The aim of this paper is then to identify the meaning of those monsters and other literary characters in Tolkien´s novels The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings which can be easily recognized by their grotesqueness of various types and degrees. Tolkien believed that because these " fantastic elements " lead readers under the surface of the plot, directly to the truth of the past, they must be respected as very essential parts of the works. Myths may be misguided, but they steer however shakily toward the true harbor, whereas materialistic "progress" leads only to the abyss and the power of evil.´ We will begin our discussion of the role of the grotesque in Tolkien´s work by drawing attention to his lecture on Beowulf in which he identified the importance of monsters for an appropriate understanding of the literary value as well as ethical meaning of the myth, claiming that monsters, as distinguishing characters of Beowulf and other ancient myths, are " essential, fundamentally allied to the underlying ideas of the problem, which give it its lofty tone and high seriousness " (Tolkien 1936, 7). We have come from God, Tolkien argued, and inevitably the myths woven by us, though they contain error, reflect a splintered fragment of the true light, the eternal truth that is with God. Far from being lies they were the best way-sometimes the only way-of conveying truths that would otherwise remain inexpressible. Lewis: ´Myths´, Lewis told Tolkien, werélies and therefore worthless, even though breathed through silver.´ ´No´Tolkien replied. Tolkien: Truth and Myth, " Joseph Pearce (2001) records the following fragment of discussion between Tolkien and C. In opposition to numerous critics, Tolkien himself considered myths to be more realistic and " true " than any other realistic literature. Tolkien´s fixed interest in and inspiration from myths of various origins (mostly Norse and Welsh myths, Icelandic sagas, and Finnish mythical epic poems) have been widely discussed facts.
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