Narnia, Lord of the Rings & our moment of post-modern destruction

 

I was born in 1995, which is long after the lifetimes of both C.S. Lewis and J.R.R Tolkien. Yes, despite this large time gap, their written works have been some of the most enjoyed and formative pieces of fiction of my life, and I look forward to sharing them with my kids. Even now, almost 30 years after my birth, their works continue to be best-sellers, which numerous spin-off works being developed.

Why is this the case? How can books, written in mid-late 20^th Century English, with a prose quite different from out age still be so popular? I contend that it is the same reason why they were so popular when they arrived on the scene. Their works (the Chronicles of Narnia & the Lord of the Rings respectively) are built on and extol the virtues that are grounded in reality. The timeless struggle of good vs. evil, overcoming of great obstacles with the power of friendship and duty to those you love that surpasses all else. All of this built upon the Judeo-Christian framework of Western Civilization.

Because of this their works continue to be popular because they are in essence timeless. While the writing is different than our own, and the events that shaped their experiences that influenced their work are now several generations in the past. The truth of their work still rings true to the human soul. Because both men, as followers of Christ understood and saw the world as the product of a loving intelligent designer who is perfect, the source of all virtues, their words penned still speak to us. This is solidified by the reality that during the times of their writing, both Lewis and Tolkien were outliers in the world of writings, as everything else popular at that time was reeling into the post-modernist nihilism of the post-WW1 era. And yes, we can barely name other contemporary authors.

And then we come to the modern adaptations of some of their works. While I won’t touch on the more recent Narnia movies (which are for the most part faithful to this vision), the Amazon TV show Rings of Power, and potentially the upcoming Narnia show from Netflix have me concerned. While much attention to the details is paid for specific fan service (many easter eggs of the lore are scattered throughout the visuals of the show), something is still missing. In the world of animation there is a principle called “the uncanny valley”, where something looks super realistic, and yet there is an unsettling because something is just off. To the human eye, there is a distinct lack of life in what we are perceiving despite it being almost photo realistic. This is the problem that the Rings of Power has.

The show seeks to encapsulate everything that makes Lord of the Rings so successful, but missed the most important part of it. While the focus is on getting all of the visuals of armor, weapons, orcs and other fantastic creatures photo correct, there is still something missing. The heart of soul of the world that Tolkien created is but a void. Despite all the flashy fantastical features the show presents, it is really just dead and hollow. The dialogue is wooden and flat. Why? Because the creators of the show don’t just not believe in how Tolkien saw the world, but probably despise it.

I get it. We are numerous decades since Tolkien died, and times are different. The values and virtues of the old have been replace. And that detrimentally impacts the imitation of works from that era. No matter how hard they try with all the animation and big budgets that Amazon can provide, they will never be able to capture the world that Tolkien built because they wish to cast their own vision and world, instead of the one that made the stories so beloved in the first place. This is why the most recent iterations of the Star Wars universe have been nothing but sad. Arrogant, cringe-worthy unmitigated garbage. Full stop.

To put it frankly it is a bastardization. I do not say that lightly not without thought. It is but the sad feeble attempt of a culture devoid of meaning and purpose that is attempting to monetize the beauty and truth constructed in a story that has captivated many. And until that worldview is recaptured and nurtured any attempt to imagine these stories differently will like always flop. People know when they are seeing the shadow of the thing instead of the tings itself.

Now to the hopeful part. Things don’t have to stay this way. We can again recapture the beauty of seeing the world that developed these amazing stories. The truth of the matter is that the virtues extolled and written about in their works are not enough on their own. There is always something greater than the virtues themselves, and that is the one from whom they flow. We again have to capture the beauty and mystery of Christ and His Gospel, and how He works and transforms our lives. Even in the face of adversity and evil, good stands firm to love those, even those who hate you.

We live in a world that in many ways is tearing itself apart. Our self-centered narcissism has turned into self-consumption like a star collapsing in on itself. Instead we can present a different narrative. One where love is the ultimate victor over power and evil. Where being the last is really being first, and reminding people that all that glitters is not gold.