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The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
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11/09-12/09: The Hobbit/ Empathy and Tolkien’s Narrator
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Maria
(last edited Nov 30, 2009 01:53PM)
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Nov 30, 2009 01:50PM
One aspect of The Hobbit that struck me as particularly significant to the success of the novel is Tolkien’s narrator. Sometimes the voice of the narrator is confused with the voice of the author – which, although closely linked, is not the same entity. Tolkien wrote The Hobbit for his children but his narrator seems more humorous and playful than a father – perhaps grandfatherly instead? – particularly given the moral undertones of the story. For me, it is the sense of wit that the narrator employs that builds a bridge of empathy and belief between the characters and me, fostering acceptance Tolkien’s fantasy world.
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Tolkien's narrator's voice reminded me very much of Sir Walter Scott's in "A Grandfather's Tale, a history of Scotland" or something like that. So, I'll go with the grandfather's voice.
I'd lean towards a grandfather's voice as well. Interesting, though, none of my now-dead grandfathers would have read The Hobbit to me or I can't imagine them doing so.
I'd like to imagine Gandalf in his all knowing wisdom narrating the story, but I know that's not right. So, yes, definitely an older man type, maybe a grandfather, certainly not my grandfather though. :)
I always thought it was an older, wiser Bilbo narrating.
I get the impression that the narrator is someone who exists somewhere in Middle Earth, considering he seems to be aware of who the characters are and what they are like. I also just took a look in the beginning and this person is obviously human because he talks about "Hobbits being rare and shy of the 'Big People', as they call us." I guess I could see him (assuming it's a him) being grandfatherly like like the OP said.
Interesting ideas. This narrator and others is always me, or the part of me that is speaking in my head at the time. It is a different part of me than the part of me that identified with someone in a novel.Perhaps some of this comes from reading the book to my kids and grandkids???
It has to be someone from our world narrating, doesn't it? Since I believe the sound of a train is mentioned, which the hobbits would not be aware of.
Really? There's a train? Can you remember what section of the novel that's in, or roughly where? The reason I ask is, because the novel is set in a time that is pre-industrial (perhaps medieval but not necessarily), the sound of a train would break verisimilitude - or the truth/reality of the novel. That would be interesting :)
Actually a train is mentioned both in the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings.
The Hobbit it is in An Unexpected Party, when Thorin speaks, 'At never return he began to feel a shriek coming up inside, and very soon it burst out like a whistle of an engine coming out of a tunnel'.
Lord of the Rings in a Long Expected Party, when the fireworks exploded, 'The dragon passed like an express train, turned a somersault, and burst over the Bywater with a deafening explosion'.
The Hobbit it is in An Unexpected Party, when Thorin speaks, 'At never return he began to feel a shriek coming up inside, and very soon it burst out like a whistle of an engine coming out of a tunnel'.
Lord of the Rings in a Long Expected Party, when the fireworks exploded, 'The dragon passed like an express train, turned a somersault, and burst over the Bywater with a deafening explosion'.
You can either look at that as a break in the character of the narrator, or that the narrator is supposed to be someone from our world, I suppose.
The narrator is very modern. There is the mention of the post in the Hobbit. I always saw the narrator as somewhat like Alister Cooke, for some reason. Or maybe Robert Hardy. I see the character as English, very similar to Dickens' narrators.
I agree, the narrator is someone from our world. He explains at the beginning what are hobbits, because they are not well known "nowadays", as they have become rare and shy of us.It feels as if Tolkien is telling of things from an ancient past, magical things and old creatures long forgotten by our modern world.
For me Tolkien always has been the narrator of this story.
Allister Cooke is perfect, Chris!
I saw a description today when reading. The Wargs had treed Thorin and Company, and one of the trees was described as a "Christmas Tree". That's certainly a term from our world.
There is also a door opening like a 'pop-gun' in the Hobbit, had wondered on that also.
Hmmm..I'm going to have to go back and look at that again. While I've read the LOTR over 30 times I've actually only read The Hobbit twice. I always "heard" Tolkien's cultured, grandfatherly British accent in my head while reading his tomes and sometimes felt as if I were in a wingback chair in his study with a bracing cup of tea and a nice fire crackling in the hearth. Not sure if any of you are aware but I believe they are still in pre-production on the the live action movie for The Hobbit. Link is here if anyone is interested: http://the-hobbit-movie.com/. Apparently the script is completed.
These are very interesting comments about the novel. As a writer, I try hard to maintain the credibilty of the narrative by ensuring that everything 'fits' in the world/environment/era of the story I have created, because to not do so breaks the reader out of 'the dream' and shows them the illusion. It's a bit like seeing the rabbit's ears peeking out of the top of the magician's hat :( I take the point that the narrator is 'present' day - the preface begins 'This is a story of long ago...quite different from ours of today...' and therefore using similies and other descriptive devices that employ modern technology (trains, engines, pop-guns) and cultural symbols (Christmas Trees) is reasonable for the narrator. As long as none of the characters use these terms, the illusory world that Tolkien has created remains intact.
On the other hand, for those reader's who feel that the narrator is from Middle Earth, or is an older and wiser Bilbo, the use of such terms could be an issue... or not :)
I had noticed the break in verisimilitude myself while reading. That in itself led me to believe it was more of a grandfather reading a bedtime story to a child.
It did feel to me too that Tolkien's voice was that of a grandfather... not of someone from Middle Earth. Maria, makes a wonderful point, as well. There is a certain magic, or dream-like state, that the author is responsible for and must not break. There is a trust between writer and reader. An understanding. And when either the author or narrator breaks that trust/understanding, the illusion vanishes... and so does the emotional connection with the characters.
Russ & Maria: This is true. But in certain special cases, I think the magic of the story can survive the breaks. I think Tolkien was one of the few that could achieve that. His story persists despite a mention of trains or guns. I noticed the break, but I did not find it so distracting as to ruin the feel of the story. Perhaps that is part of what makes The Hobbit such a great read. It is not just a painted picture, it is a tapestry that lives and breathes through us. It is art. :)
ViktoriaCouldn't agree more. And you know, I never felt that Tolkien broke that trust.
Very interesting conversation - I'm going to to with the narrator being someone from our world. I do like the Alister Cook analogy - fits in well with my ideal of him. - And yes I meant "male" for some reason I can't think of it being female - which is strange since the LOTR moviews used a woman overvoice.
The elf queen was the overvoice, wasn't she?
Elise wrote: "I get the impression that the narrator is someone who exists somewhere in Middle Earth, considering he seems to be aware of who the characters are and what they are like. I also just took a look in..."What about a wise old teacher, instead of grandfather or grandmother? Someone that is wise in the ways of the world teaching the younger generation what they need to know?
