The act of including elves, dwarves and hobbits as player character races in White Box pretty well guarantees gamers will use the rules to play in settings inspired by Middle Earth. However, as Gary Gygax and others at TSR repeatedly point out, their game is not designed to play Middle Earth. White Box draws from a number of sources for inspiration and is really its own thing. The astute observer will notice a monster here and there drawn from a specific source, or a character class inspired by certain literary characters, but the system aims at supporting play using many different styles rather than imitating just one source such as Prof. Tolkien's Middle Earth. Most obviously the magic using classes of Cleric and Magic User seem out of place in any version of Middle Earth.
The game system is malleable and this isn't to say that with the appropriate "fixes" and modifications an inspired referee cannot use the basic system to run a game or campaign set in some version of Middle Earth. I have done just so myself several times with varying degrees of success. It does take some work. Any version of Middle Earth that a referee may run using any rules is subject to that referee's interpretation of the source material (your Middle Earth will vary). Some may wish to follow canon more closely than others and some will emphasize one aspect over another. Frequently gamers tone down the use of magic by players or abandon it altogether thereby portraying Middle Earth as a very Low-Magic setting. This is not my personal preference, however, as I see Middle earth as a very magical place.
In some ways the popularity of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings has done Middle Earth a disservice. Familiarity removes some of the wonder, the magic if you will. The made-for-TV cartoons, while delightful in many ways, rather "pulls the fangs" of Prof. Tolkien's creation by focusing on the cuteness of hobbits. There are many horrors present in Middle Earth (things that will eat you body and soul) and I tend to see it as a "grim and perilous" place, but perhaps that is my personal preference. Whether one focuses on the shire, pipe weed, birthday parties and the like or on darker aspects such as undead wraiths, cannibalistic orcs and corruption is to some degree a matter of perspective. Both are present along with much more.
The magic of Middle Earth takes on many forms. The immortal lands themselves and the beings that inhabit those realms, the dark and powerful forces, those who weave subtle magics for good or ill and the casters of spells themselves are all evidence of the prevalence of magic. The Istari, or wizards like Gandalf, are Maiar, immortal spirits sent to watch over and protect the mortal races. Other spirits are aligned with the Shadow such as Shelob the spider and Balrog. The ring witches are practitioners of dark magic who follow the Shadow. The first-born elves sing their magical song and those who have seen the light of the west are filled with it and can shine forth as magic. The dwarves can weave magic and along with elves produced many of the magical items that exist in Middle Earth. Even men have some magic power, especially Numenoreans - though it is often used for evil. The Steward, Denethor, seems to have some ability to see the future and Aragorn may have some skill in magical healing. Wormtongue may have learned some enchantment at the feet of his master, Saruman. In most cases the use of magic in Middle Earth is subtle by White Box standards which bases its magic system more on the dramatic effects of the Dying Earth (Jack Vance) sources.
White Box uses a modular mix of various mechanics for its individual parts and I personally favor a major redesign of the White Box magic system for use with Middle Earth, but a fairly simple modification can be a quick work-around. By treating divine magic as the "white magic" of elves and wizards, perhaps with a few custom spells added into the mix, and Magic User spells as "black magic" learned at the feet of the Dark One, a reasonable version of Middle Earth can be played. I feel a corruption mechanic is in order when playing Middle Earth to account for the weight of the Shadow which falls upon those who either defy the darkness or embrace it. The key is to not try and reproduce the stories told in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Develop your own Middle Earth tales.
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