Why indeed? J.R.R Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings (LOTR) trilogy had a profound effect on me as an adolescent and young man. Tolkien, an Oxford Don and a professor of language, created a fictional land in Earth’s past peopled by fantastic races living in a world much like our own, but untamed and beautiful as a rare jewel. Tolkien is on record as saying that he invented Middle Earth so that he could create his own language and culture. A perfect example is his Elvish language, a language that is extremely beautiful when spoken and on the printed page. He also lamented that England did not have its own heroic archetypal national story. Perhaps the closest story of this kind would be the legend of King Arthur. However, that story did not really qualify as a faeric story, so Tolkien had to create his own. Like his friend and peer, C.S. Lewis, creator of the Narnia children’s books, Tolkien was a Christian. Where the Narnia books are laden with obvious Christian allegory, the Lord of the Rings' major Christian themes of Love, Mercy, Death, Resurrection, and Eternal Life are so thoroughly and skillfully woven into its fantasy world that heavy-handed allegory is not needed.
For me, the most powerful themes in LOTR are Love, Friendship and the quality of Mercy. I’m personally pretty good in practicing Love and Friendship, but I frequently lack the practice of Mercy. That is why thinking of LOTR brings me back to Mercy's importance and leads me back onto the path of forgiveness as a way of life. Specifically, one act of Mercy by one of the main Hobbit characters is so powerful that the entire outcome of the tale hinges upon the consequences of this one act.
These thoughts bring me to New Zealand and Middle Earth. Of course, New Zealand is New Zealand and it exists totally separate from LOTR. However, after Peter Jackson’s film trilogy was completed in 2003, New Zealand will always be connected with LOTR. As an amateur film historian, I know of no other film creation that has so thoroughly impacted a country, especially in such a positive way. LOTR introduced New Zealand to the world as a destination spot. The incredible land and its varied cultures and people are now on the world stage for all to see. The economic development benefit has been incredible. Thousands of New Zealanders are gainfully employed in the tourism industry as a result of LOTR. Many more are employed in the Wellington-based WETA Workshop, Peter Jackson’s specially created special effects shop. For example, one of the many WETA Workshop films currently being created in New Zealand is James Cameron’s sequel to Avatar.
Let me be very clear, I love the written LOTR first. However, I am fortunately not a Tolkien purist, so I’m able to separate the films from their literary inspiration and enjoy them completely separately. The fact that I am now able to travel with Jody around New Zealand visiting these incredible locations is, indeed, a dream come true and frankly, something I never even dreamed of doing. Several months after proposing to Jody, I was stunned when she asked me, “how would you like to go live in New Zealand for eight months?” To have captured both Jody and New Zealand in one fell swoop was beyond good fortune. And, I have not even gone into the opportunity to visit Africa this past Summer with Jody, land of one of my favorite fictional heroes, Tarzan of the Apes (as many of you who attended our wedding already know from my Best Man’s comments).
So, that is why this is Dick’s Middle Earth. I hope you enjoy the journey. I’ll try and do this travelog justice. This opportunity only comes along once in a lifetime.
For me, the most powerful themes in LOTR are Love, Friendship and the quality of Mercy. I’m personally pretty good in practicing Love and Friendship, but I frequently lack the practice of Mercy. That is why thinking of LOTR brings me back to Mercy's importance and leads me back onto the path of forgiveness as a way of life. Specifically, one act of Mercy by one of the main Hobbit characters is so powerful that the entire outcome of the tale hinges upon the consequences of this one act.
These thoughts bring me to New Zealand and Middle Earth. Of course, New Zealand is New Zealand and it exists totally separate from LOTR. However, after Peter Jackson’s film trilogy was completed in 2003, New Zealand will always be connected with LOTR. As an amateur film historian, I know of no other film creation that has so thoroughly impacted a country, especially in such a positive way. LOTR introduced New Zealand to the world as a destination spot. The incredible land and its varied cultures and people are now on the world stage for all to see. The economic development benefit has been incredible. Thousands of New Zealanders are gainfully employed in the tourism industry as a result of LOTR. Many more are employed in the Wellington-based WETA Workshop, Peter Jackson’s specially created special effects shop. For example, one of the many WETA Workshop films currently being created in New Zealand is James Cameron’s sequel to Avatar.
Let me be very clear, I love the written LOTR first. However, I am fortunately not a Tolkien purist, so I’m able to separate the films from their literary inspiration and enjoy them completely separately. The fact that I am now able to travel with Jody around New Zealand visiting these incredible locations is, indeed, a dream come true and frankly, something I never even dreamed of doing. Several months after proposing to Jody, I was stunned when she asked me, “how would you like to go live in New Zealand for eight months?” To have captured both Jody and New Zealand in one fell swoop was beyond good fortune. And, I have not even gone into the opportunity to visit Africa this past Summer with Jody, land of one of my favorite fictional heroes, Tarzan of the Apes (as many of you who attended our wedding already know from my Best Man’s comments).
So, that is why this is Dick’s Middle Earth. I hope you enjoy the journey. I’ll try and do this travelog justice. This opportunity only comes along once in a lifetime.
Gandalf on the winged Eagle greeting passengers as they disembark at Wellington Airport.
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