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Start Date
2-5-2022 9:00 AM
Description
Folk Horror, although being identified as a cinematographic genre quite recently, sinks its roots in an undeniable tradition of English writers who used English rural landscapes, ancient beliefs and culturally differentiated communities as humus for their prose and poetry. From the literary tradition of the 8th Century on, creatures and beliefs belonging to dark times have left their mark on our literature, traditions and folklore. Tolkien, as a philologist, was well aware of the hints and bits of these almost unknown legends and creatures left in our language, in the form of loose words, etymologies and fragmentary texts. In this presentation, Sanz will set the characteristics of Folk Horror and, taking into account the folk-horrific literature that Tolkien himself read in his lifetime, will identify the passages and characters from Tolkien’s works that fit into the Folk Horror genre. Tolkien wrote many terrifying passages, and terror is present throughout his prose and poetry, but this presentation will focus only on the Folk Horror phenomena, also setting parallelisms between the Professor’s works and some movies belonging to this cinematographic genre, as well as some of the literary pieces that preceded and nurtured it.
Included in
Children's and Young Adult Literature Commons, Comparative Literature Commons, Digital Humanities Commons, European Languages and Societies Commons, Literature in English, Anglophone outside British Isles and North America Commons, Literature in English, British Isles Commons, Literature in English, North America, Ethnic and Cultural Minority Commons, Medieval Studies Commons, Modern Languages Commons, Modern Literature Commons, Other English Language and Literature Commons
Tolkien as a Folk Horror Author
Folk Horror, although being identified as a cinematographic genre quite recently, sinks its roots in an undeniable tradition of English writers who used English rural landscapes, ancient beliefs and culturally differentiated communities as humus for their prose and poetry. From the literary tradition of the 8th Century on, creatures and beliefs belonging to dark times have left their mark on our literature, traditions and folklore. Tolkien, as a philologist, was well aware of the hints and bits of these almost unknown legends and creatures left in our language, in the form of loose words, etymologies and fragmentary texts. In this presentation, Sanz will set the characteristics of Folk Horror and, taking into account the folk-horrific literature that Tolkien himself read in his lifetime, will identify the passages and characters from Tolkien’s works that fit into the Folk Horror genre. Tolkien wrote many terrifying passages, and terror is present throughout his prose and poetry, but this presentation will focus only on the Folk Horror phenomena, also setting parallelisms between the Professor’s works and some movies belonging to this cinematographic genre, as well as some of the literary pieces that preceded and nurtured it.
Comments
Host: Diane Fitzsimmons
Tech Mod: Jessica Dickinson Goodman
Monica Sanz has a Master’s Degree in English Philology and is specialized in Literature of the British Islands. Her main field of study is Tolkien, and she has published several essays on topics such as the influence of Nordic and Scandinavian mythology in Tolkien’s works or the Anglo-Saxon influence in Tolkien’s Rohirrim. She has also cooperated with Spanish universities, such as Universidad de Zaragoza (Saragossa), Universitat de les IllesBalears (Majorca) or Universidad PompeuFabra (Barcelona), offering lectures about Tolkien in their academic courses and events. Mrs. Sanz has been an active member of the Sociedad Tolkien Española (Tolkien Society of Spain) for more than 20 years, where she is currently a Board Member. She has organized national and local Tolkien events, exhibitions, readings, shows, round tables, screenings, workshops, and other Tolkien-centred activities. She has also collaborated in other Tolkien Societies’ activities, such as the 2020 Tolkien Society Seminar (UK).