Chapter 1: A Long Expected Party pt 1

This is the first post in what promises to be a riveting and exceptionally geeky exploration of Tolkien's legendarium. I'll be tinkering with the format as we go, but please leave comments below on parts you find interesting and would like me to expand on, or simply areas you enjoyed.

Green Hill Country by Ted Nasmith

The Lord of the Rings begins as any story worth telling does: with an epic party. I won't go into terrible detail about the plot narrative as surely most of my readers are familiar with that (check out this wonderful resource if you want a refresher. It's great.) Instead, I will explore a few things I found interesting and worth further commentary. I will also discuss points where the movies left out details or portrayed events differently. I do this because most of my generation encountered the movies first and then read the books and they, probably justifiably, have a strong imprint of what they remember which isn't always what the books intended.

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The chapter starts with an introduction to Mr. Bilbo Baggins, a figure well-known throughout the Shire, and indeed, one of the more globally famous Tolkien characters. These pages of introduction tell us quite a bit about the Hobbits and what we can expect from our protagonists throughout the tale.

Theme 1: Appearance

The first paragraph is describing how Bilbo is seen by others throughout the Shire. Major background plot (revolving around the events of The Hobbit) is explained over pints of ale at the Gaffer's Ivy Bush Inn.Similarly, many Hobbits' derived their own self-worth on their appearance to others. Sam's father, the Gaffer, takes great pride in his belief that he is the best gardener in the Shire. Sure, others say it, but no one says it louder than the Gaffer which must make it mostly true in a Hobbit's eye.

Additionally, gossiping and whispering are favorite pastimes of Hobbits young and old. Not in a scheming, plotting sort of way that leads to any sort of action, but in a "huh, ever wonder about this?" sort of way. Notable, Bilbo's gratuitous wealth is the subject of many conversations and each Hobbit about the tavern has his own theory over what his treasure entails and how he acquired it. When Bilbo disappears at the end of the chapter, they take great delight in wondering over its fate, or, in some instances, whispering about how Bilbo's dear nephew Frodo and that strange visitor Gandalf have plotted to take the wealth for some time.

We clearly see the importance of social interactions and appearances in Tolkien's narratives through the introductory chapter. This will be a theme we explore greatly later on when we encounter the lost king Strider, when we experience more of the One Ring's presence, and when we run into Saruman the White.