope. It warns us not to become overly prideful and live with an anthropocentric worldview

where humans are thought of as masters of the wild. This view is dangerous and leads to the

eventual downfall of man to nature. This downfall however, also brings about hope. The ents

taking back Isengard and Sauron’s eventual destruction both point to the fact that nature will

eventually right all wrongs. As readers however, it is our job to learn from fantasy stories like

The Lord of the Rings and shift our paradigm to a worldview that is ecocentric. The recovery of

wonder in nature as well as the relationships between characters and the land in this story both

show how important it is that the world is treated with care and respect.

Works Cited

Brawley, Chris. “The Fading of the World: Tolkien's Ecology and Loss in ‘The Lord of the

…….Rings.’” Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, vol. 18, no. 3 (71), 2007, pp. 292–307.,

…….www.jstor.org/stable/24351004.
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Tolkien, J.R.R. The Fellowship of the Ring. New York: Ballantine Books, 1965. Print.

Niiler, Lucas P. “Green Reading: Tolkien, Leopold and the Land Ethic.” Journal of the Fantastic

…….in the Arts, vol. 10, no. 3 (39), 1999, pp. 276–285., www.jstor.org/stable/43308393.

Tolkien, J.R.R. The Two Towers: being the second part of The Lord of the Rings. New York:

…….Houghton Mifflin Company, 1954. Print.

Tolkien, J.R.R. The Return of the King: being the third part of The Lord of the Rings. New

…….York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1955. Print.