Elements of Metafiction in J. R. R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings”

Abstract

In this article J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings is treated as an example of metafiction. Fictional texts appearing in Tolkien’s book and ascribed to its characters are shown as partly overlapping with The Lord of the Rings itself. It argues that Tolkien’s texts dealing with the Middle-Earth are supplied with the imaginary counterparts or twin-texts, which might be seen as a part of a general effort to imitate the existence of literary tradition. Refs 15.