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You are visiting a part of
-=[RedBookofWestmarch]=-
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~THE
HOBBIT: BACKGROUND & SUMMARY~
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This page
is concerned with Tolkien's first bestseller, "The Hobbit".
It was first published in 1937 by George Allen and Unwin Publishers.
It tells the miraculous story of the Hobbit Bilbo Baggins who
travels east to steal a treasure from Smaug, a terrible dragon.
NAME:
The Hobbit, or there and back again
AUTHOR:
J.R.R. Tolkien
FIRST
PUBLISHED:
21-09-1937
PUBLISHER:
George Allen and Unwin
WORDS:
95,337 excl. title and foreword
ISBN:
0-395-47690-9
The idea for
the the Hobbit was produced in a peculiar way. According to his
own account, one day, when Tolkien was engaged in the soul-destroying
task of marking examination papers, he discovered that one candidate
had left one page of an answer-book blank. On this page, moved
by who knows what anarchic daemon, he wrote "In a hole in the
ground there lived a Hobbit". In typical Tolkien fashion, he then
decided he needed to find out what a Hobbit was, what sort of
a hole it lived in, why it lived in a hole, etc. From this investigation
grew a tale that he told to his younger children, and even passed
round.
In 1936 an
incomplete typescript of it came into the hands of Susan Dagnall,
an employee of the publishing firm of George Allen and Unwin (merged
in 1990 with HarperCollins). She asked Tolkien to finish it, and
presented the complete story to Stanley Unwin, the then Chairman
of the firm. He tried it out on his 10-year old son Rayner, who
wrote an approving report, and it was published as The Hobbit
in 1937. It immediately scored a success, and has not been out
of especially children's recommended reading lists ever since.(1)
Tolkien himself
about the hobbit (in a NYTimes interview, 1967):
""The Hobbit" wasn't written for children, and it certainly
wasn't done just for the amusement of Tolkien's three sons and
one daughter, as is generally reported. "That's all sob stuff.
No, of course, I didn't. If you're a youngish man and you don't
want to be made fun of, you say you're writing for children. At
any rate, children are your immediate audience and you write or
tell them stories, for which they are mildly grateful: long rambling
stories at bedtime.
"'The Hobbit' was written in what I should now regard as bad style,
as if one were talking to children. There's nothing my children
loathed more. They taught me a lesson. Anything that in any way
marked out 'The Hobbit' as for children instead of just for people,
they disliked-instinctively. I did too, now that I think about
it. All this 'I won't tell you any more, you think about it' stuff.
Oh no, they loathe it; it's awful."
Since 1937,
the Hobbit has been reprinted several times, and the book has
been translated into over 20 languages. Several editions exist,
among which one with illustrations by Alan Lee (1997, HarperCollins)
and a luxurious edition, bound in black leather with a golden
dragon on it (HarperCollins, special edition, 1000 reprints).
(1)
source: David Doughan: Who was Tolkien?
**-spoiler
alert-**
Do
not read below if you plan to read the Hobbit
|
~
THE HOBBIT, or there and back again ~
"In a
hole in the ground lived a hobbit." This hobbit was Mr. Bilbo
Baggins, a hobbit of esteemed descent. On a day, his hole
(in Hobbiton, the Shire), was visited by the wizard Gandalf.
They agreed to meet Wednesday. To his surprise, on Wednesday,
Bilbo is visited not only by Gandalf, but also by 13 dwarves.
Of them, Thorin Oakenshield, is a dwarf of particular importance.
He is the heir of the Kings of the dwarven realm "Erebor",
the Lonely Mountain. Years ago, Smaug the Terrible,
a giant dragon, conquered Erebor, destroying most of its inhabitants
and collecting all treasures. Thorin was one of the few who managed
to escape. Now, Thorin and his companions plan to regain the treasures
taken from them. They know of a secret entrance to the Lonely
Mountain, to which Gandalf provides a key. The only thing they
need is a burglar. That is where Bilbo comes to play. To
his surprise (and scaring the wits out of him) he is suggested
by Gandalf to be the burglar. Although Bilbo protests, he is set
on a journey east the next day.
On their way
east, they encounter 3 trolls, which are known to be dangerous
creatures. Bilbo wants to prove his capabilities as a burglar,
but all 13 dwarves end up being captured by the trolls. Gandalf
eventually saves them all by causing the trolls to argue until
dawn, after which they are turned into stone. They find some Troll
treasure, of which Bilbo takes a small sword. This sword is "Sting".
Sting has magical properties, because it glows with a faint blue
light when Goblins are around. They continue their journey and
find a place to rest at Rivendell, where Elrond
the Half-Elf reigns. Elrond discovers secret silver letters (moon
letters) on a map Thorin has of Erebor, claiming: "Stand
by the gray stone when the thrush knocks and the the setting sun
with the last light of Durin's Day will shine upon the keyhole".
After their
visit to Rivendell, they continue their journey over the great
mountains. They end up being captured by the Goblins living
under the mountains. Again, Gandalf saves the company. On their
rush out, Bilbo is lost in the caves.
In the dark
caves under the great mountains, Bilbo, by chance, puts his hand
onto a small golden ring. He picks it up and slides it
into his pocket. In these caves, a creature named Gollum
lives. He has a magic ring which makes him invisible. Bilbo is
lost onto the very deepest cave, where the creature Gollum lives.
They start a riddle game (just to win time, because Gollum cannot
find his ring!). They ask each other riddles until Bilbo asks
(not knowing what to ask next): "What do I have in my pocket?"
Gollum cannot guess the answer and Bilbo wins the game. Too late
Gollum realizes that Bilbo has his ring (his "precioussss")
in his pocket. In anger Gollum chases Bilbo, but he cannot see
him, because Bilbo is wearing the magic ring. Hunting for Bilbo,
Gollum shows Bilbo the way out and Bilbo is reunited with his
friends.
They travel
forth and after being attacked by Goblins and Wargs (wolves),
the are saved by the Eagles. The venture forth to meet Beorn,
a strange human who can shapechange into a bear. Beorn provides
them with food and other supplies. Arriving at the borders of
Mirkwood, Gandalf leaves the company "to pay attention to
his own business". The company of 14 enters Mirkwood and
is attacked by giant spiders. Eventually, all but Bilbo are captured
by the Elves of Mirkwood, who are not fond of dwarves.
By smart play and his magic ring, Bilbo manages to free the dwarves
by putting them into wooden barrels, which are used for wine transport
by river. They end up in Esgaroth, a place built on long
stakes in the water, inhabited by men.
They travel
forth until they reach the Lonely Mountain. They find the secret
entrance (a lark reveals the keyhole on Durin's day (the Dwarf
new-year)), and Bilbo enters Erebor. He locates Smaug the
dragon, who is sleeping, and steals some treasure. Smaug discovers
some of his treasure is lost and is furious. In his anger, he
flies to Esgaroth, meaning to destroy the town. Fortunately, Bard,
a brave leader from Esgaroth, shoots Smaug from the sky with his
mighty bow..
Meanwhile,
the dwarves have regained control over Erebor. Drawn by mythical
treasure, several groups camp before the doors of Erebor: Dwarves,
coming to aid Thorin, and Men, claiming their part of the
treasure, because they have killed Smaug. Bilbo ends up stealing
the famous Arkenstone from Erebor. Because he wants to put and
end to the argue, he hands the stone to the men of Esgaroth. Just
before a battle is to break loose, news is that a large army of
Goblins and Wargs is approaching. Dwarves and Men team up to beat
this host in the Battle of the Five Armies. At the same
time, Gandalf and other members of the White Council, chase the
Evil Wizard from Dol Guldur. He is the one who planned
the attack (actually, this Wizard is Sauron).
All ends well
and Bilbo returns with bags of gold to Hobbiton, where the other
hobbits thought Bilbo had been lost. His close-to-kin relatives
the Sacksville-Bagginses had already claimed his beautiful hole
at Bag's End. But all ends well and Bilbo regains his home and
lives happily for a long time.
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This
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