Why Tolkien Hated Cars

In this video we explore the beliefs of J. R. R. Tolkien on the subject of cars and industrialization, as well as their impact on the Lord of the Rings and Middle Earth as a whole!
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I do not own the footage, art or music within this video.
Any feedback is always welcome, I hope you enjoy!!
Below are the songs used in the order they are played:
Swans In Flight by Asher Fulero
Cafe Regrette by Asher Fulero
Ceremonial Library by Asher Fulero
Allégro by Emmit Fenn
Recollections by Asher Fulero
English Country Garden by Aaron Kenny

[@InkandFantasy]

While watching this it may seem that his wish to portray industrialization and its destructive effects on nature is allegorical, and as you probably know Tolkien did not like allegories! To address this, I would like to add that industrialization in the Lord of the Rings is not necessarily allegorical, but simply an aspect of evil. Evil according to what Tolkien believed to be evil, which partly is something that did not respect nature. Naturally his beliefs on this aspect of evil were influenced by his real world experiences, as is the case with everyone, but this does not make it an actual, conscious allegory for real world issues, regardless of inspiration here and there. Thanks for watching!!!

[@Red_Shades]

In a similar way to how the black riders stabbing Frodo isnt allegory for real world stabbings, it's just an example of something evil.

[@christiandauz3742]

Bronze Age civilizations wished they had cars and the Industrial Revolution No more Slavery back then and Scientific progress greatpy helps humanity

[@Red_Shades]

@@christiandauz3742 It depends upon the sort of scientific progress and what it is used for. Technology's essential function is not that it improves the wellbeing of mankind. Its essential function is that it further's man's power over nature. This can be used for the relief of man's estate, but it can also be used to diminish and destroy it as well. Scientific progress has just as much of a capacity to hurt as it does to harm.

[@christiandauz3742]

@@Red_Shades An Industria Revolution in 476 prevents the worst tradegies of the Medieval period, including slavery

[@Red_Shades]

@@christiandauz3742 Im not understanding the issue you're having here.

[@willcooper8028]

He’s not really wrong. Cars are undeniably helpful to the good of mankind in certain situations, but centering our entire civilization around the use of vehicles has had more negative impacts than could be counted in a lifetime.

[@wormwoodcocktail]

This guy gets it

[@JohnWinnick-cx4bj]

Rockefellar freemason rich gangsters that run the world did not want people to drive around in clean water fuel based cars they only wanted to provide gas to make a bunch of money to have drivers pollute the world with gas fuel cars. They also care about ruining the world with their chemtrail pilots also.

[@paulinagabrys8874]

Only in US

[@frbrown3034]

I honestlly fell bad for you guys in america, there is more parking lot in the Us than people 💀@@paulinagabrys8874

[@human1880]

Not only in the US. Everywhere.

[@nilan3294]

A large part of why so many of us like fantasy is because it gives us an entirely new world, largely filled with the unkown for us as readers. This has always captivated me, and I somewhat agree with Tolkien that the world has become a singular thing, no longer so interesting as it once was.

[@Moldyskullet]

That is largely a result of what the people in control want us to believe. It's easier to manage cattle that never dream of jumping the fence.

[@CordeliaWagner1999]

Diversity and cultural enrichment turns everything into a boring grey muss.

[@samirSch]

Funny, the Sumerian "Epic of Gilgamesh" was written like over 3-4 thousands years ago and there's a part where they remember and complain about agriculture, which was sort of new to them, with nostalgia for the time when they were just hunters. As they say, "shut up, soomer". Now seriously though, a world without cars would drown in horse shit, like NYC was doing before cars appeared.

[@rat_king-]

It is interesting.. and i will make one particular quote to add to this, captain jack sparrow "the world's still the same, there's just, , less in it." kzbin.info/www/bejne/lausiHqAnNx_pqM.

[@natneopit5366]

My opinion is that nature has its own reality but, ironically, some fantasies (as this of Tolkien) have the power of making us dream, making us respect and love nature. All, or almost all, past and ethnic folklore and imagination (literature, myths, songs, etc) have been shaped by the natural world, its mysteries and exuberance. Without the setting of nature, even the literature of Shakespeare wouldn't exist (or at least a great deal of it).

[@Theo-oh3jk]

I actually got chills when you were discussing how JRRT thought that industrialization and cars was making the world smaller, more levelled, and more assimilated; that every locale and region was losing its distinctiveness. I'm a writer, worldbuilder, and conlanger (yes, being exposed to JRRT at 13 was a huge influence) and I only create what one can call "microworlds" for similar reasons. People create big planets or even entire galaxies, up to entire multiverses (at least in theory), but these are often incredibly shallow and don't have much depth or distinctiveness. My cardinal golden rule with regards to worldbuilding is "less is more". My current project is only about the size of Vancouver Island, and the amount of depth I've been slowly able to add is incredibly thrilling. I haven't published anything, but I read widely, and I struggle to find comparable works in modern fantasy, sci-fi, or other fiction. There is much to laud in small spaces, constraint, and the local.

[@tirvine9102]

That sounds awesome. I'm from BC, Vancouver Island still seems pretty big to me. What's the functional difference between that and Middle Earth besides travel time? Have you considered taking that idea and fleshing out one small town? Or one home or estate with a rich history? I'm sorry if this is presumptive, I don't mean to offend. I think it's a cool concept.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

A good trick in doing a dnd campaign is similar, Let go of the world, start with 2 things, a creation myth, and the region where your story takes place.

[@GThe-su9kl]

People tend to say that The Wheel of Time is pretty deep culturally. Would it be something similar?

[@stegosandrosos1291]

Interesting your way of thinking, even tho i think even when there is vast world made, after that there is the need to become more specific( example, the worldbuilding is about a galaxy but the story is about a solar system so you have more detail about that solar system)

[@eingrobernerzustand3741]

Have you already considered at least showing it off a bit, even if you don't think it's polished enough yet? Maybe in r/worldbuilding

[@michigan_propaganda]

6:50 Remember our city’s weren’t made for the car,they were bulldozed for it

[@DiamondKingStudios]

And the freeway was the bane of many a neighborhood. Unless your neighbors included many who could claim descent from some 17th-century English voyager or a passenger under his care, your house may have been on the chopping block.

[@ZeraSeraphim]

Similarly how they weren't meant for the internet. More than a few libraries probably went out of business because of it, yet....here we are.

[@A.S._Trunks]

@@ZeraSeraphim But they didn't? Libraries just adapted internet access. In fact, it's one of the very few reliable sources of free WiFi that I used when my internet failed me..

[@Scarshadow666]

@@ZeraSeraphim I'd argue it's less the Internet and more so a mixture of car-dependent infrastructure and funding not always being available for libraries (as well as bad actors that would want to censor things from libraries because they're good community centers to be exposed to multiple different points of views of various people - and unfortunately there's some people that still would rather ban books than let knowledge be easily accessible).

[@ZeraSeraphim]

@@Scarshadow666 Well argued, and I concede the point.

[@FlawedFabrications]

I'm from a small village southeast of Manchester in the heart of the Peak District National Park, so green fields and little villages were basically all I ever knew as a child. I will never, ever forget the first time I ever went to Manchester with my mother. It was a bright, sunny day in summer and we had to drive over a huge hill to get there and when we got to the top, we could see Manchester just sprawling out before us... And in the sky above the city there was just this huge, dark cloud of smog that was reaching down and enveloping a lot of the buildings. It looked so disgusting and unnatural, like something had stolen the sky. Absolutely cannot blame Tolkien for feeling that way.

[@hekatoncheiros208]

I’m not far from you. Periodically, when then Snake pass is closed for maintenance, I get my bike out and sneak past the barriers and cycle in magnificent silence to the top. It’s glorious.

[@DavidNewmanDr]

I live in Oxford, where our councils are trying to undo today the effects of car-centric development that Tolkein complained about. Our widened streets are now jammed with cars at time, when one bus on the same Cowley Road carries 50 passengers, but the cars only carry one person. I will share this video with the local Tolkein society when they meet in the Lamb and Flag. Although Tolkein grew up in what was then countryside near Birmingham. That was what shocked him. A small point: Berkshire is pronounced Bark - sher. In Tolkein's time everything to the west of the Thames was in Berkshire, with large towns like Reading. Although cars were made in Oxford at the Morris motor works.

[@Mcfunface]

Cowley road is always going to be busy no matter how you cut it. There's just so many tourists in Oxford especially in the spring!

[@abbasalchemist]

If I may be so bold as to suggest other equally anti-industrial late 19th and early 20th century British literrateurs who bemoaned the onslaught of Modernity: Arthur Machen, MP Dare, Lord Dunsay, Robert Aickman etc. Do check out Tartarus Press!

[@gexity223]

All my homies hate cars

[@gustavusadolphus4344]

Truth

[@cesarmillan5657]

I third this

[@roachdoggjr1940]

My enwards hate cars too

[@B31NG]

make horses great again 🐎

[@silverletter4551]

@@B31NG great bring back rivers of waste and corpses

[@joshualedbetter879]

I was born in the early 2000's, long after industrialization took control of the world. But even though I spent my entire life around cars, constantly growing towns, and a large focus on consumerism, I very much agree with Tolkien's perspective. I know that I probably wouldn't last long in the country, but I find comfort in the idea of living in a place like The Shire.

[@adamtschmidt4303]

You would adjust to it and thrive. I mean humanity did it for eons and eons in the past. We've just made things so easily complicated we feel pulled a thousand directions at once, while going no where.

[@Tiogar60]

I think you think too lowly of yourself. The country is different, lacks consumerism, easy amenities etc. But you would easily adapt

[@RobMangone]

Me too brother… me too

[@fagadafa]

@@adamtschmidt4303 we progressed

[@jumpstart55million]

Until the Orcs and Nazgaul come...😂😂😂😂

[@crusader2112]

The more I learn about Tolkien, the more I like him. 👍 edit: Wow. Thanks for the likes everyone. Holy crap.

[@mcorte2224]

Same

[@colbyboucher6391]

Have you seen the letter he wrote to the Nazis after they asked whether he supported them? They were trying to decide whether to ban his books or not and he came back with the sickest burn he could.

[@crusader2112]

@@colbyboucher6391 Yes I’ve seen it. 👍

[@zachlewis9751]

@@colbyboucher6391I had not and I would absolutely love to

[@freesaxon6835]

Yes true

[@bannanaboy8]

As an Urban Planner its so comforting to know Tolkien's beliefs on this subject. Tolkien Urbanism could really build very good communities

[@zuffin1864]

The thing about urbanism is we cannot think it is only for cities. If it is meant to be a way of life, we should reflect that by not attaching it to endless wealth and costly projects. If English peasants could build a pleasant stroll for their town, with the space reserved for farming, we can do it too.

[@bannanaboy8]

​@@zuffin1864well said! It is very often the small places (old villages, towns and country lanes) which have the most inspiring urbanism. The everyday joy of our cities lies not in the Large and Great, but in the little places. Your favourite cozy nook, your neighbours garden, the park you have your lunch in, your favourite route to walk to your friend's house. Planners forgot the small in favour of the Large. Large shopping malls with large parking lots, and Tall Towers with large empty plazas.

[@The1Green4Man]

Urbanism is antithetical to the shire.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

No city should exceed a number larger than a million. If you are close to approaching that number, a new city should be made in a moderate distance from previous city.

[@TheCrossingBall]

GREENSPACES

[@SendBreadPics]

This was decades before suburban hellscapes, stroads and the Katy Freeway. He was truly ahead of his time.

[@canuckprogressive.3435]

I totally relate to Tolkien's love of nature and his concern about its destruction.

[@dreamguardian8320]

Me too.

[@biscuitsalive]

He saw it coming before many others. Such a great man.

[@notreallymyname3736]

"Professor Tolkien, why did you make all your characters walk so far in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings? Couldn't they at least ride eagles and horses more?" Tolkien thinking about cars while taking a massive pipe rip: "You wouldn't understand."

[@keith_cancel]

lol

[@somebodyanonymousx]

I am pretty damn sure that in Hobbit they rode ponnies, before goblins ate them

[@notreallymyname3736]

@somebodyanonymousx pretty sure you're right. Poor guys couldn't seem to catch any long-term breaks from walking.

[@janbernad4729]

"One does not simply drive into Mordor."

[@LordVader1094]

Horses don't do well in mountain travel, which is a lot of what the fellowship were doing. They did use ponies though, until they got to Moria (or they got eaten by Goblins in the Hobbit).

[@dustinlattimore7336]

I have felt this ever since I was a small child. I was disappointed that these far countries that I read about in stories, almost fairy tale like in their alien-ness to me, now all had McDonald’s and blue jeans and cars. Of course I’m not a fool. I realize the benefits to humanity of globalization, the advance in medicine and standards of living, the near eradication of famine, etc. But something was lost. Some magic left the world.

[@leifcian4288]

Benefits that have been highly curtailed compared to what they should have been... Unhealthy populations, insecure polluting food systems ect.

[@dustinlattimore7336]

@@leifcian4288 like Tolkien’s views on the car, and “magic” (techne/technology) in general, the fruits of modern world COULD be put to amazing use, but due to man’s flawed nature, it is abused/overdone/misapplied. A flower stricken by frost, a promise of glory that fades untimely

[@leifcian4288]

@@dustinlattimore7336 Cars are great for travelling actual distances, why do we have to plaster ruddy ugly streaks of tarmac down every city and village street though? Makes no sense should be left outside of built up areas or else only allowed to go like 10,15mph increments. Should have to give priority to everything else.

[@Theo-oh3jk]

I'd encourage you to read "Civilized to Death" by Christpher Ryan.

[@silverletter4551]

@@leifcian4288 globalists love the dream of controlling humans, to determine how far they can go and where they can go.

[@MichaelK.-xl2qk]

"Car Wars," is what my family called the struggle to stay on the road in rural Maine. Of course, by our lifetimes cars were almost a complete necessity for economic survival, hence a non-negotiable evil. As I leaned to fix them, what I came to despise even more was the planned obsolescence built into each new machine. Made from the start to be a depreciating investment that would leave you with the need for a new one, and all which that implies. Much preferable, to my mind, was the sturdy simplicity of the tractor. A machine made to deliver economical functionally over time, not the faddish and impractical engineering of cars. My ideal was to someday make a stainless or galvanized jeep-like thing which would have all legacy GM or Ford parts, making it cheap and durable to own and keep on the road for life.

[@MrOiram46]

Middle eastern fighters: *Allow us to introduce, T O Y O T A .*

[@12pentaborane]

​@@MrOiram46 Ironically Tacoma truck frames of a certain generation were known to rust away quickly, to the point they needed a recall.

[@markhynes1940]

The planned obsolescence thing is not talked about nearly enough. It's not talked about hardly at all from what I can tell. It's a capitalist evil that's happening blatantly in front of us, right under our noses. But the vast majority of people are so uneducated about cars that they aren't even able to pick up on it. It's also being further compounded by the fact that manufacturers are intentionally making it more and more difficult for the average consumer to actually do their own work on their own car, increasingly encouraging spending more money to have it serviced by a "licensed" mechanic (a lot of the time the company's own mechanics) There was a time when cars were built to last, and Toyota and Volvo models from just twenty years ago make this very clear. These days even those reliable brands have been taking more and more steps that lean towards making cars to sell rather than to last.

[@emilinebelle7811]

I wish you luck. Because I think you’re right!

[@eingrobernerzustand3741]

It's not all that much better with modern tractors.

[@komet5420]

living your childhood in a world with no cars and your later years in a world full of them must have been very disconcerting

[@AbexBroadcastingChannels]

Don’t understand how you don’t have more subscribers. Love these deep dives into topics on your channel. Please keep them up!

[@cryohellinc]

He has educational content instead of meme infested click bait shit - algorithm doesn't like that.

[@AbexBroadcastingChannels]

@@cryohellinc that’ll do it

[@jacobshore5115]

One has to wonder though about the Thematic inconsistency dealing with Gondor and Arnor. I mean, obviously they have big cities in them, and Tolkien never bemoaned their lack of virtue. But I’m guessing Minas Tirith might’ve taken almost as many resources to build as Isengard took when Saruman turned bad.

[@InkandFantasy]

I think a lot of it does have to do with taking the resources that you need, and that’s it. Of not being greedy, and of using those resources for good. As a Catholic, I don’t doubt his understanding was that God had given man access to the resources he required to survive and thrive, the difference is whether or not you go overboard and become prideful enough you think you’re entitled to destroy God’s earth. For example Númenor grew to wealth unnumbered, and its resources were near infinite. With their wealth came spiritual decline. Lastly, there is probably a distinction between a large but medieval city and a city that is industrial and in Tolkien’s eyes full of noise and black smoke. At least that has been my understanding but it’s a lovely discussion. Thank you for the comment!!

[@jacobshore5115]

@@InkandFantasy you’re welcome, and thank you for clarifying things a bit more.

[@billebrooks]

There is also the example of Numenor, which was destroyed by Eru. For that matter, Arnor came to a bad end as well. Gondor was on the brink of suffering the same fate, until Aragorn saved the kingdom. So perhaps, for Tolkien, Gondor got redeemed in some way?

[@347Jimmy]

​@@billebrooks expanding on that: Gandalf bemoans the direction that Gondor has taken, being more interested in building edifices to dead kings than homes for the people or some such (I recall it being included in the films)

[@jacobshore5115]

@@347Jimmy huh. Guess they weren’t entirely innocent of that either, huh? Bit of a remnant of Númenorean hubris…

[@gustavusadolphus4344]

Can Tolkein get any more based?!

[@hugotheimpecileone]

i hope so

[@Descriptor413]

Based and orange-pilled.

[@The1Green4Man]

I keep asking myself the same damn thing

[@muddymudkipz4178]

in a very peculiar way, Tolkien is by all accounts a true wizard.

[@skeletorlikespotatoes7846]

But cars are awesome

[@mr.wilson9941]

How can he hate one of Pixar's best movies ? Like wtf

[@ancientdarkness3102]

Seriously tho

[@ablazedguy]

For it's sequel probably

[@TKFKU]

It's pretty easy to hate it. The kids watch it 100 times a week and yeah....Hate's not a strong enough word for it anymore.

[@Lazyboy5298]

Cars sucks and is one of Pixar's worst movies, Tolkien was based.

[@ancientdarkness3102]

@@Lazyboy5298 naah cars 1 is one of the Best pixar movies

[@Fossilsaurus1020]

Man, he would HATE that blooper of a car ending up being in the distance of the original film print of fellowship!

[@OaksArmorial]

He would hate just about everything in those movies.

[@NicStride]

In the more recently discovered BBC archived footage and audio of Tolkien from the documentary where he was interviewed in Oxford, he said he loved cars. Loved riding about in them. He also said that he thought there were too many, but that's not the fault of the car, but it's simply the evil of the multiplication table. It's kinda impressive how much people want to conjecture about Tolkien's beliefs and how much people want to project onto him. The fact he was asked about it in a probing way implies it was even the case when he was alive. People assumed they knew what he meant rather than just ask the guy. :P

[@Emma-Queenofhell]

Clip? I can't find it. I seem to find it. Also, you can't ask him anymore. He's dead.

[@hopefulpellinore5490]

I'd be curious to hear this as well. It's pretty well documented that Tolkien was not a supporter of industrialization in general.

[@Moses_VII]

I am so smart to always read comments before wasting my time watching videos.

[@NicStride]

@@hopefulpellinore5490 I don't think it actually is well documented, moreso "Well assumed." Here's an extract from a redditor called 'iniondubh' wrote afterlistening to the lost archives - At one point, Tolkien is asked for his opinion on 'Industry' and replies: I've no objection to that as such It's clear that the interviewer wasn't expecting that response and follows up with a question about factories, which gets a similar reply. Then he asks about motor cars and Tolkien says: Love them. Love riding them, like driving them. [...] There's too many of them, yes, yes, quite a bit. But the evil of all things must be judged as part of the multiplication table, because the multiplication table makes evil out of practically everything. Anything that's good in one and two is nearly always bad at 5,000. Don't you think so? - You can listen to the interview by typing "Tolkien the lost recordings" into google, and it should be the BBC link which appears at the top of the search. The part where he talks about industry starts around 45.10 :)

[@NicStride]

@@Emma-Queenofhell You can't ask him anymore, but if you took the time to read my comment you would've noticed that I mentioned that people were projecting their interpretation of the meanings behind his works onto him even during his lifetime, during which time they could've asked him. People instead asumed, and the trend has continued to this day. He was very clear on one thing though, and brought it up very often in interviews. ""I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations". Sauroman being an asshole and also industrialized wasn't an allegory for his dislike of industry, as far as Tolkien is concerned. (well, unless he was lying, but I don't see why he'd lie about that.)

[@EliW95]

i've become a bit of a luddite recently, nostalgic for probably about the mid 2000's internet and a time before smartphones and any real form of social media, but all i've ever known is a hyper industrialized economy and society

[@WadeWeigle]

This is very pertinent to me. I live in Virginia where it is lush and green with roads going through forested areas. Recently the state has begun road expansions and have been deforesting areas so that there is no longer a wall of trees between outgoing and incoming traffic. This making a pleasant drive in a wooded area into a flat miserable drive with the only thing to look at is more cars. I feel his plight keenly. Like loosing the beautiful green woods for a neighborhood with houses no more the two feet apart. It’s a shame to see this happen and I’m sick over it. Thank you for sharing this video.

[@frbrown3034]

As a person who lived in oxford I can relate to this, I have seen old oxford before cars in old pictures and it was wonderful, the roads where more calm and more beatiful, they had a certain english way to them. the trafic jams around oxford are horrible I remenber when I would have to get the bus from my house to town and it would take me 1h to get there, by car it was just 15m and by bicycle a nice 30m from my house to town through the river thames. i started to cycle to town, but my worse nightmares are when the fields that I had to go through would get flooded them I would have to take the bus it was horrible to get to mass, I would almost always arrive late, and I just couldn't leave my house any earlier than I was alredy leaving.

[@DaBIONICLEFan]

It's as I've got older that I've come to realise how much I dislike cars. The damage to the environment and how they dislocate local communities. Just going into town or being a pedestrian has become a noisy, stressful and dangerous experience thanks to these things. I do hope they get phased out in the future for a more sustainable alternative.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

He shares a similar view to hillaire belloc, the tyranny of modern transportation, this isn't just a dislike of cars, this is a dislike of all manner of mechanized mass transport, like trains, cars, airplanes, etc

[@guerreiro943]

Same here. I was lucky enough to live in the Netherlands for a few months and my daily commute was around 30 mins on a bike and it was just beautiful. Living in a place with good biking infrastructure and public transport really makes a difference in terms of quality of life.

[@MrChickennugget360]

cars are both good and evil. i think the real problem is cities are not a place that cars really should be except at a minimum. Cars are great in the countryside- particularly trucks where they have utility. This deal a lot in Tolkien to how much a "tool" is under human control and how much the "tool" is really in control. Like smart phones, cars are like rings of power.

[@costakeith9048]

@@johnisaacfelipe6357 Yes, I think this is closer to the mark, similar to the radical localism expressed by Ted Kaczynski. Cars may be the most present symbol of modernity in our world, but it started with the railroad and the steamship. Efficient logistics and the inexpensive movement of freight completely undermined the traditional, self-sufficient community that had been the norm since time immemorial.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

@@guerreiro943 Tolkien would have hated public transport.

[@Qigate]

At one time, the mountains of Britain were covered in trees. I can only imagine the Professor's horror as he watched the forests of Britain cut down to fuel the Great War of 1914-18. The scourge of Isengard on a global scale.

[@user-hw6hb4rk9t]

One can afford to dislike cars in small, European countries. Living here in the vast American desert Southwest, my pickup truck is crucial. Is public transportation REALLY going to countenance carrying me, my hunting weapons and hunting dogs, up bad 4x4 roads at random hours of the pre-dawn, and then picking me up at random times towards the end of the day, with ZERO cell phone coverage?! dint think so Never mind needing emergency extraction for random rattle snake bites...

[@PatrickKniesler]

Nearly a perfect video in this format as any I have seen. Great job!

[@InkandFantasy]

Thank you!!!

[@deepwaters2334]

Tolkien was ahead of his time in many ways.

[@Hans-nj6uv]

Amazing how at the end of industrialization we see society collapsing as the family has all but disappeared.

[@dustbowlhammer7119]

This adds a new dimension to Tolkien, having been fascinated by his works since I was little, it makes sense that he held such beliefs, and he is not wrong, the industrial revolution has brought us many convenience's and advancements, but at a high cost, to our health, both mental and physical, and our environment.

[@Hurc7495]

We live in a car centric dystopia but most are too overawed by the abstract notion of “freedom” to care. It’s a funny kind of freedom that costs £2000 per year before you’ve driven a single mile and obliges you to spend two hours in traffic every day to go to work.

[@naturesfinest2408]

Yeah, its a weird sense of freedom. I always ask them why do you feel free with a car? "Because now i can go anywhere" where do you go? "Work, shopping, groceries" how far are these things? "5 minute drive" now imangine if it was only a five mjnute walk why would you need a car? You would have more freedom, to go wherever without needing to buy a car for your daily needs. You can't "go anywhere" when you have a car. You must maintain it and buy which costs money and time. And, even if you could go anywhere, as you claim you can, you dont. You mainly stay within a certain radius. Now imagine to get further away you took a plane? How much faster is it? Cheaper? What about a train to connect cities because, face it, your not taking a train to a corn field. But imagine there was one from the field to a city. Im rambling, they believe and feel free because they never realized that they were restrained to begin with. This is what I try to make them see. Disclaimer: Im not saying vehicles are useless or irrelevant, just that there purpose has gotten loss in necessity.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

@@naturesfinest2408 No, this misses the point entirely, you can't just replace cars with public transportation like busses and trains, The issue IS the ease of transport, not just the manner of which this is achieved.

[@naturesfinest2408]

@@johnisaacfelipe6357 im not trying to agree with tolkien. I dont. I am making my own point. I agree with you, tolkien might be against the ease of transportation, he wants the slow and meanigful. Im saying i want a middle ground. With public transportation, walkability, bikeability, we can open up land, use it for more greenery. For public transport, You can look out the window and see the world pass by without risking killing whomever because you are driving. You can talk to your neighbor (im not saying people do, just can). In public transit you can take it slow. Read, watch, listen. I want to live in a "idylic" city/village with greenery and walking and biking everywhere, but it just isnt feasible. Atleast not right now. I despise driving for various reasons but i understand its use and necessity where I live. I want to rid myself of my car, but cant, not yet.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

@@naturesfinest2408 Thats the issue, you will never have an idyllic city UNLESS you remove mechanized public transportation for peoples, No Cars, No Trains, No Busses, No Trams, No Planes, just bikes, just walking, just horses.

[@naturesfinest2408]

@@johnisaacfelipe6357 i dont think its idyllic. Thats what I am saying. You can disagree, thats fine, but I dont want to only have walking and horses. We did that for hundreds of years and people were no happier than now. And they definitely werent any better off.

[@-Katastrophe]

The real reason he hated cars is that an ordinary war surplus Jeep could have made the trip to Mordor without spending hours in a forest talking to trees.

[@TheKingSalty]

I can relate to him entirely, as much as I benefit from the fruits of industrialization I wish better methods of actually applying it would become more prevalent. Like an industrial society that has found the ability to intertwine more of nature amongst it without harming the efficiencies of industry or the beauty of the nature God created. There had to be a balance somewhere. I try to offset this in my own life by planting gardens, both useful (vegetables and herbs) and aesthetic (flowers). As far as cars go, the only reason I own one is because I need to.

[@williamgarner6779]

As someone who grew up on a horse farm and worked many long hours on various stable and field chores, I was always put off by LOTR books because it comes through clearly that Tolkien didn't really know much about horses or farm work. I am very much an outdoors man and conservationist but I dislike the large demographic today that romanticize farm life that they know nothing about.

[@Inkling777]

Very interesting. Your pictures of the countryside and people are marvelous.

[@lsixty30]

What an illuminating video, I also love your channel’s name.

[@mcorte2224]

I really enjoy the channel, best wishes to you. Merry Christmas and Happy new Year!

[@InkandFantasy]

Thank you, you too! I wish all the best!!!

[@undertyped1]

I also hate cars and the so called "parking lot paradise" we are forced to live in now.

[@Music_is_Breathing]

This is so beautiful! Thank you, Dan! I am Scottish, and this really touches my heart 💗

[@ifyouloveChristyouwillobeyhim]

You did an excellent job understanding him and a loved the many good images you chose. Thank you. I understand him better now.

[@Jedielite2000]

Very interesting video, thank you for the great content! You deserve a lot more subscribers! You truly understand the true nature of Tolkien and make very interesting in depth analysis of his views!

[@InkandFantasy]

I really appreciate it, thank you!!

[@gallifreyantauri]

Everything you say is very obvious if you read his biography, which I have a copy of. I think, in many ways, he was like the pre-Raphaelites in wanting an "idealized" world, the "idealized world" he grew up in, to never change. Unfortunately, the only static law in the Universe is the law of change, and that is impossible to resist. Excellent video.

[@ZeraSeraphim]

It is hard to describe "change" as either malevolent nor benevolent. It simply is, and things sure as shittering aren't the same as they were before.

[@TheGreatBigMove]

Nice video. I always like seeing old photographs compared with modern photographs of the same location (as you did at 9:35).

[@InkandFantasy]

Thank you!! I’ve watched some of your stuff before, great channel!!!!

[@TheGreatBigMove]

No way, thanks for the kind words!@@InkandFantasy

[@markmcla]

Engineers are most definitely not nitwits! They are creators, just like Tolkien. -But I agree that at least in California, we greatly underestimate the value of open space. When I was young, I remember that there were lots of orange groves everywhere....

[@TheCrossingBall]

He meant nitwits in reference to understanding the human condition and in particular those values which emerge out of the humanities. Engineers look too near to things and reduce them to abstract numbers.

[@CThyran]

​@@TheCrossingBallAll the same an engineer could argue that humanities and philosophy isn't practical unlike the very real need for math and engineering.

[@TheCrossingBall]

@@CThyran and the engineer wouldn't even know what the math equations are applying to unless the humanities gave us identities, definitions, epistemology, ontology, value ethics, art (to even motivate us), and so forth.

[@Maynarkh]

@@TheCrossingBall What is 2 + 2, sociologist

[@speedytypermananswers5551]

Tolkien was somewhat of a Luddite. He was born during the time when the world starts to transition from the 1800s to the world we live in now. Its understandable since he witnessed the technologies during the war, the weapons and machineries. You see in his novel how he antagonizes isengard.

[@Getcakedieyoung23]

Great Channel. Interesting topics 👍

[@lillifuchs]

i love just everything on this Video and feel with this Man soooo much in such times ..great video and greatings from Germany

[@StormCrow702]

It’s fair to say that I’ve another wonderful Tolkien channel, that actually respects the professor. Now if I may be so bold, could you perhaps be interested in other authors? I strongly recommend Robert E. Howard next or CS Lewis. Thank you for all the hard work.

[@UnseenHitman-1932]

Is Robert E. Howard as conservative and Catholic as Tolkien was? nevermind I'm not interested in Conan.

[@johnisaacfelipe6357]

Good writers to listen to if you want more english catholic traditionalists pov, read GK chesterton and hillaire belloc

[@richardthomas5362]

@@UnseenHitman-1932 Robert Howard's main beef was "civilization". Civilization was the corrupting influence on humanity. Conan was the anti-type of civilization - strong, honest, hard working, hard fighting, and desirable to women, in short, a real man, I guess. Civilization is what made man cruel and evil, according to Howard.

[@UnseenHitman-1932]

@@richardthomas5362 I'm not interested in barbarians but if this was more medieval I would have been interested. By medieval i mean having knights and chainmail. But judging by the cover of the books I saw there's none of that.

[@richardthomas5362]

@@UnseenHitman-1932 Some of his stories, set in a "western" country, does seem medieval, knights, crossbows, etc. Some out east are more like Mongol stuff, while southern areas are more like medieval Arab, Byzantine, or Turkish stuff. I liked reading them but it is probably not for everyone. The stories, as originally written, had no real connection with each other, and while Conan was armored with chain (or plate) mail on occasion it wasn't in all of his stories. The wide variety of backgrounds means that for you the stories would be hit or miss, some you would like, some you wouldn't.

[@antonycharnock2993]

Tolkien also lived very close to the Black Country a heavily industrialised area to the west of Birmingham. Probably a big inspiration for Mordor and orks kzbin.info/www/bejne/opvYYYmmmZaAepo

[@marquez3694]

You explain it so well.

[@cjoneillj]

For all these reasons and so many more I have been a lifelong lover of Tolkien and his books!

[@ScooterCat64]

I hate that you basically aren't allowed to live without owning a car

[@MajimaEnterprises]

In America*

[@nathaniellong4281]

With his hatred of cars, it makes sense that he would be a terrible driver.

[@AeromatterWorkshop]

Honestly just commenting to help you in the algorithm, great video essay about a fascinating man!

[@NoleNoleNoleJole]

yo, another comment here to help the algorithm

[@NoleNoleNoleJole]

let's make NFL great again, shall we?

[@marscaleb]

Boy can I ever notice how different my opinion of this would have been when I was a kid compared to now. After having lived a few decades, and having seen so much of what I cherished as a youth being paved over, buildings destroyed, neighborhoods rebuilt... I can only glimpse at how horrible it would be to live through all the industrialization that he witnessed, especially when it twice over served to fuel unfathomable world wars.

[@boaoftheboaians]

Tolkien is a rare case of the more I learn about him, the more I like him XD He and I are very alike, I'm not too fond of cars either and would rather use a bike XD (and I have to live in a third world country whose priorities is making more car centered infrastructure =_=)

[@Ravum]

It's cool how he portrayed the jews as the dwarves.

[@boaoftheboaians]

@@Ravum ikr

[@TheSuburbanScumbag]

@@Ravum I thought the dwarves were meant to be Scots. Short stout beardy guys with a love for booze and fighting

[@Ravum]

@@TheSuburbanScumbag he is quoted saying they are the jews

[@anabrito1693]

These videos are really interesting, thank you 👍🏻 I can relate to what Tolkien felt about the negative aspects of a big city. Where I live used to have a bit of countryside still, although it is already in a great metropolitan area. But the city is growing around here, as if ruthlessly swalloing the more peaceful elements and I feel more and more constrained by the massive feeling of a big city. Everything that gives harmony, balance, is destroyed. At least that's what I experience.

[@dragonofthewest8305]

This is deep and I subscribed

[@pleatedskirt18]

My late headmaster was an Oxford University man, and he attended when the authorities were first endeavouring to do something about traffic in the city. To try and combat some of the congestion they installed a one way system that was supposed to help - the signs were installed, and from their room, one bright spark noticed that if one sign was turned around to point the other way, it would cause gridlock, and it did. My headmaster assured me he had nothing at all to do with this... Tolkien was so perceptive to have spotted from early on what damage cars do. If we now look back at some of the films from the 30s, 40s, 50 and 60s and compare with today, the roads are much larger, faster and far more congested. The tops of beaches have become overflow car parks, and the country lanes that once thronged with insects along the verges are now gone or are devoid of any life at all. Engineering developments may mean that they are less polluting, but the increase from one million in 1930 to thirty three million in 2020 will undoubtedly be contributing far more pollution than it ever did. Add in the time now spent idling in queues and crawling along at snail's pace in commutes, and we have what we now have. Tolkien was spot on, which is a great shame.

[@Ray-fk4vh]

Wholeheartedly agree with tolkien, our way of life in this modern age is unnatural.

[@reaganjanaerichard5009]

Love this man. I relate to a lot of his feelings involving modern life.

[@mailtmpearson]

Hello, great video! What is the name of the painting of the boy on the bicycle?

[@olasteen2811]

amazing video man

[@morganfern4701]

Tolkien's critical attitude toward industrialism & his respect for the natural world is what made me fall so in love with his stories

[@baldwiniv5339]

What kind of insane person would disagree?

[@goldilocks913]

Any idea what the painting with the lady feeding the horse through the open door is called? I’d love a print of that!

[@shadrach6299]

My great grandfather was a country doctor in a rural area of Louisiana. He hated cars and used a horse and buggy to see his patients. If a car was behind him he wouldn’t move to let them by.

[@pavelslama5543]

I respect Tolkien as someone who stayed mostly true to his philosophy (although even he was mostly enabled to achieve what he did thanks to industrial society, but that wasnt something he could influence). But his ideas about industrialization are just biased, nothing more. He was basically a prototype of those kind of people that idolize medieval times, despite all the bad things present in those times. The same goes for his ideas about warfare. Getting shot? Horrible, disgusting... Getting slashed to pieces with a sword? Honorable, brave... Yeah, his story (as made by someone who had all the pre-requisites to make it so) was one of the most successful ever, but these dives into his philosophy and ideas make me very much eager to continue writing my own story, with the ultimate goal to rehabilitate industrialization and place it to its correct historical and ethical framework.

[@vallgron]

I don't understand how people aren't way more passionate about noise population I live in Ireland and I need to go well out into the country side to avoid hearing a car it makes me so angry

[@Sol-Amar]

Have you encountered any of the Sídhe or good neighbors yet?

[@Eksevis]

He's right to hate cars. I love how relatively unified the world is now, but I still feel there is a huge over reliance on cars, especially in America. I honestly hate that it's difficult to go anywhere in all but the biggest cities in America on foot or on bike. Bicyclist are often touted as being pretentious and rude, and in my state, you're viewed as intellectually stunted if you walk around with a backpack, an otherwise perfectly reasonable way to carry things.

[@christinawanner6749]

Thank you for this Movie. Have a nice Day

[@philk8683]

Funny how he wrote about Magic but didn’t Realize Herby the Love Bug is Magic 🤣

[@TuxedoTalk]

This idealized lifestyle is still very possible. I grew up around the Amish. Learn their language, religion and be willing to work. The community will take you in.

[@silverletter4551]

Dangerous religious fanaticism isn't good either.

[@TuxedoTalk]

@@silverletter4551 Are you saying the Amish are dangerous?

[@silverletter4551]

@@TuxedoTalk yes, like the Taliban

[@TuxedoTalk]

@@silverletter4551 Do you know what the Amish teach in term of violence?

[@user-tm6wg5xt8v]

​@@silverletter4551 So you think every religion is bad?

[@kotarojujo2737]

I love driving cars, especially enthusiast ones, but relying solely on cars for society is not good.

[@AndrewB221]

I used to love cars since Childhood? Then after my Accident and sustaining a Severe Traumatic Brain Injury and almost dying? I absolutely despise Vehicles and focus on Bicycles or simply walking

[@mister_i9245]

Rare Tolkien anti-industrialization W

[@sivzzz3008]

I have always had an unnatural hatred towards cars that even I can't explain. Thankfully in recent years I've seen a lot of people speak up against the constant expansion of road infrastructure. I'm blessed to live in Europe where cities are at least somewhat walkable. I could not imagine living in the US, where you basically NEED to own a car for survival.

[@GabrielleTollerson]

Same,and I have a hate for concrete jungles. They are miserable,dead like,lifeless

[@DarthCovider]

I hope you don’t imagine. You’d be seeing a very bleak, lifeless picture, a real life version of Mordor. Take it from someone who knows.

[@ethanweiss3004]

this guy had some valid points esepcely on cars and the blandness of modren life

[@jsivonenVR]

Great vid 👌🏻

[@Tiogar60]

Tolkien was a mastermind not only in writing but in philosophy

[@Jim-Mc]

As an American cars are a huge part of our "traditional' culture due to the size of the country and the wildness of it in the early 20th century. Cars made it safe to leave the farm. But I totally understand Tolkien's perspective on how they affected England

[@frisianmouve]

@@Besthinktwice Personally, having a commute that's faster on a bicycle and living a city, there really is no point for me owning a car. And if I want to go to another city train travel is just as fast or faster than by car. My parents that are living in a town, their car definitely is a convenient way to travel for them

[@ottomanpapyrus9365]

same for the other small European countries. But especially Netherlands@@Besthinktwice

[@Caprikel-ov2od]

Cars are nice until traffic becomes a thing, and then suddenly they become the most evil thing in existence.

[@costakeith9048]

Traditional American culture is the frontier culture, it didn't involve cars. Cars destroyed American culture and society, tens of thousands of small villages that were developing and thriving across the west disappeared with the advent of the automobile or were reduced to nothing more than a gas station; they are the reason why we still have as much vast and undeveloped land today as we did a century ago across most the west, excepting only the tiny area surrounding cities.

[@Jim-Mc]

@@costakeith9048 But automotives also allowed average people to safely travel to parts of the country their parents could have never dreamed of going just a few years earlier. The post-war "car culture" of the 50s was a direct descendant of this. Maybe they destroyed something but what came out of it is still recognized all over the world as "American." Was America ever connected in the English village, "Tolkien" sense? Surely not since long before automotives, and the Dutch and English colonies faded away or became huge cities?

[@nlpnt]

I like cars and enjoy driving but don't want to have to use one everydamntime I leave the house and hate how much of an unattainable luxury a walkable built environment is.

[@bankerduck4925]

What a lovely video.

[@FictionCautious]

from at least one point of view, he was right

[@rsler63]

I did not know this of Tolkien. Wise man and I agree with his dislike of cars and the increase of industry.

[@poweepiureq3700]

Tolkien disliked that it made people forget traditional values. He felt nostalgic about the old lifestyle and the world he experienced as a child.

[@TheBrunohusker]

I get chills on this because while this happen in England with Tolkien, this happened in America to the point of insanity and sadly it did ruin our local culture. It even ruined big cities as neighborhoods were torn apart and what’s worse is that some went entirely backwards and created suburbs to try and mimic country life but it just made things worse. Of course some idiots will use this to show him as supportive of things like slavery or whatever, but I think Tolkien knew that even this wasn’t natural. While there might be a dark undertone of isolationism to all of this, Tolkien also knew in my opinion that the issue was that due to greed we uprooted people from homes in Africa and poor sections of the world and treated them like animals when if we’d respected them, we’d have let them be and seen them as people rather than as machines, and ultimately he hated machines imho.

[@DonMeaker]

Tolkien was a localist, but a localist who was born in Africa. Probably the most popular African born author of all time.

[@nickmoran8417]

Lol. He was born there while his dad was a banker there. Then he moved back and grew up in his family’s home country England. Don’t try to make Tolkien an African when he’s not. The only reason they would even be there is because England colonized it.

[@DonMeaker]

@@nickmoran8417 Of course Tolkien is more African than 99 percent of those that loudly proclaim it.

[@nickmoran8417]

@@DonMeaker Lol. That’s true.

[@nickmoran8417]

@@DonMeaker Lol. That’s true.

[@nutwatch1854]

"Having heard everything he said so far, you may be surprised to learn that Tolkien in fact owned an automobile." No, everything he said sounded like an elitist hypocrite sounds.

[@xenophon5354]

This is why Venice is in many ways an awesome city. It’s human-sized. Walkable.

[@JK23111]

"infernal combustion engine" is hilarious

[@lewislewis4240]

I feel like it’s easy to romanticise the past with modern eyes. How couldn’t you see the rolling green hills with the nice close community with fresh air and nice food. But when you actually look up history you come to reality that life was very hard for the average person before the industry times. You pretty much lived and died if the sun came out 1 bad season could be a disaster and it didn’t pay well, medical care wasn’t great and you would be lucky to not die from some random disease. Traveling around the place to days if not weeks. Just to send messages. Warfare as horrible WW1/2 was the pre industrial wars were just as horrific if not worse in some areas. So before people start saying that Tolkien was based ask yourself “ would you live in the 17th century?” I wouldn’t want to.

[@MrOiram46]

“The past was better” The Past: “Oooh you got a paper cut? Hmmm you don’t have long on this Earth I’m afraid.”

[@AmazingStoryDewd]

​@MrOiram46 almost nobody would died from that

[@naturesfinest2408]

I agree. There needs to be this balance. We hoarded in excess because were afraid wheb we have not. The shire is idylic. A perfectly ran society where all os well because of modern machines is idylic. The balance would be in between. To have community and ways to entertain. I love modern days but, as much as i hate to say it (use to staunchly disagree with this) its in our dna. Greenery, sun, some quiet. These things have been shown to lower blood pressure and make people feel good just being. I think public transportaion, walkability, bikeability, would help this quite a bit. Free up space, make less noise, less pollution, more people can get more places in a timely way.

[@abbemartensson3850]

Tolkien would fit well in a amish community

[@SvengelskaBlondie]

depends, some Amish have taken on the jew tradition of bending the rules as much as possible (arguing with god). There's quite allot of examples of how insanely stupid this can get when Amish try to go around/bypass the no tech rule. Not that I care that much, I just find it hilarious that they are willing to bullsh!1 others and themselves by putting extra steps just to do what non-delusional people would do (like using a forklift truck vs trying to ride a forklift truck like a horse).

[@j.knight9335]

Tolkien would've never become a Protestant heretic.

[@Emma-Queenofhell]

​@j.knight9335 and there is the reason why dispute being an Atheist I will go to my grave saying Martin Luthor was correct.

[@GenerationX1984]

​@@Emma-Queenofhelli'm an atheist too and I agree. Martin Luther figured out for himself that the Catholic Church is evil and hypocritical and wasn't afraid to say it.

[@initial_C]

Interestingly, Science Fiction author Ray Bradbury never learned to drive. He preferred to travel by train or boat if he had to travel at all. I don't dislike cars myself. I enjoy driving and especially motorcycling, but I dislike unengaged drivers and aggressive drivers that remove the pleasure from it.

[@nhmooytis7058]

I read PG Wodehouse didn’t like phones because they let a perfect stranger make bells ring in his house. Maybe not true, but funny 😅.