LotR Truth?

As a fan of the movie trilogy Lord of the Rings I decided to think about the "history" and facts behind the movies and books.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krqmf5oBDXk
This is the link to the video I was looking at to make me think about this subject.
The story it self was not the only thing that made me attracted to this video. What I saw in the video and study was that story took place in middle earth, fiction, and yet had so many references to real life and current times, as strange as it may seem.
Everything we think of is based off of things we seen, heard, and experienced. Through history we can see many people are influenced by others and our surroundings. The "ring" is probably representing the personality of addiction, influence, and change. 
The mixing of the history and mythology always pulled me because it was something that I always thought was a story but since it already happened it is somewhat true. 
There is a lesson in the back story of greed and obsession over things that bring about negative things. People are changed through these influences.
When it comes to my art I would like to show more of a human personality. 
When the ring comes into the world it spreads and leads a trail which I see us having the same situation in our world. Even in a place called the "Shire" in the books, a peaceful and calm place is still influenced. 
But I also like how in this story there is the character who is "not the hero type". I feel attracted to this character because he gives off a vibe as if he was a real person.
Subconsciously people do not think they are as special as a valiant hero in stories. The connections to history, the realism in personality and the placement was always something I liked in these books and in some art.