J.R.R. Tolkien’s Cult of Gandalf as a Literary Memory, or Reflection, of Ancient Germanic Spiritual Symbolism and the Cult of Odin

A. Asbjørn Jøn

Abstract


This article explores parallels between the J.R.R. Tolkien’s cult of Gandalf and the historic, Germanic, cult of Odin / Óðinn. The cult of Gandalf is considered as a possible adaptive, and reflective, creative memory of ancient Germanic spiritual and mythic symbolism through an analysis of the followertypes and elementary ideas that feature in Tolkien’s writing.


Keywords


Tolkien; Gandalf; Odin; Mythology; Archetypes; Jung;

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References


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