Biography J.R.R. Tolkien was born on January 3rd, 1892, in Bloemfontein, which would be classified as
South Africa in today’s world. “John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was the eldest of the two sons of Arnold Reuel Tolkien, an Englishman who was a banking manager in the Bank of Africa, and Mabel Suffield“ (Carpenter 11-13). When Tolkien was merely three years old his mother took him and his younger brother on a trip to visit relatives in England. His father had planned to join them later; however, “he contracted a rheumatic fever from which he partially recovered, until he suffered a severe hemorrhage that cost him his life” (Carpenter 16).
After her husband’s passing, Mabel realized that she could not go back to Bloemfontein because she did not …show more content…
Monica Jekel says “While much of this is due to his intense dedication to the creation of a secondary world, there is something more than religious attention to detail behind his ability to produce a story that has thrived with such lasting popularity.”(“Tolkien’s Views on Fantasy Literature” 1). Also, Tolkien believed in his stories so much that they became real to him. If one looks deeper into Tolkien’s own words, it can be seen that the aforementioned perspective holds true. Evidently, author Patrick Curry states “every sub-creator wishes in some measure to be a real maker, or hopes that the peculiar quality of this secondary world (if not all the details) are derived from reality, or are flowing into it.” …show more content…
He was raised in poverty because his father passed away when Tolkien was only a toddler, and when he was 12, his mother died due to diabetes. All of this hardship had a silver lining, though, because Tolkein was able to channel his pessimism toward life into creativity. He produced his own exciting mythological world in which he could express his feelings while avoiding the reality. For example, his love of the English countryside can be seen in the rolling hills in The Hobbit. Also, his stories seem to show the same pattern as his life. His characters always end up survivors, or victors, but there is still lingering hardships throughout the journeys. In his life, he became a talented writer yet still battled the memories of his childhood and still lived in a modest suburban setting. After learning about Tolkien’s childhood, it is amazing to see how he constructed a positive life for himself and his family. He is truly a literary genius and a remarkable