The Hobbit by Tolkien

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

Chapter 1:  “An Unexpected Party”

1.  What are some of the features of a hobbit-hole?  very comfortable with paneled walls, tiles and carpeted floors, bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries, etc.

2.  What is a hobbit?  a very small person, no beard, chubby, wears bright colors, has curly hair, hairy feet and the soles of their feet tough for they never wear shoes

3.  What is the protagonist’s name?  Bilbo Baggins

4.  Who is Gandalf?  wizard, old man with a staff

5.  What does Gandalf put on the hobbit’s beautiful green front-door?  a sign (for the dwarves so they’d know which hobbit home to go to)

6.  How many dwarves gather at Bilbo’s home?  13 dwarves

7.  Who is the most important dwarf?  Thorin Oakenshield

8.  Why have the dwarves come together?  to plan getting their gold back

9.  What is Gandalf’s opinion of Bilbo?  very high opinion of Bilbo – “One of the best…fierce as a dragon in a pinch…more to him than meets the eye”

10.  Why had Gandalf marked Bilbo’s door?  so the dwarves would know where to go

11.  What is Gandalf’s decision regarding Bilbo’s part in the plan?  Bilbo is to be the Burglar

12.  What is marked in red on the Mountain map?  location of the dragon

13.  The hand on the map is point to what? secret entrance to the palace inside the mountain

14.  Why has Gandalf decided on the use of a burglar in the plan? Warriors and Heroes were not available to help the dwarves

15.  How did the dwarves lose their treasure and their kingdom?  Smaug, the dragon, came and took over the palace inside the mountain, as well as the gold/treasure there

16.  What does Gandalf give to Thorin?  a map and a key

17.  Describe Bilbo’s mundane world:  safe, has routines, serene, green, laid out nicely with gardens and pastures, no adventure or anything dangerous

18.  What is the Call to Adventure? Gandalf showing up at Bilbo’s home

19.  Who is Bilbo’s mentor? Gandalf

 

20.  What are the three themes introduced in Chapter 1?

morality, greed, and pride

 

21.  Symbols found in Chapter 1:

round door:  porthole – look out at life passing by
gold chain Thorin wears – greed, wealth, royalty
Shire where Bilbo lives – peace, insulated life, withdrawn from life and the outside world
dragon – greed
map and key – Hero’s Journey or Quest

 

22.  Gandalf’s most important quote in Chapter 1 and what does it foreshadow?

“I have chosen Mr. Baggins and that ought to be enough for you…There is a lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself.”

 

 

Chapter 2: “Roast Mutton”
1.  How does Bilbo feel in the morning when he discovers that the dwarves have left without him?
relieved yet disappointed

2.  How does Bilbo find out about the note left for him by the dwarves?
Gandalf shows up and points it out to him.

3.  What are the terms proffered in the note to Bilbo?
1/14 of the treasure, traveling expenses and funeral expenses paid by the dwarves if needed

4.  What is Bilbo’s only comfort as he starts the journey in a borrowed cloak and hood?
he won’t be taken for a dwarf because he hadn’t a beard

5.  On the first night of camping-out, why is Bilbo sent to investigate the shining red light?
because he was the burglar

6.  What does Bilbo find, and how is he certain of his discovery?
3 trolls:  he recognizes them by their language, how they look, and by their size

7.  How is Bilbo’s attempt at stealing William-the-troll’s purse thwarted?
the magic purse speaks out in protest

8.  Why do the trolls fight amongst themselves?
they don’t know what to do about Bilbo

 

9.  How are the dwarves captured by the trolls?
the trolls put sacks over their heads

10.  How does Gandalf help Bilbo and the dwarves?
he pretends to be the different voices of the trolls and gets them all arguing until the sun rises and turns them into stone

11. What bounty does the trolls’ cave provide for Thorin’s group? 
gold coins, food, 2 swords and a knife

12.  When does Crossing the First Threshold happen?  when Bilbo leaves the Shire

13.What is Bilbo’s first “test” and does he pass or not?  Explain.
seeing who was at the fire (trolls), gets caught stealing the troll’s purse,  and he doesn’t pass the test because he accidentally mentions that there are others with him to the trolls and then doesn’t help them get away

 

Write down what you know of these characters:

Bilbo:  passive, non-adventurous, moves quietly when he wants, is a very small person, has curly hair and hairy feet, is the protagonist of the novel

 

Gandalf:  a wizard, makes fire words, tell stories, Bilbo’s mentor

 

Thorin:  too proud, very haughty, descendant of the King Under the Mountain, plays a harp, wears a sky blue hood with a long silver tassel, has a long beard, wears a gold chain

 

Chapter 3:  “A Short Rest”         
1.  Why is it necessary for Thorin’s group to find the proper path to the Misty Mountain?
If they don’t take the right path, they have to start the journey all over again.

2.  Who is Elrond?  How does he help Thorin’s group?
He is the chief of the elves.  He finds and reads the moon letters on the map.

3.  What are moon-letters?
Moon-letters are runes read with moonlight coming behind them.  The moonlight has to be exactly the same type of moonlight under which they were originally written.

4.  The moon-letters reveal what message?
Stand by the grey stone when the thrush knocks
and the setting sun with the last light of Durin’s Day will shine
upon the key hole.

 

5.  Describe Elrond.
Chief of the elves
Fair in looks and hair
Strong as a warrior
Wise as a wizard
Venerable as a King of dwarves
Kind as summer

 

Chapter 4:  “Over Hill and Under Hill”
1.  Why are the dwarves more optimistic than Gandalf about the time it will take to reach Lonely Mountain?   The dwarves hadn’t been that way for a long time and hadn’t remembered how dangerous it was and the evils that lurked on the way.

 

2.  What is a thunderbattle?     This is when two or more thunderstorms clash together violently.

3.  What kind of shelter do Fili and Kili find for the group?  What does Gandalf ask them about the shelter?
A cave
He asks whether they checked the cave carefully.

 

4.  How does Bilbo’s dream help the group?  He dreamed of many bad things, cracks opening in the cave walls amongst them.  He woke up to see the cracks were real and shouted out, waking everyone.

5.  Who captures Bilbo and the dwarves?  Why isn’t Gandalf captured? 
The goblins capture everyone but Gandalf, who disappears.

6.  What do goblins do with their prisoners and their slaves?
Goblins work their prisoners and slaves until they die of lack of air and sunshine.

 

7.  How does the Great Goblin react when he sees the sword worn by Thorin?  Why?
The two swords taken from the trolls are greatly hated by the goblins, especially Thorin’s sword, Biter, which was known to have killed hundreds of goblins in the past.

 

8.  What are Biter and Beater and how do they help Thorin’s group?
These are the Goblin names for the two troll swords Thorin and Gandalf have.  They are used to cut through the chains.

Thorin carries a sword named Orcrist, Goblin-cleaver.  The goblins call it “Biter.”
Gandalf carries a sword named Glamdring the Foe-hammer.  The goblins call it “Beater.”

9.  What happens to Bilbo as he is being carried on Dori’s back?
He rolls off Dori’s shoulders, bumped his head, and was knocked out.

10.  Goblins are the “antonym” of whom?  Elves

11.  Goblin-town is the “antonym” of what two places?  The Shire and Rivendell

 

Chapter 5:  “Riddles in the Dark”
1.  What does Bilbo find on the floor of the tunnel?  What does he do with it?
A gold ring.  He puts it in his pocket.

2.  What does Bilbo still have in his possession from the cave of the trolls?  His “sword.”

3.  How do hobbits differ from ordinary people?
He has a fund of wisdom and wise sayings, is used to tunnels, has a good sense of direction underground, can move very quietly, hides easily, and recovers easily from falls and bruises.

4.  What is Gollum?  What does it look like?  What does it look like?  What does it eat?
He is a small, slimy creature, dark in color.  He has two big, round pale eyes in a thin face and big feet.  He eats fish and goblins.

5.  What does Gollum always call himself?  My precious

6.  What competition does Gollum suggest to Bilbo?  a riddle competition

7.  What does Gollum want from his island?  his gold ring

8.  Why doesn’t Bilbo kill Gollum? 
He feels it is unfair since he is invisible and Gollum doesn’t have a sword.  He also feels sorry for him.

9.  How does Bilbo escape from Gollum and the goblins?
Follows Gollum to the passage that leads to the back door, jumps over Gollum, sneaks past the goblins, gets stuck in the door but manages to squeeze through it and get out.

 

Chapter 6:  “Out of the Frying-Pan into the Fire”
1.  What does Bilbo discover about his position as he walks along the path?
He is beyond the Misty Mountains, on the edge of the Land Beyond.  (He is on the other side of the mountain.)

2.  What does Gandalf think should be done about Bilbo?
That he should be rescued by them.

3.  What causes the dwarves and Gandalf to think Bilbo is very clever?
H escaped the goblins, Gollum, and got past their lookout, Balin.

4.  Does Bilbo tell Thorin’s group about Gollum’s ring?  Explain.
No, because he doesn’t think it is the right time.  He really likes all the praise he’s getting.

5.  What does the group find in the glade?  What do they do about it?
Finds wolves gathering.  The group climbs trees to escape them.

6.  Why are the wolves gathering?  to wait for the goblins and plan that night’s attack on the villages

7.  Why are the wolves guarding the trees in which the dwarves, Bilbo, and Gandalf are sitting?
The wolves think the travelers are spies for the villagers and want to keep them in the trees to they can’t warn the villagers.  They also know the goblins will be able to climb the trees to get them.

8.  What does the wizard use to attack the wolves?  pine cones lit with special fire

9.  How does the wizard’s ploy backfire?  the goblins use the fire he made to put their trees on fire to smoke them out.

10.  Why and how do the eagles help the treed adventurers escape?  the eagles don’t like goblins, they know Gandalf from before, and so they grab the travelers and fly away.

 

Chapter 7:  “Queer Lodgings”

1.  After the eagles deposit the adventurers on the top of the rock, what does Gandalf announce to them?

He announces he has pressing business elsewhere and will be leaving them soon.

 

2.  Why does Beorn believe the story told to him by Gandalf?

That night he went to the burnt glade, captured a wolf and goblin, and verified Gandalf’s story.

 

3.  What will Beorn give to the travelers for their journey?
ponies, a horse, food, supplies

 

4.  What is Beorn’s warning to the travelers?
Do not eat or drink from the forest, and to stay on the path no matter what.

5.  Where are the travelers when Gandalf leaves them?
On the edge of Mirkwood.

 

Chapter 8:  “Flies and Spiders”

1.  How do the travelers get across the enchanted stream?
Bilbo spots the boat on the opposite side of the stream.  Fili throws a rope that has a hook on the end and grapples the boat.  He and the dwarves pull it to them.  Fili throws another rope with a hook on the end and snags it onto a tree.  This way they can pull themselves across the stream.

2.  Why do the travelers leave the path?  What happens?
They see torch light and are so hungry they decide to risk going off the path.  They see wood elves feasting.  However, the moment they go into the clearing the fires are extinguished and they are left in darkness – the wood -elves and feast disappears.  Now they are off the path and lost.

3.  What does Bilbo accomplish that makes him feel bolder?
He kills a spider with his sword, named Sting, all by himself.

4.  What has captured the dwarves?  Spiders

5.  How does Bilbo rescue the dwarves from the spiders?
He taunts them with a mean song, throws rocks at them, kills some, and then leads them away from the dwarves so that he can double back and free the dwarves.

6.  Does knowing about the magic ring lessen the dwarves opinion of Bilbo?  Why or why not?
No, it actually increases their opinion of him.  They know that he is also using his wits, along with the ring, to get things done.

7.  What happens to Thorin?  He is captured by the wood- elves.  The king interrogates him to no avail, and in anger throws him in the dungeon until he decides to tell the king why he is in his woods.

 

 

Source: https://cms.springbranchisd.com/

Portals/278/teachers/lee%20lemons/2011%20chapters%201-8%20quiz%20review%20The%20Hobbit%20by%20J.doc?ver=2011-02-02-135347-963

Web site to visit: https://cms.springbranchisd.com/

Author of the text: indicated on the source document of the above text

 

The Hobbit Literature Unit Introduction The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien is a great book to introduce the fantasy genre. The book is packed with high-interest, page turning material. There are also morals interlaced with adventure and consequences throughout. As with many classics, there are several versions of The Hobbit on the market. I have noticed that recently some abridged versions have been appearing for younger readers. This unit, however, is based on the unabridged version although you could certainly take some of the activities and use them with the young reader versions. The literature unit will be published in the following way: The Hobbit: Introduction to the Unit The Hobbit: Chapters 1-4 The Hobbit: Chapters 5-9 - COMING SOON The Hobbit: Chapters 10-14 - COMING SOON The Hobbit: Chapters 15-19 - COMING SOON Each part will include suggested vocabulary, comprehension questions, activities, and miscellaneous useful links. Book Summary [From MonkeyNotes] Bilbo Baggins, a respectable and unadventurous hobbit, is paid a visit by Gandalf, a wizard, who offers him the chance to go on an adventure. Bilbo, in trying to get rid of the wizard, inadvertently invites him to tea the next evening. The next day, Bilbo is flustered to find that in addition to Gandalf, he seems to have invited thirteen dwarves to tea as well. As he serves the dwarves and Gandalf tea and then supper, Bilbo learns that Gandalf has advertised him to the dwarves as a burglar. The dwarves wish him to help them on their quest to the Lonely Mountain, where they hope to recover treasure from Smaug the dragon, who destroyed their ancestral home under the mountain. Though at first Bilbo quakes at the suggestion of meeting a dragon, he is challenged upon hearing the dwarves' disparaging his courage and abilities. Stung by their remarks, Bilbo throws himself into the adventure with uncharacteristic boldness and determination. J.R.R. Tolkien Biographical Resources: The Tolkien Society: http://www.tolkiensociety.org/tolkien/biography.html Illustrated biography: http://home.freeuk.net/webbuk2/tolkien-biography.htm Olney Essay: http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/lordoftheringstrilogy/biography.shtml The Tolkien Timeline: http://gollum.usask.ca/tolkien/ Tolkien Biography: http://www.indepthinfo.com/tolkien/biography.shtml These are some introductory and/or pre-reading activities to prepare for the reading of The Hobbit. 1. Examine the book itself. Is it hardback or softback? Does it include illustrations inside or just on the cover? Check out the table of contents. Look at the back cover or book flap blurb that briefly describes the book's content. Based on these items, make a chart of what you think you know, what you know, and what you would like to know. Keep up with this list as you read and see if any of your chart entries change. 2. If you have a reader that also enjoys art and/or characterizations, you may wish to create a character folder. In this folder, notate all the character names that you run across and then draw a picture of this character based on descriptions included in the book. If a description is incomplete, have them note which details they are including for the character drawing from their own imagination. As they read through the book, have them keep new information that they discover about two or three of the characters and see whether this changes how they perceive the character to look, dress, etc. 3. Before reading the book, you may wish to do an author study. Find out what other books that J.R.R. Tolkien has written. Read some of his life story and while you are reading (or as a culminating activity) try and figure out what parts of his real life influenced his writing style and content. 4. J.R.R. Tolkien really enjoyed maps. You could use this as two different activities. (a) Find a map of the world and notate the different locations that come up while reading a Tolkien biography. (b) Tolkien drew the maps that are used as illustrations (if you book has them) for The Hobbit. Copy the maps and using a different colored pen or pencil for each character, mark their trails on the map(s) as the story progresses. 5. Nature plays a big role in all of Tolkien's books in one form or another. He mentions many species of trees and plants that actually exist. Create a Middle Earth Nature Sketchpad. Whenever you run across a tree, plant, animal, etc. in the book, draw a picture of it in your sketchpad. Differentiate those that appear in real life from those that Tolkien made up. 6. Music figures very strongly in many of Tolkien's stories. The characters do a lot of singing. In your best handwriting, you may wish to keep track of some of these songs, and decorate the edges of the page(s) with drawings of the musical instruments mentioned and/or pictures of the characters doing the singing and/or pictures of items in the story that pertain to the setting the song is being sung in. 7. Choose one or more of the mythological creatures mentioned in The Hobbit and do further research. 8. Folklore is a particular kind of fiction. Learn more about the genre of folklore and how it differs from plain fiction. Do you think that classifying The Hobbit as folklore is appropriate? Why or why not? Be specific. You may wish to re-ask this question after the book has been read. Did your answer change? If so, why? 9. For those students who are studying oration or who enjoying reading aloud, have them read into a recorder one or more of their favorite passages from the book. Critique the recording and then re-record the same passage(s) to see if they can improve the sound, cadance, annunciation, etc. Have a friend or other family member listen to the recording. Ask them if it makes them want to read The Hobbit. 10. Most of Tolkien's books are full of lesson, morals, parables, similes, etc. To "see" these, you must often look beneath the surface of the story. Make connections based on themes and character personalties with themes and personalities in the real world outside of the Tolkien universe of Middle Earth. Keep this in mind as you begin reading The Hobbit. See if you can see the difference between your average piece of fiction, and this masterpiece of literature. 11. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings triology have been called "epic fairy tales." Both the heroic epic and the fairy tale trace back to the oral tradition. Identify vestiges of the oral tradition thriving in the popular culture. The possibilities can include jokes, riddles, nursery rhymes, urban legends, family anecdotes, narrative songs, and the contemporary storytelling movement. 12. Tolkien presented his original idea of the "eucatastrophe" — the sudden and felicitous turn of a protagonist's fortunes — in a 1938 lecture titled "On Fairy-Stories." Identify the eucatastrophe in particular myths and folktales you are familiar with. Do these amazing "lucky breaks" follow certain patterns? Can you offer examples of eucatastrophes in the Bible, Hollywood movies, presidential elections, and professional sports? Keep track of the different "eucatastrophes" that appear in The Hobbit as you read the book. Below I've included links to other on-line ideas to use with this unit. More specific links will be included in the chapter sections of the unit. The Hobbit Site: http://www.mi.uib.no/~respl/tolkien/ The Hobbit: http://www.berghuis.co.nz/abiator/unit/hobbit/hindex2.html Sparknotes for The Hobbit: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/hobbit/ Book Notes: http://www.bookrags.com/notes/hob/ Hobbit Quotes: http://www.coldal.org/hobbit.htm Pink Monkey Book Notes: http://www.pinkmonkey.com/booknotes/monkeynotes/pmHobbit02.asp Middle Earth Tours: http://fan.theonering.net/middleearthtours/ The NYTimes Tolkien Archives: http://www.nytimes.com/specials/advertising/movies/tolkien/index.html On Line Lessons: http://www.teachervision.fen.com/lesson-plans/lesson-19671.html http://www.webenglishteacher.com/tolkien.html http://ali.apple.com/edres/mslessons/ms-hobbit.shtml http://ctap295.ctaponline.org/~lpunturo/teach_files/teach.htm

Chapter 1 Vocabulary Words:
laburnum
prosy
scuttled
flustered
porthole
belladonna
throng
depredations
haughty
larders
flummoxed
confusticate
bebother
ere
yore
hoard
wrought
delves
conspirator
audacious
rune
abreast
ingenious
estimable
descendant
reviving
expedition
parchment
legendary
obstinately
prudent
remuneration
plunder
necromancer
witless


Hobbit Vocabulary Worksheet #1

Chapter 2 Vocabulary Words:
defrayed
esteemed
requisite
punctual
paraphernalia
laden
bolted
canny
cavalcade
toothsome
purloined
applicable
copped
throttled
blighter
lout
bickering
incantations
scabbard
hilts
smith
embers
waylaid
trifle
outlandish
fluster
ambled
obliged
primly
gnawed
stooped
scabbards
sheath
provisions


Hobbit Vocabulary Worksheet #2

Chapter 3 Vocabulary Words:
faded
solemn
dwelling
homely
gullies
drear
ravines
glade
bogs
slithered
drowsy
faggots
bannocks
reeking
folly
hark
gruffly
parapet
bridle
palpitating
gruesome
ancestors
venerable
lair
cleaver
remnants
cunning
vexed
crescent


Hobbit Vocabulary Worksheet #3

Chapter 4 Vocabulary Words:
deception
infested
uncanny
thriven
astray
splinters
drenched
guffawing
tinder
flint
nooks
champing
yammer
bleat
shirk
quaff
rummaged
alliances
grudge
warrant
gnash
jibbering
jabbering
ingenious
devices
hospitable
scurrying
skriking
hordes
realm


Hobbit Vocabulary Worksheet #4