Nature and Landscape in Tolkien’s Work
Call for Papers
11th Seminar of the DTG
Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena
9-11 May 2014
Nature and landscape play a central role in Tolkien’s work. Critics and readers alike have noted positively that The Lord of the Rings can be read as a text criticising and warning against the unchecked forces of industrialisation (represented most strikingly by Sauron and Saruman) and the concomitant domination and destruction of nature. This aspect has been stressed by proponents of an ecocritical reading and made good use of by the green movement. On the other side, many readers complain about Tolkien’s very detailed and extensive landscape descriptions; and yet the carefully and lovingly elaborated geography of Arda is recognised as a hallmark of Tolkien’s literary work. It is furthermore credited with having influenced the spatial and environmental visions of later authors of fantasy and having made a lasting impact on a wide audience in form of Peter Jackson’s cinematic adaptation.
The eleventh Tolkien Seminar focusses on nature and landscape with the aim of exploring the development, importance and relevance of these two elements from a multi-disciplinary point of view. We hope for contributions not only from humanities and theology, but also from art studies and natural sciences and would like to welcome papers looking at Tolkien’s legendarium as well as his shorter texts and, not to forget, his pictures and illustrations.
Conference languages are English and German.
Please submit your proposals, accompanied by a short abstract, to the editors of Hither Shore at
hither-shore@tolkiengesellschaft.de
Deadline: November 30, 2013.