Art!

[Ibrîniðilpathânezel]

I think I would ask "define purpose." Giving pleasure, providing thought, or entertainment, amusement, something pretty to cover an ugly hole in the wall... all of those are purpose. Whether or not our modern world considers such things important or valuable is its own loss. The stimulation of imagination is, to me, something very important, valuable, and full of purpose, as both invention and culture need a healthy imagination to survive. It seems to me that Tolkien's work has provided a vast number of people with a powerful wellspring of inspiration, and that alone is a tremendous purpose, whether or not Tolkien intended it at first. Not everyone will think so, but then, some things I was once taught were the most Important Purposes in the world turned out to be some of the most negative influences on my life in the long run.

Purpose, I suppose, is very much in the eye, and mind, of the beholder.