J.R.R. Tolkien delivered the lecture that became On Fairy-Stories on 8 March 1939.
The lecture was given at the University of St Andrews as the Andrew Lang Lecture. Tolkien used it to examine what fairy stories are, why people value them, and what kinds of meaning they can offer. The lecture later became the influential essay On Fairy-Stories.
In the essay, Tolkien discusses concepts including fantasy, recovery, escape, and consolation. He also argues that fairy stories are not merely children’s entertainment and can present profound truths through imaginative worlds. His account of “eucatastrophe,” a sudden joyful turn, is especially important to his theory of storytelling.
The essay’s publication history can create confusion. It was first printed in Essays Presented to Charles Williams in 1947 and later appeared in expanded collections. The date 8 March 1939 identifies the original lecture, not the later book publication.