Monday, May 3, 2010

My analysis is over "The Hobbit" the prequel to the famous "Lord of the Rings". "The Hobbit" was the first book that Tolkien wrote that takes place in middle earth and tells the story of Bilbo Baggins. Bilbo is a hobbit, half sized humanoid creatures, that lives in the quiet town of The Shire. Bilbo is a simple living hobbit who dreams only of easy days smoking his tabacco and living the good life. This is all ruined when his humble home is ransacked by a dozen dwarfs, among them major character Thorin, and a wizard that goes by Gandalf the Grey. Bilbo is thrust into the dwarves journey to the Lonely Mountain. They are going to reclaim their rightful treasure which is being hoarded by the dragon Smaug. When Bilbo gets lost in the tunnels of the Lonely Mountain he comes across a magical ring and its rightful owner, Gollum. This is how the ring comes into play throughout "The Lord of the Rings". From here Bilbo follows the dwarves throughout their adventure meeting the elves in Mirkwood and the humans in Lake Town. When Bilbo finally returns to The Shire he is a changed Hobbit full of adventure and wonder. These are the experiences and lessons that he instills in his nephew, Frodo, that perpetuates all of the events in the following "Lord of the Rings".

Works Cited

-Tolkien J.R.R. The Hobbit, New York: Houghton Mifflin 1997 Print
-"About J.R.R. Tolkien", http://www.lord-of-the-rings.org/author.html,2009

The summary of Tolkien's major works can be summarized into two words: Middle Earth. Tolkien worked for over 40 years on creating a vast mythology built around Middle Earth and its inhabitants. The Hobbit, Fellowship of the Ring, Two Towers, Return of the King, The Silmarillion and more all surround the wonder of the Middle Earth. Tolkien's most noteable works is 'The Lord of the Rings', a novel broken into three parts, 'The Fellowship of the Ring', 'The Two Towers', and' The Return of the King' and its prequel 'The Hobbit'. This takes place during throughout the third age of Middle Earth and is the most popular of its history. This chronicals how a simple living hobbit, Frodo, attains the one ring of power and his and his friends journey to save middle earth from being taken over by Sauron. 'The Fellowship of the Ring' tells the story of Frodo's journey to Rivendel with a few of his hobbit friends, hoping to meet with Gandalf the wizard and decide what needs to be done with the ring. It is there that a council meets and decides that Frodo must take the ring to Mount Doom and destroy it. Many famous characters including Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas, as well as others, decide to accompany him and the fellowship of the ring is formed. During their journey the Fellowship breaks up and only Frodo and Sam are left to continue on to destroy the ring. The Two Towers focuses on two fronts. One follows Frodo and Sam as they continue to Mount Doom while the others follows the remaining members of the fellowship and their struggle against Sauron's grip over middle earth. To resist spoiling more, The Return of the King is the summary of the leading events.
Tolkien's books have created more than a cult following and many more books are considered to be major works by those that love the mythology of middle earth. The Silmarillion, The History of Middle Earth (containing 12 volumes), The Children of Hurin, and The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun all span Tolkien's vast world.

Works Cited

Rogers, Debra Webster. "J.R.R. Tolkien" In Twayne's English Authors Series Online, New York: G.K. Hall & Co. Online, 1999.

-"J.R.R. Tolkien", Encyclodeadia Britannica Online. 09 April 2010.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/598643/J-R-R-Tolkien