Study Guide: The Lord of the Rings Series (A BookCaps Study Guide)
By BookCaps
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About this ebook
J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy has been called one of the greatest fantasies of all time--but it is massive! There are hundreds of characters, plots, and settings. This study guide is a companion to the entire series. It's the perfect guide to someone who wants extra help keeping up with all the twist and characters, or who just wants a refresher while they read the series.
The guide features an author biography, a plot overview, summary of major themes, summary of characters, and a summary of settings; it also has a chapter by chapter recap of the entire book.
BookCap Study Guides do not contain text from the actual book, and are not meant to be purchased as alternatives to reading the book.
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Study Guide - BookCaps
Chapter Summaries
The Fellowship of the Ring
Book One of Lord of the Rings
Prologue
The prologue is split into four sections: Concerning Hobbits, Concerning Pipe-weed, Of the Ordering of the Shire, and Of the Finding of the Ring. All are interesting, but the two that are most relevant to the story are Concerning Hobbits and Of the Finding of the Ring.
Concerning gives a basic rundown of the race of the hobbits. Put briefly they are an ancient race, unknown to most of Middle-Earth out of the sheer virtue of being incredibly unobtrusive. While they have fought for their own safety in the past, they are generally uninterested in the greater dealings of the world and unacquainted with conflict. Over time, this disinterest grew into an active aversion toward the dealings of big people.
Part of the reason for their obscurity is the fact that they go out of their way to avoid other races, something that their small stature and natural skill at stealth aids in.
Of the Finding of the Ring is a useful section if you haven’t read The Hobbit, which takes place before The Lord of the Rings. This section briefly recounts the adventures of Bilbo Baggins who, in The Hobbit, stole the titular One Ring from the creature Gollum. The book takes particular care to point out how Bilbo lied to his friends about how about he obtained the Ring and how this dishonesty was disturbing to Gandalf. Bilbo had been the picture of honesty up to this point.
Book One
Chapter One
A Long Expected Party
This chapter is framed around the long awaited celebration of Bilbo Baggins one hundred and eleventh birthday.
When the chapter begins preparations have been going on for a time, as well as rumors. Bilbo returned from his adventures (as detailed in The Hobbit and the Prologue) with a fortune, and, as his party comes together, there is much speculation as to the depth of his fortune. There is also speculation as to how well preserved
Bilbo is. It has been almost sixty years since his adventure and by most accounts Bilbo hasn’t aged a day.
The wizard Gandalf journeys to Bilbo’s home in the Shire, bringing with him a payload of fireworks for the birthday party. After his arrival, he and Bilbo discuss the forthcoming events. Bilbo, in fact, intends to leave the Shire following the party, leaving his home and belongings to his nephew Frodo. Only Bilbo, Frodo, and Gandalf are aware of this plan, when the party, a more extravagant affair then anything else ever seen in the Shire, begins.
At the end of his birthday party, Bilbo gathers together a select group of relatives and friends for a special feast. As this meal draws to a close he rises to make a speech, a tradition amongst hobbits. Over the course of the speech, he slips in several jabs and insults at the expense of his guests. Just as his guests are seething at him, he closes the speech with a bang. He disappears with a flash of light provided by Gandalf, leaving the party members in shock.
Bilbo returns to his home, Bag End, and removes the Ring that he stole from Gollum. Again visible, he makes the final preparations for his departure. Gandalf appears as he does this and begins to question him as to his intentions for the Ring. Bilbo had initially intended to leave it to Frodo along with his other belongings, but as the moment to do so draws near he is suddenly resistant. Gandalf expresses concern over its origins and the power it might now have over Bilbo. Growing angry, Bilbo argues that it’s his Precious
and Gandalf has no right to tell him what to do. Gandalf manages to talk Bilbo down, however, and convinces the hobbit to leave the Ring as he intended. Bilbo leaves shortly after.
Frodo returns to Bag End and speaks to Gandalf momentarily. Gandalf warns him not to put on the Ring. The next day Frodo deals with the matter of handing out gifts left by Bilbo for townsfolk, relatives and friends. After this has ended, Gandalf returns once more to Bag End to speak with him. Gandalf, seeming disturbed by something, again warns Frodo not to put on the Ring. Keep it secret. Keep it safe.
He says before departing to research its true nature and origins.
Chapter Two
The Shadow of the Past
While Bilbo’s departure leaves the Shire talking for a good while after its occurrence (a year and a day to be exact), the goings on amongst the hobbits soon return to normalcy. As years pass Bilbo becomes a figure of legend amongst the hobbits. Frodo, in turn, inherits his reputation for oddity along with Bilbo’s wealth and home.
Years pass and Gandalf’s visits become less frequent. Stories start reaching the Shire of trouble abroad. Elves are being more frequently sighted at night in the Shire, passing through on their way to the seas and their ancestral homes. More troubling is news of dark powers on the rise in the lands to the southeast. Orcs are beginning to multiply, troll sightings becoming more common and rumors of a rising power in the distant and evil land of Mordor reach as far as the peaceful Shire.
After a nine year, absence Gandalf finally returns to the Shire to speak with Frodo. He explains that he has been investigating Frodo’s Ring and has returned to test some of his suspicions. Magic rings he explains are often very dangerous, possessing a power often corrupts mortal creatures. He suspected Bilbo’s slow aging and out of character behavior in matters of the Ring might be a result of his prolonged exposure to its power.
His suspicion and concern runs deeper, however, and wishing to test the Ring he asks Frodo to give it to him for a moment. When tries to hand him the Ring he notes that it suddenly feels heavier than usual and that he feels slightly reluctant to give it to Gandalf. Gandalf, taking the Ring, promptly throws it in the lit fireplace. When they retrieve the Ring it starts to glow with ancient Elvish lettering that confirms that Gandalf translates: "One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring the all and in the darkness bind them."
The verse confirms Gandalf’s worst fears. This is the One Ring, made by the dark lord Sauron. Frodo asks how such a thing could have come to the Shire, and Gandalf relates the history of the Ring as well as some of the events currently occurring the wider world.
The Ring itself was forged by Sauron as a means to amplify his power and control the other magic rings of the world. Sauron was defeated when the Ring was cut from his hand by Isildur who took it for his own and subsequently lost it when he was ambushed and killed by Orcs. It was then picked up Deagol who was then murdered by his friend Smeagol who would later become known as Gollum.
Frodo recognizes the name Gollum from the stories of Bilbo’s adventures. Gandalf confirms it is the same creature and that much of his time was spent tracking Gollum down so that he might find out what he knows about the Ring. Gollum, he says, has already told Sauron’s minions about the Shire and the name of Baggins. Frodo curses that Bilbo didn’t kill Gollum when he had the chance, prompting Gandalf to scold