The Magic of Humour: Comic Effects in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings

Abstract

This study shows how humour is not only an important tool in the sub-creation of Middle-earth, but also demonstrates humour's many similarities to the fantasy Tolkien theorised. Humour, its sources and its manifestations, aids in creating a believable ideological framework in building a convincing secondary world. Riddles, jokes, and laughter create communal atmosphere and feeling of belonging, even when a physical environment is alien to us. Comrades, especially in anxiety-inducing situations, together subcreate a reality of their choosing. The humour in Tolkien's narrative art, like 'fantasy', offers recovery, consolation, and escape. My aim in this thesis is to give humour, a rarely discussed aspect of Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, the attention it deserves. I explain how his subtly humorous effects are achieved, and to show what they contribute to the overall design of the sequence of four novels which narrate the story of the Hobbits' contribution to the history of Middle-earth. In particular, my interest in this thesis is in determining where the comic effects of these books, whether 'latent' or actively funny, fit in the grand design of Tolkien's two most popular works of fantasy. By using Tolkien's own theory alongside narrative, humour, riddles, jokes, and laughter I explore the reciprocal relationship between fantasy and humour. Historical information will be used to a sketch the 'Englishness' of the Hobbits, an important transplantation of personality from our world to Middle-earth, which has since been identified with and claimed by cultures around the world. Additional insight will be gained through the union of Tolkien criticism with theories of literature, humour, riddles, jokes, and laughter. The first chapter of my thesis, 'Humour', analyses the sources of humour in Middleearth and its situational usages. The second chapter, 'Riddles', shows how the riddles of Middle-earth, embodiments of humour, emulate the ways we perceive and interpret our physical and spiritual realities. The third chapter, 'Jokes and Laughter', looks at the magical power of words in Tolkien's work, the joke's relation to this concept, and laughter's role in divinity, truth, and the moral landscape of Middle-earth.