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Literally speaking, an allegory is a tale that has something hidden within it, a political or philosophical message. Although Tolkien's trilogy is certainly filled with metaphors, I think that Tolkien himself would like to think of it as a modern myth.

Tolkien's major at Oxford was philology, the study of language. He was also very interested in mythology, especially Norse, Icelandic, and Gothic mythology. Those two interests led him to create his own language. Although it is not completely evident in the trilogy, Tolkien invented an Elven language.

The language was not invented for the trilogy. Rather, the language was invented first and then a story arose out of the language. That story was "The Hobbit," published in 1936. Tolkien thought of this book as a myth more than an allegory.

Myth and allegory are not completely different. Both are vehicles for meaning, whether it be a moral message, a political message, or a philosophical/theological message. But there is nothing hidden in Tolkien's books. They are clearly morality plays and they deal with the big questions of human life.

Although most of us will not find ourselves battling with Orcs or the Balrog, we all have our personal monsters and dragons to face. Although it may not feel like it most of the time, we are all the heroines and heroes in our life drama. Life is a quest with many dimensions. It is the purpose of myth and fairy tales to encourage us on our hero's journey. The myths and stories give us signposts that tell us how we might manage the obstacles we might meet on the road ahead.

The hero's journey, in all of its permutations, is basically the journey of every human being. I believe it is the journey to the true self. It is the purpose of the trials and tribulations along the way to strip away that which is not part of the true self. It is a process of refining by fire.

In the trilogy, the focus of the challenge seems to be on power. Saruman is one who allowed his power to be corrupted. Gandalf faced a literal trial by fire in fighting the Balrog and emerged forever changed. Gandalf the Gray became Gandalf the White. Our hero, Frodo, had the greatest challenge, to carry the ring of power and destroy it.

Strider and all of the others had to deal with their issues with power or the lack of it. Each of us swing from feelings of competence and power to their opposite. What can the trilogy teach about our hero's journey, about our quest for a right relationship with power? How do we find our true self?

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