Perilous and Fair: Women in the Works and Life of J.R.R. Tolkien

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Perilous and Fair
Women in the Works and Life of J.R.R. Tolkien
Perilous and Fair.jpg
EditorJanet Brennan Croft, Leslie A. Donovan
IllustratorUlla Thynell
PublisherMythopoeic Press
Released16 January 2015
FormatPaperback, Ebook
Pages358
ISBN978-1887726016

Perilous and Fair: Women in the Works and Life of J.R.R. Tolkien is a collection of articles about J.R.R. Tolkien and the role of women in his writings.

From the publisher[edit | edit source]

'Perilous and Fair: Women in J. R. R. Tolkien's Work and Life', the newest title from Mythopoeic Press has been published. Edited by Mythlore editor Janet Brennan Croft and MythPress editor Leslie A. Donovan, this collection contains seven articles first published between 1984 and 2007 (many in Mythlore) as well as seven brand new articles the topic. Among others, new articles cover such topics as Tolkien's support of women in higher education, relationships between 'The Lord of the Rings' and Victorian boys' books, and critical response of women readers through fan fiction. Other articles, both new and classic, examine specific female characters, including Nienna, Éowyn, Lúthien, and Galadriel. Through this collection, the editors and authors aim to remedy perceptions that Tolkien has nothing useful or modern to say about women and to recognize that women enact essential, rather than merely supportive, roles in Tolkien's Middle-earth fiction and in his life.

Contents[edit | edit source]

  • Janet Brennan Croft and Leslie A. Donovan, "Introduction: Perilous and Fair, Ancient and Modern, Luminous and Powerful"
Historical Perspectives
  • Robin Anne Reid, "The History of Scholarship on Female Characters in J. R. R. Tolkien's Legendarium: A Feminist Bibliographic Essay"
  • Sharin Schroeder, "She-who-must-not-be-ignored: Gender and Genre in The Lord of the Rings and the Victorian Boys' Book"
  • John D. Rateliff, "The Missing Women: J. R. R. Tolkien's Lifelong Support for Women's Higher Education"
Power of Gender
  • Melanie A. Rawls, "The Feminine Principle in Tolkien"
  • Nancy Enright, "Tolkien's Females and the Defining of Power"
  • Edith L. Crowe, "Power in Arda: Sources, Uses, and Misuses"
Specific Characters
  • Romuald I. Lakowski, "The Fall and Repentance of Galadriel"
  • Cami D. Agan, "Lúthien Tinúviel and Bodily Desire in the Lay of Leithian"
  • Kristine Larsen, "The Power of Pity and Tears: The Evolution of Nienna in the Legendarium"
  • Melissa A. Smith, "At Home and Abroad: Éowyn's Two-fold Figuring as War Bride in The Lord of the Rings"
Earlier Literary Contexts
  • Leslie A. Donovan, "The Valkyrie Reflex in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings: Galadriel, Shelob, Éowyn, and Arwen"
  • Phoebe C. Linton, "Speech and Silence in The Lord of the Rings: Medieval Romance and the Transitions of Éowyn"
  • Maureen Thum, "Hidden in Plain View: Strategizing Unconventionality in Shakespeare's and Tolkien's Portraits of Women"
Women Readers
  • Una McCormack, "Finding Ourselves in the (Un)Mapped Lands: Women's Reparative Readings of The Lord of the Rings"

External link[edit | edit source]