Perilous Realms: Celtic and Norse in Tolkien's Middle-earth

by Marjorie J. Burns

J.R.R. Tolkien (1892–1973) is increasingly recognized as the most influential writer of the twentieth century. Sales of his books remain exceptionally high, and Middle-earth fan clubs flourish around the world. The massive success of the film versions made of The Lord of the Rings, and released between 2001 and 2003, have only added to his popularity.

Throughout his life, Tolkien was acutely aware of the power of myth in shaping society; so much so, that one of his earliest ambitions as a writer was to create a mythology for England. The Middle-earth of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit was to serve as a stand-in for Britain and North-western Europe and is strongly based on a variety of influential literatures and beliefs, particularly the Celtic and Norse. Perilous Realms is the first book to focus consistently on the ways in which Tolkien balances these two ancient cultures and unites them in a single literature. Renowned Tolkien scholar Marjorie Burns also investigates the ways Tolkien reconciled other oppositions, including paganism and Christianity, good and evil, home and wayside, war and peace, embellishment and simplicity, hierarchy and the common man.

Even those who do not know Beowulf or the Arthurian tales or northern European mythology come away from The Lord of the Rings with a feeling for Britain's historical and literary past. Those who recognize the sources behind Tolkien - and the skill with which he combines these sources - gain far more. Perilous Realms gives this advantage to all readers and provides new discoveries, including material from obscure, little-known Celtic texts and a likely new source for the name 'hobbit.' It is truly essential reading for Tolkien fans.

Genres: Nonfiction, Literary Criticism, Reference, Criticism

240 pages, Paperback

First published August 5, 2005

Reviews

[Erika · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is extremely useful to me while I'm writing my thesis paper for my undergraduate degree. I'm writing on the topic of Tolkien's use of Celtic mythology, and this book was one of the most helpful books I found. Burns supports her analyses very well, and presents them in an easy-to-read fashion. She discusses in this book a subject that is often dismissed out-of-hand and prematurely in the realm of scholarly works on Tolkien--his use of Celtic myths and tales of Faërie. Burns is meticulously careful with backing up her analyses with examples from almost every main text Tolkien wrote. This book is an essential for anyone who aspires to be a Tolkien scholar or even a scholar of modern fantasy literature--and it is easy enough to read that even people who are just fans of Tolkien's works will be able to enjoy it.

[Othy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horribly disappointing. Not only does the author write about rather basic understandings of Tolkien, she also seems to almost completely miss the depth of what makes his writing amazing. While the book began as a decent discussion of the roots of Tolkien's works, Perilous Realms quickly fell to become confusingly off-topic and, at some times, simply sad. I closed the book when the author began discussing the fight between Frodo, Sam and Shelob as being a "sexual encounter." Really. Why hasn't our culture outgrown psychoanalysis (i.e. childish readings about sex) yet?

[Gabrielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting analysis of Tolkien's mythological inspirations, I could do with a closer reread.

[Cwn_annwn_13 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This and The Real Middle Earth by Brian Bates would be a good match for researching where Tolkien got his inspiration from.

[ika · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have enjoyed this book a lot, despite it being one of the must-reads for my dissertation. Burns explores the connections and differences of Celtic and Norse in Tolkien's fiction - gives examples of specific reference points and comments on them in a very understandable way, making it very easy to understand even for the usual Tolkien fan.
In a way, she doesn't give an answer which culture was the most influential, and equally stresses the importance of both, which is nice - however one may not fully agree with that. All in all, it was a pleasant and well-organised read, despite some digressions and repetitions.

[Teshamae · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is fascinating review of the Celtic and Norse tales that inspired Tolkien. I particularly enjoyed chapter two, "Skin-changing in More than One Sense: The Complexity of Beorn;" chapter five, "Spiders and Evil Red Eyes: The Shadow Sides of Gandalf and Galadriel;" and chapter six, "Wisewomen, Shieldmaidens, Nymphs and Goddesses." This is a must-read for anyone interested in examining Tolkien's works in depth.

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ms. Burns was quite wrong about the Icelandic rock people, both in their physical description and general attributes, which made me doubt the accuracy of the rest of the book, pretty early on. Still, it is an interesting read.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

An awesome analysis, very readable, of both threads that conflict and also coalesce in Tolkien's works. We met the author in Portland, and she's great--very lively, good sense of humor