Clearly, a lot the inspiration for Tolkien's unusual aesthetic comes from his love affair with the rustic English countryside. But that was hollowing out in the early 20th century because farming was becoming unprofitable and people were surging into the cities. There are no cities to go to in Eriador.
It's also an exaggerated version of the early Dark Ages, when settled farmland went back to wilderness and cities dwindled into villages. Europe was never as desolate as Eriador, of course, but there was a general drop in population and social organization, and the perceived level of both was probably worse than the actuality. The idea of widely-scattered settlements with long distances between them (and half-understood remnants of an old high culture dotting the landscape) fits what I know of Beowulf, for example.
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momijizukamori
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Date: 2004-01-02 02:38 pm (UTC)It's also an exaggerated version of the early Dark Ages, when settled farmland went back to wilderness and cities dwindled into villages. Europe was never as desolate as Eriador, of course, but there was a general drop in population and social organization, and the perceived level of both was probably worse than the actuality. The idea of widely-scattered settlements with long distances between them (and half-understood remnants of an old high culture dotting the landscape) fits what I know of Beowulf, for example.