History of The Hobbit
Jan. 29th, 2010 04:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dreamflowerI was sent home early from work today, so I thought I'd finish reading my first volume of The History of The Hobbit.
It's really been fascinating-- it a lot of ways it was easier to read than HoMe-- there were still a lot of footnotes and so forth, but I think there was far less "messing about" with The Hobbit. It seems that before the publication, there were only two handwritten manuscripts, and two typescripts, rather than the many masses of papers which were written during the creation of LotR and the Silm.
It's also an eye-opener as to how much still-unpublished stuff is still out there, available only to scholars-- I think we fans need to start besieging the publishers to release some of these things!
Anyway, I thought I might spam y'all with a few of the interesting factoids, insights and plot bunnies I've gotten from reading this so far!
I can't wait to dig into Part Two!
Here's a little bit I thought some of you might find more than a little intriguing:
It may sound a bit familiar at first, but pay close attention to it--"even to Old Took's great-uncle Bullroarer, who was so large he could ride a shetland pony, and charged the ranks of the goblins of Mount Gram in the Battle of the Green Fields. He knocked their king Fingolfin's head clean off with a wooden club; it sailed a hundred yards through the air and went down a rabbit-hole, and in this way the battle was won and the game of Golf invented at the same moment."
There are two things rather important that were changed from this portion of the First Manuscript. Who can spot them, and who can tell me just why the second one is so amusing?
It's really been fascinating-- it a lot of ways it was easier to read than HoMe-- there were still a lot of footnotes and so forth, but I think there was far less "messing about" with The Hobbit. It seems that before the publication, there were only two handwritten manuscripts, and two typescripts, rather than the many masses of papers which were written during the creation of LotR and the Silm.
It's also an eye-opener as to how much still-unpublished stuff is still out there, available only to scholars-- I think we fans need to start besieging the publishers to release some of these things!
Anyway, I thought I might spam y'all with a few of the interesting factoids, insights and plot bunnies I've gotten from reading this so far!
I can't wait to dig into Part Two!
Here's a little bit I thought some of you might find more than a little intriguing:
It may sound a bit familiar at first, but pay close attention to it--"even to Old Took's great-uncle Bullroarer, who was so large he could ride a shetland pony, and charged the ranks of the goblins of Mount Gram in the Battle of the Green Fields. He knocked their king Fingolfin's head clean off with a wooden club; it sailed a hundred yards through the air and went down a rabbit-hole, and in this way the battle was won and the game of Golf invented at the same moment."
There are two things rather important that were changed from this portion of the First Manuscript. Who can spot them, and who can tell me just why the second one is so amusing?
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My guesses...
Date: 2010-01-29 11:05 pm (UTC)2). Golfimbul (the goblin) is Fingolfin (an elf's name!) in this version!!! O_o
To be fair, I had a little help with number two since I remember already hearing that. Now, who will write the crack!Silm!crossover that must inevitably result?
no subject
Date: 2010-01-29 11:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-29 11:36 pm (UTC)I look forward to any tidbits you can throw our way. *is greedy*
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Date: 2010-01-29 11:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-30 12:42 am (UTC)Re: My guesses...
Date: 2010-01-30 01:08 am (UTC)As to number 1, it's an indication to me that hobbits were originally smaller in his mind, since it was only the largest that could ride a large pony-- not a horse!
And yep! Number two is right as well! I'd love to see that crack!crossover myself!
no subject
Date: 2010-01-30 01:12 am (UTC)But I wonder, what *was* Fingolfin doing leading that pack of goblins? Perhaps Morgoth turned him into a zombie? That could explain why it was so easy to knock his head off. *snerk*
I'd love to see a lot of crack explanations of this!
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Date: 2010-01-30 01:14 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-30 01:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-30 01:47 am (UTC)And shetland pony is a bit of an anachronism, there being no Shetlands Isles in Middle-earth, so that may be one reason he changed it?
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Date: 2010-01-30 02:00 am (UTC)And, yes, I am imagining that is exactly why he dropped it.
*giggle* Love your icon!
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Date: 2010-01-30 03:13 am (UTC)Well, anybody who can go down in the annals of history with the moniker "Bullroarer" needs to be good at PR. That's not something I see the quiet Shire-folk coming up with on their own without some encouragement.
Or maybe he was just habitually loud... In which case he really would have needed to be good at PR.
But I wonder, what *was* Fingolfin doing leading that pack of goblins? Perhaps Morgoth turned him into a zombie? That could explain why it was so easy to knock his head off. *snerk*
Makes you wonder if various Middle-earth cultures had filed away some plan or another for dealing with the rampaging hordes should zombies ever try to take over the Hinter Lands. I can just see Bilbo pouring over the books in Elrond's library and coming across an old copy of "Plans for Surviving the Zombie Invasion." ::grins:: I'd love to see some crack!fic about that, too! :)
no subject
Date: 2010-01-30 09:04 am (UTC)