View Item 
        •   Utrecht University Student Theses Repository Home
        • UU Theses Repository
        • Theses
        • View Item
        •   Utrecht University Student Theses Repository Home
        • UU Theses Repository
        • Theses
        • View Item
        JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

        Browse

        All of UU Student Theses RepositoryBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects

        “The Potency of Words and the Wonder of Things” Archaic Pronouns in The Lord of the Rings

        Thumbnail
        View/Open
        BA thesis Florence Cobben 6120245 2021 (1).pdf (277.4Kb)
        Publication date
        2021
        Author
        Cobben, F.S.M.
        Metadata
        Show full item record
        Summary
        This study examines how archaic second person pronouns are used in JRR Tolkien’s fantasy epic The Lord of the Rings. In particular, this paper analyses how Tolkien uses archaic pronouns to support the three literary requirements for fantastical realism, as outlined in his lecture “On Fairy Stories” (1939), by using the unmarked/marked archaic second person pronoun distinction described by Wales (1983). This paper demonstrates that archaic pronouns are used (1) intricately in character interactions to create emotional complexity in the story and immerse the reader; (2) in the invocation of oaths and traditions which creates the depth associated with good worldbuilding as well as in teaching readers the importance of language for the recall of the past; (3) to symbolically link the events of Rings with the defeat over evil by Jesus, which Tolkien considers the most “true” of all stories. Ultimately these three tenets give the story emotional, historical and spiritual depth, which creates a more realistic and immersive world.
        URI
        https://studenttheses.uu.nl/handle/20.500.12932/39753
        Collections
        • Theses
        Utrecht university logo