Millions of children flooded their bookstores to get the next The Lord of the Rings book in the 1950’s, and again in the late 90’s when Harry Potter came out. Two amazingly popular series from two completely different eras, by two very different authors (J. R. R. Tolkien and J. K. Rowling, respectively). People see The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter as unconnected, but there are many characteristics that they share, showing that Rowling might have been unconsciously influenced by Tolkien. Both of the protagonists have an old, bearded, and robed wizard for a mentor. The mentors also share many non-physical characteristics, including that they both have a “familiar” of sorts. Gandalf, from The Lord of the Rings, has Shadowfax, the Lord of all horses. Dumbledore, from Harry Potter, has the phoenix Fawkes. They are also similar in their knowledge and how they give it out. Dumbledore and Gandalf both know many secrets of their respective dark magic. Dumbledore was a father figure to Voldemort (then known as Thomas Riddle), and Gandalf knows all about the One Ring. They also only give that knowledge out when it’s absolutely necessary. …show more content…
They are both difficult to destroy, which is proven when it takes the entire series to get rid of them. The spirit of the antagonist (Sauron for the Ring and Voldemort for the horcruxes) is connected to them, in that neither can completely die until either the Ring or the horcruxes have been destroyed. Finally, when they’re worn, both make your thoughts much more malicious, and tend to turn the wearer against his or her