Presenting at Tolkien in Vermont
I had the privilege of presenting at Tolkien in Vermont today. I was actually scheduled to present at this conference last year, but because it was scheduled to take place soon after the virus hit, the infrastructure was not necessarily in place at the time to make it happen. This year, the event was conducted over Zoom. Zoom is easily my favorite web conferencing software, especially for participating in conferences. Technology always presents potential obstacles, but at least for the sessions I participated in and was able to observe, everything ran smoothly.
My paper was entitled “Pius Samwise: Roman Heroism in The Lord of the Rings.” In summary, I tried to draw parallels between the devotion of Aeneas and Sam. I looked at each of their calls to adventure, compared their relative setbacks and encouragements, and highlighted their destinies situated in place. I don’t believe the sessions were recorded, but if I ever see them, I will be sure to share them with you if I am able to. If you’re interested in seeing a copy of my paper, I would be happy to provide that to you. Just email me using the contact form above.
One thing that is interesting about presenting at a conference centered on the work of J.R.R. Tolkien is that people come to his work from a variety of different perspectives. When I taught a class on Tolkien this past fall through Kepler Education, I tried to introduce my students to a little bit of the diversity in Tolkien scholarship by having them read Bradley Birzer and Patrick Curry. Even more widespread views were presented during the conference today, and I think that says something about the depth of Tolkien’s subcreation. If it is possible for so many different people to dive into his work from so many different perspectives and find something that resonates with their perspective, there must be real substance there.
Obviously, this means that there will be disagreements about how to interpret Tolkien. That comes with the territory. However, I will say that there is virtue in this kind of academic freedom and ideological disagreement. Being exposed to alternative views that do not necessarily reflect our own has benefits. For one thing, it forces us to consider our own position. We might have thought we had everything figured out. We might, but comparing our view to the best alternatives can only serve to help us make sure that we are on as good a footing as we thought we were.
Second, we might actually alter our own perspective. Realizing that we are wrong actually allows us to hopefully find out what is true and correct the error of our ways. It makes me think of G.K. Chesterton who said, “The object of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it again on something solid.” I am not suggesting that all views are equally valid or anything like that. However, I am suggesting that if there is something we are trying to learn about, our purpose ought to be to try to find that something solid to embrace.
Finally, part of the purpose of academic freedom is to try ideas. Presenting a paper means that you are opening your work up to a particular scholarly community. I don’t know exactly how many people were listening to the conference today, but I think there is value in bringing forward proposals. It is quite possible that an idea that was mentioned today might inspire someone to write a paper. They saw an idea brought into this kind of environment, and after it got presented, questioned, and considered, it was either shown to be worthwhile or not. Perhaps my paper was ridiculous. At worst, a group of people learned not to pursue that line of thought any further. There is still some value in that. Having the freedom to come together and consider ideas is incredibly valuable.
Overall, I very much enjoyed this conference even though I was unable to listen to every session. It is always a good day when you get to talk about J.R.R. Tolkien.