Resting and Recovering in Lake-Town
Quite apart from the stones no spider has ever liked being called Attercop, and Tomnoddy of course is insulting to anybody.
Attercop - either a spider or a "peevish, ill-natured person."
Tomnoddy - either a puffin or a fool or dunce.
I'm guessing it's the second meaning of each that was intended and taken.
[Bilbo's] little sword was something new in the way of stings for them. How it darted to and fro! It shone with delight as he stabbed at them. Half a dozen were killed before the rest drew off and left Bombur to Bilbo.
I have a little trouble believing the cultivated adventure-hater from the start of the book transforms into such a fierce warrior so instantly. Tolkien gave him a background for being good as a burglar and with a thrown stone, but it seems unlikely to me he's ever had any training with a sword or ever had to do any first-hand killing (even of animals like spiders). It's the first time he's actually fought this entire story. So I could see him flailing about with the sword in desperation, but his efficiency seems a bit much.
The feasting people were Wood-elves, of course. These are not wicked folk. If they have a fault it is distrust of strangers. . . . Still elves they were and remain, and that is Good People.
Even though Tolkien tries to assure us the wood-elves are "good people," their actions have never left that impression on me and I've never really bought it. Maybe they are basically decent, but not in this situation and that's not the feeling I have about them after the story.
"But what brought you into the forest at all?" asked the king angrily.
At that Thorin shut his mouth and would not say another word.
Why is Thorin so difficult here? Why wouldn't he simply tell the elf king what he told the great goblin, that We were on a journey to visit our relatives? It's a believable enough explanation, isn't it? This strikes me as a plot device to give Bilbo another chance to be the hero.
He was in the dark tunnel floating in icy water, all alone--for you cannot count friends that are all packed up in barrels.
Attercop - either a spider or a "peevish, ill-natured person."
Tomnoddy - either a puffin or a fool or dunce.
I'm guessing it's the second meaning of each that was intended and taken.
[Bilbo's] little sword was something new in the way of stings for them. How it darted to and fro! It shone with delight as he stabbed at them. Half a dozen were killed before the rest drew off and left Bombur to Bilbo.
I have a little trouble believing the cultivated adventure-hater from the start of the book transforms into such a fierce warrior so instantly. Tolkien gave him a background for being good as a burglar and with a thrown stone, but it seems unlikely to me he's ever had any training with a sword or ever had to do any first-hand killing (even of animals like spiders). It's the first time he's actually fought this entire story. So I could see him flailing about with the sword in desperation, but his efficiency seems a bit much.
The feasting people were Wood-elves, of course. These are not wicked folk. If they have a fault it is distrust of strangers. . . . Still elves they were and remain, and that is Good People.
Even though Tolkien tries to assure us the wood-elves are "good people," their actions have never left that impression on me and I've never really bought it. Maybe they are basically decent, but not in this situation and that's not the feeling I have about them after the story.
"But what brought you into the forest at all?" asked the king angrily.
At that Thorin shut his mouth and would not say another word.
Why is Thorin so difficult here? Why wouldn't he simply tell the elf king what he told the great goblin, that We were on a journey to visit our relatives? It's a believable enough explanation, isn't it? This strikes me as a plot device to give Bilbo another chance to be the hero.
He was in the dark tunnel floating in icy water, all alone--for you cannot count friends that are all packed up in barrels.
posted by Degolar | 10:12 AM
1 Comments:
I reccomend that Tomnoddy be mentioned every time we don't agree with something. Attercrop just sounds like Attercrap.
I think Bilbo turned into the hero via spiders because of the nature of how spiders attack. They've got to get close, and while I'm visualizing the spiders from the cartoon and not Shelob, that as long as he didn't get in too close, he could whack at legs all day long and not get worried about it.
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