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Copywork
About This Passage
These are the famous opening lines. Tolkien defines a hobbit-hole by telling us what it is not, building through the colon to the one word that matters most: comfort. Copying it teaches the rhythm of parallel phrases, the colon, and how an author can describe something by contrast.
In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat...
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Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
In your own words, retell the events of this chapter in order, from Gandalf's morning visit to the dwarves' late-night planning. Which moment do you think changes Bilbo the most, and how can you tell?
Discussion Questions
- The narrator explains that Bilbo comes from two families: the solid, respectable Bagginses, who never have adventures, and the Tooks, who are richer but 'not as respectable' and sometimes go off adventuring. Why does knowing about Bilbo's two family sides help explain how he can both refuse the adventure and secretly long for it? Use the narrator's words about the Bagginses and the Tooks to support your answer.
- Again and again the narrator steps in to talk straight to the reader, asking 'what is a hobbit?' and hinting that 'you will see whether he gained anything in the end.' Why might Tolkien tell Bilbo's story through a chatty narrator who speaks directly to us? Use the narrator's own words and asides to explain what this friendly voice adds to the tale.
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Vocabulary
Item 1
bold and daring, willing to take risks
Item 2
extremely large
Item 3
goods taken by force; stolen loot
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Critical Thinking
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