0235 - The History of Middle-earth - Vol. 2: The Book of Lost Tales II

Concerning "In the House of Tom Bombadil", Book 1, Chapter 7 of The Lord of the Rings, in which we ponder all things Bombadil...On this episode, we continue our discussion of The Lord of the Rings with Book 1, Chapter 7 of Fellowship, "In the House of Tombadil". As the title of this chapter would suggest, our discussion on this episode consists mainly in attempting to answer the question “Who is Tom Bombadil?” We consider both the evidence contained in this chapter as well as the things Tolkien had to say about Bombadil in his letters. It’s an easy question to get lost in, and we have a lot of fun exploring it. Topics of discussion include:Who is Tom Bombadil?Who is Goldberry?What does it mean that Tom is "Master?"How has Tom taken a "vow of poverty?"How can Tom have power over Old Man Willow?Why did Tolkien include Tom in the story even though he admitted he didn't do much to advance the plot?And much more!Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

27 Jul 20151h 20min

Concerning "The Old Forest", Book 1, Chapter 6 of The Lord of the Rings, in which Frodo and company enter the Perilous Realm...On this episode, we continue our discussion of The Lord of the Rings with Book 1, Chapter 6 of Fellowship, "The Old Forest", in which Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin set out on their journey through the Old Forest and encounter a far more dangerous road than they expected. Chapter 6 also introduces the mysterious Tom Bombadil, one of Tolkien’s most enigmatic figures. There’s a lot to talk about, including:Who is Old Man Willow?Why does the Old Forest seem alive?The beauty of the word "Withywindle"Our favorite passages from this chapterThe location of Tom Bombadil's houseAnd much more!Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

20 Jul 20151h 4min

Concerning "A Conspiracy Unmasked", Book 1, Chapter 5 of The Lord of the Rings, in which our heroes decide to take a bath and the road less travelled...On this episode, we continue our discussion of The Lord of the Rings with Book1, Chapter 5 of Fellowship, "A Conspiracy Unmasked", in which Frodo, Sam, and Pippin enjoy a warm bath and decide to make their way to Bree via the ominous Old Forest. Chapter 5 stands out as the last “Shire” chapter, the deep breath before the hobbits plunge into epic danger and adventure. As such, it establishes the good things that the hobbits must leave behind in order to carry the Ring to safety. Chapter 5 ends with an account of Frodo’s numinous tower dream, which, although quite enigmatic, seems to hold a great deal of significance for Tolkien based upon its similarities to a pre-Hobbit work of his. Though not a lot of advancing action happens in Chapter 5, there’s still plenty to talk about, as is always the case with Tolkien.Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

10 Jul 20151h 8min

Concerning Book 1 Chapter 4 of The Fellowship of the Ring, “A Shortcut to Mushrooms”...On this episode of The Tolkien Road, we continue our discussion of The Lord of the Rings with Book 1, Chapter 4 of Fellowship, "A Shortcut to Mushrooms." This is a strange chapter. It could be argued that it’s the most uneventful chapter in the whole book, with no major development in plot and not much new information revealed. Nevertheless, Tolkien chose to include it, and so on this episode we consider why he did.  We also examine the development of various characters, including Sam and Farmer Maggot. And on the haiku front, a surprise is unveiled. Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

4 Jul 20151h 10min

Concerning Book 1 Chapter 3 of The Fellowship of the Ring, “Three Is Company”... On this episode, we continue our discussion of The Lord of the Rings with Book1, Chapter 3 of Fellowship, Three Is Company. In this chapter, Frodo sets out from Hobbiton and does a whole lot of walking. Of course, he also has a near disastrous run-in with the mysterious black riders and encounters Gildor, a Noldoran Elf of the First Age. Also, thanks to contributions from listeners, we experience a veritable haiku tsunami. I hope you enjoy our discussion.Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

26 Jun 20151h 10min

Concerning Book 1 Chapter 2 of The Fellowship of the Ring, “The Shadow of the Past”... On this episode of the Tolkien Road, we continue our discussion of The Lord of the Rings with Chapter 2 of Fellowship, "The Shadow of the Past." While consisting mostly in dialogue, I consider this to be one of the prime examples of why I love Tolkien’s style so much. Along the way we discuss our love of Sam Gamgee and how anyone could possibly not love him, as well as engage in a brief though heated discussion of the literary merits of The Hunger Games. I hope you enjoy our conversation.Please leave us a rating and feedback on iTunes. We’d love to know what you think of The Tolkien Road. Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

19 Jun 20151h 23min

Concerning Book 1 Chapter 1 of The Fellowship of the Ring, “A Long Expected Party”... On this episode of The Tolkien Road, we finally launch into Chapter 1 of The Fellowship of the Ring, "A Long Expected Party". Among other things, we discuss the themes of magic, legend, and locality as they play out in this chapter, as well as the indications that Bilbo’s Ring is more than just a curious artifact. Plus, we do the math on Bilbo's infamous compliment, and determine it was kind of a nice thing to say. I hope you enjoy our conversation. Please leave us a rating and feedback on iTunes. We’d love to know what you think of The Tolkien Road. Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

12 Jun 20151h 14min

On this episode of The Tolkien Road, we examine and discuss Tolkien’s influential essay On Fairy-Stories. While both Greta and I are hungry to start our read-through of The Lord of the Rings, I felt it was important to consider the ideas Tolkien lays out in On Fairy-Stories because of the role they play in The Lord of the Rings. After all, this is the place where he lays out the distinctively Tolkienian concepts of Recovery, Escape, Consolation, Subcreation, and Eucatastrophe. Similarly, he discusses his ideas of how story-telling and the story of Jesus Christ are related. It’s quite beautiful and insightful. I hope you enjoy our discussion.Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history and background of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien Road is the podcast of the website TrueMyths.org. You can learn more by following @tolkienwisdom on Twitter and following TrueMyths.org on Facebook at Facebook.com/TrueMyths.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support.

5 Jun 20151h 18min