Hobbit Write

Assignment: After reading the novel and viewing the film, compose a well-written 2-3 page essay discussing one of the prompts below. Please use at least three quotes from the novel and eliminate as many grammatical errors as possible. You are welcome to use your annotated copy of the novel; don’t forget to include page numbers with your quotes. All essays due typed and printed on Wednesday (August 30). We will also turn them in to turnitin.com that day in class. Print ahead of time. Do NOT come late to class.

Prompts:

• Music: Discuss the role that music plays in the development of musical beings. Compare the songs sung by the dwarves (pp. 14-15), the elves (pp. 48-49), and goblins (pp. 60-61). How do the songs differ in tone, content and structure? What do the tone, content and structure of the songs reveal about the creatures who sing them? 
• Technology: What is Tolkien suggesting by linking his fantasy world to the reader’s modern world? What commentary is he making about the use of technology? Consider the following quote: “It is not unlikely that they [goblins] invented some of the machines that have since troubled the world, especially the ingenious devices for killing large numbers of people at once” (62). 
• Fancy Weapons: Why is it significant for Tolkien to have given the elves named swords? What message do you think is conveyed by the names given to the swords and the hands they fall into? 
• Adventure Sensitive: What do you think Tolkien is trying to say about the purpose of trials and tribulations in a person’s life? Consider that from the very beginning, Bilbo has assumed that the climax of the adventure would be the recovery of the treasure. Then he realizes that Smaug must also be dealt with. Now he finds that even Smaug’s death does not end the adventure. Bilbo never would have agreed to the adventure, knowing what it lead him to. What is Tolkien saying about adventure and trials? 
• Greed: Trace Thorin’s moral degeneration. What causes him to change? In what ways does he end up being similar to Smaug? Why do you think he is so easily corrupted? 
• Gandalf: What is the role of Gandalf in The Hobbit? Pay particular attention to his presence in terms of the way the book is structured. What is particularly significant about his presence at the beginning and end of the story? At what points does he leave? At what points does he return? How powerful is Gandalf? 
• Racial Tension: Examine the treatment of race in The Hobbit. Is it fair to suggest that all members of a certain group (dwarves, trolls, goblins, elves, etc.) share the same characteristics? How does this treatment of ethnic groups reflect the cultural perspective of past times? How might this book be different if it were written today?