This exciting tour of Tolkien's England begins in the northern city of Leeds, where Tolkien first taught. From there students will visit the medieval city of York including its impressive Jorvik Center of Viking History. Next comes a brief hike through Back Forest to the gorge likely described in the poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The course then brings students to Oxford, where Tolkien spent the majority of his life. We will take day trips to Birmingham, where Tolkien grew up, to Cheddar Caves, to the Oxfordshire Downs to see the ancient barrow called Weland's Smithy, and to the beachside town of Bournemouth where Tolkien retired. Lastly, we will travel to London and from there take a day trip to Canterbury, spend afternoons at the British Museum, Buckingham Palace, and cap things off with a play at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.

Course Texts: Carpenter, Humphrey. Tolkien: A Biography ----. The Inklings Garth, John. Tolkien’s Exeter. Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings.