“I have claimed that Escape is one of the main functions of fairy-stories, and since I do not disapprove of them, it is plain that I do not accept the tone of scorn or pity with which 'Escape' is now so often used. Why should a man be scorned if, finding himself in prison, he tries to get out and go home? Or if he cannot do so, he thinks and talks about other topics than jailers and prison-walls?”

English writer and academic philologist

J. R. R. Tolkien was an English writer and academic philologist. He is best known for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, two works that helped define modern high fantasy. Tolkien wrote both books in the middle of the 20th century, with The Hobbit appearing in 1937 and The Lord of the Rings published in 1954 and 1955. His work is closely associated with invented worlds, languages, and epic storytelling, and his influence on fantasy literature remains enduring.