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Gandalf
Gandalf is a protagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is a Wizards (Middle-earth), wizard, one of the Istari order, and the leader of the Company of the Ring. Tolkien took the name "Gandalf" from the Old Norse Dvergatal, "Catalogue of Dwarves" (''Dvergatal'') in the ''Völuspá''. As a wizard and the bearer of one of the Three Rings, Gandalf has great power, but works mostly by encouraging and persuading. He sets out as Gandalf the Grey, possessing great knowledge and travelling continually. Gandalf is focused on the mission to counter the Dark Lord Sauron by destroying the One Ring. He is associated with fire; his ring of power is Narya, the Ring of Fire. As such, he delights in fireworks to entertain the hobbits of the Shire, while in great need he uses fire as a weapon. As one of the Maiar, he is an immortal spirit from Valinor, but his physical body can be killed. In ''The Hobbit'', Gandalf assists the 13 dwarves and the h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Balrog
Balrogs () are a species of powerful demonic monsters in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. One first appeared in print in his high-fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings'', where the Company of the Ring encounter a Balrog known as Durin's Bane in the Mines of Moria (Middle-earth), Moria. Balrogs appear also in Tolkien's ''The Silmarillion'' and Tolkien's legendarium, his legendarium. Balrogs are tall and menacing beings who can shroud themselves in fire, darkness, and shadow. They are armed with fiery whips "of many thongs", and its early drafts speak frequently of the whips of fire. ''The Lays of Beleriand'' describe Morgoth's prisoners tortured by Balrogs with scourges; and the Balrog in Moria (''The Fellowship of the Ring'', "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm") is armed explicitly with a "whip of many thongs" or strands. and occasionally use long swords. In Tolkien's later conception, Balrogs could not be readily vanquished—a certain stature was required by the would-be hero. Only Dr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wizards (Middle-earth)
The Wizards or Istari in J. R. R. Tolkien's fiction were powerful angelic beings, Maiar in Middle-earth, Maiar, who took the physical form and some of the limitations of Man (Middle-earth), Men to intervene in the affairs of Middle-earth in the Third Age, after catastrophically violent direct interventions by the Valar, and indeed by the one god Eru Ilúvatar, in the earlier ages. Two Wizards, Gandalf the Grey and Saruman the White, largely represent the order, though a third Wizard, Radagast the Brown, appears briefly. Two Blue Wizards are mentioned in passing. Saruman is installed as the head of the White Council, but falls to the temptation of power. He imitates and is to an extent the double of the Dark Lord Sauron, only to become his unwitting servant. Gandalf ceaselessly assists the Company of the Ring in their quest to destroy One Ring, the Ring and defeat Sauron. He forms the double of Saruman, as Saruman falls and is destroyed, while Gandalf rises and takes Saruman's pla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Lord Of The Rings
''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually developed into a much larger work. Written in stages between 1937 and 1949, ''The Lord of the Rings'' is one of the List of best-selling books, best-selling books ever written, with over 150 million copies sold. The title refers to the story's main antagonist, the Dark Lord Sauron, who History of Arda#Second Age, in an earlier age created the One Ring, allowing him to rule the other Rings of Power given to Men in Middle-earth, men, Dwarves in Middle-earth, dwarves, and Elves in Middle-earth, elves, in his campaign to conquer all of Middle-earth. From homely beginnings in the Shire, a hobbit land reminiscent of the English countryside, the story ranges across Middle-earth, following Quests in Middle-earth, the quest to destroy the One Ring, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moria (Middle-earth)
In the fictional history of the world by J. R. R. Tolkien, Moria, also named Khazad-dûm, is an ancient subterranean complex in Middle-earth, comprising a vast labyrinthine network of tunnels, chambers, mines, and halls under the Misty Mountains, with doors on both the western and the eastern sides of the mountain range. Moria is introduced in Tolkien's novel ''The Hobbit'', and is a major scene of action in ''The Lord of the Rings''. In much of History of Arda, Middle-earth's history, Moria was the greatest city of Dwarf (Middle-earth), the Dwarves. The city's wealth was founded on its mines, which produced ''mithril'', a fictional metal of great beauty and strength, suitable for armour. The Dwarves dug too greedily and too deep for ''mithril'', and disturbed a demon of great power: Durin's Bane, a Balrog, which destroyed their kingdom. By the end of the Third Age, Moria had long been abandoned by the Dwarves, and was a place of evil repute. It was dark, in dangerous disrepair, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Council Of Elrond
"The Council of Elrond" is the second chapter of Book 2 of J. R. R. Tolkien's bestselling fantasy work, ''The Lord of the Rings'', which was published in 1954–1955. It is the longest chapter in that book at some 15,000 words, and critical for explaining the power and threat of the One Ring, for introducing the final members of the Company of the Ring, and for defining Quests in Middle-earth, the planned quest to destroy it. Contrary to the maxim "Show, don't tell", the chapter consists mainly of people talking; the action is, as in an earlier chapter "The Shadow of the Past", narrated, largely by the Wizard Gandalf, in Flashback (narrative), flashback. The chapter parallels the far simpler Beorn chapter in ''The Hobbit'', which similarly presents a culture-clash of modern (mediated by the hobbit) with ancient (the heroic Beorn). The Tolkien scholar Tom Shippey calls the chapter "a largely unappreciated ''wikt:tour de force, tour de force''". The Episcopal Church (United States), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unfinished Tales
''Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth'' is a collection of stories and essays by J. R. R. Tolkien that were never completed during his lifetime, but were edited by his son Christopher Tolkien and published in 1980. Many of the tales within are retold in ''The Silmarillion'', albeit in modified forms; the work also contains a summary of the events of ''The Lord of the Rings'' told from a less personal perspective. The collection received a cautious welcome from scholars and critics. They noted Christopher Tolkien's warning that a good knowledge of the background was needed to gain much from the stories. Others noted that the stories were among the best of Tolkien's writing; Warren Dunn expressed a wish for the whole of the history in such a format. The book, with its commentary, was commercially successful, indicating a market for more of Tolkien's work and leading to the 12-volume ''The History of Middle-earth''. On "The Quest of Erebor" in Part Three, Christine Bar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Hobbit
''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the '' New York Herald Tribune'' for best juvenile fiction. It is recognized as a classic in children's literature and is one of the best-selling books of all time, with over 100 million copies sold. ''The Hobbit'' is set in Middle-earth and follows home-loving Bilbo Baggins, the titular hobbit who joins the wizard Gandalf and the thirteen dwarves of Thorin's Company on a quest to reclaim the dwarves' home and treasure from the dragon Smaug. Bilbo's journey takes him from his peaceful rural surroundings into more sinister territory. The story is told in the form of a picaresque or episodic quest; several chapters introduce a new type of monster or threat as Bilbo progresses through the landscape. Bilbo gains a new level of maturity, c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
One Ring
The One Ring, also called the Ruling Ring and Isildur's Bane, is a central plot element in J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'' (1954–55). It first appeared in the earlier story '' The Hobbit'' (1937) as a magic ring that grants the wearer invisibility. Tolkien changed it into a malevolent Ring of Power and re-wrote parts of ''The Hobbit'' to fit in with the expanded narrative. ''The Lord of the Rings'' describes the hobbit Frodo Baggins's quest to destroy the Ring and save Middle-earth. Scholars have compared the story with the ring-based plot of Richard Wagner's opera cycle '' Der Ring des Nibelungen''; Tolkien denied any connection, but at the least, both men drew on the same mythology. Another source is Tolkien's analysis of Nodens, an obscure pagan god with a temple at Lydney Park, where he studied the Latin inscriptions, one containing a curse on the thief of a ring. Tolkien rejected the idea that the story was an allegory, saying that applicability to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bilbo Baggins
Bilbo Baggins (Westron: ''Bilba Labingi'') is the title character and protagonist of J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 novel ''The Hobbit'', a supporting character in ''The Lord of the Rings'', and the fictional narrator (along with Frodo Baggins) of many of Tolkien's Middle-earth writings. The Hobbit is selected by the wizard Gandalf to help Thorin Oakenshield, Thorin and his party of Dwarf (Middle-earth), Dwarves reclaim their ancestral home and treasure, which has been seized by the dragon Smaug. Bilbo sets out in ''The Hobbit'' timid and comfort-loving and, through his adventures, grows to become a useful and resourceful member of Quests in Middle-earth, the quest. Bilbo's way of life in the Shire, defined by features like the availability of tobacco and postal service, recalls that of the English middle class during the Victorian era, Victorian to Edwardian eras. This is not compatible with the much older world of Dwarves and Elf (Middle-earth), Elves. Tolkien appears to have based ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Three Rings
The Rings of Power are magical artefacts in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, most prominently in his high fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings''. The One Ring first appeared as a plot device, a magic ring in Tolkien's children's fantasy novel, ''The Hobbit''; Tolkien later gave it a backstory and much greater power. He added nineteen other Great Rings, also conferring powers such as invisibility, that it could control, including the Three Rings of the Elves, Seven Rings for the Dwarves, and Nine for Men. He stated that there were in addition many lesser rings with minor powers. A key story element in ''The Lord of the Rings'' is the addictive power of the One Ring, made secretly by the Dark Lord Sauron; the Nine Rings enslave their bearers as the Nazgûl (Ringwraiths), Sauron's most deadly servants. Proposed sources of inspiration for the Rings of Power range from Germanic legend with the ring Andvaranaut and eventually Richard Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'', to fairy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Company Of The Ring
The Company of the Ring, also called the Fellowship of the Ring and the Nine Walkers, is a fictional group of nine representatives from the free peoples of Middle-earth: Elves in Middle-earth, Elves, Dwarves in Middle-earth, Dwarves, Men in Middle-earth, Men, and Hobbits; and a Wizards in Middle-earth, Wizard. The group is described in the first volume of ''The Lord of the Rings'', itself titled The Fellowship of the Ring (book), ''The Fellowship of the Ring''. The number nine is chosen, as the book's author J. R. R. Tolkien states, to match and oppose the nine Black Riders or Ringwraiths. Scholars have commented that Tolkien saw community as the right way to live. They note, too, that the Company is diverse both in culture and in personal qualities, and bound together by friendship, a model very different from the Hero's journey, western image of the lone hero. Tolkien uses the term "company" far more often than "fellowship", the word coming from Latin ''companio'', a person wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
