ELEMENTS OF MYTH IN J. R. R. TOLKIEN'S 'LORD OF THE RINGS' AND SELECTED PAINTINGS OF PAUL KLEE.

摘要

This study seeks to uncover similarities to myth within the organizational structures of examples of twentieth century literature and painting. G. S. Kirk's Myth: Its Meaning and Function in Ancient and Other Cultures was studied in order to outline a comprehensive concept of myth. Mythic function and origin provide touchstones which serve as sources for elements that serve as criteria for analyzing art works. These elements consist of mythic time (continuity with the past), fantasy and the dreamlike, the question of the childlike, and dynamic symbolism. J. R. R. Tolkien's essay "On Fairy-stories" and Paul Klee's diaries and notebooks were examined in regard to each man's ideas. The mythic elements were applied to The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings by Tolkien and Klee's Around the Fish, The Fruit, and God of the Northern Woods. The study emphasizes the extent of the relationship between the criteria applied and the form/content fusion within examples of each art form. Through application of the elements derived from mythic function and origin the works under analysis were found to be indicative of myth.