# Tolkienology 101: What is your Tolkien belief system?



## Arthur_Vandelay (Apr 12, 2005)

I recently came across the following questionnaire on Quizilla.com:

*Tolkienology 101: What is Your Tolkien Belief System?*

Apparently I am a "Tolkien Radical:"



> TOLKIEN RADICAL: You take an intellectual, skeptical approach to Tolkien's works. You are the Bishop Spong of Tolkienology, the quintessential Faithful Dissenter, boldly challenging traditional interpretations and cherished assumptions in order to provoke critical thinking and a more mature appreciation of the Professor's works. Or maybe you just like notoriety.



What is your Tolkien belief system?


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## Walter (Apr 12, 2005)

That is, what came up for me:



> TOLKIEN MODERATE: Live and let live is your rule of life. You like Tolkien, you don't have any great desire to be a deconstructionist or an iconoclast, but neither are you going to tell anyone else what to do in their fannish pursuits. In your pursuit of moderation and keeping the peace, you tend to end up getting flamed by the extremists at both ends of the spectrum.



Hmmmm....


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## Confusticated (Apr 12, 2005)

> TOLKIEN CONSERVATIVE: Traditional, loyal, faithful, and, above all, reverent defender of Tolkien and his works. You probably either belong to the Canon Police or are a sympathizer. Though you have a tendency to be pompous, supercilious, and condescending in conversing with fans who fail to meet your exacting standards for approval, you won't burn anyone at the stake.




I think the first question assumes LotR is every Tolkien fan's favorite book, or considered by everybody to be the main book. I can't help wondering if this was intentional or a flaw in the quiz. I know I would have answered differently if all the works of JRRT had been included, or even simply _The Silmarillion_ instead of LotR.

I am sorry there is not a "Who am I to say?" option for questions 2,and 5. There is something like it for 4 at least.

Unfortunately the question about canon does not specify if we should answer according to our own personal relationship with canon, or canon in general for all readers. I selected what it is to me, but I don't expect everybody else should treat canon the same.

I am very much a purist when it comes to Middle-earth. There is JRRT's in its own class, not to be mixed with anyone else's such as Peter Jackson or some random fanfic writer, or JRRT scholar. The author's own opinions and intentions regarding his fiction matter very much to me, but *I do not think all readers should agree. None of my business how other readers view this stuff*.

So I would say I am a Tolkien Libertarian.


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## Gothmog (Apr 12, 2005)

> TOLKIEN LIBERAL: Everyone has their own path in Tolkien fandom, and who is to say who is right and who is wrong? You listen to all sides and draw your own conclusions. There's a little bit of truth to be found in every point of view. In your refusal to claim that any one faction has the exclusive claim to Tolkien Truth, you tend to end up getting flamed by them all.


Well at least the flaming will help to keep me warm 



Nóm said:


> So I would say I am a Tolkien Libertarian.


No, That's me


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## Confusticated (Apr 12, 2005)

Gothmog said:


> No, That's me


No, it is me too! Your result of _Tolkien Liberal_ fits me better than that Conservative score I got.

Or must I be the bad guy of the thread?

Well - at least I wont burn anyone at the stake. Not for their Tolkien views anyhow.

But its funny, because on that canon question I answered "A starting point for broader reflection and discussion of the ideas it presents, and for the shaping of one's own views and the development of one's own responses to the original material."

I think what got me was the one about Slash Fiction. I voted: "There are no slash pairings in the Tolkien Universe. Homosexuality is not canonical." when asked for my One True Slash Pairing in the Tolkien Universe. Guess I should have went for the "hippie commune" if the quiz is going to be like that.


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## Gothmog (Apr 12, 2005)

Nóm said:


> But its funny, because on that canon question I answered "A starting point for broader reflection and discussion of the ideas it presents, and for the shaping of one's own views and the development of one's own responses to the original material."
> 
> I think what got me was the one about Slash Fiction. I voted: "There are no slash pairings in the Tolkien Universe. Homosexuality is not canonical." when asked for my One True Slash Pairing in the Tolkien Universe. Guess I should have went for the "hippie commune" if the quiz is going to be like that.


Now that is interesting. Those are the same answers I gave.


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## scotsboyuk (Apr 12, 2005)

TOLKIEN MODERATE: Live and let live is your rule of life. You like Tolkien, you don't have any great desire to be a deconstructionist or an iconoclast, but neither are you going to tell anyone else what to do in their fannish pursuits. In your pursuit of moderation and keeping the peace, you tend to end up getting flamed by the extremists at both ends of the spectrum.


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## Varda35 (Apr 12, 2005)

TOLKIEN LIBERAL: Everyone has their own path in Tolkien fandom, and who is to say who is right and who is wrong? You listen to all sides and draw your own conclusions. There's a little bit of truth to be found in every point of view. In your refusal to claim that any one faction has the exclusive claim to Tolkien Truth, you tend to end up getting flamed by them all.

yeah that sounds about right...please don't flame me, I burn easily 
Can't we all just get along?? lol


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## Ithrynluin (Apr 12, 2005)

Tolkien Moderate here as well, though I also think I belong rather to the Liberal class.


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## Confusticated (Apr 12, 2005)

Ithrynluin said:


> Tolkien Moderate here as well, though I also think I belong rather to the Liberal class.


I disagree with you then. 

I experimented around with the quiz for the purpose of making sure there was something more extreme than the Conservative. 

For anyone who is curious, this seems to be the scale:

Fundamentalist
Conservative
Moderate
Liberal
Radical
Heretic


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## Walter (Apr 12, 2005)

I have not been able to make out any substantial difference between moderate and liberal, I mean, the wording is a little different, but that seems about all the difference between those two categories....


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## Hammersmith (Apr 12, 2005)

Another moderate  

The pictures on the "All Possible Results" page are great!


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## Raithnait (Apr 12, 2005)

TOLKIEN CONSERVATIVE:

Traditional, loyal, faithful, and, above all,
reverent defender of Tolkien and his works.
You probably either belong to the Canon Police
or are a sympathizer. Though you have a
tendency to be pompous, supercilious, and
condescending in conversing with fans who fail
to meet your exacting standards for approval,
you won't burn anyone at the stake.

Hmmm... I guess it works...


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## Turgon (Apr 12, 2005)

Came up with Tolkien Moderate for me too - I was hoping for something cooler though.

Hehe! Nóm is a sympathizer?!? 

I _knew_ it!

*mutters something about revised cosmology*


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## Jotun (Apr 12, 2005)

Chalk up another moderate.


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## Barliman Butterbur (Apr 12, 2005)

Arthur_Vandelay said:


> I recently came across the following questionnaire on Quizilla.com:
> 
> *Tolkienology 101: What is Your Tolkien Belief System?*
> 
> ...



Well, that was damned amusing, thanks for sharing this with us, AV! 

I felt very constricted taking the test, because none of the answers really expressed my own views. So I was forced to choose answers that barely came close to what I thought, and so what happened was that I was categorized as a:

"TOLKIEN CONSERVATIVE: Traditional, loyal, faithful, and, above all, reverent defender of Tolkien and his works. You probably either belong to the Canon Police or are a sympathizer. Though you have a tendency to be pompous, supercilious, and condescending in conversing with fans who fail to meet your exacting standards for approval, you won't burn anyone at the stake."

The first two sentences are pretty much right on the money, but the rest is nonsense. There are _plenty_ of people I'd burn at the stake! And I am only pompous, supercilious and condescending when reacting with sarcastic mimicry to One Particular TTF Member who really _is_ a Tolkien Conservative!  

Barley


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## baragund (Apr 12, 2005)

I'm a moderate. Yeah, that fits.


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## Confusticated (Apr 12, 2005)

On second thought perhaps it was right to name me as a Tolkien Conservative. Just hate to be thouhgt of as Canon Police though. That bings to my mind someone who would ignore the earlier writings, which I think are mostly the more beautiful.

But maybe a canon cop _can_ have appreciation for the earlier and unpublished texts.



Turgon said:


> Hehe! Nóm is a sympathizer?!?
> 
> I _knew_ it!
> 
> *mutters something about revised cosmology*



Oh hush... You liked it when we were talking about Ulmo.


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## e.Blackstar (Apr 12, 2005)

TOLKIEN FUNDAMENTALIST: Hellfire and brimstone for anyone who dares blaspheme the Holy Name of Tolkien!!! You scare the **** out of the rest of the fandom. Even the Conservatives, who share your reverence for canon and distaste for deviation from the same, back up a few steps when they encounter you. You need help. Now.

I guess that's somewhat true. I wouldn't say completely, though...


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## Hobbit-GalRosie (Apr 13, 2005)

I got conservative as well, but I would like to point out that in many cases as others have said I was answering with what was the closest to my view point without really in any way expressing it, and I pray that I don't come across as supercillious on this forum. Really, there were a few in there that just didn't have the right answer. I voted just for being funny with the parody thing, but I would have liked it better if you could have said be funny _and_ be in good taste, because I hate dirty jokes on the whole. In almost every other case though I was voting for the second, which would be the conservative answer as just being the closest a stupid personality test is going to come, rather than what I think.


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## Niirewen (Apr 13, 2005)

Another conservative over here. Although I definately would not say that I'm "pompous, supercilious, and condescending in conversing with fans who fail to meet your exacting standards for approval..."


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## Starbrow (Apr 16, 2005)

Another Tolkien Conservative. Although I really thought of myself as being more moderate. But I do love my Tolkien.


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## UNGOLIANT (Apr 16, 2005)

im a conservative


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## ingolmo (Apr 26, 2005)

And another Conservative!
..............
Proud to be a conservative!


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## Greenwood (Apr 26, 2005)

I took the test before reading this thread so as not to be influenced by other members responses. I do hope that sounds "pompous" and "supercilious" enough.  You guessed it! I rated:

"TOLKIEN CONSERVATIVE: Traditional, loyal, faithful, and, above all, reverent defender of Tolkien and his works. You probably either belong to the Canon Police or are a sympathizer. Though you have a tendency to be pompous, supercilious, and condescending in conversing with fans who fail to meet your exacting standards for approval, you won't burn anyone at the stake."  

Though, as others have said, I thought the choices were too limited, I will not kick about my rating.


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## ingolmo (Apr 27, 2005)

Yeah, I took the test again, and though I turned out to be a conservative again, I see that the choices were too limited. What'd you rate the quiz, I'd rate it a two, or one-and-a-half if it was possible. Again, too limited choices.
-Ingolmo


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