Well over a thousand pages long, filled with snatches of poetry and untranslated imaginary languages, saturated with intense description and historical detail, J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings stands as a unique achievement in twentieth-century literature. Aside from its intrinsic characteristics, the novel became an emblematic part of the 1960s as young hippies sported buttons reading, "Frodo Lives!" and "Gandalf for President." Almost single-handedly, The Lord of the Rings created the genre of modern fantasy literature as it is seen on bookstore shelves today, and during the 1990s, it appeared in several large surveys as the "best," "favorite," or "most important" book of the twentieth century, easily defeating more "literary" candidates. After September 11, 2001, many people found the words of the wise wizard Gandalf an unexpected comfort in the wake of horror. And between 2001 and 2003, Peter Jackson's film adaptation of the trilogy became one of the most successful film franchises of all time, culminating in a record-setting sweep at the Academy Awards.
Almost since its first publication in 1954 and 1955, scholars, critics, and fans have been asking the question: Why is this book so popular? While there are many theories, no clear answer has emerged. The best one can do is point to some of the elements within the novel that engender such strong reactions in its readers.
