I thought since there is a favorite quotes thread, how about a what is everyone's favorite chapter thread? So what's your favorite chapter in any of the Tolkien books you've read?
For myself, it is Of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin in The Silmarillion. Which is interesting, because if I'm not mistaken, some of the chapter is Tolkien's earliest writings?
I heard that The Children of Hurin is a nice book, and purchased it a while ago, but it's there on my shelf with other "books I have to read" stack.
And for my chapter that has the best title. It's Out of the Frying Pan into the Fire in The Hobbit.
Favorite Chapter(s)
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Ent Ancient
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For me, it has to go to The Silmarillion's Of Beren and Luthien. Especially because, if I'm being totally honest, that middle section of the Silm does tend to drag, and you get lots of things happening which will set up later things (in Gondolin, particularly, with Eöl and Maeglin Huor and Hurin and all that) but not much that actually happens and then out of nowhere there's this long beautiful story when things start going right again (or, as right as things ever go in the Silm).
Title wise, I think you're on the money with Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire. Fun fact: I was maybe six when I read the Hobbit and that was my first exposure to the phrase. I have this clear memory of sitting in the back of my mom's car after school, riding home, and suddenly perking up --
"Hey, mom. Guess what sentence I just came up with."
"What's that?"
"Out of the frying pan and into the fire."
I was SO CONFUSED why she knew I hadn't come up with it myself
Title wise, I think you're on the money with Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire. Fun fact: I was maybe six when I read the Hobbit and that was my first exposure to the phrase. I have this clear memory of sitting in the back of my mom's car after school, riding home, and suddenly perking up --
"Hey, mom. Guess what sentence I just came up with."
"What's that?"
"Out of the frying pan and into the fire."
I was SO CONFUSED why she knew I hadn't come up with it myself
Last edited by Androthelm on Fri Jun 12, 2020 5:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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@Androthelm yeah to me as a story The Silmarillion reads more like a history textbook, which can be a little rough to read from front to back. But some of the individual chapters are so lovely written and tell a good short-story that there are several diamonds in the rough.
I was SO CONFUSED why she knew I hadn't come up with it myself
I've caught myself using 'out of the frying pan and into the fire' more than 'it went from bad to worse.' :smiley8:
I was SO CONFUSED why she knew I hadn't come up with it myself
I've caught myself using 'out of the frying pan and into the fire' more than 'it went from bad to worse.' :smiley8:
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Ent Ancient
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Absolutely! I love the Silm, and I'm rereading it now -- but there are also large chunks of it that are clearly context for the more poetic stories he was interested in telling (Beren and Lúthien, Túrin Turambar, etc).
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Elven Enchanter
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I actually didn't mind reading Sil straight through, the one time I did it back in highschool. It's on my to-read list for the summer though. My first degree is in history, so that probably played a major role.
As for favourite chapter, Riddles in the Dark is pretty awesome and I'm amazed no one has mentioned it here yet, unless we're talking about amusing chapter titles.
As for favourite chapter, Riddles in the Dark is pretty awesome and I'm amazed no one has mentioned it here yet, unless we're talking about amusing chapter titles.
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Istari Sage
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I wouldn't say any of the chapters stand out overly to me, in the sense that I would go back and re-read certain chapters preferentially over others. Only the Hobbit feels particularly episodic to me; LOTR seems to have chapters almost as a concession, rather than clear boundary markings in content. And The Silmarillion almost defies book conventions altogether! That said, a short list of some of the chapters that had my favorite moments or scenes:
The Hobbit: Inside Information, when Bilbo has his famous conversation with Smaug and Bilbo really lives up to the title of Burglar.
Fellowship: The Bridge of Khazad-dum, easily
Two Towers: This one is nonsense because it'd be easier to make a list of not-memorable chapters, at least in Book Three. But The White Rider I think is the most incredible. It's perhaps hard to remember now after having experienced so much of LotR, but remember back to the first time you read the chapter (unless you saw the movie first, I guess). Did it not blow your mind that Gandalf had in fact returned?
Return of the King: The Tower of Cirith Ungol and The Scouring of the Shire are both super exciting to me, and feel unique compared to a lot of other chapters.
The Hobbit: Inside Information, when Bilbo has his famous conversation with Smaug and Bilbo really lives up to the title of Burglar.
Fellowship: The Bridge of Khazad-dum, easily
Two Towers: This one is nonsense because it'd be easier to make a list of not-memorable chapters, at least in Book Three. But The White Rider I think is the most incredible. It's perhaps hard to remember now after having experienced so much of LotR, but remember back to the first time you read the chapter (unless you saw the movie first, I guess). Did it not blow your mind that Gandalf had in fact returned?
Return of the King: The Tower of Cirith Ungol and The Scouring of the Shire are both super exciting to me, and feel unique compared to a lot of other chapters.
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Ent High Elder
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I'm not sure of a favorite chapter (I do love certain sections of The Silmarillion as have already been discussed) but here's a memory:
The first time I read FOTR was the summer before I started high school and I remember being on vacation at the beach and reading the Journey in the Dark chapter while a storm was blowing over. The wind and rain were pounding on the roof and windows and I was huddled wide-eyed in terror just waiting for something to jump out at the Fellowship as they went through Moria.
The first time I read FOTR was the summer before I started high school and I remember being on vacation at the beach and reading the Journey in the Dark chapter while a storm was blowing over. The wind and rain were pounding on the roof and windows and I was huddled wide-eyed in terror just waiting for something to jump out at the Fellowship as they went through Moria.
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plain old Shadow of the Past from FOTR for me. My dad started reading the books to me when I was maybe 9?, and I remember getting super spooked by the whole Gollum backstory and just sucked right into the world from that point on. And being a kid and a little on the dumb side I suppose, I remember picturing Sam out mowing the grass with a gas powered lawn mower in the bright sunshine while all this spooky talk was going on, and taking much comfort in that.
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The Choices of Master Samwise in The Two Towers. I had only seen the first two movies, so in the year between TTT and RotK, I decided to read the books. The roller coaster of feelings during that chapter, and then that end was... I don't know how to put it into words exactly. But it was a cliffhanger for sure, and I could not wait to get through book 5 just to see what happened next!
And then the Scouring of the Shire - just when you think everything is back to normal, it turns out, even the Shire was touched by the global events, and forever changed. And then who could forget The Grey Havens? Which carried on the concept of not everything turns out as you'd expect, and the changes take hold and sometimes the bad lingers. It hit home for me.
And then the Scouring of the Shire - just when you think everything is back to normal, it turns out, even the Shire was touched by the global events, and forever changed. And then who could forget The Grey Havens? Which carried on the concept of not everything turns out as you'd expect, and the changes take hold and sometimes the bad lingers. It hit home for me.
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Ent High Elder
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Yes! I love that chapter, it's really the one where the book shifts in tone from the happy-go-lucky-ness of The Hobbit (which bleeds over a bit into A Long Expected Party) and relays the gravity of the situation. That's definitely the tipping point from a "kids book" to an "adult book."Narv wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2020 9:21 pm plain old Shadow of the Past from FOTR for me. My dad started reading the books to me when I was maybe 9?, and I remember getting super spooked by the whole Gollum backstory and just sucked right into the world from that point on. And being a kid and a little on the dumb side I suppose, I remember picturing Sam out mowing the grass with a gas powered lawn mower in the bright sunshine while all this spooky talk was going on, and taking much comfort in that.
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Ent Ancient
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@Mojo I like that point a lot! You can certainly see (particularly in Fellowship, Book One how Tolkien was still envisioning LOTR as a direct and equal Hobbit sequel.
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For sure, I really love those first chapters for that reason. All the contrast of the happy lil hobbit world with this ominous backstory that you still don't really understand (but you know is gonna get intense because you've seen the creepy looking eye on the front cover, not to mention the ash nazg stuff at the start) really did a number on me at the time. Shameful to say, but I haven't actually read through all the books in a loooong time.. but I've gone back and read the first chapters (up to Bree more or less) a number of times out of nostalgia for that initial feeling, of a giant and kinda unsettling world opening up in the middle of this silly kid's story about tiny rural English people.
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@Dimcairien Luiniel oh yes, Riddles in the Dark is a great chapter (and clever title for a chapter too). It's the first one in The Hobbit where I got the feeling Bilbo very much in danger!
@KingODuckingham if it's The Hobbit or Lord of the Rings I read it cover-to-cover. I'll even read the Foreward, Prologue and Appendices every time I go to read LOTR. The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, I have yet to read straight through, so to say. I've read each chapter, but they always felt to me like reading several short stories that are loosely connected, but still jump around a bit.
@Mojo great story about your first time reading A Journey in the Dark. When I first read LOTR, I was 14 and I think like most young teenage boys I wanted to read about battles and sword fights. But what's interesting is I was captivated and wanted to finish reading it, despite not really centering around battles and war. It was set during a war, but the battles weren't center stage. Mostly I still remember after finishing reading it for the first time, how accomplished I felt. It was the longest story I ever read at the time, and for a 14 year old, reading nearly 1100 pages was a great feeling.
@Narv it is fascinating how the story begins. I mean A Long-Expected Party barely even mentions the Ring. It's like a bridge back to The Hobbit, where Bilbo's ring wasn't "The One Ring." We are back with Bilbo, and in Bilbo's story, the Ring doesn't play a major factor. We get a party, and the biggest trouble is perhaps bad weather and meddlesome neighbors and relatives. Then Shadow of the Past (another great title for a chapter) we have left Bilbo's story, transition to Frodo and for most of the chapter it is just Frodo an Gandalf talking. At the same time, the suspense, tension and danger that this is no longer Bilbo's ring, but The One Ring comes to center stage.
@Joel Cotton For the longest time I didn't fully understand Tolkien's point in the Foreward when he said the Scouring was an "essential part of the plot, foreseen from the outset." It felt to me like it's suicide to have Frodo go through all that suffering and torture and succeed in destroying the ring to return home and it's completely changed and different. It left a tragic, bittersweet end, and I never fully understood why.
Then last time I read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings probably 3-4 years ago it hit me to what Tolkien meant about the Scouring, and why it was important. "There and Back Again", the "back again" is an important part of any story. And every time you read it there's something different that catches your eye. So when Frodo says in Shadow of the Past:
'I should like to save the Shire, if I could - though there have been times when I thought the inhabitants too stupid and dull for words, and have felt than an earthquake or an invasion of dragons might be good for them. But I don't feel like that now. I feel that as long as the Shire lies behind, safe and comfortable, I shall find wandering more bearable: I shall know that somewhere there is a firm foothold even if my feet cannot stand there again.'
The Scouring makes all the more sense of being an "essential part of the plot." Frodo sets out to save the Shire, if he cant, and keep "somewhere there is a firm foothold even if my feet cannot stand there again.".
@KingODuckingham if it's The Hobbit or Lord of the Rings I read it cover-to-cover. I'll even read the Foreward, Prologue and Appendices every time I go to read LOTR. The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, I have yet to read straight through, so to say. I've read each chapter, but they always felt to me like reading several short stories that are loosely connected, but still jump around a bit.
@Mojo great story about your first time reading A Journey in the Dark. When I first read LOTR, I was 14 and I think like most young teenage boys I wanted to read about battles and sword fights. But what's interesting is I was captivated and wanted to finish reading it, despite not really centering around battles and war. It was set during a war, but the battles weren't center stage. Mostly I still remember after finishing reading it for the first time, how accomplished I felt. It was the longest story I ever read at the time, and for a 14 year old, reading nearly 1100 pages was a great feeling.
@Narv it is fascinating how the story begins. I mean A Long-Expected Party barely even mentions the Ring. It's like a bridge back to The Hobbit, where Bilbo's ring wasn't "The One Ring." We are back with Bilbo, and in Bilbo's story, the Ring doesn't play a major factor. We get a party, and the biggest trouble is perhaps bad weather and meddlesome neighbors and relatives. Then Shadow of the Past (another great title for a chapter) we have left Bilbo's story, transition to Frodo and for most of the chapter it is just Frodo an Gandalf talking. At the same time, the suspense, tension and danger that this is no longer Bilbo's ring, but The One Ring comes to center stage.
@Joel Cotton For the longest time I didn't fully understand Tolkien's point in the Foreward when he said the Scouring was an "essential part of the plot, foreseen from the outset." It felt to me like it's suicide to have Frodo go through all that suffering and torture and succeed in destroying the ring to return home and it's completely changed and different. It left a tragic, bittersweet end, and I never fully understood why.
Then last time I read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings probably 3-4 years ago it hit me to what Tolkien meant about the Scouring, and why it was important. "There and Back Again", the "back again" is an important part of any story. And every time you read it there's something different that catches your eye. So when Frodo says in Shadow of the Past:
'I should like to save the Shire, if I could - though there have been times when I thought the inhabitants too stupid and dull for words, and have felt than an earthquake or an invasion of dragons might be good for them. But I don't feel like that now. I feel that as long as the Shire lies behind, safe and comfortable, I shall find wandering more bearable: I shall know that somewhere there is a firm foothold even if my feet cannot stand there again.'
The Scouring makes all the more sense of being an "essential part of the plot." Frodo sets out to save the Shire, if he cant, and keep "somewhere there is a firm foothold even if my feet cannot stand there again.".
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Hasty Ent
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My two favorite chapters are both in Return of the King - The Houses of Healing for the love story between Faramir and Éowyn, which is just so incredibly beautiful to me; and The Scouring of the Shire, because you really see what everyday hobbits are made of.
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Ent Ancient
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@MistressofJesters I love the sentiment about Scouring of the Shire. Truly, I understand why it was cut ("too many endings" etc) but it's absence from the movies was always a huge disappointment for me.
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Ent High Elder
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Shameless plug, following this discussion on Favorite Chapters, a LOTR-read along is in the works, set to start at the beginning of July. The outline of the reading plan is here -> https://lotrfanaticsplaza.com/forum/vie ... 073#p16073
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Awesome, thanks @Mojo , plug away :-). I'm just about finished reading The Hobbit again and was planning on The Lord of the Rings next. So, really good timing. If you would like assistance with anything let me know. It seems like the planning is pretty well set, but if you wanted some topics for the chapters. I look forward to joining!
Last edited by Boromir88 on Fri Jun 26, 2020 7:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Ent High Elder
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@Boromir88 Yes! That'd be great! I don't really have discussion points or topics laid out any this point, so if you're willing to put some of those together, that would be excellENT!
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Elwing
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I am not sure I could pick a single favorite chapter but I have to say I positively gushed over the descriptions of Lothlorien in Fellowship of the Ring on our read-along particularly Lothlorien. I included two of my favorite passages below. It just sounds so ridiculously beautiful and peaceful and out of time...
“Day came pale from the East. As the light grew it filtered through the yellow leaves of the mallorn, and it seemed to the hobbits that the early sun of a cool summer’s morning was shining. Pale-blue sky peeped among the moving branches.”
“High amid the branches of a towering tree that stood in the centre of all there gleamed a white flet. At the feet of the trees, and all about the green hillsides the grass was studded with small golden flowers like stars. Among them, nodding on slender stalks, were other flowers, white and palest green: they glimmered as a mist amid the rich hue of the grass. Over all the sky was blue, and the sun of afternoon glowed upon the hill and cast long green shadows beneath the trees.”
Having said that, so far, A Conspiracy Unmasked would have to be another favorite. I love how it all unravels in front of Frodo and he is taken by surprise at his friends' cleverness and loyalty!
“Day came pale from the East. As the light grew it filtered through the yellow leaves of the mallorn, and it seemed to the hobbits that the early sun of a cool summer’s morning was shining. Pale-blue sky peeped among the moving branches.”
“High amid the branches of a towering tree that stood in the centre of all there gleamed a white flet. At the feet of the trees, and all about the green hillsides the grass was studded with small golden flowers like stars. Among them, nodding on slender stalks, were other flowers, white and palest green: they glimmered as a mist amid the rich hue of the grass. Over all the sky was blue, and the sun of afternoon glowed upon the hill and cast long green shadows beneath the trees.”
Having said that, so far, A Conspiracy Unmasked would have to be another favorite. I love how it all unravels in front of Frodo and he is taken by surprise at his friends' cleverness and loyalty!
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Ent Ancient
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@Lailorn Conspiracy Unmasked is, in my opinion, an unrecognized gem of Fellowship. There are criticisms of Tolkien's "boys clubs" out there, but you can absolutely see the kind of, well, fellowship of young men which made up so much of his world and the honest, open friendship that they permit.
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Chef
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A whole chapter... that is hard to choose. I do agree that Conspiracy Unmasked is a gem!
Let me see. I am not sure about Lord of the Rings, I am currently re-reading so I might change my opinion later on.
But when it comes to the Hobbit, I really loved the chapter in which the Dwarves are introduced, leaving Bilbo completely confused. And even better: the part in which Gandalf gradually introduces the Dwarves to Beorn, trying to do so in a structured way and then realizing the Dwarves haven't quite understood their task and are coming too soon. Brilliant! I love the playing with words in that part.
Let me see. I am not sure about Lord of the Rings, I am currently re-reading so I might change my opinion later on.
But when it comes to the Hobbit, I really loved the chapter in which the Dwarves are introduced, leaving Bilbo completely confused. And even better: the part in which Gandalf gradually introduces the Dwarves to Beorn, trying to do so in a structured way and then realizing the Dwarves haven't quite understood their task and are coming too soon. Brilliant! I love the playing with words in that part.
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Elwing
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Yes, I love the camaraderie in A Conspiracy Unmasked!
Its been ages since I read the Hobbit but in my memory, that early chapter is hilarious, @Eamila Bolger. I still remember the first time I read it and how much it made me laugh.
I also have to add my favorite chapter in The Silmarillion is easily Of Túrin Turambar. Soak me up some of that tragedy! I love the poor decision-making, the betrayal, the anguish, the dragon, the darkness, all of it. I loved The Children of Hurin even more.
I've got a while to go still on my re-read, but I can also say that The Houses of Healing is a favorite from RotK. I expect that to be true this time around. I agree with @MistressofJesters - Eowyn and Faramir's love story is so beautiful. Sorrow permeates both of them so deeply and watching their relationship bloom is a real treat. I think its extra special because its not something we often get in Tolkien's works where its often two people meeting in the woods and falling instantly in love. Which is lovely, but just...not as lovely to me.
Its been ages since I read the Hobbit but in my memory, that early chapter is hilarious, @Eamila Bolger. I still remember the first time I read it and how much it made me laugh.
I also have to add my favorite chapter in The Silmarillion is easily Of Túrin Turambar. Soak me up some of that tragedy!
I love the poor decision-making, the betrayal, the anguish, the dragon, the darkness, all of it. I loved The Children of Hurin even more.I've got a while to go still on my re-read, but I can also say that The Houses of Healing is a favorite from RotK. I expect that to be true this time around. I agree with @MistressofJesters - Eowyn and Faramir's love story is so beautiful. Sorrow permeates both of them so deeply and watching their relationship bloom is a real treat. I think its extra special because its not something we often get in Tolkien's works where its often two people meeting in the woods and falling instantly in love. Which is lovely, but just...not as lovely to me.
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Yes @Lail , you are right! The Houses of Healing is wonderful! It's a very much needed chapter of hope amidst war and despair.
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Ent Ancient
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@Lail I'm wrapping up my non-Plaza readthrough right now (literally set down the Appendices a moment ago) and I don't think I'd honestly recognized how powerful the scenes in the Houses of Healing were. Eowyn's suffering especially is a much greater part of ROTK even before the Pelennor than I'd remembered, and seeing it resolved (and Eomer learning that she survives) is such a sweet moment.
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@Eamila Bolger I agree about An Unexpected Party and how the dwarves show up to Bilbo's house. I also like A Long Expected Party, because right at the start of the Lord of the Rings Tolkien places us back in the Shire and with Bilbo in Bag End.
I think my favorite chapter in TH is Inside Information. I love Smaug and Bilbo's cleverness, one of the few highlights to the movies, Benedict Cumberbatch was a good choice for voicing Smaug.
I think my favorite chapter in TH is Inside Information. I love Smaug and Bilbo's cleverness, one of the few highlights to the movies, Benedict Cumberbatch was a good choice for voicing Smaug.
