The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy: One Book to Rule Them All

Book Description
Can power be wielded for good, or must it always corrupt? Does technology destroy the truly human? Is beer essential to the good life? The Lord of the Rings raises many such searching questions, and this book attempts some answers. Divided into five sections concerned with power and the Ring, the quest for happiness, good and evil in Middle-earth, time and mortality, and the relevance of fairy tales, The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy mines Tolkien’s fantasy worlds for wisdom in areas including the menace of technology, addiction and fetishism, the vitality of tradition, the environmental implications of Tolkien's thought, Middle-earth's relationship to Buddhism and Taoism, and more.


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From the series that addressed the philosophy of Seinfeld, The Simpsons, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, comes this collection of 16 essays exploring philosophical themes and topics raised by the famous fantasy works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Presented by Bassham (philosophy, King's College, Pennsylvania) and Bronson (philosophy and history, Berkeley College, New York City), the essays address such topics as the "Rings of Power" as metaphors for emerging technologies, the Elves as representative of the "bounded joy of the Existentialists," time and mortality, aesthetics, and (of course) good and evil. Annotation ©2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR


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