The Lord of the Rings is an extremely valuable pedagogical instrument for heightening students' awareness of concepts and values which are difficult to grasp in the modern environment, but which are essential for full response to literary works we must teach them. (p. 819)
The central values of the book are thoroughly traditional, and the direct, immediate style and tone reinforce the fact that, however applicable they may be to our own age, these are the things that have always been true. It is curious that in an age so bound to "realism" and "verisimilitude" we should find the great truths of human nature so fully embodied in a fantasy. No student who has read it is likely to deride products of creative imagination as insignificant because they are "unscientific." The relevance of this story to real life is inescapable, and it will win a far more respectful and attentive reading of "fantasy," whether it be A Midsummer Night's Dream or The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.
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