Estel, although this topic has been discussed at length in this thread and the 'Beginning and End' thread, amongst others, and I and other contributors have expended thousands of words on the issue, you have come up with a new angle which I find very interesting.
I agree with you - and have argued repeatedly - that LotR is not some intentionally allegorical fable, nor designed to act as propoganda or evangelism under an acceptably fantastical smokescreen of eclectic mythical archetypes. I'm also going to quote myself on the Bible -
"As literature, the traditional English translation of the Bible - particularly the Gospels - is a work of profound conviction and complexity ; it is challenging, revelatory, joyful, transcendent and volcanic in its intensity. No allegory, however disguised with eclectic archetypes from world myths, could do it justice, and such an act is not necessary.
The LotR and other works were an act of creativity and attentiveness by Tolkien, suffused with his cultural and spiritual sensibilities, and with conscious and unconscious references to the pantheon of heroic and magical storytelling he loved so much. Let it speak and stand for itself. And let the Bible stand and speak for itself too."
Now this is not necessarily agreeing with you in terms of whether or not the Bible itself is allegory. That opens up a separate discussion which includes the issues of selective translation, oral history, local politics and so on, which I suggest is best kept separate.
However, your point DOES correctly illustrate that in general terms marking something as 'allegory' tends to be a reductive or diminishing judgement, and I believe it reduces and diminishes LotR to try and turn its narrative and characters into mechanistic devices intended merely to propagate a particular evangelical reading of Christianity (which is remote both from Tolkien's devout Catholicism and from all his expressed aims and ideas about art and literature).
Estel, your post has also made me reflect a little on my own 'emotional' relationship with various Biblical episodes. For this and for offering a new slant here, I appreciate your comments. But I don't expect anything we say will stop people saying - "hey, Gandalf IS Jesus, I wanna pray to Gandalf".
Personally, even if I wanted to find an allegory, the presence of Old Toby or the talking trees present insurmountable contradictions [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] And the disappearance of two whole pages from this thread seems to be hinting at a need to draw a line under this topic!
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