The Hobbit and History

by Nancy R. Reagin (Editor), Janice Liedl (Editor)

Overview

What do Gandalf and Merlin have in common, besides robes and magical staffs? Where do hobbits get their recipes, riddles, and love of rambling? What other Rings of Power were circulating in medieval Europe? How did Thorin violate the rules of medieval kingship?

You’ll find the answers and more in this book, which explores the magic and creativity behind J.R.R. Tolkien’s bestselling story from a historical perspective. Tolkien was a professor of medieval languages and literature at Oxford University, and he drew on his scholarship—and the homely comforts common in his own day—to build the world of The Hobbit.

The Hobbit and History uncovers the parallels between the Middle Ages and the intricate culture of Middle-earth that Tolkien created in The Hobbit, showing how historical cultures provided the models for Tolkien’s characters, foods, riddles, and battle tactics. The book explores how European myths and legends inspired Tolkien’s wizards, dragons, and the monsters he created. Seeing Middle-earth and its peoples against these historical backdrops shines new light on the richness of Tolkien’s world, which is rooted in knowledge of European cultures as deep as the archive that Gandalf explores in Minas Tirith.

Filled with fascinating facts and reproductions of Tolkien’s original artwork of Smaug and other aspects of Middle-earth, The Hobbit and History is the missing piece for every book and movie fan and anyone who thought their J.R.R. Tolkien collection was complete.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118167649
Publisher:	Turner Publishing Company
Publication date:	11/04/2014
Series:	Wiley Pop Culture and History Series
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

NANCY R. REAGIN is the Chair of the Department of Women’s and Gender Studies at Pace Universityin New York City, where she is also a professor of history. She has published several books in modern European history and is also the editor of Star Trek and History, Twilight and History, and Harry Potter and History, and the coeditor of Star Wars and History.

JANICE LIEDL is an Associate Professor of History at Laurentian Universityin Canada who specializes in English history since the time of Henry VIII. She has published on Battlestar Galactica, Twilight, and Harry Potter as well as being the coeditor of Star Wars and History.

Read an Excerpt

Goblins are recurring enemies in The Hobbit. They prove to be even more dangerous than Smaug. The dwarves, humans, and elves are, despite their differences, united by their common hatred and fear of the goblins and almost destroyed by the goblin horde. Because they are the story’s villains, the reader has little sense of the goblins’ culture aside from what can be seen from the outsider’s perspective. Nevertheless, Tolkien does imbue them with some of the marks of warrior cultures. Goblins present a mix of ancient and modern characteristics. They fight with medieval weapons and, when riding their wargs, they resemble cavalry. However, they also build instruments of destruction capable of producing far more damage than typical medieval weapons. The narrator says that “It is not unlikely that they invented some of the machines that have since troubled the world, especially the ingenious devices for killing large numbers of people at once, for wheels and engines and explosions always delighted them” (Hobbit, 73). This description makes them out to be users of the medieval equivalents of modern weapons of mass destruction. The goblins’ explosives and wheeled war machines have the same terrifying power as the tanks, long-range artillery, and poison gas that were used in the First World War. Goblins represent the cruelty of war. They are violent without reason and enjoy inflicting pain on their opponents. As the narrator says, “goblins are cruel, wicked, and bad-hearted” (Hobbit, 73). They are terrifying in a much different way than the imposing dragon Smaug. They are warriors of average skill, who seem to be incapable of complex planning because they are easily surprised early in the Battle of Five Armies. They are also poorly organized; the goblins carry an array of weapons and armor, appearing to have no standardization of either. However, they are resilient. They quickly recover from their initial losses during the Battle of Five Armies and manage to outflank their opponents surprising them from the rear. They are also able to use their super-weapons to temporarily turn the tide of battle. Bolg’s giant goblin guards are among these weapons. These huge figures were capable of resisting Thorin’s charge and seem to be far more powerful than anyone on the battlefield aside from Beorn.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Bilbo, the Hands-On Historian – Janice Liedl and Nancy R. Reagin Timeline I “A darkness came on with dreadful swiftness”: Middle-earth’s Warriors and Worthies 1. The Faces of the Five Armies - Marcus Schulzke 2. From Oakenshield to Bloodaxe: The Viking Roots of Tolkien’s Dwarves – Colin Gibbons 3. It Is Good to Be the King: Monarchs in Middle-Earth and the Middle Ages - Mark Sundaram and Aven McMaster 4. “The Last Homely House”: Elf-Lords and the Rules of Medieval Nobility – Janice Liedl II From Hobbit-holes to Riddle-Games in the Middle Ages and Middle-earth 5. Dreaming of Eggs and Bacon, Seedcakes and Scones - Kristen M. Burkholder 6. Battle of Wits, Battle of Words: Medieval Riddles and The Hobbit – Christina Fawcett 7. Bilbo’s Ring: Magical Objects in Middle Earth and Medieval Europe – Laura Mitchell 8. “Roads go ever ever on”: Rambling and Roughing it in The Hobbit – Bram Mathew III Wizards and Bears and Monsters, Oh My!: Magic and Mystery in Middle-earth 9. Merlin, Odin and Mountain Spirits: The Story of Gandalf’s Origins – Leila Norako 10. Berserkers, Were-Bears and Ursine Parents: Beorn the Skin-Changer and his Ancestors - Stefan Donecker 11. From Whence Came the Great Worms? History and Tolkien’s Monsters – Jessica Monteith 12. “Until the Dragon Comes”: Literature, Language, and The Hobbit – Martha Driver The White Council (Contributors) Index

Editorial Reviews

For Star Wars and History: "A timely, insightful collection that honors Star Wars fandom by acknowledging its intelligence. Even readers who've always assumed history is a dull, stale subject will be captivated by these scholarly meditations upon the links between our world and a galaxy far, far away . . ." —Dr. Andrea Cremer, author of the New York Times bestselling Nightshade series

From the Publisher