In search of the Holy Presence of the Blessed Mary in Tolkien’s Middle-earth

Abstract

The presence of the Catholic framework in J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium has long been the subject of debate. Various Tolkien scholars and literary critics have already written different critical interpretations to consider whether to assign The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion to Christian Mythology or not; numerous attempts have been made to clarify this statement. Therefore, the reasons, why it should be included in this category are many and various. There are several examples in Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings that can be studied in relation to Christian themes and motives. Consequently, the aims of this paper are to study the possible similarities of Varda, Queen of the Stars, and Galadriel, the Lady of Light, to the Blessed Virgin Mary in Christian contexts. Moreover, to study the influence of Tolkien’s strong faith, which shaped his Catholic imagination, all through his legendarium, and subsequently leads us to observe Tolkien’s complete obedience to Catholicism, and especially, his profound devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.