Never Lose Hope

The purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself. ~ Albert Cadmus

A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day! An hour of woes and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you: stand, Men of the West! ~Aragorn II, son of Arathorn, heir to the throne of Gondor.

There’s one man who has been a major influence in my life and the way I live it, fueling me with a passion to create as well as an admiration for the existence of hope, love, and the strength of friendship and brotherhood. I have never met him.

I’ve been interested in both reading and writing fantasy since an early age, and much of it, if not all of it, is due to J.R.R. Tolkien, a man I consider the father of fantasy. However, although I do appreciate his imagination and contribution to the genre, what I admire more than his creativity are the themes and ideas he imbued his work with. Many believe that The Lord of the Rings is Tolkien’s greatest and only novel. This is everything but the truth. The creator of the fictional land of Middle Earth also created epics such as The Hobbit and The Silmarillion, among others. All of these, however varied and different they might be, bear two similarities. They all take place in the same universe, and they all contain recurrent themes that Tolkien held close to his heart. However, I’m not here to tell Tolkien fans facts they already know, or to chase those who haven’t bothered to pick up one of his books into the perilous realm of boredom. I am here to praise a man who believed in people.

Tolkien, orphaned at a young age, found a sense of family in a group of fantasy readers and writers he formed while at school. This group he called the Inklings, and included C.S. Lewis, the author of The Chronicles of Narnia series. Together, this group traveled through the obstacles of life together and became best friends. Soon after that, Tolkien married the love of his life, Edith Mary Bratt. However, the happiness that had begun to fill the void his family had left would soon cease, as the First World War reached him. He joined the fray along with his friends and, after a few years, Tolkien was left alone, his excuse for a family taken by the horror of trench warfare.

The many deaths coupled with the lack of immediate family would’ve crushed anyone else. However, Tolkien kept going and, with his wife’s help, he channeled his feelings into creating the most influential fantasy epic of our time. Later on, after mothering Tolkien’s children, Edith passed away as well. Tolkien had the name Luthien inscribed on her tombstone, relating their love to his story of Beren and Luthien, a man and an elf that fell in love. With death surrounding him, Tolkien continued to write, revealing to me, as well as a world of fans, that love, hope, and friendship are the last martyrs wept. Eventually he died, but I’m sure he never lost these values, as it is shown in his tombstone inscription, which reads: Beren.

I’ve always admired Tolkien, for he is living proof that even in the darkest times, one must have faith that dawn will come. Every time I feel down, every time I feel there is no hope, I turn to Tolkien’s books, which are a reflection of his own life, and I trust that things will be alright in due time. These ideas have helped me through deaths, physical and spiritual injuries, and many other obstacles.

This great fantasist taught me a great many things. Among them, I learned that The Lord of the Rings, more than a fun story to read, is a symbol for the corruption of power, and how, even if power is taken from a desire to good, many times it can change people. I also discovered that, in the same novel, what eventually defeated this evil and corruption were powers than many may find underrated and even cliché: love and hope. I saw that the power to hope for victory, even when the odds are against you, stems from the love of friends and family, and that, no matter how close doom may seem, one must never lose faith.

The contribution Tolkien made to my life that I’m most thankful for is my inspiration to write fantasy. He taught me that through the penning of epic tales and fantastic stories, people could find shelter. I learned through Tolkien that fantasy isn’t written for fantasy’s sake, instead it is written so that it can serve as a symbol for those who need somewhere to escape into, a world where the helpless can hide and trust to hope without fearing pain or suffering. Because of him, I want to write fantasy when I’m older. I want to do for people what Tolkien did for me. I want to lend a helping hand and shelter for those who need them, all this through the magic of fantasy, a magic that everyone needs in their life. A magic that can rekindle hope in the face of despair.

So, yes, I may never have met Professor Tolkien, but, through his poetic fantasy, he taught me to never give up. He taught me to keep my head up, even in the darkest moments, because every step taken is a step closer to victory. Every mile traveled brings the hopeless closer to the Cracks of Doom.