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| Author | Michael D. C. Drout, editor |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | J. R. R. Tolkien |
| Genre | Literature, Essays |
| Publisher | Routledge |
| Publication date | 2006 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Hardcover |
| Pages | 720 |
| ISBN | 978-0415969420 |
| OCLC | 71004244 |
| Dewey Decimal | 828/.91209 22 |
| LC Class | PR6039.O32 Z664 2007 |
The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia, subtitled Scholarship and Critical Assessment, edited by Michael D. C. Drout, was published by Routledge in 2006 (ISBN 978-0415969420). A team of 127 Tolkien scholars on 720 pages covers topics of Tolkien's fiction, his academic works, his intellectual and spiritual influences, and his biography. Co-editors were Douglas A. Anderson and Verlyn Flieger (both Drout's co-editors also of Tolkien Studies), Marjorie Burns and Tom Shippey.
Contents
Michael D. C. Drout's aim for this project as stated in the volume's introduction, is to make it appealing to a wide group of readers. The volume has over 125 contributors from a wide variety of countries. Entries in the volume discuss their concepts connections with other text, as well as literary criticism and theory.
Reviews
Kelley Wickham-Crowley in his lengthy review of this work notes that the quality of individual entries is very uneven, and that while some entries are written by exerts and are highly interesting and informative, others are much less so; in his own words, "the quality of entries can run the gamut from masterful to pedestrian". He notes that "For characters in particular, entries that rehearse attributes and deeds suffer in comparison to more sophisticated analysis where we learn something or are graced with a perceptive insight or new direction of enquiry". Further, Wickham-Crowley suggests that a number of entries should have been merged. For example, some entries, like on "Hobbits" and "Shire", repeat most of their corresponding content with little changes and should have likely ended up combined. Similarly, topics like "Environmentalism and Eco-Criticism" and "Environmentalist Readings of Tolkien" or "Comedy" and "Humor" may also not warrant separate sections. Inclusion of some topics is rather surprising and arbitrary, for example the entries on "Thomas Aquinas" or "Law" (the latter focusing on theology instead of civil, or in-universe examples). In the end, Wickham-Crowley concludes, the level of contributors, and their contributions, varied significantly.
Wickham-Crowley attributes the failings of this work to insufficient copyediting by the press, noting that it was "badly served" by Routledge acquisition of Taylor and Francis, which during the ensuing restructuring of its acquisitions discontinued the Routledge encyclopedia division while this work was in production. This effectively led to this publication being unfinished, a view endorsed by its chief editor, Michael D. C. Drout. The final volume is missing not only about a hundred of planned illustrations, but a number of entries were not properly proofed, nor were a number of errors corrected. Wickham-Crowley notes that the while some entries are excellent, the work sports "multitude of errors in word omission, grammar, spelling, spacing, word division, and bibliographic format embarrassing mistakes." In the end, Wickham-Crowley concludes that the project was ambitious, but execution was marred by a number of flaws.
Tracy Carr in her short review of the work notes that it is intended more for the scholars than Tolkien fans, as it aims to engage more with the real world theories than describe the world Tolkien created. She concludes the volume is "a suitable starting place" for "budding scholars" of Tolkien.
See also
References
- ^ Wickham-Crowley, Kelley M. (2007). "J.R R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment (review)". Tolkien Studies. 4 (1): 266–278. doi:10.1353/tks.2007.0033. ISSN 1547-3163.
- ^ Carr, Tracy (2011-08-04). "Sources: J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment". Reference & User Services Quarterly. 47 (3): 291–292. doi:10.5860/rusq.47n3.291. ISSN 1094-9054.
External links
- Drout on the editing process
- A collection of reviews of the Encyclopedia, with comments by a number of authors and editors on the difficulties with the press/publishing process