J.R.R. Tolkien in his essay “On Fairy Stories,” makes use of the analogy of a smudged window, as his version of Plato’s cave, to illustrate the notion of universal truth; that our vision can become distorted or smudged. He saw the use of fantasy of tapping into the well-spring of universal religious truths about the human condition, well-illustrated by his epic tale, The Lord of the Rings. Literature can help clear the window to truth.
The extract below discusses Tolkien’s story, "The Fall of Numenor,” which tells the tale of how a great people can become corrupted by the lust for power and things that they were not meant to have, leading to civilisation collapse. There is that theme as well in The Lord of the Rings, with the rings of power, and the one ring to rule them all, corrupting all men who mange to come into possession of it. Such literature provides powerful metaphors for conservatives to ponder, and of more impact than a mere essay or political treatise, as important as these documents are.