[Child of the 7th Age]

Davem,

I think you have put your finger on the heart of the problem: the reason for Tolkien's isolationism in the Shire, at least in terms of the ending of the book. Part of him wanted to preserve or embalm the past, much the same as the Elves in Lothlorien. He actually commented on this at some point in the letters. In this particular case, he was presumably motivated by a desire to protect his remembered images of the West Midlands as exemplified by the Hobbits.

His setting up a barrier aroundthe Shire is reminiscent of a number of devices used in the wider Legendarium. The three obvious ones that come to mind are the girdle of Melian, the encircling mountains of Gondolin, and of course the bent road set up to guard the way West at the fall of Numenor (to say nothing of Lothlorien's own defenses). In these cases Tolkien used geographical and/or 'magical' barriers to protect a culture. Within the Shire, he employed Man's law to try and protect the land itself and the best character traits of those who lived there.

Yes, I suppose we can treat the Shire as the "exception", the wonderful magic land where a bit of the past is preserved when we all know that in reality it has all been swept away. And in a general sense, he does indicate the passge of time and people in the prologue. Yet, as an author, Tolkien wasn't willing to admit that particular reality in terms of Hobbits. It's clear from the book that Elves, Dwarves, and Ents are gone from our world. Yet, in the early pages of LotR, Tolkien can't help telling us that there are still some Hobbits about in the recesses of the English countryside, although somewhat diminished in size, a device that seems almost reminiscent of those tiny goblin feet, which he had grown to dislike. Once again the Hobbits are the exception: Tolkien just couldn't bring himself to let them go the way of the Elves or the Ents.

But what about the fact that it wasn't only in the Shire where Men were refused entry? There's also the Woses. This can't be the author preserving treasured images. To me, it's always seemed like a veiled comment on man's imperialism and the destruction of less technological cultures.

Viewed as the effort to protect treasured images from the past, or as a protest against Men who run roughshod over cultures different than their own, I should perhaps be more willing to let the author off the hook with his little device regarding the Shire. After all, I'm a historian and a card-carrying curmudgeon. There are certainly cases where I wish I had the means to preserve certain things from my own past that I have since seen the world sweep away.

Yet I am unwilling to accept Tolkien's gated community at face value. My main problem is that such a device flies in the face of the themes the author so carefully developed in his book. The fellowship itself started with a group of nine but was gradually expanded throughout the tale to include more and more folk of divergent backgrounds. Again and again, JRRT suggests the free peoples of Middle-earth succeeded because, unlike the baddies, they had two things: imagination and the ability to cooperate with each other (plus a bit of luck or providence). Why show the budding friendships (and marriages) between those of different races and backgrounds if, at the end, your response is to take a step backwards and re-create the isolationism that existed at the beginning of the story?

It almost seems as if Tolkien is saying the only time we can (perhaps should?) sweep such barriers away is when we are actively engaged in a struggle of cosmic portions against the forces of the Shadow. When victory comes, even temporary victory, we can dispense with such things and retreat back into our gated community. I still find that image disturbing, even when understanding why it arose in Tolkien's mind.