The work of J. R. R. Tolkien has been given new attention by the film versions ofThe Lord of the Rings. It has thus been brought to the notice of an even widerpublic than the novels had won for themselves, no doubt increasing the number ofTolkien readers, but with the drawback that many will remain content with havingseen the screen adaptations. This has entailed some shifts in the reception of Tolkien,which are sometimes very close to misrepresentation, mostly for lack of betterknowledge. Therefore, Tolkien’s literary achievement deserves to be examined inthe context of the twentieth-century history of ideas, albeit only to fend off hastyevaluations. It is worth remembering that Tolkien, apart from being a philologist,was also a Roman Catholic author, coming from the cultural background of theOxford Movement. Many of his ideas would earn him a place among the so-called“right-wing anarchists,” whose works have in common to be eloquently critical ofsome aspects of modernity.