|
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Three Rings for the Elven-kings under
the sky,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die, One for the Dark Lord on his dark
throne In The One ring to rule them all, One Ring to
find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the
darkness bind them In the From “The Lord of the Rings” Welcome to the
Tolkien’s Books section of my Lord
of the Rings Page! Here you’ll
find the summaries of The Silmarillion, the Unfinished Tales,
The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The Silmarillion
(Summary
taken from The Silmarillion) The Silmarillion is an account of the Elder Days, or the First Age of Tolkien’s World. It is the ancient drama to which the characters in The Lord of the Rings look back, and in whose events some of them, such as Elrond and Galadriel, took part. The tales of The Silmarillion are set in an age when Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in Middle-earth, and the High Elves made war upon him for the recovery of the Silmarils. The three
Silmarils were jewels created by Fëanor, most gifted of the Elves. Within
them were imprisoned the Light of the Two Trees of Valinor before the Trees
themselves were destroyed by Morgoth. Thereafter the unsullied Light of
Valinor lived on only in the Silmarils; but they were seized by Morgoth and
set in his crown, guarded in the fortress of Angband in the north of
Middle-earth. The Silmarillion is the history of the rebellion of Fëanor
and his kindred against the gods, their exile from Valinor and return to
Middle-earth and their war, hopeless despite their heroism, against the great
Enemy. Included in the book are several shorter works. The Ainulindalë is a myth of the Creation
and in the Valaquenta the nature
and powers of each of the gods is described. The Akallabêth recounts the downfall of the great island kingdom of
Nùmenor at the end of the Second Age and Of
the Rings of Power tells of the great events at the end of the Third Age,
which are narrated in The Lord of the
Rings. (for more
in-depth summary and background: Red Book of Westmarch) Unfinished Tales of Nùmenor and Middle-earth
(Summary
taken from Unfinished Tales) Unfinished Tales of Nùmenor and Middle-earth is a collection of narratives ranging in time from the Elder Days of Middle-earth to the end of the War of the Ring, and comprising such various elements as Gandalf’s lively account of how it was that he came to send the Dwarves to the celebrated party at Bag-End, the emergence of the sea-god Ulmo before the eyes of Tuor on the coast of Beleriand, and an exact description of military organisation of the Riders of Rohan. The book contains only one story that survived from the long ages of Nùmenor before its downfall, and all that is known of such matters as the Five Wizards, the Palantìri, or the legend of Amroth. The Hobbit
(Summary taken from SparkNotes) Bilbo
Baggins lives a quiet, peaceful life in his comfortable hole at Bag End.
Bilbo lives in a hole because he is a hobbit—one of a race of small, plump
people about half the size of humans, with furry toes and a
great love of good food and drink. Bilbo is quite content at Bag End, near
the bustling hobbit village of Hobbiton, but one day his comfort is shattered
by the arrival of the old wizard Gandalf, who persuades Bilbo to set out on
an adventure with a group of thirteen militant dwarves. The dwarves are
embarking on a great quest to reclaim their treasure from the marauding
dragon Smaug, and Bilbo is to act as their “burglar.” The dwarves are very sceptical
about Gandalf’s choice for a burglar, and Bilbo is terrified to leave his
comfortable life to seek adventure. But Gandalf assures both Bilbo and the
dwarves that there is more to the little hobbit than meets the eye. Shortly
after the group sets out, three hungry trolls capture all of them except for
Gandalf. Gandalf tricks the trolls into remaining outside when the sun comes
up, and the sunlight turns the nocturnal trolls to stone. The group finds a
great cache of weapons in the trolls’ camp. Gandalf and the dwarf lord Thorin
take magic swords, and Bilbo takes a small sword of his own. The group
rests at the elfish stronghold of Rivendell, where they receive advice from
the great elf lord Elrond, then set out to cross the Misty Mountains. When
they find shelter in a cave during a snowstorm, a group of goblins who live
in the caverns beneath the mountain take them prisoner. Gandalf leads the
dwarves to a passage out of the mountain, but they accidentally leave behind
Bilbo. Wandering through
the tunnels, Bilbo finds a strange golden ring lying on the ground. He takes
the ring and puts it in his pocket. Soon he encounters Gollum, a hissing,
whining creature who lives in a pool in the caverns and hunts fish and
goblins. Gollum wants to eat Bilbo, and the two have a contest of riddles to
determine Bilbo’s fate. Bilbo wins by asking the dubious riddle, “What have I
got in my pocket?” Gollum wants
to eat Bilbo anyway, and he disappears to fetch his magic ring, which turns
its wearer invisible. The ring, however, is the same one Bilbo has already
found, and Bilbo uses it to escape from Gollum and flee the goblins. He finds
a tunnel leading up out of the mountain and discovers that the dwarves and
Gandalf have already escaped. Evil wolves known as Wargs pursue them, but
Bilbo and his comrades are helped to safety by a group of great eagles and by
Beorn, a creature who can change shape from a man into a bear. The company
enters the dark forest of Mirkwood, and, making matters worse, Gandalf abandons
them to see to some other urgent business. In the forest, the dwarves are
caught in the webs of some giant spiders, and Bilbo must rescue them with his
sword and magic ring. After slaying his first spider, Bilbo names his sword
Sting. Shortly after escaping the spiders, the unlucky dwarves are captured
by a group of wood elves who live near the river that
runs through Mirkwood. Bilbo uses his ring to help the company escape and
slips the dwarves away from the elves by hiding them inside barrels, which he
then floats down the river. The dwarves arrive at Lake Town, a human
settlement near the Lonely Mountain, under which the great dragon sleeps with
Thorin’s treasure. After
sneaking into the mountain, Bilbo talks to the sly dragon Smaug, who
unwittingly reveals that his armour like scales have a weak spot near his
heart. When Bilbo steals a golden cup from the dragon’s hoard, Smaug is
furious and flies out of the mountain to burn Lake Town in his rage. Bard, a
heroic archer, has learned the secret about Smaug’s weakness from a thrush,
and he fires an arrow into the dragon’s heart, killing him. Before Smaug
dies, however, he burns Lake Town to the ground. The humans
of Lake Town and Elrond’s elves of Mirkwood march to the Lonely Mountain to
seek a share of the treasure as compensation for their losses and aid, but
Thorin greedily refuses, and the humans and elves besiege the mountain,
trapping the dwarves and the hobbit inside. Bilbo sneaks out to join the
humans fin an attempt to bring peace. When Thorin learns what Bilbo has done,
he is livid, but Gandalf suddenly reappears and saves Bilbo from the dwarf lord’s
wrath. At this
moment, an army of goblins and Wargs marches on the mountain, and the humans,
elves, and dwarves are forced to band together to defeat them. The goblins
nearly win, but the arrival of Beorn and the eagles helps the good armies win
the battle. After the
battle, Bilbo and Gandalf return to Hobbiton, where Bilbo continues to live.
He is no longer accepted by respectable hobbit society, but he does not care.
Bilbo now prefers to talk to elves and wizards, and he is deeply content to
be back among the familiar comforts of home after his grand and harrowing
adventures. The Lord of the Rings
·
The Fellowship of the Ring The Fellowship of the Ring opens with a party for Bilbo’s 111th
birthday in Hobbiton, a sleepy village of the Shire. Using a magic ring he
has found many years before (see The
Hobbit) he disappears without warning. Before he leaves, his old friend
Gandalf, one of the Maiar, convinces him to leave the ring behind with his
nephew. The wizard suspects that Bilbo’s ring is in fact the One Ring of
Sauron and he tells Frodo to hide it. After confirming his suspicions, he
urges Frodo to leave the Shire and to meet him in Bree. Frodo sets out from
the Shire with three other hobbits: Samwise Gamgee, Meriadoc “Merry”
Brandibuck and Peregrin “Pippin” Took. Barely out
of the shire, the four are pursued by the Ringwraiths and get lost in the Old
Forest. There they meet Tom Bombadil, a kind spirit who saves them twice from
the evil of the forest. They finally make it to the town of Bree, only to
discover that Gandalf is not there. At the local inn they meet with the
wizard’s friend Strider who is to guide them safely to Rivendell. Their
journey is hard, the Black Riders on their tracks and in Amon Sûl Frodo is
wounded with a Morgul blade. Near Rivendell they meet the elf lord
Glorfindel, who has been sent to look for them. Riding the elf’s horse
Nasfaloth, Frodo outruns the Black Riders, who are swept away in a flood of
the Bruinen created by the master of Rivendell, Elrond Half-Elven. A council is
hold to decide what is to be done with the ring. After much discussion, it is
decided that the ring should be destroyed casting it back into the fires of
Mount Doom where it was forged. Frodo volunteers to bear the ring and a
fellowship is assembled: Sam, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf, Aragorn, the elf
Legolas, the dwarf Gimli and Boromir of Gondor are to help Frodo in his
quest. The Fellowship heads south, attempting to pass over the Misty
Mountains via the pass of Caradhras. But their way is blocked by snow and
rock slides, and they are forced to travel underground, through Moria, the
ancient Dwarven realm. Once inside they are attacked by Saruman’s creatures
and Gandalf falls into a pit of darkness while battling with a Balrog; the
rest of the fellowship safely exits the mines thanks to Gandalf’s sacrifice. Without
Gandalf the group arrives in Lothlorien, an elf forest where the Lady of
Light Galadriel speaks to them and provides them with gifts and supplies.
They continue down the river Anduin and later come to a point where they need
to decide whether to head toward Mordor on the east or toward the safety of
the city of Minas Tirith to the west. Boromir is overcome by the Ring’s power
and tries to take the ring by force. Frodo uses it to become invisible and he
decides to go to Mordor alone. Sam finds him first and the two hobbits set
off without the others. ·
The Two Towers The Two Towers opens with the
breaking up of the Fellowship. Frodo and Same have departed for Mordor alone;
Boromir dies trying to stop a band of orcs from kidnapping Merry and Pippin
who are taken captive because the orcs think they have the One Ring; Aragorn,
Gimli and Legolas pursue the orcs and later encounters the riders of Rohan
led by Éomer
who offers them horses to look for the hobbits even though he doubts the
Halflings to still be alive since his men just killed a group of orcs. During the
attack, Merry and Pippin manage to escape from the orcs and flee into Fangorn
Forest where they meet Treebeard the ent, a shepherd of the trees. After
hearing the two hobbit’s stories of evil spreading through Middle-earth and
Saruman’s involvement with it, Treebeard gathers the long dormant ents who
decide to attack Isengard. Meanwhile,
Aragorn and his group are on Merry and Pippin’s traces. They enter Fangorn
Forest and meet the White Wizard. It turns out to be Gandalf, whom they had
assumed dead after his fight with the Balrog and who was reborn as Gandalf
the White. The company heads for Edoras, the capital of Rohan where Gandalf
releases King Théoden from the spell of Saruman, exerted through the evil
lies of Grima Wormtongue. Together with the Riders of Rohan, the group stands
up to a almost hopeless fight against Saruman’s armies and together with the Ents’ trees they finally
overcome Saruman’s armies. Gandalf
rides to Isengard where Pippin and Frodo tell him of the defeat of Isengard.
Retreated to the inner stronghold, Saruman is joined by Gandalf who breaks
his staff and tells him that he is cast from the Order of Wizards. The group
later rides to Rohan and when the forces of Sauron are defeated, Gandalf
rides off to prepare the fight against the Dark Lord. Frodo and
Sam move closer to Mordor with great difficulty. On their way they meet the
creature Gollum who once bore the ring. Although they do not entirely trust
Gollum, the creature becomes their guide and leads them to the gates of Mordor.
The Black Gate is well guarded and Gollum directs them to a different, hidden
path where they run into a group of men from Gondor, lead by Faramir, brother
of Boromir. After the initial suspicions, the men offer support for the
hobbits’ journey. They leave
Faramir’s group and travel to the other gate to Mordor. A great army marches
out to wage war on the world. Gollum leads Frodo and Sam up the mountain
called Cirith Ungol and into the tunnels of Shelob where they are attacked by
the giant, deadly female spider. Frodo is overcome but Sam eventually kills
the spider. But the two are separated: assuming Frodo dead, Sam takes the
ring meaning to continue on with the quest; meanwhile a group of orcs find
Frodo who is still alive and carry him away. Upon hearing that his friend is
still alive, Sam follows the orcs but is closed out of their fortress. ·
The Return of the King The Return of the King, opens as Gandalf
and Pippin
ride east to the city of Minas Tirith
in Gondor, where they meet Denethor,
the city’s Steward who clearly dislikes Gandalf. Pippin offers Denethor his
services out of gratitude for the fact that Denethor’s son Boromir gave his
life for the hobbits earlier in the quest. Meanwhile Aragorn realises that
the Riders may not reach the city in time to defend it from the imminent
attack and decides to part company with Théoden and take the Paths of the
Dead to Gondor. As he travels through the paths with Gimli and Legolas, a
huge army of the Sleepless Dead heeds Aragorn’s command and follows him
southward. Theoden rallies the men of Rohan to go to war and although the
king has told Merry he cannot come with him, a quiet rider tells him he will
secretly bear him to war. In Gondor,
Denethor sends Faramir to Osgiliath to hold off the approaching armies of
Mordor. Faramir holds his position as long as he can, but their number is too
small and he finally gives up the field. His son badly wounded, the steward
retires to a chamber of the dead to end his and his son’s life. Thanks to
Pippin, Gandalf can stop the man’s madness and save Faramir. As the army
of Mordor breaks through the door of Minas Tirith, the Riders of Rohan arrive
to fight the army off but the Lord of the Nazgul, the Black Captain, kills
King Theoden. In heroic defence, Eowyn and Merry slay the Black Captain,
although both fall terribly ill of this attack. Aragorn arrives with the army
of the dead and the forces of Mordor are defeated and retreat. He heals
Faramir, Merry and Eowyn and then makes plans to put together an assault on
Mordor in order to keep Sauron’s eye off from the quest of Frodo. They mark
to the Black Gate and demand Sauron’s surrender, but the Dark Lord refuses
and unleashes the great armies of Mordor. In the
meantime Sam manages to free Frodo from the orcs and together they begin to
slowly make their way into Mordor. The ring grows heavier around Frodo’s neck
with each step. Sam carries Frodo part of the way up. They meet Gollum again
and Sam tries to hold him off in order for Frodo to complete his task. But he
power of the One Ring finally breaks through Frodo’s defences and the ring is
only destroyed only because Gollum bites it off his finger and then stumbles
and falls into the fires of Mount Doom. When the ring is destroyed Sauron
dies and the armies of Mordor fall apart. Gandalf flies to Orodruin on the
back of Gwaihir, the giant eagle, and rescues Frodo and Sam. They all
return to Minas Tirith where Aragorn is crowned kind and finally marries his
love Arwen Undòmiel, daughter of Lord Elrond. Later they travel to Rohan for
Théoden’s funerals. The marriage of Faramir and Eowyn the White Lady of Rohan
is announced. On their way back to the Shire, the hobbits and Gandalf are
reunited with Bilbo. When the hobbits arrive in the Shire they find their
homes ravaged and the village overrun by a group of men led by Sharkey. The
four companions organize a rebellion and rout the intruders, discovering that
the secret leader of the destruction is Saruman,
who seeks revenge on the hobbits. Frodo spares Saruman’s life, but the
wizard’s browbeaten servant, Wormtongue,
betrays and kills his cruel master. The hobbits rebuild the Shire and Sam
gets married with Rosie Cotton. As the year pass, Frodo gets increasingly
weaker and eventually he decides to leave. Together with Bilbo, the elven
ring bearers, Elrond and Galadriel, and Gandalf Frodo leave Middle-earth for
the Undying Lands. Sam returns home to his wife and children.
Home Books Middle-Earth Movies Cast & Characters Gallery Fanart Links Awards Disclaimer: This is a non-profit site
in no way associated with New Line Cinema or the Tolkien Estate |
|
