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I know this is quite a touchy topic, and I am going to close it as soon as it gets out of hand, but I thought it would be interesting to compare the two.

First, let me get one thing straight. I do not believ JK deliberately copied LotR. However, there are several similarities.

This is where we are going to discuss them, and possibly relate other works to HP/LotR as well

NO!!! JK didn't copy Lotr at all, the only similarities are:

1.the mythological creatures that are used in the both books, and mythology doesn't belong anyone, is universal and us the heritage of the whole mankind/womankind!

2. Also the platform of good&evil, which is similar to both books, no one can claim ownership on it, cause its unioversal also.

3. there are some similarities btw Frodo and Harry; a) both of them are special, selected by destnany to fight the evil, not grown with real families (mother father), but also the Cap.Skywalker is in similar situation. Frodo/Harry have older people as mentor, but also Cap.Sjywalker... Is these enough to prove that JK didn't copy anyone or should I continue???/

jkr didnt copy lotr. there is enough differences 2 prove that. (4 example: races, settings, charatcers, etc.)

I don't think so, i mean, you know what when I see Lord Of the Rings, my blood begins to boil...

I also don't think Rowling copied Lotr ... lotr is a lot too good for that ^^

There are indeed several similarities also in other characters - Gandalf and Dumbledore the old wizards who always support the young heroes, pitiful creatures like Gollum and the house-elves - who both punish themselves but also help the "hero" though they aren't really always cooperating positively -, and so on

But these characters appear in loads of stories (though quite concentrated in those similar to LoTR - it is simply impossible to read LoTR without being influenced in some way ^^)
Rowling just used "common" mythological / fantastical elements for her story, her ideas themselves aren't really new, but their combination is and thus she created something absolutely unique.



Also, there is one vewwy big difference between the two (jmho) - the LoTR films rule, HP films are stupid

I don't get what your saying

and yea there are tons of things that people can connect harry potter to lord of the rings, like wormtail and wormtonge, but its kinnda hard not to. Lord of the rings and Harry Potter have a lot of things in them, but most people see a connection between gandalf and dumbledore (and merlin) lord voldermort and suron, and harry and frodo, but hey just think, a wizard just might pull a gandalf on us

sorry, i don't read and watch Lord of the Rings , so i cannot relate to all of you.

What i am trying to say is that i get so irriteated when i see Lord of the Rings, like poseters,pictures and commercials and such...

o! you have to see/ read it!!! it is such a great story!! trust me, you won't hate it anymore if you do!

4 shelob aragog
5. trolls
6. dementors are exactly like nazgul....

hey people so what, she based some characters on other things, so, thats how you make inventions these days!

anyway dont say you hate lotr you people! its good, i must admit the books are bettr but that dont mean i dont like the potter pals!
have all five books so far
read all five
read books before the films

see, im a potter fan aswell!

yay hiyas sauron

i don't know, i get hot tempered juz seeing the cover.

um. . .how?

well...think of how lotr fans feel. they must hate it 2 c harry potter stuff all over the place. (i'm meaning lotr fans who dont like hp...sad thing 2 say really)

I like both

But there ARE undeniable similarities between LotR and hp

As Sauron ((with an S )) said ^^

One thing that people need to realize is: all fantasy novels are similar in one way or another. JKR definitely did not copy JRRT...

Honestly though, I don't think I can compare HP to LOTR. They're completely different... For one thing, LOTR has the dark-journey-magical thing going on. Whilst HP has the teen-school-magical-life going on. Heh. I love both equally. ^_^

i cant choose either. i like them 4 their differences.

ok, all the first few posters who said that JK didn't copy LotR, I specifically said exactly that in my opening comment! The point of this thread is to find the similarities between HP and other Fantasy fiction, not to say which is better!

lol whoops.

LOL... sooo... this is America... Freedom of Speech..!!! LOL! Whatever I wanna say, I'll say it.. har har!

Still, WHOOPS! heh heh

erm, i think she did copy some things
but she changed enough things for me to let it slip

like dementors are based on nazgul, but she gave them faces and skeletal hands and stuff, so i let it pass

and you shouldnt get mad just seeing the lotr cover, have you ever sat down and watched the films or read the books without saying 'this is potters enemy, i must hate it!'

because for some reason (the wizards) people think the two are competing

lol i'm sad 2 say that that's exactly what i thought about lotr. but now i love it ^^

see CM has the right idea
fortunately i never saw the two as rivals in any way and like them both

like lotr better mind
but still potter rules, i like readong the books, but what bothers me is he is 15 in OotP and he has just hit his puberty mood swings

late starter this potter

Look, LOTR and HP fans at the same time, i didn't mean to offend any f you or anything. I am just saying my feelings.!

i'm not offended I just don't understand thats all

Just a question...

All you people who say Hp didn't copy off LotR, have you read the LotR books? And not just seen the movie?

well if you look in most fantsay/magic storys you would find simalliar things, its not just lord of the rings and harry potter

i hear ya angelsfalme265, that is so right!!!

Read the LOTR books!! Loved it!!! I hated "The Hobbit" though.. It was boring.. LOL.

i thought i was the only one who hated the hobbit. lol. anyways, i've read all books, seen all the movies, so i'm safe.

Yes, I did read it best book in the universe.

I don't think she directly copied it, no, but (unfortunately) most of the typical fantasy authors got influenced a lot by Tolkien... I think it's impossible to read LoTR without being influenced by its ideas.
It's the basis that makes Rowling's work so different from Tolkien's - her books are based on wizardry, school life, friends, while Tolkien based everything on languages and further the regions and peoples using those languages.

But I think the thread was searching for similarities, not differences ^^

When I saw Shelob, it reminded me alot of Aragog, and when I saw the Dementors, they reminded me of the Nazgul. Most authors learn from the best, and Tolkein was one of the best fanasty/history (of ME) writters ever (that I know of), so I makes sense that JKR got some of the basics from Tolkein.

ONe similarity that hasn't been mentioned was the one I first noticed after view HPS and FotR was how Voldermort and Sauron were nearly the same: wizards (well, Sauron is a maiar, but close enough) gone bad. Both were in a weakened form and needed a way to return. Voldermort need the SS (as well as Harry's blood later in GoF) and Sauron needed the One Ring. Both charactures strike fear into the general population.

Some ppl are comparing Gandalf and Dumbledore, but I think the Gandalf in the Hobbit is more like Dumbledore: he's an advisor, he doesn't do much of the fighting, bit assists, like Dumbledore helps Harry.

actually i have, n i think that JK did not copy LoTR at all... of course i can't deny there r somethings that r similar... but i don't believe JK did it on purpose, well that's just my opinion

Ok, so to get it off the JK DID NOT COPY LOTR/YES SHE DID debate, how about we do some comaprisons with other Fantasy literature as well?

Shadowfax reminds me of the Companions in Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar - the most beautiful horses, strong and proud, who could run all day and night without tiring. However, the differences are that Shadowfax was a real horse. Companions are spirits in Horse Shape. Lackey also has a breed of horses reared by the Shin'a'in - these are real horses, as swift and powerful as Shadowfax, but they are the most ugly horses you will ever see!

i heard that christopher tolkien took her to courst and shes going to face a firing squad....

...that would b all over the news. and y would she face a firing squad 4 that reason?

cuz c. tolkein would do anything to proect his fathers works.

true...but a firing squad? she wouldnt b sentenced 2 death.

the potter pals, cant see a joke a mile off can they

i bet you wouldnt see a joke if it painted its penis luminous yellow and slapped you with it

Actually there wouldn't be any joke you could see

not if it hit you in the eye there wouldnt

well,for sheer complexity,LoTR is the way to go.In this case though,I don't care.I love stories with strong caracter development,where its foucused on the caracter,so i go with HP.I think LoTh is great and all,but its all story-baced.Wther book or movie,some of the original 9 don't even say 10 words to echother,thats just annoying.Thats just me though,a regular caracter junkie.So its HP for me

^^*looks around for Exa*

another one i've spotted.... bk 5 hp- the "Healers" in St Mungo's Hospital, & you know about the Healers in LotR

hmm...when I remember more...

well rowlings def gonna be shot

have any of you ever read artemis fowl??(or something like that)

Opinion is opinion

So do I, and imho there are numerous great characters in LoTR, though some of them are rather in the background - I don't think they have to chat endlessly to have character development.


Actually it's mostly language-based

But I'm glad that it isn't based on a single important and somehow special character because that's usually imo rather boring; LoTR is built on millenium-old (hi)story and development of the whole world; you're right, it's based on a world, not on a person.

grrr *bashes Exa*

you..... weren't....... supposed....... to........ agree..........

i dunno both include magic.darkness. so really in the own differnt ways they are good which makes it really hard to decide

I do not have to do what I'm supposed to do, do I

I didn't agree with the opinion,
Just with the fact that LoTR isn't based on a single hero-character
but on cooperation, friendship, a world.

thats so true .... but the movie does depend on frodo get the ring destroyed and harry potter just seems to have new probablms every yr

I think I may have to change the title to something less catchy... it is not a CONTEST but a COMPARISON... LotR and HP are both excellent, in my opinion...


btw, what is this LotH business? What on earth does H stand for? its not even near R on the keyboard...

lord of the (t)hings

obvously so one trying to type fast and not being able to do it

They both copied very old hat mythological themes but in different ways. There is no sign whatsoever that JKR copied Tolkein.

http://www.mugglenet.com/parallels.shtml <---- lots of parallels to be found

ARE U KIDDDDING ME??????????
hp is wwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy beter than lotr AND.... hp is cute, unlike that guy from lotr
look! isn't he absolutely hott?!

ok... thats all i had 2 say, by!

ARE U KIDDDDING ME??????????
hp is wwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy beter than lotr AND.... hp is cute, unlike that guy from lotr
isn't he absolutely hott?!

ok... thats all i had 2 say, by!

Cute guys doesn't make a movie good. And if that is the only thing you have to support HP then that is sad (not trying to insult you). LOTR's has more action, a better plot, and it is lengthier than HP, and the actors have more experience than the trio

PLOT SUMMARY: A dark wizard comes to power and threatens the world. He is then over come by an unlikely foe, looses his body, and his spirit hides in the forest. Years later, a young hero comes of age and realizes taht he, and he alone has the ability to stop this terrible threat. His best chance of doing so is to prevent the dark wizard from retrieving a small trinket that will return him to power.

Which series did I just summarize?? Can you tell??

There is no question JK copied JRRT. The question worth asking is "Does it matter?" She has written undeniably wonderful books. Who cares that she coppied someone.

because it conflicts with one's creativity

tru dat.

harry potter is sooo enjoyable though!