Tolkien Spring School launched - Oxford

The Eagle and Child, where Tolkien and the Inklings would meet and where Tolkien Spring School participants will meet on the first evening

The first ever Oxford Tolkien Spring School will be held in March 2013

Organised by the Faculty of English Language and Literature where J R R Tolkien taught for most of his career, the spring school is aimed at those who have read some of Tolkien’s fiction and wish to learn more.

'Many people will have read novels such as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, or seen the filmed adaptations, but have had little opportunity to take this further,' says Dr Stuart Lee of the English Faculty, who is organising the school.

'At the spring school, world-leading Tolkien scholars will talk about Tolkien’s life, his work as an academic, his mythology, the influences of medieval literature on his fiction, his languages, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and his other lesser known works.

'There will also be panel discussions on Tolkien and opportunities to see some of the University’s Tolkien collections.'

During the school Dr Lee will lecture on The Hobbit, with some thoughts on the film.

Even the social part of the school will be Tolkien-themed, as an evening is planned in the Eagle and Child, the pub where Tolkien and the Inklings used to meet.

The school will be held from 21 March to 23 March and is open to members of the public, aimed at those who have read some of Tolkien’s fiction but wish to develop a deeper critical appreciation of his mythology.

A full timetable can be found here.