[Child of the 7th Age]

Gimli -- Good question Gimli! It is a valid thing to ask, and it doesn't mean that girls are prissy or anything like that. And, historically, there is some truth in what you say.

For many years, there were more male than female fans of fantasy in general and Tolkien in particular. Believe me, I know. I'm a woman and I've been reading fantasy and Tolkien since the mid-sixties. I used to go into the stores and, boy, I was the only one of the female persuasion there!! It wasn't so bad in the bookstores, but in the fantasy/comic book type places, I definitely stood out. I always felt a little like Bilbo in the Shire -- the only one interested in Elves and such with all the neighbors looking on with disapproval.

That has slowly changed over the years. There are many decent authors of fantasy who are female--Rowling, Bradley, Kurtz, to name but a few. And I think that, over time the nature of the fan community has changed to become much more female.

This site, when it first started, seems to have had more male posters. The interesting thing is that, within recent years, I was close friends with a number of female fans who were hard core Tolkien people as I was. They did a lot of reading of the books and the criticism, and even writing some fantasy, but they didn't post on internet sites like this one. Don't ask me why because I don't know. Maybe that explains some of the earlier gender imbalance at the Downs.

And there still are areas of fantasy where the commercial marketing at least is more geared towards the guys, e.g. Warhammer games, for example, and even some type of computer or video games. This is unfortunate. Just take a look at the RPG room as there are plenty of females down there quite ready to take off the guy's head with a sword!

So, my answer would be is that the Tolkien fan base used to be more male, but is probably changing now to a more equal footing. And, please, please, it is not just Mary Sues moaning over Legolas. (I do find that insulting!) That type of fan will burn out in six months max unless the person goes on to develop some other interests as well.

And, by the way, I would say that a guy who sees Tolkien only as a bunch of sword fights is just as shortsighted as a girl swooning over an actor. Both of them are getting a tiny little piece of Tolkien, but missing out on the big picture! The big picture is a lot more than swords and axes, although we all know those can be "fun". The big picture for Tolkien at least has to do with characters who can tear your heart out with empathy and ideas that can make you sit down and think a long, long time. And males as well as females can equally appreciate that!

sharon, the 7th age hobbit

[ August 15, 2002: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]