The Lord of the Rings: Great Books Explained

Please don’t forget to ‘like’ and leave a comment (however short), as it REALLY helps promote the channel. My other channel, Great ART Explained can be found here - youtube.com/@GreatArtExplained- thanks so much for your amazing support - James

It's so refreshing to see a still active non-booktok-esque literature channel

The pessimist sees difficulties in every opportunity. The optimist finds opportunities in any difficulty."

33 minutes of my life just wonderfully sorted, as always thank you!!

Apart from only Crime and Punishment, Lord of the Rings (and entire Tolkien legendarium really) are my most favourite books. They aren't just books, they are massive part of my life and I believe my character. Thank you for thoughtful, deep analysis of this masterpiece.

“To understand the people you must understand the language.” So true! You’ll understand why the Dutch are so direct once you learn their language. They’re just so used to being so literal and using as few words as possible. Some examples: Skunk - “stinky animal” Gloves - “hand shoes” Potato - “earth apple” Vacuum - “dust sucker” Santa Klaus - “Christmas man” etc. Now that I think of it, the Indonesians also like to shorten their words. It’s definitely the Dutch influence 😂

The LotR trilogy, both in writing and on screen, is incredible. And there is no shortage of excellent analyses, comments, ruminations... ... yet they must all bow to this new video essay - THE ONE ANALYSIS

Beautiful. I had no idea of the significance or content of this work when I borrowed it at the local library at the age of 14. It truly changed how I looked at the world, and I've read it whole or in part dozens of times since,

What a blessing this channel is. Thank you for this video.

Your video is surely one of the best analyses, not only of the work, but also of JRR Tolkien's motives. Remarkably well-documented, and fascinating from start to finish. Congratulations, and thanks for sharing.

Read it back in 1975 as a teen and I was forever changed. Thank you for great review

A great introduction into Tolkien and very well produced at that. Hats off to the writer and the editor!

Comparing lotr film scenes with footage from WWI was a brilliant choice, I've been thinking about the parallels for a while, but seeing it in film madenit much more visceral. Incredible video as always!

I am in awe. This Video should win an Emmy

I'm so lucky to have scrolled to you and your lovely new piece! I'm watching now, and shall watch again with my husband this evening! 😊 My Dad gave me this Immense Series for my 11th birthday... The gorgeous hardcover, boxed set was daunting in and of itself, but I dove right into JRR's Grand Adventure! It transitioned me from Narnia to understanding our real History. You present things beautifully. I share your brilliance with people I think will appreciate you. This goes to my Dad, for sure! THANK YOU! ❤

Sometimes I feel that one must be worthy to read works of such great minds !

I watched your latest Great Books Explained on Tolkein. I can never believe all the outstanding footage you find. Your videos are much better than the BBC are producing these days. Your summarising of the thematic plot of TLOTR as a person of no abilities on a quest to destroy the thing that would give them great power, was really revelatory. I enjoy how you deconstruct the life and work, re-grounding it into the human and all these roads of life that end up in the work. Tracing that dotted connection of experiences is really important in how we think of art, especially in an era of AI. Regarding reliigion, I personally believe it's impossible not to make a religious work of art. One can always identify a religion in a work of art. I think you have to choose one, there's no atheist work. You have to be a conscious critic to dissect it from the work. I'm glad I've never been in a war, but the way it affects artists is very fascinating to me. Not only writers, or painters like Goya, but Elvis and Jimi Hendrix went to war, those experiences of life at its extremes and the courage to be there and the empathy for humanity under such extremes don't leave a person. It's also the wars of one's lifetime. I started writing essay books about wars of my time during the pandemic and still do to help world-view/world building as a writer. I recently bought a couple of books of war poetry and it's fascinating to see the change in how people write about it. Still, Ancient Greece wasn't only Homer, but had Archilochus and Tyrteaus. But above all Thucycides whose perception of humanity I think is even greater than Dostoevsky's. Looking forward to your next video

Thank you once again for yet another thoughtful, thorough, yet concise gem. You cover books and art that I sometimes struggle with, yet each time I come away satisfied, as if eaten a very good meal. Keep up the fantastic work ❤

Bless this creator. Between this channel and their Great Art Explained, I've managed to help a lot of my friends and coworkers either understand my love for many different works from many different artists and/or help them discover artists that they appreciate themselves. The stories of Tolkien, along with how they were completed, shared, and expanded upon, are EASILY some of the most special and impactful stories ever told (imo) Thank you for all the great work! Apologies for crazy long comment

Shared with my husband who is a fan of LoTR and Tolkien in general. Thank you for these wonderful videos. Mesmerizing!