Sarah McNutt
Chapter 1
Tom Shippey continues to make connections between the world created by Tolkien and the world he actually lived in. Emphasizing the fairy tales and people local to England many direct correlations can be found to Middle earth and the Hobbit. Specifically the mentality of the inhabitants of the shire and their likeness to social classes of England. Shippey labels Bilbo as “Bourgeois” the non-working class who are characterized by their well to do means of living. Also the literature of Beowulf and otherwise looked over scripts thought to have little significance is where Tolkien draws his terms and names. I found these connection especially interesting as a continuation of Angela Faulk’s lecture. She discussed the origins of “Elf”, “Middle earth”, “ent”, and “Dwarf” In fact at one point she “misuses” the plural of Dwarf and corrects herself, this is funny to me because Shippey dedicated a few sentences to the proper plural of dwarf and Tolkien’s take on it.
“In English the only correct plural of dwarf is dwarfs’”.
Another association to English literature is the dragon, a fluent, intellectual, difficult to kill dragon. Something other than just bestial that resembles the story of Fafnir best. Having read Children of Hurin and the Hobbit many years ago Tolkien but a fascinating spin on the way characters converse with the dragons. It almost appears that the Dragons are truly 100% in control of the hero but act other wise to humor themselves and appear as polite. Shippey compares The verbal style of the dragon Smaug found in the hobbit to that of a twentieth-century upper class Englishman. I find to fascinating to see what Tolkien has created on his own and what he has elaborated on from others.
In addition it would appear that Tolkien is trying to establish a story that is very uniquely English. The shire, Bilbo, and the way Smaug talks are all items that are mentioned by Shippey that are distinctively English. Where other authors had provided texts that became the national story Tolkien appears to be trying to do the same. It is interesting that a place established with such longevity would not already have a story like that, but Tolkien must feel that what it does have is unable to capture the essence of what it means to be English.I find for someone not even born in that country Tolkien is especially nationalistic. And the reluctance of the hobbit characters of Bilbo and Frodo to leave their Shire may reflect the same feeling Tolkien has.
Sarah McNutt
