All Questions
Tagged with tolkiens-legendarium the-hobbit
470
questions
65
votes
4
answers
11k
views
Was the Lonely Mountain, where Smaug lived, a volcano?
Was the Lonely Mountain in The Hobbit a volcano?
If not, how did the dwarves get enough heat to run the huge forges?
I am asking about the books, not the movies.
- 134k
24
votes
4
answers
7k
views
Do we ever see a hobbit use their natural ability to “disappear”?
The Fellowship of the Ring prologue contains the following information about hobbits:
They possessed from the first the art of disappearing swiftly and
silently, when large folk whom they do not wish ...
- 6,117
38
votes
3
answers
12k
views
Who Inherited Bag End?
When Bilbo and Frodo sail into the west with the Elves they are essentially abandoning their home at Bag End, as they are leaving the Shire permanently. Please tell me that the Sackville-Bagginses do ...
- 7,809
30
votes
7
answers
4k
views
When and why did Bilbo write a song about Aragorn?
Bilbo wrote this song for Aragorn:
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the ...
25
votes
3
answers
4k
views
How can the bear-man refer to a "Jack-in-the-box" in The Hobbit?
The Hobbit is supposedly set waaay back in our world. Yet, Beorn refers to "jack-in-the-box" as in the toy, when the dwarves show up in pairs.
How can this be? How can anyone in that world/...
- 1
96
votes
6
answers
17k
views
The use of the word "guns" in The Hobbit
In Chapter XVIII - The Return Journey of the book 'The Hobbit', Tolkien uses the word "guns".
'The roar of his voice was like drums and guns; and he tossed
wolves and goblins from his path ...
- 39k
8
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Were the spiders in Mirkwood and also the Eagles rational beings?
This question about Bilbo understanding the spiders after he wore the Ring in Mirkwood, got me wondering. Were the spiders really rational beings? If they could talk with purpose and in a meaningful ...
18
votes
3
answers
6k
views
What was the point of the were-worms in the movie?
In Battle of the Five Armies there is a scene of the Orcs summoning the "earth eaters" and then a while later the were worms bust out of the Earth. I was kind of excited to see what kind of havoc ...
32
votes
6
answers
38k
views
Why didn't Gandalf say anything when he saw Bilbo's ring?
I don't know how the story is in the book (I would like to know), but in the movie The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Thorin asks Bilbo why he came back, and Gandalf tries to evade the question after ...
- 643
17
votes
2
answers
8k
views
Why did Gollum fail to seek out Bilbo?
After Gollum had lost the Ring, he abandoned the dark caves under the mountains with a strong intent to regain it, considering himself bereft and fully blaming Bilbo with theft. Here's Gandalf account,...
- 134k
11
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Why do the trolls have civilized names?
In The Hobbit, the trolls' names (Tom, William, and Bert) don't seem to fit their "uncivilized" characters. Why did Tolkien give them those names?
- 18k
36
votes
5
answers
50k
views
How did Thranduil know about the 'infamous' Strider when the latter was only 10 during the Battle of the Five Armies?
On the last Hobbit movie, after the Battle of the Five Armies, Legolas tells Thranduil that he won't be coming home. The latter tells him to go to find the infamous son of Arathorn, that goes by the ...
7
votes
1
answer
626
views
Who has the right/authority to declare somebody as Elf-friend?
The LotR wiki lists people who have been deemed as Elf-friends by the Elves.
Different people have been named as Elf-friends for different reasons. Do all the Elf's have the power/authority to declare ...
- 134k
73
votes
10
answers
18k
views
During the War of the Ring did Sauron or Saruman actually win any major battles?
I've recently re-read The Lord of the Rings and one thing that simply bugs me, and makes Tolkien's books seem lesser, is the fact Sauron and Saruman seem to lose every battle. I sincerely hope that I'...
- 134k
33
votes
1
answer
11k
views
Does everyone always eat, drink and sleep for free everywhere in Middle-earth?
Maybe it has to do with the specific and unique circumstances in which the characters we follow in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings find themselves, but it seems to me that everyone always assumes ...
- 18.9k