I do think he's got a strong streak of "West/British good, East/Asia BAD" in his writing and on my last reread I really was struck at how many times Aragorn's awesomeness was attributed to his awesomely pure Western blood.

Also Northern vs. Southern, as well. It's really hierarchical & authoritarian, with an uncomfortable emphasis on inherent characteristics and inherited authority. Gondorians are better than the Rohirrim because their ancestors made friends with the Elves and went to Numenor, that sort of thing.

I do think there's enough dodgy subtext (and text) in Tolkien that we don't really have to go looking for more...

I actually think Mark's take is pretty fair and not simply dogmatic:

It’s immensely problematic, sure, but that doesn’t mean I dislike this chapter, the Orcs, or the book. On the contrary, I acknowledge how fucked up and disappointing this is, and I’m also immensely entertained by the plot that Tolkien has written here. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with liking something that has its problems, as long as you’re willing to engage these things and make sure not to convince others who dislike it for this reason that they’re wrong. It is unfortunate that this characterization exists, but that doesn’t ruin it for me.

Ray Bradbury visits Disneyland in 1965: [link]

I acknowledge how fucked up and disappointing this is

I guess I think it's weird that it's disappointing. Why is it disappointing, except in the way you want everything to be perfect every time? Tolkien didn't promise you anything different...

But that's at the core of what I don't get about Mark, I guess.

Yeah, he can only be who he is.(Not that we can't change...argh.) But he can only be blamed a little for what he wrote at a less-sensitive time.

I guess I think it's weird that it's disappointing.

Wrod. "How dare you not be as enlightened and forward-thinking as a 21st-Century man should be, you born in the 19th century person, you."

Sometimes, when I was a kid, I'd get disappointed when an old children's book was sexist or something like that. Because I was eight, or whatever, approval-seeking, and not expecting it. I don't get lost in the story like I used to, but the upside is, that doesn't feel like a kick in the gut anymore.

Scola, thank you for posting that! I had never seen that essay of his.

I suppose Ray Bradbury would not want to have a religion started around him. But he is one of my patron saints. Him, and the Emperor Norton.

You know, Ray Bradbury should visit Disneyland with Jilli.

You know, Ray Bradbury should visit Disneyland with Jilli.

head explodes with glee

I still count myself incredibly lucky that I was able to meet him at DragonCon one year, get my childhood copy of Something Wicked This Way Comes signed, and get a photo of him holding Clovis.