"ALL THAT IS GOLD DOES NOT GLITER /
NOT ALL THOSE WHO WANDER ARE LOST"
(J.R.R TOLKIEN, THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING)
Tolkien may have been able to more easily sum up his verse description of Aragorn by saying, "Don't judge a book by it's cover," but that wouldn't be as poetic, would it? Like his belief in huge and unexpected good fortune he coined the term eucatastrophe to describe such sudden turns for the good. Tolkien believed in finding virtue in unexpected places, often wrapped in a cloak the modern world would deems ugly. Gnarled tree creatures, road-weary travelers, and bumpy old men in grey rags are just a few of the guises taken by the benevolent powers of Middle Earth. There may be a degree of simple wish fulfillment fantasy hidden in there, the old cliche of the ordinary person who secretly has amazing abilities, but it's more than that. it's a lesson in judging people or, rather not judging them. it also speaks to appreciating simplicity in one's life and not underestimating the inner strength of the downtrodden. Despite Tolkien's staunch Catholicism, there is almost a Taoist spirit to the sentiment. Divinity is not labeled as such, you have to look below the surface.
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