Tolkien and the Jews

The Vibe of the Tribe

In “a long-expected” episode, The Vibe of the Tribe celebrates the 20th anniversary of the cinematic release of the iconic fantasy film “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.” Join Miriam and guest Jesse Ulrich of Pod4Good as they harness the power of their mutual nerd interests (Judaism and fantasy literature) to set forth on a quest to understand the world of author J.R.R. Tolkien through a Jewish lens. They explore Tolkien’s own words on how Jewish history, culture and language influenced his creation of Middle Earth, his use of Jewish stereotypes and how he responded to the rise of Nazism. They also discuss how Tolkien is, at heart, a writer of (Anglo-Saxon) midrash and how characters, events and locations throughout “The Lord of the Rings” films and books embody Jewish values and ethics. From Frodo’s deep mesiras nefesh (self-sacrifice), Boromir’s teshuva (repentance/returning), the Entish love for Tu B’Shvat to who should be the last person in the “Fellowship Minyan,” they discuss it all. Grab your second breakfast, settle into your comfortable hobbit hole and press play on this gloriously nerd-tastic episode! To reach out to us, email [e-mail]. Produced by Miriam Anzovin and edited by Jesse Ulrich, with music by Ryan J. Sullivan.