Hobbit Tales and Thanksgiving
Ruth Ann Stites, Staff Writer
Like many other loving dads, Ronald told his children stories, especially one that began, “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” While it is true that some stories adults have crafted for beloved children have become successful books, few have made such a splash in the publishing world as this father’s did. J. R. R. Tolkien wrote down the tale of Hobbit Bilbo Baggins and refined it to the point that the typescript of the story was shared with friends. One of its readers was Susan Dagnall who worked for a publisher, George Allen and Unwin. Mr. Unwin took the story home to his son, Rayner aged 10, who approved of it and, in 1937, The Hobbit was published. “It immediately scored a success, and has not been out of children’s recommended reading lists ever since.”[1]
The demand was strong for a “new Hobbit” tale ending in the publication of the three-volume sequel, The Lord of the Rings (1954-55). The boy who approved The Hobbit, Rayner Unwin – now a part of his father’s publishing firm – fought hard for its publication. One reason its release was so slow was the fear that the trilogy would lose money. Much to everyone’s surprise, rather than losing a thousand pounds as they feared, it became an international success and Tolkien “to his amazement, became rather rich.”[2]
Starting with The Hobbit and finishing with The Return of the King, the saga of the destruction of the evil, powerful, and controlling ring and the roles of Bilbo, Smeagol/Gollum, Frodo, and Sam has many levels of meaning. Tolkien, a devout Roman Catholic and close friend of Christian apologist C.S. Lewis, wove deeply theological meaning into the Hobbit’s story, especially addressing the junction of free will, human limitations, and divine grace. He discussed these topics in his letters to friends and readers, so we know the author’s perspective as well as those of critics and readers alike.
Condensing the 1,500 or more pages of the four books (actual page numbers depending on edition) into a short summary is difficult, but an extremely simplified version of the central theme of the saga is that an evil master ring intended to control all the peoples of Middle Earth comes into the hands of a Hobbit, Smeagol, who commits murder to own it. After many years of hiding in a dark cave under the influence of the ring, Smeagol has become a different, deranged creature, Gollum, whom we can call his alter ego. On an adventure of his own our first Hobbit hero, Bilbo, finds the ring and escapes the cave. Many years later, his nephew, Frodo, accompanied by his loyal friend, Sam, is given the mission of destroying the ring in the fiery mountain where it was created. Smeagol (as his alter ego Gollum) joins them on their journey. Gollum, having totally replaced Smeagol, does what Frodo cannot do, destroy the ring. As Frodo stands on the edge of the seething crater of Mount Doom, Gollum recovers the ring from him by biting off his ring finger. In Gollum’s euphoric, celebratory dance, he slips and falls into the volcanic furnace carrying the ring to its destruction. (A short YouTube video, The Complete Life of Gollum, gives a more detailed account of this theme.)
Tolkien wrestles with temptation, free will, morality, grace, and mercy through his Hobbit tales reaching the pivotal moment on Mount Doom. One question many readers ask is, was Frodo a moral failure? In his bestselling book, Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis wrote, “God knows our situation; He will not judge us as if we had no difficulties to overcome. What matters is the sincerity and perseverance of our will to overcome them.” And that is the central point Tolkien explained in a draft copy of a letter to Mrs. Eileen Elgar in September 1963.[3]
I do not think that Frodo’s was a moral failure. At the last moment the pressure of the Ring would reach its maximum – impossible, I should have said, for any one to resist, certainly after long possession, months of increasing torment, and when starved and exhausted. Frodo had done what he could and spent himself completely (as an instrument of Providence) and had produced a situation in which the object of his quest could be achieved. His humility (with which he began) and his sufferings were justly rewarded by the highest honour; and his exercise of patience and mercy towards Gollum gained him Mercy: his failure was redressed.
I would suggest that if Frodo had succeeded, the story would have lost its underlying dependence on God’s sovereignty, grace, and mercy. A creature who could have saved himself by his actions would not show the outworking of Providence to save. Frodo illustrates that in his own power he could never succeed. This inability to save the world on his own illustrates the reality of Christian faith: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). We are His handiwork, as Psalm 100:3 makes clear, unable to fend for ourselves. So, what should our response to so great a mercy be? Thanksgiving, according to Psalm 100. It is not just an inner acknowledgement of the good we have received but an outward expression of the gifts we have been given by our omnipresent, omnipotent, gracious God who creates and sustains us. “For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations” (Ps. 100:5).
Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.” With this in mind, consider the following points as you prepare to pray:
- Thanksgiving is communal, external, and audible
- Thanksgiving is a prerequisite for entering God’s presence, shifting the focus from self-centered to God centered.[4]
- Thanksgiving is rooted in identity; He made us, and we belong to Him and are cared for by Him.
- Thanksgiving is rooted in God’s unchanging character. He is good, loves steadfastly, and is faithful. So, as you pray, give thanks to God, the One who saves us when we are incapable of doing so ourselves, let your praise of Him overflow in all things, especially in thanksgiving!
Reflection Questions:
1. Were you familiar with the Hobbit tales of J. R. R. Tolkien before reading this essay? If so, have your views of these stories changed? How?
2. Had you thought about failure as a moral issue? What do you think of Professor Tolkien’s position as stated in the quote from his letter? Has your opinion changed, how?
3. Many people make a distinction between gratitude and thanksgiving. They generally conclude that gratitude is an inward state of mind or attitude while thanksgiving is an outward expression in response to experience. Why do you think the author of Psalm 100 makes no reference to gratitude but calls for proclamations of thanksgiving? How does thanksgiving, more than gratitude, praise and exalt the Godhead? How can you more intentionally be a person of thanksgiving?
(Photo description and credit: This geyserite cone is reminiscent of the much larger Mount Doom Frodo had to climb in his quest to destroy the ring. It is also a reminder of the fiery mountains we all encounter in our lives. Yet, we can shout in thanksgiving to the Lord even when faced with seemingly impossible mountains. Credit: R. A. Stites, White Dome Geyser, Yellowstone National Park, summer 2016.)
[1] Biography – The Tolkien Society
[2] Ibid.
