The Fellowship of the Ring Book 1: Chapter 1-2 Summary/Review

Summary

Chapter 1

Frodo Baggins

It has been many years since Bilbo's epic journey with the dwarves and a wizard towards the Misty Mountains. Bilbo Baggins is now the most famous hobbit in Hobbiton because of the stories and wealth he brought back. He recieves visits from the elves, dwarves, and his old wizard friend, Gandalf, in his hobbit hole, Bag End. However, Bilbo Baggins, strangely hasn't aged at all after all those years. Bilbo is having his 111th birthday and invited many hobbits as well as his old friend, Gandalf. Bilbo also takes care of his orphaned cousin, Frodo Baggins. In the party, Bilbo announces that he is leaving to explore outside the Shire, and he uses his ring to sneak away back to his home. Gandalf approaches Bilbo and tells him that Bilbo should leave the ring. Bilbo at first is reluctant, even thrashing at Gandalf, but he eventually gives in. Bilbo drops the ring and leaves on a adventure with three dwarf companions. Frodo comes into Bag End and Gandalf tells him that Bilbo left the ring for Frodo. However, Gandalf also warns Frodo to NEVER use the ring and keep it a secret.

Chapter 2

17 years had passed since Gandalf's warning and Frodo Baggins is nearly fifty years old. He hears odd rumors about an ancient evil power growing in the land of Mordor as well as tales about orcs, trolls, and other evil creatures. Gandalf suddenly returns realizing that the ring Bilbo left behind for Frodo is more powerful than he thought. The ring is one of the Rings of Power created by Elven-smiths ages ago. He tells Frodo about it and proves it by throwing the ring into the fire. When he retrieves the ring from the flames, it is cooled to the touch. Then letters of Mordor appear on the ring. It reads...

The One Ring

"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them."

Gandalf informs Frodo that the ring once belongs to the Dark Lord, Sauron. The ring grants Sauron an immense amount of power as well as control over the other Great Rings. Long ago, 3 rings were made by the elves, 7 from the dwarves, and 9 from humans. Sauron used the ring and nearly conquered all of Middle Earth. He was stopped when his finger wearing the ring was chopped off by the son of a Westernesse king, Isildur. Isildur took the ring for himself but was later killed by the Orcs. The One Ring was lost in the Great River where it wouldn't be found until many year later by a young boy from a Hobbit-like race named Déagol. Sméagol was next to Déagol wanted the ring as a birthday present.

 When Déagol refused, Sméagol killed him. Sméagol discovered that the ring grants the wearer invisibility and he was later shunned by his family for the thievery and spying he did. Sméagol became a miserable creature. That creature is the same creature as Gollum and the ring wouldn't be stolen again until a young Bilbo Baggins arrived. Gandalf knows all of this because after Bilbo's birthday, he went to find Gollum. His only mistake was letting Gollum go who ran toward Sauron. Sauron is now aware about his One Ring is in the Shire, particularly to the name Baggins, and he will do anything to retrieve his ring back.

Review

I really enjoyed how Tolkien explained the mystery behind the ring that Bilbo found. The fact that the One Ring also has the power to control the other Great Rings is mind blowing. Tolkien also introduces a new conflict, Sauron, who owns the ring that Bilbo left behind. This ring in The Hobbit may look like any other magic ring, but it is actually an evil artifact. The ring makes us curious and wonder what exactly is this ring and what kind of role will it play throughout the story. We also can wonder if the ring effects will also affect Frodo Baggins throughout the story. The ring also has a lot of power. We know this because of its ability to control other rings which can explain why Isildur, Gollum, and Bilbo had a hard time giving it up. What is really surprising is that Bilbo's will was strong enough to abandon the ring. This proves that some people are able to overcome the ring's powers.

Introducing "The Lord of the Rings" and The Fellowship of the Ring: Prologue Summary/Review

Introduction

After Tolkien wrote The Hobbit, his publishers asked him to create a sequel. This sequel is The Lord of the Rings. The novel itself was written so  that it was separated into 3 sections. They are The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King. Lord of the Rings continues after 100 years from Bilbo's return from his epic journey to the Misty Mountains. This novel has been highly approved by many readers and was the greatest book in poll run by major British booksellers in 1997. This book's medieval places its characters and its readers on a collision course with modern moral dilemmas of knowledge and power.

Prologue

Summary

The novel reintroduces the hobbits and how they love the countryside. The hobbits are beings who are short, curly-haired, and have hair on their feet. Hobbits are also known to have a light feet and are able to sneak into places really quietly. The prologue also reveals how much has changed in Middle-Earth and the Third Age is no more. Hobbits have also remained entirely on the margins of historical events that have occurred since their migration. The prologue reintroduces Bilbo Baggins who is well-known throughout the world and is now an old hobbit. Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who went on a journey with several dwarves and a wizard to the Misty Mountains. During the journey, he encounter a being who calls himself Gollum. Gollum is obsessed with a ring which Bilbo steals and accidentally discovers that wearing the ring grants its user to become invisible. After the journey, Bilbo wrote his stories, but Gandalf was skeptical about Bilbo's ring. He later questions Bilbo who reveals the truth.

Review

Hobbits have not changed since The Hobbit, they still don't wear shoes because of their rough skin on their feet and they enjoy the pleasures of living in their hobbit holes. I also spot that the confrontation between Bilo and Gollum as well as the the mysterious invisibility ring will play a central role throughout The Lord of the Rings. Bilbo believes in simple deeds and he isn't used to verbal complexity that will determined his life. Miraculously, Bilbo was able to escape his doom by asking a straightforward riddle "What have I got in my pocket?" which stumps Gollum because it was so simple. It is a riddle after all and Gollum was not able to solve it. This eventually ends to Bilbo's success. Overall, I am excited on what will happen in The Lord of the Rings and how everything will turn out.

The Hobbit Chapter 19 Summary/Review

The Last Stage

Summary

Bilbo returns with his share of treasure

Bilbo and Gandalf are riding on their ponies back toward Bilbo's homeland. Bilbo can still hear the wood-elves singing and several wood-elves revealed themselves and led them to the house of Elfrond.  From there, Gandalf shared stories to the elves and his old friend Elfrond about their epic adventure through the Misty Mountains. Bilbo remained quiet and learned that the reason Gandalf left the company was to attend a meeting with the other white wizards. He helped participate with the good wizards on driving out the Necromancer from his dark hold in Mirkwood. Gandalf tells Elfrond that the dark magic user will not be around anymore and that peace will be restored. Bilbo and Gandalf spends the night in Elfrond's and they later departed saying goodbye to Elfrond. They dug up several more gold and other treasures that the trolls hid when the company first passed through here. They filled their bags with gold and walked the whole way back. Bilbo has changed a lot especially

when he stopped and sang about his journey with the dwarves and Gandalf.

"Gandalf looked at him. “My dear Bilbo!” he said. “Something is the matter with you! You are not the hobbit that you were.”

Gandalf tells Bilbo that he is no longer the hobbit Bilbo once was. The journey changed Bilbo from the hobbit who loved the comfort of home to the the more experience hobbit that slay Giant-Spiders and experienced a huge battle. Gandalf and Bilbo sees hobbits in the middle of holding an auction on the presumably believed deceased Bilbo. Bilbo had to spend a lot to regain his furniture. Bilbo also lost his reputation because the adventure changed him. The elves, wizards, and dwarves who came to visit Bilbo respected him, but the his neighboring hobbits didn't except his relatives from the Took side. One day, Gandalf and Balin came to visit Bilbo. Bilbo openly invited them in and they share stories. Bard has refunded Lake Town and the friendship between humans, dwarves, and elves is still strong as ever.

Bilbo's stuff is being auctioned

Review

Bilbo has changed a lot from the journey. Before, he loved the comfort of his home and would stay in there. The journey to the Misty Mountains with the dwarves allowed Bilbo to overcome that personality. This personality was replaced with a more adventurous and courage. Bilbo also played a key role throughout the book. If Bilbo had not agreed to join with the dwarves, the dwarves would have died throughout the journey, Smaug would never have been killed, the treasure would never be reclaimed, the goblins will still be roaming in the Misty Mountains, and the renew alliance between dwarves, humans, and elves will never happen. Even Gandalf was surprised because he never foreseen the importance of Bilbo's role in the journey. 

I think that this change can somewhat reflect Tolkien's experience after the Great War. As I have repeated many times, Tolkien was part of the British army during World War I. And like most veterans of the war, Tolkien lifestyle was completely changed. He must have known that the war changed him. So he incorporated the same change on Bilbo's experience of his adventure.

I think that his mother's Took side allowed Bilbo to continue on and not give up through out the journey. The Tooks were known for the only hobbit family who loved adventures and had some desires to seek them. Bilbo Baggins is a Took and a Baggins, but his personality was forever changed into a Took's. This will also explain why the other hobbits (except the Tooks) never believe in Bilbo because they were too comfortable in their homes and didn't really want to go out. Bilbo's journey with the dwarves has finally came to an end.

Overall, The Hobbit is a great book to read. I give it a 10/10 and hope that people who haven't read this book actually try it out.

Battle of Five Armies Review

Review

Bilbo's little betrayal shows the uniqueness of the story compare to other mythological and legend literature. In most epic literature, loyalty to the leader are one of the paramount virtues, but Bilbo is different. Bilbo makes a independent moral choice because he believes of a greater outcome rather than Thorin's ideals.

A lot of things happen during the Battle of Five Armies. A couple major characters from the company died against the forces of evil. In this case, the evil forces are the goblins and the Wargs. I think that Tolkien created this major battle to reflect World War I. World War I was a war between six major European powers who separate into 2 alliances. The Triple Entente (Britain, France, and Russia) and The Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy). For Tolkien, he uses the dragons, goblins, and other creatures from European mythology to reflect how many people sees them as the evil creatures in stories. He shows that the humans, elves, and dwarves have to unite together to protect each other which also recalls how the three were peaceful neighbors who worked together and helped each other.

During the Battle of Five Armies, the eagles enter the battlefield. The eagle could also reflect the US entering the Great War because in The Hobbit, the eagles arrived into the battlefield when the forces of good were struggling against the forces of evil. The eagles also represent the one great and pure race who wouldn't fight for gold, but the goblin's involvement brings out their cry for good. They came down the mountaintops in large numbers and helped change the tide of the battle. The Battle of Five Armies also shows the power of nature. Even though evil can be powerful, the essential nature of the world is good.

Thorin's dying breath was to show his regrets for greed corrupting him and that he now recognizes the value of race like the hobbits (more particularly towards Bilbo) which he had contempt in the beginning of the book.

 "If more of us values food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world." 

This quote from Thorin talks about that there should be more people like Bilbo who had these qualities in the beginning of the book. The Battle of Five Armies was a huge and epic battle that helped reunite the neighboring forces of good. This battle also showed some understanding of the importance of other races which Thorin was able to recognize and respect before he died. Overall, I really thought that The Battle of Five Armies was an epic battle that allowed races to coexist with one another.