is best regarded a comic story written to resemble an English early mediaeval chronicle. It combines elements of a children’s story with a series of high-brow academic allusions to create a narrative which defies easy classification. At less than 17,000 words, this is a short story which may be read in one sitting. Perhaps its brevity and use of illustrations have promoted its characterisation as a children’s story, as also happened with
The Hobbit, yet children appear not to be J.R.R. Tolkien’s intended audience for the published version. Instead, the lexical density and philological puns suggest that Tolkien had adult readers in mind. While the story is one which can be enjoyed by children, it is unlikely to be fully understood by young readers.
The story as
2485 words
Citation: Davis, Graeme. "Farmer Giles of Ham". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 09 April 2019 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=21929, accessed 18 April 2024.]
