In late September of 1937, an Oxford academic invited readers into a curious hole in the ground to meet a small creature known as a hobbit. It was a story that would grip the imaginations of children and adults alike, going on to become one of the best selling novels of all time.
As the third and final part of Peter Jackson's grand adaptation of The Hobbit wings its way toward cinemas in the form of The Battle of the Five Armies, we've turned our attention from the glamour of the cinema to the classic work of high fantasy that started it all. Like a talented thief, we've plumbed the depths of J. R. R. Tolkien's tale of adventure in search of nuggets of wisdom and enchanting expressions.
From humorous observations to elegant advice, here's hoping this inspires you to dig out your copy for another read. Let us know if we missed any of your favourite words of wisdom in the comments below.
READ MARTIN FREEMAN'S INTERVIEW WITH SIR IAN MCKELLEN HERE
Bilbo Baggins (advice handed down from his father)
"While there's life there's hope!"
(Image: Rex)
Thorin II Oakenshield
"There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something. You certainly usually find something, if you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after."
(Image: Rex)
Bilbo Baggins (and said about him)
"I should like to know about risks, out-of-pocket expenses, time required and remuneration, and so forth" - by which he meant: "What am I going to get out of it? And am I going to come back alive?"
Tolkien (narrator)
"It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him."
Thorin II Oakenshield
"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."
(Image: Rex)
Bilbo Baggins
"I am like a burglar that can't get away, but must go on miserably burgling the same house day after day."
Tolkien (narrator)
"His rage passes description – the sort of rage that is only seen when rich folk that have more than they can enjoy suddenly lose something that they have long had but have never before used or wanted."
Bilbo Baggins
"Every worm has his weak spot."
Gandalf
"If you sit on the doorstep long enough, I daresay you will think of something."
(Image: Rex)
Tolkien (narrator)
"So comes snow after fire, and even dragons have their endings."
Bilbo Baggins
"Third time pays for all!"
(Image: Rex)
Bilbo Baggins
"Go back?... No good at all! Go sideways? Impossible! Go forward? Only thing to do! On we go!"
Bilbo Bagins
"Never laugh at live dragons."
(Image: Rex)
Bilbo Baggins
"Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar."
Tolkien (narrator)
"Now it is a strange thing, but things that are good to have and days that are good to spend are soon told about, and not much to listen to; while things that are uncomfortable, palpitating, and even gruesome, may make a good tale, and take a deal of telling anyway."
Tolkien (narrator)
"Trolls simply detest the very sight of dwarves (uncooked)."
Tolkien (narrator)
"No dragon can resist the fascination of riddling talk and of wasting time trying to understand it."
Gandalf
"May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks."
(Image: Rex)
Tolkien (narrator)
"Elvish singing is not a thing to miss, in June under the stars, not if you care for such things."
The Dwarves
"Don’t tell us about dreams. Dream-dinners aren’t any good, and we can’t share them."
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