Be sure to get as far into Chapter Two as possible so we can discuss the beginning of the work on Thursday. Hopefully you'll find it a refreshing change from the Old/Middle English lit we've been reading, while also reminding you of many of the themes and characters of those works. Remember, too, that The Hobbit is in many ways a Prologue to this book, so you'll see many of the same characters here, and many ideas just hinted at there come to fruition in the LOTR trilogy (such as Gollum, the Ring, the Necromancer, etc.).
Consider some of the following as you read...
* How does Tolkien in the Prologue try to extend the world of The Hobbit into this new world? How is he helping us read/examine the earlier work in a more mythical light?
* Why do we get so much historical information about hobbits in the Prologue? Why didn't he mention any of this in the earlier book, where it might have been even more appropriate?
* Why might the hobbits be a very Anglo-Saxon race, meaning that their history echoes many ideas and themes we've seen in Anglo-Saxon poetry?
* How does Tolkien suggest that The Hobbit is not the story, but a story of Bilbo's adventures? What might this suggest about the LOTR as a whole?
* How do the hobbits view Gandalf and much of the outside world? Related to this, why might it be important to begin Tolkien's story here, rather than in a more enchanted place among the elves, dwarves, etc.?
* What is Bilbo's intention at his 111th birthday party? Why does he invite all his relatives, close and distant, to view his disappearance?
* What made Gandalf suspicious about Bilbo's behavior and activities? How might this be consistent with what we read in The Hobbit as well?
* How does Frodo contrast with Bilbo? Are they similar kinds of Hobbits? Is Frodo starting out where Bilbo began in the earlier book?
No comments:
Post a Comment