tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1483877654474162845.post8328464196759878311..comments2023-07-10T01:17:13.383+10:00Comments on Brona's Books: The Hobbit - Back Again!Bronahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11110584237325026052noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1483877654474162845.post-54678570161292366842018-10-16T09:24:43.375+11:002018-10-16T09:24:43.375+11:00I have finished The Hobbit in 7 hours, I was very ...I have finished The Hobbit in 7 hours, I was very eager to finish it. I might be doing a re-reading by the end of my Tolkien project, still, I have no idea how to encounter the death of my favorite dwarves all over again.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1483877654474162845.post-18820293341774770332017-03-01T21:32:53.428+11:002017-03-01T21:32:53.428+11:00That also matches how Frodo initially views Gandal...That also matches how Frodo initially views Gandalf in the beginning of LOTR - a master of firework displays and mysterious appearances! <br /><br />It's only as their journey progresses that he begins to appreciate all the stuff that goes on behind the scenes. Bilbo on the other hand, acknowledges Gandalf's extra-curricular activities, but doesn't care to look more deeply into any of it.<br /><br />I guess it's possible to have multiple reasons at play to explain the differences between the books - Tolkien's first book, child audience, Bilbo narrator, more peaceful times etc.<br />A childish, naive narrator can still reveal a lot via their ignorance (think Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird). Bilbo alludes to Gandalf's more serious purpose without realising he is doing so. We, the reader, also only 'see' it during a reread thanks to our foreknowledge of what's to come in LOTR.<br />Bronahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11110584237325026052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1483877654474162845.post-58827468299694739562017-02-28T13:43:06.141+11:002017-02-28T13:43:06.141+11:00"As far as the story goes though, I found tha..."As far as the story goes though, I found that the Gandalf we meet in <em>The Hobbit</em> is not the stately elder full of gravitas that we meet again in the LOTR. The Elves also seem to lack that serious-minded reverence that we admire so much later on."<br /><br />I agree that there is quite a change in perspective between the two works. <br /><br />One way to look at <em>The Hobbit</em> as compared to <em>The Lord of the Rings</em> is to see the former as written by Bilbo from his point of view and the latter as written by...someone else (no spoilers!). That would help explain the innocent and naive perspective in one, and the more mature perspective in the other. <br /><br />In fact, Tolkien himself supports this in "The Quest for Erebor" in <em>Unfinished Tales.</em> In this short remembrance, Gandalf explains exactly how he came to help Thorin in his quest and why he chose Bilbo for their company. It's a fascinating read for that alone, but Gandalf also explains that <em>The Hobbit</em> is written solely from Bilbo's point of view:<br /><br />"But you know how things went, at any rate as Bilbo saw them. The story would sound rather different, if I had written it. For one thing he did not realize at all how fatuous the Dwarves thought him, nor how angry they were with me. Thorin was much more indignant and contemptuous than he perceived. He was indeed contemptuous from the beginning, and thought that I planned the whole affair simply so as to make a mock of him. It was only the map and the key that saved the situation."<br /><br />I think Tolkien recognized his own change of tone from one book to the other and wrote "The Quest of Erebor" in part to explain it. The silliness of the elves and the light-heartedness of Gandalf can be attributed to Bilbo's naive outlook on life. <br />Nick Sengerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14747898603816382426noreply@blogger.com