word

Mister Baggins

lfsaldenbirch ,

One of the great pleasures I have taken in joining the ranks of Tolkien scholarship is meeting and working collegially with such wonderful folks as Emily Austin, a scholar and visual artist.  Ms. Austin is in the middle of a project considering when Bilbo is called “Mr. Baggins” in the narrative, and I think she has caught on to something.

Ms. Austin, here are all the instances of “Mr. Baggins” (or the possessive form, or “Mister Baggins”) in the work. I think that with the help of the Hobbit Paragraph Index, your instinct is going to pay off.  Look to see who is calling him that – is it almost always Gandalf?  and not the narrator?

If you’d like the list of “Baggins” with or without “Mister”, or the list of “Bilbos”, I am, dear friend, at your service.

  • 1.012 said our Mr. Baggins,
  • 1.016 Mr. Bilbo Baggins.
  • 1.017 that Mr. Baggins was not quite so prosy
  • 1.043 Throng!’ thought Mr. Baggins.
  • 1.050 but poor Mr. Baggins said he was sorry so many times,
  • 1.058 thought Mr. Baggins,
  • 1.083 and very quickly he was plain Mr. Baggins
  • 1.090 Gandalf, dwarves and Mr. Baggins!
  • 1.091 To the estimable Mr. Baggins,
  • 1.096 Then Mr. Baggins turned the handle
  • 1.099 and I chose Mr. Baggins.
  • 1.100 I have chosen Mr. Baggins
  • 2.004 “What message?” said poor Mr. Baggins
  • 3.016 What brings Mister Baggins
  • 4.042 and here’s Mr. Baggins: fourteen!
  • 4.045 said poor Mr. Baggins bumping up
  • 5.009 in Mr. Baggins’ place,
  • 5.019 I am Mr. Bilbo Baggins.
  • 6.006 leaving Mr. Baggins
  • 6.018 Mr. Baggins,’
  • 6.024 Mr. Baggins has more about him than you guess.’
  • 6.05 near Mr. Baggins’ hole at home,
  • 6.056 and give Mr. Baggins a hand up!’
  • 7.022 Don’t be a fool Mr. Baggins if you can help it;
  • 7.03 Come on Mr. Baggins!
  • 7.039 That is Mr. Baggins,
  • 7.079 that Mr. Baggins had been mislaid.
  • 7.088 Mr. Baggins saw then how clever Gandalf had been.
  • 7.121 and he poked Mr. Baggins’ waistcoat most disrespectfully.
  • 7.136 Mr. Baggins’ eyes are sharper than yours,
  • 7.142 and I am sending Mr. Baggins with you.
  • 7.149 Mr. Baggins.
  • 8.016 Mr. Baggins is talking about.’
  • 8.041 Poor Mr. Baggins had never had much practice
  • 8.062 I shall send Mr. Baggins alone first to talk to them.
  • 8.076 made a great difference to Mr. Baggins.
  • 8.104 but Mr. Baggins was
  • 8.125 From which you can see that they had changed their opinion of Mr. Baggins very much,
  • 8.127 Mr. Baggins?
  • 9.011 Poor Mr. Baggins –
  • 9.012 it would have to be done by Mr. Baggins,
  • 9.015 until in fact the remarkable Mr. Invisible Baggins
  • 9.036 said Mr. Baggins to himself.
  • 9.061 In this way at last Mr. Baggins came to a place
  • 10.004 It might have been some comfort to Mr. Baggins
  • 10.016 and Mr. Baggins.
  • 10.016 Mr. Baggins.
  • 10.023 and Mr. Baggins who has travelled with us out of the West.’
  • 10.040 though doubtless Mr. Baggins remained a bit of a mystery.
  • 10.045 dwarves, Mr. Baggins,
  • 11.013 Mr. Baggins had more than the others.
  • 12.002 Now is the time for our esteemed Mr. Baggins,
  • 12.026 Get inside Mr. Baggins12.036 Mr. Baggins?’
  • 12.078 Mr. Baggins’ one idea was to get away.
  • 12.092 Mr. Baggins!’
  • 12.095 Mr. Baggins,
  • 13.010 At length Mr. Baggins could bear it no longer.
  • 13.017 Mr. Baggins was still officially their expert burglar
  • 13.036 Mr. Baggins!’
  • 13.039 All the same Mr. Baggins kept his head
  • 16.014 Mr. Baggins,
  • 16.022 I am Mr. Bilbo Baggins,’
  • 16.043 Well done! Mr. Baggins!’
  • 19.037 The return of Mr. Bilbo Baggins
  • 19.037 before Mr. Baggins was
  • 19.042 that Mr. Baggins’ waistcoat was more extensive
  • 19.047 Mr. Baggins,

Hero

lfsaldenbirch

A thank-you to Tom Shippey!

  • 1.117   even a Hero.
  • 1.117   and in this neighbourhood heroes are scarce,
  • 3.032   and heroes of the North for ancestors,
  • 12.006   dwarves are not heroes,
  • 18.002   ‘At any rate I am not yet one of the fallen heroes;

S-s-s-s-s

lfsaldenbirch , , ,

Sometimes it is spelled strung together with no hyphens.  Sometimes it is spelled with double Ss and spaces.  Twice, however, it is spelled with hyphens, and if I’m trying to be scrupulous about the hyphens, then here we are – Gollum’s signature sound:

  • 05.066 S-s-s-s-s,’ hissed Gollum.
  • 05.070 S-s-s-s-s,’ said Gollum

Both of these sounds are in the 1937 edition of The Hobbit, for those of you who have been tracking the differences between the elder and younger editions with me.

Ordinal Directions

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We have no cases of “northeast” or that lot, but look at our capitalizations!

  • 07.130 and then bore to the north-west.
  • 10.002 Its nearest neighbours to the North-East
  • 11.003 They made north-west,
  • 13.053 at the South-West corner of the Mountain.’
  • 16.004 coming from the North-East.
  • 17.046 rolling away to the South-East;

Cardinal Directions

lfsaldenbirch ,

In order to wrestle properly with the hyphenated directions like North-east, I feel it necessary to first document our four cardinal directions in the work.  The directions are usually capitalized. I have emboldened those cases in which they are not – many of those instances are a direction of movement, we might substitute “northward”, but several are not.  They do cluster interestingly in Chapters 7 and 11.

  • 01.097 to the East of East
  • 01.105 You see that rune on the West side,
  • 01.114 We thought of going East,
  • 01.115 if I know anything about the roads East,’
  • 01.116 through the great cliff at the South of the Mountain,
  • 01.122 our family was driven out of the far North,
  • 01.122 who lived to the South,
  • 01.122 and the toy market of Dale was the wonder of the North.
  • 01.123 in the North in those days,
  • 01.123 with the dwarves flying south or getting killed,
  • 01.123 and came south.
  • 01.123 a noise like a hurricane coming from the North,
  • 01.140 Well, I should say that you ought to go East
  • 02.030 and mountains in the north.
  • 02.117 and jogged along again on the path towards the East.
  • 03.003 in the East
  • 03.007 to find the Last Homely House west of the Mountains.
  • 03.032 in the North.
  • 03.032 and heroes of the North for ancestors,
  • 03.035 very old swords of the High Elves of the West,
  • 04.002 in the West,04.004 when storms come up from East
  • 04.004 and West
  • 04.031 who live on the East side
  • 06.034 we are too far to the North,
  • 06.062 bold men had of late been making their way back into it from the South,
  • 07.011 Indeed we are now a good deal further east
  • 07.012 You are still some miles north of the path
  • 07.022 and before the goblins came into the hills out of the North.
  • 07.043 we were coming out of the Lands over West into these countries –
  • 07.045 It faced south
  • 07.055 away east beyond Mirkwood,’ put in Gandalf,
  • 07.055 that lies to the south of your country,
  • 07.094 in the West
  • 07.094 that lay outstretched far to North
  • 07.094 and South a day’s ride before them,
  • 07.094 barring their way to the East,
  • 07.100 The wind went on from West to East;
  • 07.100 The wind went on from West to East;
  • 07.117 except from the west over the river,
  • 07.117 on the east side of the Misty Mountains,
  • 07.130 at the east of his fenced lands
  • 07.130 they turned north
  • 07.130 to the south of his land.
  • 07.130 that joined the great river miles south of the Carrock.
  • 07.130 been far to the south of the Lonely Mountain,
  • 07.130 North of the Carrock
  • 07.130 for at a place a few days’ ride due north of the Carrock
  • 07.131 for a hundred miles north of the Carrock
  • 07.131 they will cross the river to the south
  • 07.131 Still you are safer going north,
  • 07.132 The sun had only just turned west when they started,
  • 07.133 in the East
  • 07.142 some pressing business away south;
  • 07.151 two hundred miles or so out of your way north,
  • 07.151 and twice that south.
  • 07.151 in the North
  • 07.151 in the South,
  • 07.151 high in the East,
  • 07.153 and rode down into the West.
  • 08.032 going by to the north of the path,
  • 08.131 They differed from the High Elves of the West,
  • 08.131 in the West.
  • 09.011 and in the lands to the East.
  • 09.018 and joined the Forest River some way further to the east,
  • 09.018 in the South,
  • 09.053 South away! and South away!
  • 09.061 and tubs away to the north bank,
  • 10.003 as the roads out of the East towards Mirkwood vanished
  • 10.003 that flowed east;
  • 10.003 in the North
  • 10.006 with another sweep towards the East
  • 10.007 that came up the great river from the South
  • 10.007 in the North was rich
  • 10.009 Soon men would come up from the South
  • 10.023 and Mr. Baggins who has travelled with us out of the West.’
  • 10.045 and off they went north up the lake
  • 11.006 to spy out the land to the South
  • 11.013 in the South
  • 11.013 Two of these here thrust forward west
  • 11.014 which turned north across the face of the Mountain.
  • 11.021 and stare away west through the opening,
  • 11.028 or out west through the narrow opening.
  • 11.029 As the sun turned west
  • 12.029 when Smaug came hurtling from the North,
  • 12.102 towards the west of the Mountain,
  • 12.104 and went away south
  • 13.024 Which is East, South, North, or West?’
  • 13.055 The river loops suddenly east
  • 13.065 and saw the wintry sun going downwards to the West.
  • 13.066 but backed to the North by a rocky face
  • 13.066 From that door there was a wide view East
  • 13.066 and South
  • 13.066 and West.
  • 13.071 They looked West
  • 13.071 and East there was nothing,
  • 13.071 and in the South there was no sign of the dragon,
  • 14.002 for the breeze was from the black East
  • 14.002 the Running River came down from the North.
  • 14.005 It is long since he went North.
  • 14.025 and drove it off to the West to scatter
  • 14.036 and go North with any that will follow me.’
  • 14.038 with which to buy rich things from the South;
  • 14.040 the news had passed west
  • 14.044 north to the Mountain.
  • 15.001 Their companies came flying from the South;
  • 15.014 in the South –
  • 15.015 and to Dale from South
  • 15.015 and East
  • 15.015 and West,
  • 15.021 in the mountains of the North,
  • 15.021 both west from here
  • 15.021 and east,
  • 15.028 and sent them back riderless to the South.
  • 15.029 away south
  • 15.033 That day the camp was moved to the east of the river,
  • 16.026 in the West
  • 17.031 The next day the wind shifted west,
  • 17.040 it came from the North,
  • 17.041 Bolg of the North is coming,
  • 17.044 for they resolved now to win the dominion of the North.
  • 17.044 and beneath the great mountain Gundabad of the North,
  • 17.044 in time of storm unawares upon the South.
  • 17.044 and came thus at last on a sudden from the North
  • 17.045 that struck south
  • 17.045 and east.
  • 17.048 to gain a view to the North.
  • 17.062 and a red sunset slashed the West.
  • 17.064 from all the eyries of the North.
  • 18.019 child of the kindly West.
  • 18.024 and such as fled south or west
  • 18.024 that three parts of the goblin warriors of the North
  • 18.043 to the north of the place where the Forest River ran out.
  • 19.006 in the south of Mirkwood.
  • 19.007 The North will be freed
  • 19.019 in the West before them,
  • 19.043 and from South and West,

Wonder

lfsaldenbirch ,

I dedicate the entry for this common word to Professor Verlyn Flieger, in honor of her gracious inspiration to all scholars.  It’s a noun, a verb, an adjective, an adverb, all of long lineage from Old English to Old Norse, but the OED says, ultimately, “of unknown origin”.

I am particularly enchanted by the use of the word in 07.022 – “In the name of all wonder…”  In Gandalf’s mind, at least, “all wonder” fits nicely into a phrase where we might call upon deity.

  • 01.017 Not the fellow who used to tell such wonderful tales at parties,
  • 01.046 and wondered what had happened,
  • 01.046 while he was wondering
  • 01.058 and was beginning to wonder
  • 01.122 and the toy market of Dale was the wonder of the North.
  • 01.125 I have often wondered about my father’s
  • 02.054 and wondering how to make owl-noises
  • 02.072 who was wondering where
  • 03.020 Most astonishing wonderful!
  • 03.036 I wonder?” said Thorin
  • 05.001 he wondered if he had;
  • 05.008 and recover wonderfully from falls
  • 05.013 but he was wondering a lot about Bilbo,
  • 05.084 very wonderful.
  • 05.105 I wonder?’ he said to himself,
  • 05.119 and wonder.
  • 06.003 He wondered whether he ought not,
  • 06.006 and wondering
  • 06.024 and the hobbit wondered if he guessed
  • 06.087 and wondered if he could hold on any longer.
  • 06.090 He wondered what other nonsense he had been saying,
  • 06.092 He had just strength to wonder
  • 07.022 and in the name of all wonder don’t mention the word furrier
  • 07.046 wondering what their names could be,
  • 07.093 for the convenience of the wonderful animals
  • 07.107 Bilbo wondered what it was,
  • 07.113 waited on by Beorn’s wonderful animals,
  • 07.122 nor did they have to wonder long where he had been or why he was so nice to them,
  • 08.041 All the time he was wondering whether there were spiders
  • 08.078 and he stood a long while wondering
  • 08.125 Indeed they really expected him to think of some wonderful plan for helping them,
  • 08.129 They wondered what evil fate had befallen him,
  • 08.145 he began to wonder what had become of his unfortunate friends.
  • 09.021 and wondered if it could be used for the escape of his friends,
  • 09.044 Small wonder if I fall asleep from weariness!’
  • 09.045 Small wonder,’
  • 09.051 He wondered what on earth would happen to them without him;
  • 09.057 Bilbo wondered what the dwarves were feeling
  • 09.058 and he wondered if he would die of it before the luck turned,
  • 10.036 The Wood-elves themselves began to wonder greatly
  • 10.043 and he wondered if Thorin was
  • 11.031 wondering what on earth was the matter;
  • 12.015 in the days when all the world was wonderful.
  • 12.020 and wondered why he had never blocked it up.
  • 12.068 He had never bothered to wonder
  • 12.076 and wonderful, indeed,’
  • 12.096 They wondered
  • 13.013 Now I wonder what on earth
  • 13.039 and he began to wonder nervously
  • 13.056 I wonder how many breakfasts,
  • 13.071 and wondered;
  • 14.020 in wonder
  • 15.049 yet he had an eye for many another wonderful thing
  • 16.003 wondering what would happen,
  • 16.036 whose eyes were used to things of wonder and beauty,
  • 16.040 The Elvenking looked at Bilbo with a new wonder.
  • 16.040 But I wonder if Thorin Oakenshield will see it so.
  • 16.046 and wondered anxiously
  • 17.003 Wondering,
  • 17.010 But wonder overcame him
  • 17.065 Many wondering eyes looked up,
  • 18.002 Now I wonder what has happened?’
  • 18.014 I began to wonder if even your luck would see you through!
  • 19.037 it was a great deal more than a nine days’ wonder.

“wonder, n.” OED Online. Oxford University Press, June 2017. Web. 5 September 2017.