What were Tolkien's Oxford Students Reading in the 1930s?

Overview

The video reconstructs what an Oxford undergraduate might have read in Tolkien’s Old English classes during the 1930s. The presenter draws on university records, Tolkien’s surviving lecture notes and translations, and the poems’ wider historical and literary contexts. He also distinguishes between what Tolkien’s students read and what Tolkien may have found especially meaningful, marking interpretations as possibilities rather than certainties.

Tolkien taught Old English at Pembroke College from 1925 until 1945, when he moved to Merton College and taught mostly Middle English. The video covers 15 works he taught frequently, followed by several less frequent selections.

The 15 works

1. Beowulf — Tolkien’s most frequently taught work and, in the presenter’s view, the most important text for understanding Tolkien’s scholarship and creative work. Its themes and influence connect closely with The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien’s translation and lecture notes offer a glimpse of his teaching, though the presenter recommends later translations for readers seeking a stronger version of the poem.

2. Waldere — Two surviving fragments from a mostly lost epic about Walter of Aquitaine, who must defend his treasure and bride-to-be against Hagen and King Gunther. The surviving fragments point to the importance of lost or partial stories—a quality some scholars also see as an intentional feature of Tolkien’s own legendarium. Tolkien’s teaching likely placed the poem alongside fuller versions of Walter’s story in other languages.

3. The Finnsburg Fragment — A fragment describing the start of a battle within the larger Finnsburg story: Danish princes at a Frisian court are attacked by Jutes who are also guests there. Tolkien wrote and lectured extensively on the story. The presenter emphasizes its place among the compelling narratives of the Germanic tradition.

4. Deor — A melancholic Old English poem that is also a rich source of Germanic mythological references. The presenter suggests Tolkien may have taught it particularly for the stories and traditions it preserves, as well as its poetic qualities.

5. Völundarkviða (Welandarkvida) — An Old Norse poem that tells the story of the smith Wayland in greater detail than Deor, which only alludes to him. Tolkien taught the two poems together; Wayland is identified as an inspiration for Fëanor.

6. Völuspá — A foundational Norse creation poem and a starting point for Norse mythology. It names dwarves whose names Tolkien later used for characters in The Hobbit, including Thorin, Fili, Kili, and Gandalf. The presenter suggests comparing the poem with the opening of The Silmarillion and earlier versions of Tolkien’s creation mythology.

7. Atlakviða — An early version of the story associated with the end of the Nibelungenlied: Attila and Gudrun lure the Burgundians to a feast and kill them; Gudrun then kills Attila and burns the palace. Tolkien was drawn to the story and made more than one attempt to retell it. His work on the poem, including an unfinished Old English translation, helps reveal his interest in it.

8. The Battle of Brunanburh — A mid-10th-century poem about King Æthelstan’s victory over a combined Scottish, Irish, and Viking force. Its language presents the conflict as a victory for England and the English, rather than for a single kingdom. The presenter suggests this patriotic emphasis may have resonated when Tolkien and his students faced the threat of Nazi Germany. Tolkien translated the poem’s closing lines into alliterative verse and read them on the radio in 1938.

9. The Battle of Maldon — A fragmentary poem, probably preserving its middle section, about the heroic but unsuccessful defense led by Byrhtnoth against Viking invaders. Tolkien translated it and wrote an alliterative play about the battle’s aftermath and the making of the poem. The story’s combination of courage, defeat, and loyalty also connects with heroic codes found in Tolkien’s fiction.

10. The Dream of the Rood — A poem about the crucifixion narrated by the tree that became the cross. Christ is portrayed in heroic terms, including as a “young hero” who climbs the cross courageously. The presenter suggests Tolkien may have valued the poem for its poetic achievement and what it reveals about Anglo-Saxon society, while treating proposed links to Tolkien’s interest in trees as uncertain.

11. Judith — A poetic retelling of the biblical story in which Judith enters the camp of the Assyrian general Holofernes, kills him, and helps save her besieged city. The presenter notes that the story’s clever, violent heroine may have appealed to Anglo-Saxon audiences. Tolkien was especially interested in the phrase Eadith Alfshinu, meaning roughly “elf-bright woman” or “elven-fair lady.” He wrote an Old English song using the phrase and considered a related name for Éowyn in early drafts.

12. Exodus — An Old English poetic retelling of the biblical Exodus, including Moses, the crossing of the Red Sea, and the destruction of Pharaoh’s army. Tolkien edited and translated the poem and left lecture notes. The video also notes that his work was difficult to access at the time of recording: a recent edition was available only in an expensive box set.

13. Cynewulf and Cyneheard — A prose account of a West Saxon blood feud. The story ends in the deaths of nearly everyone involved, despite the characters’ adherence to a heroic code of loyalty and vengeance. The presenter connects this kind of tragic honor code with conflicts in The Silmarillion.

14. Ohthere and Wulfstan — A section of the Old English version of Orosius, describing the northern travels and observations of the Norwegian Ohthere and the traveler Wulfstan. Their accounts offer a view of northern Europe and how the educated elite of Wessex understood it. The presenter suggests Tolkien may also have appreciated the narrative framing, in which information is presented through named travelers—a technique echoed in his early Book of Lost Tales.

15. Sermo Lupi ad Anglos — A homily by Wulfstan, Archbishop of York, lamenting the sins of his society and interpreting Viking attacks as divine punishment. The presenter considers it less influential on Tolkien than some of the other works, but valuable as forceful prose and as evidence of English society around the turn of the millennium. Wulfstan’s complaints also echo those of the earlier Welsh monk Gildas, who viewed Anglo-Saxon invasions as punishment for the Britons’ sins.

Other works mentioned

Less frequently taught selections included the Old English poems Elene and Andreas, the Old Norse poem Baldrs Draumar, and the Middle English romance King Horn. The presenter notes that Tolkien’s teaching shifted toward Middle English after he moved to Merton.

Speakers and sources featured

Speaker

• Graham Scheper — The video’s narrator and presenter.

People and scholars discussed or cited

• J. R. R. Tolkien — Teacher, scholar, translator, and author whose reading list is the subject of the video.
• Christopher Tolkien — Editor of Tolkien’s work on Sigurd and Gudrun.
• Tom Shippey — Beowulf and Tolkien scholar; his translation and commentary are recommended.
• Leonard Neidorf — Beowulf scholar whose commentary appears in the Shippey edition discussed.
• R. D. Fulk — Scholar and translator of Old English works.
• Verlyn Flieger and Peter Grybauskas — Scholars cited in discussion of fragmentary storytelling and Tolkien’s legendarium.
• Lennart Rydholm and Brian Murdoch — Editors of works on Walter of Aquitaine and Waltharius.
• Jackson Crawford and Caroline Larrington — Translators of the Poetic Edda.
• Peter Baker — Compiler of the Old English online anthology referenced by the presenter.
• Gildas — The earlier writer whose complaints Wulfstan is said to echo.
• An unnamed professor — Quoted on the reciprocal value of studying Beowulf and The Lord of the Rings.

Primary works covered

• Beowulf
• Waldere
• The Finnsburg Fragment
• Deor
• Völundarkviða (Welandarkvida)
• Völuspá
• Atlakviða
• The Battle of Brunanburh
• The Battle of Maldon
• The Dream of the Rood
• Judith
• Exodus
• Cynewulf and Cyneheard
• Ohthere and Wulfstan
• Sermo Lupi ad Anglos

Editions and resources mentioned

• Tolkien’s Beowulf translation and lecture notes; Klaeber’s Beowulf; Shippey’s Beowulf; and Fulk’s Beowulf translation.
• Finn and Hengest; Beowulf and the North before the Vikings; and editions of Walter of Aquitaine and Waltharius.
• Eight Old English Poems; First Poems in English; and Tolkien’s Sigurd and Gudrun and Exodus materials.
• Translations of the Poetic Edda by Crawford and Larrington.
• The Dumbarton Oaks editions of the Old English Chronicle and Orosius, and Peter Baker’s Old English anthology website.