Matthew: I agree, and as I too found the comments on the other nominees more troubling. Also, the very fact that the Guardian led with Tolkien instead of the other authors is a telling sign of his enormous continued influence.

JR: Let me clarify. By realism, I mean novels that are concerned with the events of here and now, of our world. Not the structure or style, but the content, which at that time was predominately focused on individual psychological complexity, explicit social references, etc.

I would say that Tolkien’s novel uses some realist elements to ground the reader in the familiar (ie. the hobbits), and then opens up new (or old, depending on your viewpoint) vistas by showing us unfamiliar cultures (or familiar as distant echoes) and using archaic prose. And personally, I think Tolkien’s work shares more in common with older sources (though he did employ modern techniques when writing LOTR), but that’s just my opinion.

It’s kind of a strange paradox, but Tolkien’s work relies upon a “realist” style derived from 19th century novelistic technique genealogically linked to the novel of manners (e.g. Jane Austen).

Tolkien’s historically unique innovation is that he (1) establishes a reality principle and then (2)(and here is where Modern fantasy is unique) deviates from it.

Thank about it: first chapters of *The Hobbit* and *LoTR* are extended reflections on very domestic things: food orders, planning a party, etc..

Thanks for the though provoking post!