Not all those who wander are lost. – J. R. R. Tolkien
This library resource is designed for any student interested in exploring the geography of Middle-earth as it relates to The Lord of the Rings (LotR) as a work of literature. Out of all of its primary literary elements – “…plot, characters, setting, style, and theme, it is the setting that is most important in [LotR]” (Kreeft, 2005, p. 84). All of the other four aspects of the story are literally grounded in the land of Middle-earth. In this way, “…the real ‘hero’ of [LotR] is Middle-earth itself” (Kreeft, 2005, p. 84).
I assume that students will have some familiarity with LotR (the novel, not just the films). These pages should be of special interest to those seeking a more academic approach to Tolkien’s work. Tolkien is properly characterized as a “Catholic writer,” alongside writers like Graham Greene and Flannery O’Connor (Birch, 2008, p. 13). Thus, an analysis of Tolkien’s theological vision is a prerequisite for a deeper understanding of his work.
A close reading of LotR must include a focus on the geography of Middle-earth, since Tolkien specifically intended each place in his “sub-creation” (Tolkien’s word for this created “world”) to be reflective of the interrelationship between the original goodness of the land and the evil that is visited upon it by many of its inhabitants (Coutras, 2016, p. 57).
(Signum University, 2018).
In order to fully understand the significance of each place Frodo and Sam visit, each mountain they climb, each river they ford, each plain they cross, the reader must appreciate the symbolic import of Middle-earth’s geographic features.
Each page will follow Frodo and Sam as they wander through Middle-earth, providing maps with geographic analysis for each major stop on their journey. Students should think of each map and place description as a jumping off point for their own analysis of LotR.
For those who explore this world of Middle-earth, I strongly recommend taking the time to sit and rest at each of the places described herein. Think about the stories these places can tell of their past, and consider how the history, geography, and cartography of Middle-earth informs the epic story of LotR.
Recommended Readings
Fonstad, K. W. (2001). The Atlas of Middle-Earth (Revised Edition).
Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
Louwerse, M. M., & Benesh, N. (2012). Representing spatial structure through maps and language: Lord of the Rings encodes the spatial structure of Middle Earth. Cognitive science, 36(8), 1556-1569.
Smith, T. W. (2006). Tolkien’s Catholic imagination: Mediation and tradition. Religion & literature, 38(2), 73-100.
(See Figure 1 above. From Tolkien, J. R. R. (2012). The realm of Middle-earth [Map]. In The Lord of the Rings: 50th Anniversary One-Volume Edition. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin.)
The Geography of Middle-earth 