An Eco-feministic Analysis Of The Lord Of The Rings

J.R.R. Tolkien (1892--1973) was an English poet, novelist, philologist and universityprofessor, but he was mostly acknowledged as the creator of the world’s famous highfantasy--The Lord of the Rings. The publication of the trilogy initiated a craze for highfantasy and made Tolkien a household name around the world, especially inEnglish-speaking countries, for the sake of which he is considered as one of the greatestnovelists in the20thcentury on a par with great English novelists, such as C. S. Louise andSalman Rushdie. Tolkien receives much criticism for the retiracy and escaping attitudereflected in his novel. Some critics even find a hint for his obsession with and admirationfor the mediaeval hierarchy between the lines of the novel. Despite these criticisms, TheLord of the Rings soon becomes an instant best seller and receives favorable commentsfrom its readers. In2001, even a movie named The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of theRing was shot by the American director Peter Jackson. This movie receives praises andbenefits and wins the Oscar Award. The movie renews readers’ passion for the novel. Andcritics’ attention is once again brought back to Tolkien’s novel. And most of the criticscomment positively on the novel.The Lord of the Rings is a trilogy. The first book is about the Hobbits and the history ofthe ring. Frodo Baggins was given the mission to bring the evil ring to Modor and destroy it.A team of an Elf, a dwarf, four Hobbits, a wizard, and two men is formed to protect Frodo.The second book is called The Two Towers. It is about the hardship the fellowship of thering has suffered and the struggle among the fellowship members. Saruman betrays theMiddle Earth and turns to the evil power. He cuts down trees and exploits nature to build hisarmy of Orcs. The third book is called The Return of the King. In this book the author employs retrospection in narrating the history of the evil. Finally, Frodo tosses the ring tothe lava of Modor. With the melting of the ring, the evil world built by Sauron collapses.Arogorn is made king of the Middle Earth and peace returns.Eco-feminism was introduced in1970s. The term eco-feminism was coined by theFrench philosopher Francoise d’Eaubonne. The theory has been developing for forty yearsand has become a concrete theoretic system. Other eco-feminists such as Carol Merchant,Ynestra King have enriched the theory and some of them have even put the theory intopractice. Eco-feminists hold that women and nature have long been oppressed anddominated by men. Because of this, women and nature are closely related with each other.The unfair treatment women and nature have received is due to the anthropocentric andpatriarchal concept in society. Eco-feminists also point out that the idea of male superiorityis the root of the hierarchical system. In order to get rid of the hierarchical system andobtain the healthy relationship between men and women, human and nature, human beingshave to restore the social order on an eco-feministic basis. Therefore, the elimination of theoppression and exploitation women have received is closely related with the disappearanceof the oppression and exploitation nature gets. What is more, eco-feminists further theirpractice by erasing gender discrimination, racial discrimination as well as the inequalitybetween all species in the world.The Lord of the Rings displays a panorama of fantastic world with northern Europeanflavour. At the same time Tolkien weaves his eco-feministic concept into the narration. Thebeauty of Shire is immune to war and the habitants in the Shire prove to be a typicalexample of eco-feministic concept. Simultaneously, Tolkien, through his narration, displaysthe destruction Sauron and Saruman have brought on the land and the forest. They ruinlands and rip down forests to fuel their army of Orcs. Their greed has made nature barren.Dangerous swamps and smoking trees depicted in the novel stand for the scar and wound desire and greed have brought to nature. At the same time, Tolkien focuses his attention onheroines who are not the main characters in the novel. Women in Tolkien’s The Lord of theRings have the traits of resilience, courage and sacrifice. What’s more, women in this novelare given the responsibilities that are previously taken dominantly by men. For example,they can administrate state affairs, march in the battlefield, and become the spiritual pillarfor the male characters, which is the most significant value of this novel, that is, Tolkienadvocates equality. He believes that everyone can make contribution to his homeland andhis country fellows no matter how weak or mild he/she is. That’s why the Halflings likeFrodo Baggins can be the ring’s possessor, but not those who are brave and strong. Duringthe journey to Modor, the fellowship of the ring does not have too much confidence in him.But at last he proves that he is qualified. This is an example of eco-feminist’s belief that alllives are equally important and each and everyone in the world have their meaning ofexistence.This thesis is divided into five parts. The first part gives a general introduction of J.R.R.Tolkien and his works, briefs the literature review of The Lord of the Rings and expoundson the definition of “eco-feminism”. Chapter One is an analysis of the relationship betweenwomen and nature in The Lord of the Rings and the problems of women faced in themale-dominated society. Chapter Two presents both the images of nature in the novel as theoutcome of the exploitation from male-dominant society and the rebellion of nature.Chapter Three tries to give an account of the root for Tolkien’s eco-feministic concerns inthe novel. The last part concludes Tolkien’s eco-feministic thought in The Lord of the Ringsand points out the reason for the limitation of Tolkien’s eco-feminism.