I saw this on Tolkien and thought far right? I ignored it as fringe but a few days later while driving I heard an hour devoted to it on the radio*. Good points were made mostly on the Italian far right’s interest in it. It reminded me that I had seen a bit of print info before about it.
Like the guy interviewed, Journalist John Last, said to North American ears it sounds like a weird thing but in Italy it goes back 50 years. It and other children’s books have been co-opted by the right for their own purposes. It is another example of how people can corrupt anything.
Why is Lord of the Rings and fantasy novels so intriguing to conservatives and the far right? Journalist John Last has been researching the links between The Lord of the Rings and Italian fascist movements. He talks about how the Italian prime minister’s love for Tolkien is interwoven with her politics.
Last didn’t think Tolkien was a fascist like some do. He comments on it around the 12 min mark and further on. 99% of what I read is nonfiction but I have a copy of The Lord of the Rings on the bed stand. I read it before sleep a lot for a change of pace and because it is a well written story. As fun as it might be, it is not hard to see it has issues. Tolkien seems too into caste with blonde perfect elves and evil swarthy orcs. It could be dismissed as just fantasy but when fantasy is twisted by fascist movements it takes the fun out of it fast. I am not a fan of the movies partly because of this. Other than being reduced to dumb action scenes, the movies had the orcs talk like lower class Englishmen. That was a little much.
The Lord of the Rings and the far right
Other info sources on this.
BTW I just realized the Pillars of the Kings look like they are giving the Nazi salute. LOL
*the audio may not play outside Canada.