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About the Author

December 1, 2008 admin 0

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born January 3, 1892, in Bloemfontein, South Africa, where his father was a bank manager. After his father’s death, four-year-old […]

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Overview

December 1, 2008 admin 0

In the fantasy world of Middle-earth, Tolkien has created many echoes of the “real” world. Familiar human traits, both good and bad, abound in the […]

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Setting

December 1, 2008 admin 0

The story begins and ends in The Shire, in the Village of Hobbiton, a completely imaginary place which resembles a medieval English country village unspoiled […]

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Themes and Characters

December 1, 2008 admin 0

The hero of The Hobbit is Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit who, at the age of 50, has never had an adventure and who asserts that […]

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Literary Qualities

December 1, 2008 admin 0

Tolkien’s prose style tries to approximate the spoken word. He uses a variety of devices to achieve this storyteller’s style: parenthetical and exclamatory remarks, direct […]

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Social Sensitivity

December 1, 2008 admin 0

Although there is violence in several sections of The Hobbit, it does not become central to the plot. Both the trolls and the giant spiders […]

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Topics for Discussion

December 1, 2008 admin 0

1. Early in the first chapter the narrator comments on Bilbo’s parents. What is the significance of the references to his “Tookishness” in this chapter […]

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Related Titles

November 30, 2008 admin 0

Tolkien followed The Hobbit with a three-volume sequel, The Lord of the Rings. This trilogy is far more serious in tone and more complex in […]