Abstract
In “Orphic Powers in Tolkien’s Legend of Beren and Lúthien,” I consider three interrelated strands that influenced the development of Tolkien’s most precious story: Tolkien’s own life experience, sources from classical mythology and medieval literature, and the hope inherent to the Christian faith, especially for resurrection and eternal life, as symbolized in the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price. This study suggests that Tolkien’s relationship to his wife, Edith, inspires the legend and renders it a psychological allegory. Three Ovidian tales from classical mythology that were later re-told in medieval literature also influence it: the rape of Philomela, the self-sacrifice of Alcestis, and the love-story of Orpheus and Eurydice. Finally, Tolkien interweaves symbolism from the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price, especially as it was developed in the fourteenth-century dream vision, Pearl, and transforms it in his Silmarils. The Silmaril that Beren prised from the iron crown of Morgoth will eventually find its place in the heavens above Middle-earth, where it is called the Morning Star, a clear allusion to Christ, who is the apotheosis of Tolkien’s Christian faith.
Recommended Citation
Beal, Jane PhD
(2014)
"Orphic Powers in J.R.R. Tolkien's Legend of Beren and Lúthien,"
Journal of Tolkien Research: Vol. 1:
Iss.
1, Article 1.
Available at:
https://scholar.valpo.edu/journaloftolkienresearch/vol1/iss1/1
Included in
Biblical Studies Commons, Catholic Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, Classics Commons, Comparative Literature Commons, Medieval Studies Commons, Modern Literature Commons