That's usually described as distributism, a Catholic-libertarian kind of ideology, and I'm not sure how really progressive it is.

In the sense that it's directed at implementing Catholic ideas of moral society - it is progressive (like other inherently Christian utopias directed at making the world into something more virtuous than it was before), but definitely not classist.

Ah, also it's very explicitly "capitalist", but, if we use the word "socialist" in its widest possible sense, it's also that. Very much against common property and central regulation, but also very much for cooperatives, unions and all kinds of social activity to help each other.

Tolkiens humor is best described as subtle but mighty imo. I still chuckle a bit when thinking about the conversation between Bilbo and Gandalf at the beginning of the Hobbit. And even the prelude to the story has funny little details as well as the anecdote by Gandalf of how Golf was invented later on