Remembering Akiko Tanaka

“Remembering Akiko Tanaka” by Zhujun Wu Editor’s note: Akiko Tanaka was the Japanese translator of The Lord of the Rings and is the inspiration for this issue of Hivemind Magazine. The following is an original biography written by a student whose life was directly impacted by Tanaka-sensei’s life as a translator, cultural ambassador, and family…

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Tolkien in China

“Tolkien in China” by Jialuo Yu The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien is undoubtedly one of the foremost influences on modern Western fantasy literature. However, this work only became well-known in China from the beginning of the twenty-first century with the release of the Lord of the Rings films (2001-2003) and the publication…

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Interview with Ken Liu

“Interview with Ken Liu” by Amanda Weiss HIVEMIND Magazine spoke with Ken Liu about his piece in our February 2024 issue, “None Owns the Air,” as well as his thoughts on J.R.R. Tolkien and fantasy literature. HIVEMIND: During our November symposium at Georgia Tech, you spoke about Tolkien’s literary intent, and especially the ways in…

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Interview with Ploi Pirapokin

“Interview with Ploi Pirapokin” by Amanda Weiss HIVEMIND Magazine spoke with author Ploi Pirapokin about her short story in our February 2024 issue, “IF YOU ASK ME, I SHALL COME.” HIVEMIND: What were some of your inspirations for this piece? What aspects of Tolkien’s work were you responding to in this story? Ploi Pirapokin: Tolkien’s…

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Editorial 2.2

“Editorial 2.2” by Amanda Weiss Dear Reader, Welcome to our fourth issue, “Tolkien in Asia.” This issue was born in my Vertifically Integrated Project, a lab centered on the study of East Asian Media. In fall of 2022, student Zhujun Wu mentioned that she had been born in Tokyo, where she used to live on…

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