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The book describes the protracted war between the domineering King Gorice of Witchland and the Lords of Demonland in an imaginary world that appears mainly Medieval and partly reminiscent of Norse Saga s. A half-finished framing story describes this world as Mercury , though it is clearly a fantasy version of Earth, a "secondary-world." At a number of points the characters refer to their land as Middle Earth , used here in its original sense of "the known world," and the gods worshipped have the names of deities from Greek Mythology . The framing device disappears after the second chapter, and Eddison never refers to it again. As an early and ambitious High Fantasy , it invites comparison with J. R. R. Tolkien 's '' Lord Of The Rings '' (which it predates). Whereas Tolkien invented a backdrop of cultures, histories and languages, in ''The Worm Ouroboros'' it is the prose style that is central. It is arguably one of the more convincing examples of mock- Archaic high Diction ; as a translator of old Norse sagas and a connoisseur of Medieval and Renaissance poetry, Eddison had the required scholarship. While Eddison relishes exotic personal and place names, he seems to have given little thought to plausible Etymology and consistency, unlike Tolkien's layers of invented languages. On the other hand, Tolkien's prose style may seem pedestrian in comparison to Eddison's: Eddison seems far less accessible to most readers. The morality of the tale sharply contrasts with Tolkien's heroism of the common man in a fight against Evil and C. S. Lewis 's Christian Allegory . The protagonists, the four Lords of Demonland, are notable for their loyalty and their sense of fair play. Nonetheless, theirs is chiefly a warrior ethic of seeking glory in battle (and bragging about it in frequent and resonant speeches). Their antagonists are, for the most part, noble and worthy opponents even if their methods are less fair. As a further complication, the most complex and sympathetic character, Lord Gro, is a serial traitor, who is however motivated by an entirely unselfish, Aesthetic sense of the nobility of failure and the inevitability of decay. One can arguably detect echoes of Nietzsche 's '' Also Sprach Zarathustra '' in this worldview. The title of the book refers to Ouroboros , the snake or dragon that swallows its own tail. The novel starts with an ambassador from Witchland arriving to treat with the Demon lords, who defy him starting a war. The contest starts with a wrestling match between the Demon Goldry Bluszco and the king of Witchland Gorice XI, who is killed. The successor Gorice XII, a re-incarnation, is a sorcerer and, with the help of Gro, contrives the removal of Goldry to a distant and inaccessible mountain. The story proceeds with the attempt of the Demons Juss and Brandoch Daha to rescue Goldry and then the conquest of Demonland by the Witches. The rescue fails, but eventually Demonland is freed and a second attempt does succeed. Gro has changed sides, and this is crucial when Gorice XII fails and dies in further sorcery. It ends with the Demons triumphant, but mourning because there are no more enemies worthy of their heroism, no more great deeds to perform. The Demon Lord Juss begs Queen Sophonisba, the Fosterling of the Gods, for "youth for ever, and war; and unwaning strength and skill in arms ... our great enemies alive and whole again". With a blare of trumpets, an ambassador from Witchland arrives, "craving present audience", and the story starts over again. It should be pointed out that the recurrence is not exact; the situation is not exactly that of the opening, the restored king of Witchland is now Gorice XII, and minor Demons and their allies killed in the war are not revived; but we are in no doubt that a sequel, had it been written, would have continued Eddison's vision in the same style. The Worm Ouroboros is now in the Public Domain , including the movie rights. However Hollywood has not yet shown any interest in a film version. EXTERNAL LINKS
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