As we resume Chapter 4 of The Hobbit, Bilbo and friends are captured by goblins. Thorin Oakenshield’s name and reputation are known in these parts, and the Great Goblin does not take kindly to his arrival. Gandalf comes to the rescue with his shining Elven-sword, allowing our heroes a chance to escape… maybe. We get word-nerdy to explain Tolkien’s use of the terms ‘goblin’ and ‘orc’, have fun with goblin voices, and a Tolkien Fun Fact reminds us how different the Professor’s school days were from ours.
For the Mythmoot paper on pronunciation of Dwarvish names (“So How Do You Pronounce “Thrain” Anyway?” by Dr. Edward T. Powell) referenced by our listener Sharat, please see the Mythmoot III archives at the Signum University website:
https://signumuniversity.org/library/signum-digital-collections/mythmoot-2015/#epowell
Recommended Reading:
Tolkien, J. R. R. The Hobbit (Mariner Books, paperback) pp. 57-64, “Over Hill and Under Hill”
Tolkien, J.R.R. and Douglas A. Anderson, ed. The Annotated Hobbit (HarperCollins, hardcover)
Rateliff, John D. The History of the Hobbit (HarperCollins, one-volume hardcover)
Carpenter, Humphrey. J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography (Houghton Mifflin, paperback)
Garth, John. Tolkien and the Great War: The Threshold of Middle-earth (Mariner Books, hardcover)
Garth, John. Tolkien at Exeter College (Exeter College, paperback)
