All That is Gold

While surfing around aimlessly looking for poetry for a forensics event, I stumbled upon this wonderful poem by the great JRR Tolkien. Somehow I missed this while I was reading The Lord of the Rings for the first time, but now I love it.

Presented for your enjoyment: "All That is Gold does Not Glitter."

All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.

- J.R.R. Tolkien

There are many themes in this relatively short poem that I love. First, it echos the universal theme that things aren't always what they appear. Although there is some value, at least in expediency, in judges based off appearances, I believe as an individual I have, and as a culture we have stretched this principle to the breaking point. Everyday we commit the "judging a book by its cover" fallacy, and in doing so miss many things (or people) of value in life. In the world of communications there is a theory called the Elaboration Likelihood Model. Part of the theory states that we many times process ideals "peripherally" or using preexisting presuppositions. While this is great in some situations as it requires no thought and can happen almost instantly (ie you see a traffic light so you stop), the downfall is no learning takes place, we simply squeeze an idea etc. into a mental "hole" we already have created. In contrast, if we understand ideas are not always what they appear, we can take time, analyze them, learn from them, and instead of fitting them into a preexisting presupposition

Second, the theme of rebirth, especially from something that is completely dead is always intriguing to me. My favorite line has to be "from the ashes a fire shall be woken." whether you take this as an allusion to the powerful phoenix rising from its ashes, a metaphor for the renewal of lost hope/love, or a simple resurgence.

The last few lines have a special interest to me viewed in relation to Christianity. The connections between "A light from the shadow shall spring" and John 1:5, 9 "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world." The sword that is broken, in The Lord of the Rings, is an allusion to the line of Gondor that had been lost, and metaphorically can be seen to represent the old covenant, which was broken repeatedly by the people of God. It has been reforged into the new covenant of justification. Finally, the crownless again being King always cues my memory back to Jesus the Christ's incarnation when he became a mortal man, and most important his resurrection to sit "down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs."

I'm sure there are many other interpretations to this poetry (most obvious being the direct meaning in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy) and I'd love to hear others opinions. However you interpret it, I believe all can acknowledge that this is a great condensed poem that hits on some huge universal themes, and can be a great inspiration.

Soli Verum
Justin Gunter