Let’s face it, ceremonial magicians, Wiccans and occultists of all sorts tend to dig fantasy with venerable authors J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis looming large amongst the purveyors thereof. So this New York Times article about Oxford and the friendship between Lewis and Tolkien that took root there, is likely of at least passing interest to some of ye. The article discusses a number of local landmarks that are thought to have inspired locales in Lewis’ books – cool – eh?
Here’s an excerpt from the article:
‘It was at a 1926 English department faculty meeting that he met another Oxford professor, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien. The friendship propelled both toward realizing their literary worlds: Middle-earth and Narnia.
First impressions were not hot. “No harm in him,” Lewis wrote of Tolkien after their first meeting. “Only needs a smack or so.” The two soon bonded over a love of storytelling, myths and language. By 1929, Tolkien was sharing unpublished manuscripts with his new friend, and Lewis shared his poetry. “I was up till 2:30 on Monday,” Lewis wrote in a letter to a friend that December, recounting that he and Tolkien “sat discoursing of the gods and giants and Asgard for three hours,” referring to the Nordic mythological realm.’
Read the whole schmear:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/28/travel/cs-lewis-oxford-narnia.html.
