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Friday, 20 July 2007 |
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Last Sunday was a tribute to the British Author J R R Tolkien. At CENAC a selection of wizards, warlocks, warriors, maidens, and evil-doers gathered for a day of fantasy.
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (3 Jan 1892 – 2 Sep 1973) was an English writer, philologist, and university professor. He taught anglo-saxon language at the university of Oxford, and later took the prestigious title of Merton Professor of English Language and Literature. He was close friends with C S Lewis, who was also a leading figure at Oxford. His best known works have been The Hobbit, and the Lord of the Rings. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II on 28 March 1972. Tolkien is widely identified as the “father of modern fantasy” due to the great success and influence of his works. His imagination has had a lasting effect on later works and on the genre as a whole.
As a tribute to the fantastic stories by Tolkien, groups of students gathered and dressed in costumes to entertain the crowd. Works of art were on display, fantasy card games were played, and lectures on middle earth and the tales of the brave were given. Gandalf taught the young acts of sorcery, and knights displayed their fighting skills in a medieval martial arts display. Unfortunately CENAC appeared to receive more rain than middle earth but the brave villagers endured it. |
