"Cliff Notes - the hobbit & the lord of rings" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tolkien J.R.R)

After what seems days of waiting, with no hint of Smaug's presence, the dwarves follow Bilbo down the tunnel to the dragon's lair. Bilbo ventures into the dark cavern alone and in the light of a torch discovers the Arkenstone. Thorin had spoken of this great jewel the night before. It had been mined from the Lonely Mountain and is greatly prized by the dwarves. Bilbo hides it in his pocket, not telling the dwarves of his discovery.

The dwarves are excited by the sight of so much treasure. They clad themselves in armor from the hoard and give a suit of mail to Bilbo. Bilbo feels magnificent wearing it, but suspects he looks silly. Unlike the dwarves, he's not bewitched by the treasure, realizing that they're not yet out of trouble. You can see how Bilbo remains down-to-earth, not carried away by the situations he finds himself in. Neither does he get caught up in visions of himself as a great hero in his armor. Thoughts of home help him keep things in perspective.

^^^^^^^^^^THE HOBBIT: CHAPTERS 14-17

After Smaug is killed by a man of Lake-town, an army of men and elves sets out for the mountain to recover Smaug's hoard. Instead they find the dwarves in possession of the treasure. The dispute over the wealth is about to erupt into war when an army of goblins and Wargs attacks.

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Tolkien takes you back to the night that Smaug destroyed the secret door, trapping the dwarves inside the passage. After doing so, Smaug descends on Lake-town, which Tolkien now calls by the name Esgaroth. (This sudden switch in name is unexplained.) The townspeople resist at first, but faced by Smaug's wrath, they soon flee. The Master of the town sneaks off in his boat, trying to save himself. Only a small band of archers hold their ground, led by a man named Bard. Bard is descended from the lord of Dale, who was killed when Smaug first drove the dwarves from the Lonely Mountain and destroyed the town of Dale. Bard refuses to quit what seems a hopeless battle, even though his companions are ready to leave him. Suddenly a thrush--the same bird who listened to Bilbo tell the dwarves about his conversation with the dragon--perches on Bard's shoulder and reveals the vulnerable spot that Bilbo had discovered in Smaug's armor. Bard fits his last arrow to his bow and kills the dragon. Smaug plunges into the lake, destroying the town.

The townspeople now turn on the Master for abandoning the town. They talk of making Bard their king. But the Master cleverly diverts them by turning their anger toward the dwarves, saying that they aroused Smaug in the first place. He also declares that if Bard is to be king he should rebuild the ruins of Dale and rule there, not in Lake-town. For now, Bard takes the lead in making sure the people of Lake-town have shelter and food. He sends a messenger to the king of the Wood-elves asking for help.

NOTE: THE IDEAL LEADER In comparing Bard to the Master of Lake-town, Tolkien presents his ideas about an ideal leader. Bard becomes a leader by proving himself as a warrior; the Master leads by virtue of his business acumen. Bard, a true leader, is willing to risk his life to save the town; the Master places his own interests and safety above those of his people. Tolkien is making a point that a leader should serve his people rather than use his position to further his own ends. Bard speaks openly, even saying things that others don't want to hear, as when he warns them that death, rather than wealth, may result from the dwarves' expedition to the mountain. The Master, on the other hand, tells his people what they want to hear and manipulates them by appealing to baser emotions such as greed and desire for revenge. What are the characteristics of other leaders that appear in The Hobbit? In what ways are they like Bard or like the Master? Keep the image of a grim warrior-leader in mind, for it will reappear in The Lord of the Rings in the character of Aragorn.

The Elvenking has already received news of Smaug's death from the birds and is journeying with a large host toward the Lonely Mountain to seize the dragon's hoard of treasure. But he turns aside to help the lake people. What does this tell you about the Wood-elves? Do you find your attitude toward them changing? The building of a new town is begun under the Master's direction. The elves, accompanied by Bard and his men, set out for the Lonely Mountain.

The dwarves are not caught unaware, for they are told of Smaug's death and the approaching army by ravens, who have long been friends with the race of dwarves. Although the ancient chief of the ravens advises them to make peace, the dwarves begin to fortify the approach to the mountain. Messages are sent to Thorin's relatives asking for help.

When the Lake-men and the elves finally arrive, Bard claims the share of the treasure that was stolen from the town of Dale. Thorin refuses, and so the army of men and elves besieges the mountain.

In chapter 15, Tolkien hints at the tragedy of war. The dwarves hear music from the camp and wish they could have welcomed these enemies as friends. Bilbo longs to be among the elves, feasting and laughing. Why then do the dwarves refuse to parley? Is it only their greed for treasure, as the narrator seems to imply, or do you think that some of Thorin's arguments are valid?

Not at all happy with the prospect of war, Bilbo comes up with a plan to try to prevent it. Putting on his ring and carrying the Arkenstone, he slips away from the dwarves. He brings the stone to Bard, hoping it can be used to bargain with Thorin. Bard, the Elvenking, and Gandalf, who reappears in the elves' camp, praise the hobbit for his action. Then Bilbo returns to the dwarves' camp.

It may seem strange to you that Bilbo should return to the dwarves, who will certainly be angry with what he's done. But Bilbo will not desert his friends. To understand this is to understand much of Tolkien's idea of the greatness of the common people. Bilbo has very simple values and stands by them. One thing he values highly is friends. Another thing he values highly is the comfortable life he led in Bag End. Throughout the adventure Bilbo keeps thinking of his home, enabling him to keep things in perspective, something the dwarves have failed to do. He realizes that the dwarves' gold isn't much good without food or without the friendship of their neighbors. He just wants to see the whole thing come to an end, and this is what prompts him to give up the Arkenstone.

Bard reveals to Thorin that he has the Arkenstone. In his anger Thorin almost throws Bilbo over the wall. Thorin reluctantly agrees to give up one-fourteenth of the treasure--Bilbo's share--in return for the Arkenstone. While Bilbo goes down to join Gandalf, Thorin is already thinking of a way to go back on his word. Dain, his cousin, is now approaching with an army of dwarves. Thorin wonders if he can recapture the Arkenstone with Dain's help and avoid paying Bilbo's share of the treasure. In chapter 14, Tolkien had said that the dwarves were affected by the bewitchment of the treasure. Now he says something similar when he attributes Thorin's actions to the bewilderment of the treasure. What do you think Tolkien is implying?

When Dain arrives, he finds his way barred by the other army, and he attacks. But a new army suddenly appears, made up of goblins and Wargs. Their quarrels forgotten, Dain's army joins with the men and elves to meet this new foe. Despite valiant resistance on the part of the combined forces, the goblins seem assured of victory. Bilbo contemplates the idea of defeat. In old songs and legends it is said that defeat is glorious, but Bilbo finds it very distressing. Tolkien at this point speaks from his own experience in the Battle of the Somme.

The attack of the goblins is in some ways beneficial, for it prevents a tragic war between races who should be allies. Squabbles over gold are shown to be petty. The forces of good unite against a common evil, in a desperate fight for survival. In this fight, even Thorin and his companions are able to redeem themselves.

As a sign of the change in the dwarves, from petty greed to noble courage, Tolkien uses heroic language to describe them. "Hood and cloak were gone; they were in shining armour, and red light leapt from their eyes. In the gloom the great dwarf gleamed like gold in a dying fire." The second sentence even has the rhythms of the Old English poetry that Tolkien admired. Notice too, the many words beginning with "g" in that sentence. This is an example of alliteration. Old English poetry, which doesn't use rhymes at the end of lines, relies on such techniques as alliteration and meter (or rhythm) to give the poem its characteristic sound. Sentences such as this reveal Tolkien's painstaking craftsmanship, which may go unnoticed on first reading.

NOTE: DWARVES IN LORE AND LITERATURE In the beginning of The Hobbit, Tolkien's dwarves seem to have come right out of the fairy tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. But like elves, the dwarves of fairy tales have degenerated greatly from their origins in myth and legends. In The Hobbit, Tolkien reverses that course, elevating his dwarves from comic characters to heroic figures.

The names of Tolkien's dwarves, as well as the wizard's name (Gandalf), come from a list of dwarves in an ancient book of Norse mythology, The Prose Edda, by Snorri Sturlson. This book was an attempt to preserve the pagan beliefs and lore that were rapidly disappearing in the face of Christianity's growing power in Europe. The dwarves of The Prose Edda, typical of traditional dwarves, were miners and expert craftsmen who lived in caves and mountains. There are many stories of dwarves who created marvelous and magical things, and in these stories the dwarves are often cheated of their pay. This may have been the inspiration for the dispute over treasure and pay between dwarves and elves in The Hobbit. Dwarves have also been traditionally associated with the fierce love of treasure that characterizes Tolkien's dwarves.

^^^^^^^^^^THE HOBBIT: CHAPTERS 18-19

The war is over, and Bilbo finds that he's a hero. After many fond farewells, he heads home.

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Bilbo, who has been knocked unconscious, comes to and finds himself alone. The war is over. He returns to camp to find Thorin dying. Wanting to make amends with Bilbo, the dwarf says, "If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."

NOTE: REDEMPTION THROUGH COURAGE A recurrent theme of epics is redemption through courage. In the French epic poem Le Chanson de Roland ("The Song of Roland"), the hero is Roland, whose desire for prestige leads him to take unnecessary risks with his men in battle, rather than call for help. Roland's pride (a common flaw of epic heroes) leads to disaster for himself and his men. Roland redeems himself through heroism in battle, where he continues fighting even when there is no hope for victory, and dies of his wounds. Likewise, Thorin, who is guilty of greed, has redeemed himself by entering the seemingly hopeless battle, risking his life and exhibiting great courage.