J. R. R. Tolkien and the 1954 nomination of E. M. Forster for the Nobel Prize in Literature

Abstract

According to Dimitra Fimi, although some of Tolkien's romanticism remained "in the new idea of a 'proto-prehistoric' united Europe fighting against Sauron," such as we see in The Lord of the Rings, that kind of romanticism differs greatly from "the aggressive nationalism of The Book of Lost Tales" (130). Because of Fielding's perfect (and unusual) freedom to follow his conscience, he is liberal humanism's perfect representative. [...] despite clear intellectual differences, Tolkien's nomination of Forster may have rested on the sense of understanding he felt toward Forsterian morality as articulated in the novels. [...] the announcement for the creation of the Chair for Medieval and Renaissance English came in the same month as Nobel nominations were due.