LotR, an Edwardian Adventure Story?

[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by littlemanpoet

I think you both are "hitting good targets". Which makes it all the more intriguing that Tolkien would use (at least aspects of) a mode the use of which had come and gone; the use of which, but not the popularity.

I suppose it depends upon which aspects of that 'mode' we think Tolkien used, and whether they were exclusive to it? The whole idea of a quest or adventure isn't unique to Edwardian adventure stories, in fact it is common to many eras. I often think LotR has a lot of similarities to Huckleberry Finn, in that it is not just a journey, but a journey on which a lot of lessons are inadvertently learned, not just for characters but for the reader too.

Hmm, like most of us, I'm sure Tolkien enjoyed a good narrative, and there certainly is evidence that he enjoyed a lot of the adventure stories, along with the fantasy and sci-fi of his day. But Tolkien had a wider range of reading and that is reflected too, if nor more so when the reader really gets into the text.

I can see why a critic casting a superficial (supercilious?) eye over a story like Tolkien's might assume it is just an adventure, as many fans read it on that level too, so maybe their idea that it is an 'Edwardian adventure story' does indeed have an effect on the reception of LotR by some. But it doesn't mean, to me at least, that it is a book of that genre.

Has that mode come and gone though? Aren't the Harry Potter books just grand old adventures on the surface too?