- 1 -TOLKIEN STUDY GUIDE THE LORD OF THE RINGS This study guide is limited to The Lord of the Rings as you have already been tested on its author, J. R. R. Tolkien. THELORD OF THERINGS – Written as a trilogy, it is composed of six books divided into three parts: The Fellowship of the Ring,The Two Towers, andThe Return of the King.Written between 1937 and 1949,The Lord of the Ringswas a follow-up toThe Hobbit. It was not published until 1954, but it is one of the best-selling novels of all time.Forbesmagazine ranked Tolkien as the fifth top-earning dead celebrity, falling just behind Elvis Presley and Charles Schultz (Charlie BrownandSnoopy). THEFELLOWSHIP OF THER ING Our story begins in the Shire, as Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit, is making preparations for his 111th Birthday.They will also be celebrating the 33rdBirthday of his nephew Frodo Baggins. Bilbo is curiously well-preserved for a hobbit of his advanced age, though he is also wearied by the burden of the ring.While giving his speech at his party, he slips on the ring and disappears.He meets the wizard Gandalf the Gray back at his home at Bag End and leave the ring and Bag End to Frodo.Bilbo secretly departs for Rivendell, to retire with the elves; the weight of the ring having been lifted from him.Gandalf departs to see what he can learn of this magic ring. For seventeen years, Frodo lives at Bag End, and the only curious thing is that he also seems not to age.However, there are rumors that a darkness has arisen in the east. Gandalf reappears and advises Frodo that Bilbo’s ring is, in fact, the One Ring forged long ago by the Dark Lord Sauron.If Sauron can recover the Ring, he will be able to enslave all of the inhabitants of Middle Earth.Unfortunately, Sauron has learned from torturing Gollum that the Ring is in the possession of a ”Baggins” who lives in The Shire.Frodo wishes to know how Bilbo, of all people, came into possession of this most powerful Ring, but Gandalf has no clear answer: “I can put it no more plainer than by saying that Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, and not by its maker. In which case you (Frodo) also were meant to have it. And that may be an encouraging thought.”Tolkien repeatedly acknowledges that there are meaning and intentions in life, what we call providence, chance or luck, that are far beyond our understanding.What he does know is that Frodo must leave The Shire. Frodo leaves The Shire with his gardener, Samwise Gamgee, and his cousin and friend, Pippen Took.To provide a misdirecting cover for their departure, Frodo has spread word that he is moving, and his cousin and friend, Meriadoc “Merry” Brandybuck, has gone ahead to make arrangements. The hobbits have been warned to stay off the road, and thus, travelling through the brush is arduous. Before they even leave The Shire, however, they are hounded by Black Riders; black cloaked figures riding black horses with a foreboding sense of evil.(They later learn that the Black Riders are, in fact, ringwraiths of the nine evil kings enslaved by Lord Sauron.The leader of the nine is the Witch King of Angmar.) The Black Riders are seeking the One Ring for Sauron and are drawn to its power.
Want to read all 5 pages?
Previewing 2 of 5 pages Upload your study docs or become a member.
Want to read all 5 pages?
Previewing 2 of 5 pages Upload your study docs or become a member.
End of preview
Want to read all 5 pages? Upload your study docs or become a member.