word

Banquet

lfsaldenbirch , ,

OED gives us banquet as “a sumptuous entertainment of food and drink”, which will do for the banquets mentioned in Lake-town.  I do think, however, that hobbits would approve of the obsolete second meaning of “a light repast between meals”.

  • 10.039 and even after that his speeches at banquets were limited to

“banquet, n.1.” OED Online. Oxford University Press, March 2015. Web. 13 May 2015.

Bacon

lfsaldenbirch , ,

Bilbo’s only real bacon is from the Trollish provisions in Chapter 2, but thoughts of it follow him through his dark times.

  • 02.116 and bacon to toast
  • 05.002 He thought of himself frying bacon
  • 06.088 Now I know what a piece of bacon feels like
  • 06.089 because the bacon knows
  • 07.001 nor tea nor toast nor bacon for his breakfast,
  • 08.074 in thoughts of bacon
  • 16.047 he was dreaming of eggs and bacon.

Ale

lfsaldenbirch , ,

All of the ale is in the first two chapters.  Ales are beers brewed by top fermentation, compared to lagers.

  • 01.046 Some called for ale,
  • 01.056 and ale –
  • 01.090 and ale! -‘
  • 02.116 also one barrel of ale which was still full.
  • 02.116 and plenty of ale,

“ale, n.” OED Online. Oxford University Press, March 2015. Web. 13 May 2015.

Spider

lfsaldenbirch ,

They appear in chapter 8 and immediately thereafter – and in the Chapter 3 description of Bilbo’s handwriting.  The word comes from the Old English word meaning “to spin”.

  • 03.041 and spidery.
  • 08.041 All the time he was wondering whether there were spiders
  • 08.042 and then he found spiders all right.
  • 08.075 Then the great spider,
  • 08.075 Then the spider jumped back,
  • 08.075 The spider evidently was not used to things
  • 08.075 as small spiders do to flies –
  • 08.076 The spider lay dead beside him,
  • 08.076 Somehow the killing of the giant spider,
  • 08.080 That is why the spiders neither saw nor heard him coming.
  • 08.081 that there were spiders huge
  • 08.088 With that one of the fat spiders ran along a rope
  • 08.089 To the fattest of these bundles the spider went –
  • 08.089 and kicked the spider straight
  • 08.089 and the enraged spider fell off the branch,
  • 08.091 hissed the angry spider climbing back onto the branch.
  • 08.092 the spider had reached Bombur,
  • 08.092 The stone struck the spider plunk on the head,
  • 08.093 and taking off the spider sitting
  • 08.094 The idea came to him to lead the furious spiders
  • 08.096 Old fat spider spinning
  • 08.096 Old fat spider can’t see me!
  • 08.098 no spider has ever liked being called Attercop,
  • 08.098 Practically all the spiders
  • 08.099 but several of the spiders had run now to different points
  • 08.099 that at least was the spiders’ idea.
  • 08.103 The spiders saw the sword,
  • 08.104 if a spider had not luckily left a rope hanging down;
  • 08.104 only to meet an old slow wicked fat-bodied spider
  • 08.104 and before the spider knew what was happening it felt his sting
  • 08.104 before the spiders were disgusted
  • 08.108 when the spiders began to come back,
  • 08.111 The spiders had caught them pretty easily the night before,
  • 08.112 that some of the spiders had gathered
  • 08.112 and slashed at the spiders
  • 08.113 For he saw spiders swarming up all the neighbouring trees,
  • 08.114 and hundreds of angry spiders were goggling at them all round
  • 08.115 and again the spiders were beaten off,
  • 08.115 Already the spiders were beginning
  • 08.117 I shall draw the spiders off,
  • 08.118 the spiders were drawing their circle ever closer.
  • 08.119 That upset the spiders greatly.
  • 08.119 they drove at the spiders on the left,
  • 08.120 though many of the spiders were close behind.
  • 08.120 and already some spiders were
  • 08.121 and charged into the astonished spiders
  • 08.123 The spiders swelled with rage,
  • 08.123 the spiders suddenly gave it up,
  • 08.124 which the spiders did not like.
  • 08.130 their cries as the spiders caught them
  • 08.144 The giant spiders were the only living things
  • 09.001 The day after the battle with the spiders
  • 09.008 to be trapped by spiders?
  • 09.008 Are the spiders your tame beasts or your pets,
  • 09.009 and rouse the spiders with your riot
  • 09.015 from the spiders,

“spider, n.” OED Online. Oxford University Press, March 2015. Web. 11 May 2015.

Riddle

lfsaldenbirch , ,

Bilbo’s riddles with Gollum sharpened his wit for riddling with Smaug.  The Chapter 8 references to riddling are about recounting the story of “Riddles in the Dark”.  Tom Shippey classifies riddles as one type of truth found in Old English poetry, “the basic rule of which is that all statements in them must be true, but also misleading”.  I suggest you begin with his essay when you launch your own study of riddles and the many papers which have been published on the influence of Old English poetry on Tolkien’s work.

  • 05.024 because he had not had time to think of a riddle.
  • 05.052 but Bilbo asked another riddle as quick as ever he could,
  • 05.054 It was not really the right time for this riddle,
  • 05.062 but Gollum thought it was a riddle,
  • 05.076 and after all that last question had not been a genuine riddle
  • 05.098 Not a riddle, precious, no.’
  • 05.022 It likes riddles,
  • 05.022 Riddles were all he could think of.
  • 05.029 and nearly bursting his brain to think of riddles
  • 05.037 everyday sort of riddles
  • 08.092 asking riddles
  • 08.125 riddles and all,
  • 12.056 beginning to be pleased with his riddling.
  • 12.058 No dragon can resist the fascination of riddling talk
  • 12.087 from his riddles added to the camps

Shippey, T. A. “Approaches to Truth in Old English Poetry”. University of Leeds Review 25. 1982.  PDF of reprint.