Many of the evil peoples in his stories are tree-destroyers. I never forgot that.'”Īs a lover of trees and a man who abhorred the needless destruction of them, Tolkien the writer often defined his characters as good or evil in part by their feelings about trees. They didn’t do anything with it the log just lay there. One incident in particular remained in his memory: ‘There was a willow hanging over the mill-pool and I learned to climb it.One day they cut it down. It saddened him to discover that not everyone shared his feelings towards them. He would climb them, lean against them, even talk to them. “.And though he liked drawing trees, he liked most of all to be with trees. Humphrey Carpenter in his biography (1977, p.24) says of Tolkien, From the time he was a boy and played among the trees in the countryside at Sarehole in Warwickshire at the turn of the century until his death at Bournmouth in 1973, Tolkien was, as Galadriel says of Sam the hobbit, a “lover of trees.” (1966 FOTR, p.486). Tolkien and trees in one breath is to speak of a life-long love affair. He gives us a chance to look at things from a treeish point of view, which is to say, a fresh point of view, and from there he can give an added dimension to his human characters, who define themselves in part through their attitudes towards trees. He creates new trees for us such as we have never seen growing on our earth. Tolkien describes the trees with which we are familiar–oak, birch, willow–so that we see them with a fresh eye.
He ascribes to his individual trees and forests a fantastic variety of meanings and possibilities by drawing from and adding to the rich symbolism of trees that has developed throughout the history of literature. Tolkien gives us all kinds of forests and groves in which to find adventure–and he does more. Trees and forests, with all their branches and paths, hollows and hiding places are perfect for suspense, surprise, enchantment and danger. Snow White knew it, and so did Hansel and Gretel. She can be reached at TreesĪnyone who has walked in a forest knows there is no better place for adventure. She studied literature and nursing at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington, where she lives today with her husband and their family. Claudia was born in 1954 in Longview, Washington, USA. Name the chapter, and Claudia can tell you what happens in it. Among her favorite works of literature is Lord of the Rings, which she has read over twenty times, more than any other book. Riiff Finseth is a freelance writer and author. Claudia Riiff Finseth contacted us a while ago offering her articles on Tolkien, here is her third and last article ‘Tolkien’s Trees’.
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