Quotes from Tolkien

If you are looking for the World Building Blogfest, click on the logo or scroll down.

The first six of these quotes, tweeted from @sueannbowling between January 24 and January 30, are from The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. Note that the quotes and contexts are from the book, not the movie.

“No dragon can resist the fascination of riddling talk and of wasting time trying to understand it.” Bilbo is trying to avoid answering Smaug’s questions without angering him.

“Never laugh at live dragons.” Bilbo’s thought after he makes a parting joke at Smaug’s expense, and barely escapes with his life.

“It is difficult not to slip in talking to a dragon.” Balin trying to comfort Bilbo.

“The heart is bold that looks on gold.” Part of a dwarvish song. I actually prefer a later verse that lacked twitter-length quotes:

On silver necklaces they strung
The light of stars, on crowns they hung
The dragon-fire, from twisted wire
The melody of harps they wrung.

“Defeat seems very uncomfortable, not to say distressing.” Bilbo’s thought at the Battle of Five Armies, just before he sees the eagles.

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” Thorin’s dying words to Bilbo.

“Don’t. I’d have to do something about it, and I can’t get along without you.” Sue Ann Bowling, Homecoming. Lai to Derik, after Derik has muttered that he’s going to kill Zhaim.

Quotes from J.R.R. Tolkien

These are the quotes that were tweeted from @sueannbowling over the past week, with the contexts given. The first six quotes are from The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien.

“Seek the sunlight and the day.” Part of the Elven song as they tip the barrels into the river.

“His speeches at banquets were limited to, ‘Thag you very buch.’” Bilbo arrives at Lake-Town with a very bad cold.

“There is no knowing what a dwarf may do or dare for revenge.” The dwarves are leaving Lake-Town, and the Master still doesn’t believe they are who they say they are.

“It was easier to believe in the dragon and less easy to believe in Thorin in these wild parts.”  The men from Lake-town don’t want to spend any more time than they can help so close to the Mountain.

“It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations.” Bilbo has managed to steal a cup from Smaug’s horde, but the dragon has discovered the loss.

“He had begun to have ideas and plans of his own.” The journey has had quite an effect on Bilbo.

“What are we supposed to hold on to?” Timi is trying to figure out how to hold on to a flat-headed peccary with its head stuck in a bucket. Tourist Trap, by Sue Ann Bowling.

Quotes from Tolkien

This is the third week I’ve quoted from The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. This book, just made into a movie, is the source of the quotes I tweeted between Dec 20 and December 25. The one today is from my own work.

“May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks.” The proper way to say goodbye to an eagle, as Gandalf knows.

“We may meet again before all is over, and then again of course we may not.” Gandalf to the dwarves and Bilbo when he parts from them at the borders of Mirkwood.

“He has more about him than you guess.” Gandalf is speaking to the dwarves about Bilbo.

“There are no safe paths in this part of the world.” A last reminder from Gandalf.

“Dream-dinners aren’t any good, and we can’t share them.” The starving dwarves are complaining when Bilbo tells them of his dream of the elven feast.

“No spider has ever liked being called Attercop.” Bilbo has been taunting the giant spiders, trying to draw them off so he can rescue the dwarves.

“Couldn’t you at least have warned me what to expect?” Sue Ann Bowling, Homecoming. Roi has reacted very badly to controlled dreaming.

Quotes from Tolkien

The first six quotes today are again from The Hobbit, by J.R. R. Tolkien. This is from the original book – I have a feeling they’ll have to put in some additional material to make three films! (Not to mention that Frodo wasn’t even born yet in the original Hobbit.) These quotes have been tweeted from @sueannbowling over the period from December 13 through 19, and today I am putting them in context.

“It was a turning point in his career, but he did not know it.” Bilbo has just found the Ring.

“Go back? No good at all. Go sideways? Impossible. Go forward? Only thing to do!” Bilbo pressing on in the goblins’ tunnels.

”Any excuse would do for him to slide out of it.” Bilbo’s thoughts of how unlikely it was that Gollum would keep his promise to show him the way out.

“The wizard never minded explaining his cleverness more than once.” Bilbo was not with the dwarves when Gandalf first explained how he rescued them, but Gandalf has no objection to repeating the story.

“Escaping goblins to be caught by wolves.” Bilbo’s thoughts as he, the dwarves, and Gandalf are all in trees, surrounded by wolves.

“You ought not to be rude to an eagle.” Especially when you’re riding on his back!

“Let’s head for the food.” Sue Ann Bowling, Tourist Trap. Roi is starting to recover from an episode of severe low blood sugar – low enough he has passed out.

Quotes from Tolkien

The Hobbit is coming this month! I don’t usually go to movie theaters any more, but this is one movie I want so see as soon as it comes out. (Come to think of it, the last one I saw in a theater was The Return of the King.)

I first read the book sometime in the 1950’s, when my uncle brought copies of all four Tolkien books from England before they were even on sale in the United States. Most of my original copies were lost in the fire, though I still have The Return of the King. In honor of the movie, and because I dearly love Tolkien, most of the rest of the twitter quotes this month are from The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. But could you tell from where in the original book each quote came?

“We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing  uncomfortable things!” Bilbo’s initial response to Gandalf’s idea of sending him on an adventure .

“Profitable too, very likely, if you ever get over it.” Gandalf is still trying to argue Bilbo into helping the dwarves.

“Of course there is a mark. I put it there myself.” Gandalf, when the dwarves and Bilbo are arguing over whether there is a mark on Bilbo’s door meaning “burglar looking for work.”

“What am I going to get out of it? And am I going to come back alive?” What Bilbo means by asking about risks, out-of-pocket expenses, time required and remuneration, and so forth.

“He found that he had come without a pocket-handkerchief.” Bilbo’s discovery when he joins the dwarves.

“Adventures are not all pony-rides in May sunshine.” Bilbo and the dwarves are hitting their first rainy spell with no houses in sight.

“He wasn’t sure whether to be flattered or terrified.” Sue Ann Bowling, Homecoming. Roi, his esper training barely started, has just been told to help Derik contact his father.