Imagination, Storytelling, |
The Second Spring Association |
Secret Fire |
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Published in the UK by Darton, Longman & Todd, £9.95 (ISBN 0-232-52477-7) Published in US by Crossroad under the title The Power of the Ring (ISBN 0-8245-2277-X) Or order from Amazon. 'Every Catholic school will want a copy as will anyone
interested in Tolkien as a serious writer.' 'A literally wonderful – wonder-full – book. It will open
the eyes of any reader who considers The Lord of the Rings just a gripping yarn
in a fantasy world. Tolkien's "vision" – Caldecott makes it clear
the word is just right – draws on deep springs of philosophy and mysticism –
and, not least, the orthodoxy of the church.' 'I think it's the best of the secondary source literature on
Tolkien.'
Tolkien is concerned with the meaning and value of the natural cosmos, the dangerous temptations associated with technology, and the inevitability of loss and death. He is also writing about the nature and deepest springs of human creativity. His "heroic romance" is a work of profound Catholic spirituality, communicating a perennial wisdom to modern men and women, both pagan and Christian, in the language of the poetic imagination, the universal idiom of myth. Secret Fire explores the range and depth of Tolkien's vision in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion. It also draws extensively on some of his most remarkable and little-known writings. It explains the importance for Tolkien of the intimate relationship between Elves and Men, and unveils the true meaning of the mysterious "Secret Fire", served by both Gandalf and Tolkien. UK publisher: Darton, Longman & Todd,
Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Monsters and Critics 1. The Tree of Tales 2. A Very Great Story 3. A Hidden Presence: Tolkien's Catholicism 4. Let These Things Be 5. Behind the Stars Conclusion: Tolkien's Achievement Appendices An Archetypal Journey: Tolkien and Jung Bibliography Notes Index |