Tag: Santi Pagani

Con grande piacere e soddisfazione diamo una notizia molto positiva per gli studi tolkieniani italiani, che riguarda in particolare il nostro socio fondatore (nonché ex vice-presidente) Claudio A. Testi. Il suo libro Pagan Saints in Middle-earth (1) sta infatti suscitando una notevole attenzione a livello internazionale, tanto da aver ricevuto già cinque recensioni positive. La prima è stata quella di John Houghton, tra i massimi studiosi della tematica religiosa in Tolkien, che su Beyon Bree (2) ha giudicato il volume “an invaluable contribution to the (sometimes rather heated) debate over Christian and pagan readings of Tolkien”; “it is the sort of contribution that’s meant to end the debate once and for all”; “it is, however, one which will prove to be of vital importance to all further discussion of the Christian-pagan question in Tolkien studies” (Houghton pp. 1-2).
Sempre sulla medesima testata Randy Miller (3) ha poi scritto che “Pagan Saints in Middle-earth will provide a context to understand this debate [on Tolkien and Religion, note mine] and a resolution. Famous Tolkien experts like Verlyn Flieger and Tom Shippey were impressed with the strength and results of Testi’s argument and presentation. […] There is much here for those who want to understand J.R.R. Tolkien who is less enigmatic because of this treatise” (Miller p. 7).
In un lungo articolo (4) apparso su Lembas Katren, nel quale Jan Van Breda giudica il volume di Testi un “highly structured book that must be considered an asset to Tolkien studies” (Van Breda p. 195); “Those adhering to either a Christian or a pagan perspective or to an and/or perspective, should admit that these perspectives can hardly be upheld after the strong and convincing criticism of Testi. And what alternative perspective remains then, other than that presented by Testi?” (Van Breda p. 200).
Quarta in ordine di tempo è la recensione di John Evans (anche questo uno dei massimi studiosi del tema relagioso nel legendarium) apparsa sull’importante Journal of Tolkien Research (5), in cui scrive “Testi is to be commended for his familiarity with dozens of critics on both sides of this divide—and if not for anything else, this book is indispensable for its exhaustive review of scholarship pertinent to the question”; “the book’s core argument, the summary of Tolkien’s analytical and interpretive themes in the scholarly work is another invaluable benefit.” (Evans, pp. 3-4).
L’ultima (per ora) positiva valutazione è quella di James Hamby (6) per il quale lo studio italiano è “a wonderful overview of an intriguing question in Tolkien’s work. Even readers who disagree with his solution will no doubt benefit from the in-depth and serious consideration he gives to his subject. Indeed, given the evidence that Testi cites, it is difficult to see how Tolkien’s work could now be viewed as either exclusively Christian or pagan” (Hamby, p. 25).
Insomma, una bella serie di giudizi “ufficiali”, che peraltro era già iniziata con Verlyn Flieger e Tom Shippey, i due massimi studiosi tolkieneni viventi (e soci onorari AIST, che li ha ospitati nel nostro paese per ben cinque volte complessive), i quali nella loro prefazione e postfazione al testo avevo detto che “[Testi] has brought his readers the best of both schools. He has shown how they work, and best of all, shown how they can work together.” (Verlyn Flieger); “Both admirers and critics, however, have now been helped to a better and truer understanding of Tolkien’s work by this admirable exposition, the deepest appreciation yet written of Tolkien’s Catholicity, and one he himself would certainly have welcomed and approved.” (Tom Shippey).
Ma il dibattito sul tema continuerà anche in futuro: Claudio Testi, sollecitati da studiosi stranieri, sta infatti preparando un’articolata risposta (dopo una breve replica a Houghton (7)) ai rilievi critici presenti nelle varie recensioni, che verrà a breve pubblicata in una prestigiosa rivista estera.