John Ronald Reuel Tolkien citations

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien [ d͡ʒɒn ˈɹʷɒnld ˈɹʷuːəl ˈtʰɒlkiːn], plus connu sous la forme J. R. R. Tolkien, est un écrivain, poète, philologue, essayiste et professeur d’université britannique, né le 3 janvier 1892 à Bloemfontein et mort le 2 septembre 1973 à Bournemouth. Il est principalement connu pour ses romans Le Hobbit et Le Seigneur des anneaux.

Après des études à Birmingham et à Oxford et l’expérience traumatisante de la Première Guerre mondiale, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien devient professeur assistant de langue anglaise à l’université de Leeds en 1920, puis professeur de vieil anglais à l’université d’Oxford en 1925 et professeur de langue et de littérature anglaises en 1945, toujours à Oxford. Il prend sa retraite en 1959. Durant sa carrière universitaire, il défend l’apprentissage des langues, surtout germaniques, et bouleverse l’étude du poème anglo-saxon Beowulf avec sa conférence Beowulf : Les Monstres et les Critiques . Son essai Du conte de fées est également considéré comme un texte crucial dans l’étude de ce genre littéraire.

Tolkien commence à écrire pour son plaisir dans les années 1910, élaborant toute une mythologie autour de langues qu’il invente. L’univers ainsi créé, la Terre du Milieu, prend forme au fil des réécritures et compositions. Son ami C. S. Lewis l’encourage dans cette voie, de même que les autres membres de leur cercle littéraire informel, les Inklings. En 1937, la publication du Hobbit fait de Tolkien un auteur pour enfants estimé. Sa suite longtemps attendue, Le Seigneur des anneaux, est d’une tonalité plus sombre. Elle paraît en 1954-1955 et devient un véritable phénomène de société dans les années 1960, notamment sur les campus américains. Tolkien travaille sur sa mythologie jusqu’à sa mort, mais ne parvient pas à donner une forme achevée au Silmarillion. Ce recueil de légendes des premiers âges de la Terre du Milieu est finalement mis en forme et publié à titre posthume en 1977 par son fils et exécuteur littéraire Christopher, en collaboration avec Guy Gavriel Kay. Au cours des décennies qui suivent, Christopher Tolkien publie régulièrement des textes inédits de son père.

De nombreux auteurs ont publié des romans de fantasy avant Tolkien, mais le succès majeur remporté par Le Seigneur des anneaux au moment de sa publication en poche aux États-Unis est, pour une large part, à l’origine d’une renaissance populaire du genre. Tolkien est ainsi souvent considéré comme l'un des « pères » de la fantasy moderne. Son œuvre a eu une influence majeure sur les auteurs ultérieurs de ce genre, en particulier par la rigueur avec laquelle il a construit son monde secondaire. Wikipedia  

✵ 3. janvier 1892 – 2. septembre 1973   •   Autres noms J. R. R. Tolkien, John Tolkien, J.R.R. Tolkien, J.R.R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien photo

Œuvres

Les Enfants de Húrin
Les Enfants de Húrin
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien: 81   citations 0   J'aime

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien citations célèbres

“J'ai dans le sang la haine de lapartheid.”

I have the hatred of apartheid in my bones.
en
Citations diverses

“Qu'est-ce ce qu'un héron sans ses pattes, un poisson sans ses nageoires?”

What's a coot without his legs, or a finless fish now ?
en
Les Aventures de Tom Bombadil, 1962

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien: Citations en anglais

“I should say that, in addition to my tree-love (it was originally called The Tree), it arose from my own pre-occupation with the Lord of the Rings, the knowledge that it would be finished in great detail or not at all, and the fear (near certainty) that it would be 'not at all'.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre Leaf by Niggle

About "Leaf by Niggle", in a letter to Caroline Everett (24 June 1957)
Contexte: I should say that, in addition to my tree-love (it was originally called The Tree), it arose from my own pre-occupation with the Lord of the Rings, the knowledge that it would be finished in great detail or not at all, and the fear (near certainty) that it would be 'not at all'. The war had arisen to darken all horizons. But no such analyses are a complete explanation even of a short story...

“That there’s some good in this world. And it’s worth fighting for.”

Contexte: Frodo : What are we holding on to, Sam?
Sam: That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it’s worth fighting for

“The journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it.”

Contexte: PIPPIN: I didn't think it would end this way.
GANDALF: End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it.
PIPPIN: What? Gandalf? See what?
GANDALF: White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise.
PIPPIN: Well, that isn't so bad.
GANDALF: No. No, it isn't.

“That story was the only thing I have ever done which cost me absolutely no pains at all.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre Leaf by Niggle

About "Leaf by Niggle", in a letter to Stanley Unwin (18 March 1945)
Contexte: That story was the only thing I have ever done which cost me absolutely no pains at all. Usually I compose only with great difficulty and endless rewriting. I woke up one day (more than 2 years ago) with that odd thing virtually complete in my head. It took only a few hours to get down, and then copy out.

“The Evangelium has not abrogated legends; it has hallowed them, especially the "happy ending."”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre On Fairy-Stories

The Christian has still to work, with mind as well as body, to suffer, hope, and die; but he may now perceive that all his bents and faculties have a purpose, which can be redeemed. So great is the bounty with which he has been treated that he may now, perhaps, fairly dare to guess that in Fantasy he may actually assist in the effoliation and multiple enrichment of creation. All tales may come true; and yet, at the last, redeemed, they may be as like and unlike the forms that we give them as Man, finally redeemed, will be like and unlike the fallen that we know.
On Fairy-Stories (1939)

“The news today about "Atomic bombs" is so horrifying one is stunned.”

No. 102: From a letter to his son Christopher Tolkien (9 August, 1945)
The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien (1981)
Contexte: The news today about "Atomic bombs" is so horrifying one is stunned. The utter folly of these lunatic physicists to consent to do such work for war-purposes: calmly plotting the destruction of the world! Such explosives in men's hands, while their moral and intellectual status is declining, is about as useful as giving out firearms to all inmates of a gaol and then saying that you hope "this will ensure peace". But one good thing may arise out of it, I suppose, if the write-ups are not overheated: Japan ought to cave in. Well we're in God's hands. But He does not look kindly on Babel-builders.

“Why should a man be scorned if, finding himself in prison, he tries to get out and go home? Or if he cannot do so, he thinks and talks about other topics than jailers and prison-walls?”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre On Fairy-Stories

On Fairy-Stories (1939)
Contexte: I have claimed that Escape is one of the main functions of fairy-stories, and since I do not disapprove of them, it is plain that I do not accept the tone of scorn or pity with which 'Escape' is now so often used. Why should a man be scorned if, finding himself in prison, he tries to get out and go home? Or if he cannot do so, he thinks and talks about other topics than jailers and prison-walls? The world outside has not become less real because the prisoner cannot see it.

“All tales may come true; and yet, at the last, redeemed, they may be as like and unlike the forms that we give them as Man, finally redeemed, will be like and unlike the fallen that we know.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre On Fairy-Stories

On Fairy-Stories (1939)
Contexte: The Evangelium has not abrogated legends; it has hallowed them, especially the "happy ending." The Christian has still to work, with mind as well as body, to suffer, hope, and die; but he may now perceive that all his bents and faculties have a purpose, which can be redeemed. So great is the bounty with which he has been treated that he may now, perhaps, fairly dare to guess that in Fantasy he may actually assist in the effoliation and multiple enrichment of creation. All tales may come true; and yet, at the last, redeemed, they may be as like and unlike the forms that we give them as Man, finally redeemed, will be like and unlike the fallen that we know.

“My political opinions lean more and more to Anarchy”

Letter to his son Christopher Tolkien (29 November, 1943) <!-- No. 64? -->
The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien (1981)
Contexte: My political opinions lean more and more to Anarchy (philosophically understood, meaning abolition of control not whiskered men with bombs) … the most improper job of any man, even saints (who at any rate were at least unwilling to take it on), is bossing other men. Not one in a million is fit for it, and least of all those who seek the opportunity.

“But the real soul-mate is the one you are actually married to.”

Letter to Michael Tolkien (March 1941)
Contexte: Nearly all marriages, even happy ones, are mistakes: in the sense that almost certainly (in a more perfect world, or even with a little more care in this very imperfect one) both partners might be found more suitable mates. But the real soul-mate is the one you are actually married to.

“Nearly all marriages, even happy ones, are mistakes”

Letter to Michael Tolkien (March 1941)
Contexte: Nearly all marriages, even happy ones, are mistakes: in the sense that almost certainly (in a more perfect world, or even with a little more care in this very imperfect one) both partners might be found more suitable mates. But the real soul-mate is the one you are actually married to.

“I have in this War a burning private grudge — which would probably make me a better soldier at 49 than I was at 22: against that ruddy little ignoramus Adolf Hitler”

No. 45: To his son Michael Tolkien (09 June, 1941)
The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien (1981)
Contexte: I have in this War a burning private grudge — which would probably make me a better soldier at 49 than I was at 22: against that ruddy little ignoramus Adolf Hitler (for the odd thing about demonic inspiration and impetus is that it in no way enhances the purely intellectual stature: it chiefly affects the mere will). Ruining, perverting, misapplying, and making for ever accursed, that noble northern spirit, a supreme contribution to Europe, which I have ever loved, and tried to present in its true light.

“The moment disbelief arises, the spell is broken; the magic, or rather art, has failed.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre On Fairy-Stories

On Fairy-Stories (1939)
Contexte: The story-maker proves a successful 'sub-creator'. He makes a Secondary World which your mind can enter. Inside it, what he relates is 'true': it accords with the laws of that world. You therefore believe it, while you are, as it were, inside. The moment disbelief arises, the spell is broken; the magic, or rather art, has failed.

“I do not regard the (probable) absence of all Jewish blood as necessarily honourable; and I have many Jewish friends, and should regret giving any colour to the notion that I subscribed to the wholly pernicious and unscientific race-doctrine.”

No. 30: Letter to Stanley Unwin (25 July, 1938); Tolkien's German publishers had written to ask him whether he was of "Aryan" origin.
The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien (1981)
Contexte: I must say the enclosed letter from Rütten and Loening is a bit stiff. Do I suffer this impertinence because of the possession of a German name, or do their lunatic laws require a certificate of 'arisch' origin from all persons of all countries? … I do not regard the (probable) absence of all Jewish blood as necessarily honourable; and I have many Jewish friends, and should regret giving any colour to the notion that I subscribed to the wholly pernicious and unscientific race-doctrine.

“The significance of a myth is not easily to be pinned on paper by analytical reasoning.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre The Monsters and the Critics

"Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics" (1936), p. 14
Contexte: The significance of a myth is not easily to be pinned on paper by analytical reasoning. It is at its best when it is presented by a poet who feels rather than makes explicit what his theme portends; who presents it incarnate in the world of history and geography, as our poet has done. Its defender is thus at a disadvantage: unless he is careful, and speaks in parables, he will kill what he is studying by vivisection, and he will be left with a formal or mechanical allegory, and what is more, probably with one that will not work. For myth is alive at once and in all its parts, and dies before it can be dissected.

“I always in writing start with a name. Give me a name and it produces a story, not the other way about normally.”

Interview http://www.lordotrings.com/interview.asp with Dennis Gerrolt, first broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 programme "Now Read On" (January 1971)
Contexte: It gives me great pleasure, a good name. I always in writing start with a name. Give me a name and it produces a story, not the other way about normally.

“For myth is alive at once and in all its parts, and dies before it can be dissected.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre The Monsters and the Critics

"Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics" (1936), p. 14
Contexte: The significance of a myth is not easily to be pinned on paper by analytical reasoning. It is at its best when it is presented by a poet who feels rather than makes explicit what his theme portends; who presents it incarnate in the world of history and geography, as our poet has done. Its defender is thus at a disadvantage: unless he is careful, and speaks in parables, he will kill what he is studying by vivisection, and he will be left with a formal or mechanical allegory, and what is more, probably with one that will not work. For myth is alive at once and in all its parts, and dies before it can be dissected.

“When we can take green from grass, blue from heaven, and red from blood, we have already an enchanter's power.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre On Fairy-Stories

On Fairy-Stories (1939)
Contexte: The mind that thought of light, heavy, grey, yellow, still, swift also conceived of magic that would make heavy things light and able to fly, turn grey lead into yellow gold, and the still rock into a swift water. If it could do the one, it could do the other; it inevitably did both. When we can take green from grass, blue from heaven, and red from blood, we have already an enchanter's power.

“Art has been verified. God is the Lord, of angels, and of men — and of elves. Legend and History have met and fused.”

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien livre On Fairy-Stories

On Fairy-Stories (1939)
Contexte: The Gospels contain a fairy-story, or a story of a larger kind which embraces all the essence of fairy-stories. … But this story has entered History and the primary world; … It has pre-eminently the "inner consistency of reality." There is no tale ever told that men would rather find was true, and none which so many sceptical men have accepted as true on its own merits. For the Art of it has the supremely convincing tone of Primary Art, that is, of Creation.... this story is supreme; and it is true. Art has been verified. God is the Lord, of angels, and of men — and of elves. Legend and History have met and fused.

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