Michael Foster (Tolkien scholar)
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Michael Foster (December 28, 1946 - April 12, 2023[1]), known as Mike Foster, was an emeritus professor of English and a Tolkien scholar. In 1978 he pioneered the teaching of Tolkien studies at university level.
Early life and education
[My students] wanted a class on Tolkien alone. So in 1977, ... I took a petition signed by fifteen students requesting such a course to my department chairman, and he agreed to schedule Lit. 116: Special Studies: J.R.R. Tolkien for the next term. Of course, only one of the fifteen who signed up showed up. But twenty others did, and the Tolkien course has continued at Illinois Central College since then, with the exception of four years at the end of the last century when it was cast into darkness and doom by a Balrog dean...
The four essays required for [the course cover] four approaches to the study of literature: analysis of a small section, examination of a possible literary source, evaluation of a critical study, and commentary on the evolution of a single character.
The principal advantage of a course centered on Tolkien, as opposed to, say, Shakespeare, is that many students have read all the author's major works...
Michael Alan Foster was born in Peoria, Illinois to Shirley Jane Hopkins and Claude Swadley Foster on 28 December 1946.[3] He was educated at St Bernard's School and Spalding High School, Peoria, Illinois.[3] He obtained his first degree in English and Journalism at Marquette University in 1968; while there his feature writing won the 1967 William Randolph Hearst Foundation Award.[3] That year he became a teacher at Spalding High School. He then took a Master's degree at Marquette.[4]
Career
In 1971, Foster joined the staff of the English department of Illinois Central College in Peoria, eventually becoming a professor there. In addition, he worked as a journalist for the Peoria Journal Star.[4][5] He taught at Illinois Central College until he retired in 2005.[6]
Personal life
On 14 June 1969, Foster married Joanne Weslowski in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They had two daughters.[3] He died in Peoria on 12 April 2023.[1][3]
Fantasy and Tolkien studies
While at Illinois Central College, Foster taught fantasy literature from 1974, and a special studies course focusing entirely on J. R. R. Tolkien from 1978.[6] This represented what in the context of sceptical attitudes was "a rare success" in the early history of Tolkien research;[7] Foster later documented his teaching approach on the course in "an appropriately anecdotal piece".[7][2]
Foster has published many papers and book reviews on English fantasy literature, including on the Inklings Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, and George Sayer, as well as on J. M. Barrie and G. K. Chesterton.[6][8]
Foster was a known Tolkien scholar;[9] the Washington Post described him as "somewhat of an authority on all things Tolkien".[10] In 1995 he became the North American representative of The Tolkien Society. He was on the Mythopoeic Society's Inklings scholarship committee.[5][11] The Illinois Community College Journalism Association's top award, The Mike Foster General Excellence Award, is named in his honor.[12]
References
- 1 2 Mason Funeral Home. "Obituary for Michael "Mike" A. Foster". Mason Funeral Home. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
- 1 2 Foster, Mike (2006). "Teaching Tolkien". In Hammond, Wayne G.; Scull, Christina (eds.). The Lord of the Rings, 1954-2004: Scholarship in Honor of Richard E. Blackwelder. Marquette University Press. pp. 257–266. ISBN 0-87462-018-X. OCLC 298788493.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Obituary: Michael A. "Mike" Foster". Peoria Journal Star. 2023. Archived from the original on 8 June 2023. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
- 1 2 Armstrong, Craig (10 November 2010). "Renaissance Man [Mike Foster]". Woodford Times.
- 1 2 "J.R.R. Tolkien expert to give free lecture today". Marquette University. 29 November 2010. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- 1 2 3 "Notes and Letters". Mythlore. 36 (1): 204. 2017.
- 1 2 Rosebury, Brian (2007). "[Review:] The Lord of the Rings 1954-2004: Scholarship in Honor of Richard E. Blackwelder". Tolkien Studies. 4 (1): 282–288. doi:10.1353/tks.2007.0028. S2CID 170979807.
- ↑ Croft, Janet Brennan (2023). "In Memoriam: Mike Foster". Mythlore. 42 (1). Article 16.
- ↑ Elder, Robert K.; Ryan, Maureen (7 December 2003). "Tolkien Truths". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ↑ Elder, Robert K. (27 December 2002). "Words From a Preacher of Hobbit". Washington Post.
- ↑ "Mike Foster". Christianity Today. 2003. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ↑ McClaskey, Stephanie (2023-04-29). "A Michael Foster Tribune". Harbinger Student Media. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
