Themes of The Lord of the Rings This is, according to Shippey, a very modern, 20th-century theme, since in earlier, medieval times, power was considered to "reveal character", not alter it. Shippey mentions Lord Acton's famous statement in 1887, that ""Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men..."" He then goes on to point out authors that were dealing in the same themes of power and corruption at around the same time as Tolkien wrote his work. These authors include George Orwell with "Animal Farm" (1945), William Golding with "Lord of the Flies" (1954), and T. H. White with
Lord of Misrule (novel) there is something mesmerising about Gordon's portrait." Lord of Misrule (novel) Lord of Misrule is a 2010 novel by Jaimy Gordon. The book is divided into four sections, each concerned with one of four horse races at a "down on the luck" racetrack. The novel drew a positive response, with many reviewers focusing on Gordon's skillful and complex prose style. It received the National Book Award for Fiction in 2010. This "dark horse" victory surprised its publishing house, McPherson & Company, which did not have enough copies ready to meet demand immediately after the win. Many reviewers of the novel