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Grant Tosolt
Professor Malpass
English 102
7 April 2024
Fantasy Novels have a Place in Education

Fantasy novels have long been a great source of entertainment whether for avid readers or

for people who go long stretches before ever picking up a book. Despite the entertainment it

provides, the fantasy genre has divided the academic community when it comes to literature.

Many critics do not think that novels categorized under the fantasy genre have a place alongside

more prestigious books in the literary canon. We here at TEC, and many others, are of the

opposite opinion, and believe that fantasy books bring value that other genres cannot because of

their unique nature. To remove these books from the canon would be a mistake as it would

eliminate diversity, innumerous lessons, and unique ideas. In this article, we will demonstrate

many aspects the fantasy genre has to offer and defend its position in the canon. To do this we

drew many examples from one of our favorite books here at our organization: The Hobbit by

J.R.R. Tolkien.

A first impression of a fantasy story could instill a belief that these stories of make

believe, filled to the brim with mythical creatures, have no benefit other than to entertain. A

closer examination shows that despite the fabricated nature of the setting, the content of the story

addresses real world issues and can show the reader examples of problems in interesting ways. In

The Hobbit, Tolkien uses his fictional story to help educate the reader about a variety of different

cultures.
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Tolkien used real world places and cultures to help lay the foundation

for Middle-Earth, the fictional world he created. Each race of mythical figures

depicted in the story was loosely based on real-life people. Tolkien based the

dwarves on Germanic myths and a bit of Norse mythology, in which a

reclusive people live in the mountains and excelled at both mining and

blacksmithing (Tolkien Gateway). Tolkien also incorporated elements of Figure 1. (Represtation of

Dwarves from Lord of the
Jewish culture and history for the dwarven culture (Lebovic). Lebovic also Rings Universe)

noted, noted parallels between the two cultures’ histories and legends such as a search for a lost

homeland and a greedy corruptible king. Tolkien also used Hebrew scripture as a guideline in

creating the dwarves’ language. This demonstrates the unique education a fantasy novel can

offer, providing education on multiple cultures while simultaneously making something new.

For the elves, Tolkien adapted northern mythology from a combination of Norse,

Icelandic, and old English Irish stories to help him shapes the elves’ appearance and culture.

Elves in Irish myths are similar in ways to their mysterious culture in The Hobbit.

They came from a distant land far to the North, very similar to the elves landing in

Middle-Earth. In Icelandic myths, elves are immortal and yet lack a mortal soul, this

idea can be seen in The Hobbit as elves live many thousands of years unless they are

killed in battle. Tolkien also used the Icelandic language to help model names for the

Figure 2. (Reprsentation elves. The elves Tolkien created have values on chivalry and honor that can be seen
of Elves From the Lord of
the Rings universe)
in old English myths, and Tolkien was a known scholar in the field of old English and

a self-proclaimed fan (Lucas). This is another benefit of the fantasy genre as you are able to

incorporate ancient fictional myths into the literary canon that otherwise might not have found a
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place. Having references to stories like this in the canon helps to diversify the content and add

different historical information.

By drawing on real world inspiration, Tolkien was not only able to create a more in depth

and detailed story, but he was also able to introduce his readers to different cultures around the

world that they may not have encountered otherwise. Not all people have enough money to travel

and through his writing, Tolkien was able to provide people with education and experience from

the comfort of their home in a fun and engaging way. J.R.R Tolkien is not the only fantasy author

that uses this real-world experience to inspire fictional worlds. Authors George R.R. Martin,

Robert Jordan, and Brandon Sanderson have also been praised for similar work across recent

decades. The adaptation of real historical events and cultures in this way is fairly unique to the

fantasy genre which allows it to add invaluable traits and diversity to the canon. No other genre

can give you quite the same experience as a fantasy book. This is why it would be a travesty to

exclude these books from the canon because of the ill-conceived prejudice that they are just silly

stories.

Bibliography
Lebovic, M. Are Tolkien’s dwarves an allegory for the Jews? 11 December 2013.
<https://www.timesofisrael.com/are-tolkiens-dwarves-an-allegory-for-the-jews/>.
Lucas, S. "A New Look at Northern Influence on Tolkien's Elves." Honors Thesis. Mississippi Univeristy,
2020.
<https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1083&context=honorstheses>.
"Represtation of Dwarves from Lord of the Rings Universe." n.d. 1 April 2024.
<https://historycollection.com/tolkien-vs-disney-and-other-major-historic-feuds/#29-the-snobby-
roots-of-a-feud>.
"Reprsentation of Elves From the Lord of the Rings universe." n.d. 1 April 2024.
<https://www.deviantart.com/fangwangllin/art/The-Passing-Of-The-Elves-415994634>.
Tolkien Gateway. 19 March 2024. 2 April 2024. <https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Dwarves>.
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