FF:AJ14068 J.R.R. Tolkien's The LOTR - Course Information
AJ14068 J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings
Faculty of ArtsAutumn 2018
- Extent and Intensity
- 0/2/0. 2 credit(s) (plus 2 credits for an exam). Recommended Type of Completion: zk (examination). Other types of completion: z (credit).
- Teacher(s)
- Mgr. Janka Kaščáková, Ph.D. (lecturer), prof. Mgr. Milada Franková, CSc., M.A. (deputy)
- Guaranteed by
- doc. PhDr. Jana Chamonikolasová, Ph.D.
Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Tomáš Hanzálek
Supplier department: Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts - Prerequisites
- It is necessary to have read the unabridged Lord of the Rings (ideally in English) prior to the beginning of the course. A knowledge of The Hobbit is also welcome.
- Course Enrolment Limitations
- The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 12 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/12, only registered: 0/12 - fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
- English Language and Literature (Eng.) (programme FF, B-FI)
- English Language and Literature (programme FF, B-FI) (2)
- English Language and Literature (programme FF, B-GE)
- English Language and Literature (programme FF, B-GK)
- English Language and Literature (programme FF, B-HS)
- English Language and Literature (programme FF, B-MA)
- English Language and Literature (programme FF, B-TV)
- Course objectives
- This course aims at discussing a selected number of topics from The Lord of the Rings, covering both some well-known issues underlying Tolkien’s masterpiece as well as introducing some elements which are usually overlooked or neglected. During the course the primary focus will be on the novel, but small parts of the movies, those in which Tolkien’s and Jackson’s texts most significantly diverge, will be shown to illustrate some of the issues important for Tolkien and the philosophy of his world. The course will further enhance the students' skills of critical thinking and literary analysis. Students will employ and apply the acquired knowledge and skills of analysis and interpretation in writing their end-of-term essay.
- Syllabus
- The Peoples of Middle-earth
- Allegory vs. Applicability
- Heroism, Victory and Moral Responsibility
- Hobbits’ Ennoblement
- Great Battles of Middle-earth: Tolkien and Violence
- Gollum and the Questions of Mercy and Pity
- Beren and Lúthien vs. Aragorn and Arwen
- Éowyn, Aragorn and Faramir
- Magic, Might and Deceit
- Treebeard, Tom Bombadil and Environmental Issues
- Literature
- Tom Shippey. The Road to Middle-earth. HarperCollinsPublishers, 2005 [1982]
- Dimitra Fimi. Tolkien, Race and Cultural History: From Fairies to Hobbits. Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.
- J.R.R. Tolkien. The Hobbit.
- Humphrey Carpenter, ed. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien. HarperCollinsPublishers, 2006.
- Matthew Dickerson. A Hobbit Journey. Brazos Press, 2012.
- J.R.R. Tolkien. “On Fairy Stories” at
- J.R.R. Tolkien. The Silmarillion.
- Jane Chance, ed. Tolkien and the Invention of Myth. The University Press of Kentucky, 2004
- J.R.R. Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings
- Verlyn Flieger. Interrupted Music: The Making of Tolkien’s Mythology. The Kent State University Press, 2005
- Teaching methods
- Close reading and analyses of extracts from the primary source assisted by selected secondary texts, group discussion, homework
- Assessment methods
- The students will be expected to prepare for every class by reading assigned extracts from the Lord of the Rings and selected secondary literature. The final assessment will consist of an end-of-term essay of approximately 3000 words on a topic chosen by the student and approved by the teacher.
- Language of instruction
- English
- Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
- Study Materials
The course is taught: in blocks.
Note related to how often the course is taught: 10.9. – 14.9. 2018.
- Enrolment Statistics (recent)
- Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/autumn2018/AJ14068