The First Great Tolkien Epic - Analyzing the Greatest Fairy-Story Ever Written - Welcoming the Dwarves for Dinner
And so much more
It is important to remember when one is reading the Hobbit that the same year that the first edition of this amazing fairy-story that Snow White by Disney came out. Where the movie was to have a massive cultural impact upon a great many people (including my beloved mentor Don Bluth), Tolkien took it as an insult rather than a kind of reverent nod to the Brothers Grimm.
The Hobbit though would portray its Dwarves very much in a different manner from that which Disney did. It is interesting to note just how different, as Disney’s Dwarves are really the Seven Sins who become the Seven Virtues whereas Tolkien’s are quite a bit different (and deeper).
There’s about a dozen in all, and each of them are quite a bit different from one another in manner and likeness, and quite a bit different in the end they shall meet.
We’ll start at the beginning and go from there, when it comes time to welcome them into the warmth of Bag End, just as Bilbo did before us.
“It was a dwarf with a blue beard tucked into a golden belt, and very bright eyes under his dark-green hood. As soon as the door was opened, he pushed inside, just as if he had been expected. He hung his hooded cloak on the nearest peg, and “Dwalin at your service!” he said with a low bow.”
In the Norse Sagas, Dvalin is a name used as an example of a Dwarvish name, specifically this is referenced in the Poetic Edda which still is difficult to place in terms of what year or century it was compiled. In that book and many other kennings and myths, Dvalin appears as an all-important Dwarf.
There’s a large number of stories where there’s a Dvalin who does things like guide the Dwarves through an exodus all their own, there’s tales of how he is one of those who offered up Freyja a necklace in return for her to prostitute herself to him and his fellow necklace-makers. There’s a great deal more tales and Sagas of some note in which his name appears.
Really the question isn’t how Tolkien could include it, but how could he not include it in his Hobbit? The trouble is Dwalin as he renames him isn’t one of the more important Dwarves so that there was however a mistake made. The most important of the Dwarf names of Norse Mythology, really ought to have had a larger role.
That bit of criticism aside, Dwalin does show several traits at once that we must sift through like Sherlock Holmes were it him welcoming each of the Dwarves into his home at Baker Street.
The first thing we should recognize that Dwalin also includes a nod to Bluebeard (the fairy-story figure), Bluebeard was someone who slaughtered his wives shortly after his wedding night to each one, only to in the end meet his end before he could kill his last one.
This nod to a popular fairy-tale and a French one at that grants us insight into the fact that Dwalin is likely hardly careful with his women, he is also not a safe fellow. He’s dangerous, however he is also a cultivated person and one who likely has a temper given that he’s French (a Celtic people, and so prone to the predilections of that race). What is more is that he’s dressed in green the eternal colour.
The hooded cloak is reminiscent also of Robin Hood the folk-hero of English legends, so that there’s a conflicting image here, as Robin would never harm a maiden as he’s bound to the Code of Chivalry. So Tolkien’s offering up a conflicting image there, a sly prank, just as he’s with the courtly bow on the part of Dwalin showing him to be a man of some high birth and cultivation and a great deal of politeness (another trait of the French).
““So you have got here at last!” That was what he was going to say to Gandalf this time. But it was not Gandalf. Instead there was a very old-looking dwarf on the step with a white beard and a scarlet hood; and he too hopped inside as soon as the door was open, just as if he had been invited.
“I see they have begun to arrive already,” he said when he caught sight of Dwalin’s green hood hanging up. He hung his red one next to it, and “Balin at your service!” he said with his hand on his breast.”
This part is very much interesting, as we get a little joke on the part of Bilbo who intends to scold Gandalf only to end up startled at the sight of another of the Dwarves.
This one sporting a white beard (a sign of old age), and who has a scarlet hood. Scarlet is the colour of blood and passion, so that we can glean the knowledge that this Dwarf is passionate, hot-headed when pushed to it but as he’s older he’s got some brains and wisdom between his ears.
He introduces himself as Balin, and hangs his red cloak, only to then place his hand on his breast. This is a gesture I’ve only ever seen in some Victorian stories such as Doyle’s work, and maybe Walter Scott’s, so that once again one has the impression of someone who is very much polite.
The dignity of the gesture says a lot about this fellow also, but his gesture shows him to be more of a classical Englishman than one with the French nature of Dwalin. So we have an interesting contrasting pair of old men that have just been introduced.
Bilbo offers tea to Balin, who immediately pounces on the opportunity in spite of his host’s reticence, for a good meal. ““A little beer would suit me better, if it is all the same to you, my good sir,” said Balin with the white beard. “But I don’t mind some cake—seed-cake, if you have any.””
Evidently he doesn’t intend to mind his manners and not enjoy a good slice of cake and some beer. Tolkien then reveals when Bilbo gets back that Dwalin in spite of my earlier remarks about there being a Celtic connection, is in fact the brother of Balin. So Tolkien has established a rhyming pattern to the names and connected the two as siblings, a clever touch.
But to anyone who knows French history or specifically crusader history, they’ll likely find the name Balin similar to that of Balian the Knight and Lord who sought to ransom all the people in Jerusalem from Saladin.
Therefore one might find in Balin an element of the hero, an element of the noble and the self-sacrificing. Someone who chooses others before himself, as Balian did historically.
““Gandalf for certain this time,” he thought as he puffed along the passage. But it was not. It was two more dwarves, both with blue hoods, silver belts, and yellow beards; and each of them carried a bag of tools and a spade. In they hopped, as soon as the door began to open—Bilbo was hardly surprised at all. “What can I do for you, my dwarves?” he said. “Kili at your service!” said the one. “And Fili!” added the other; and they both swept off their blue hoods and bowed.”
Here we get a very different pair of brothers and Dwarves. The first of the two is Kili, followed by Fili.
They both wear blue hoods, with blue if you will recall being a colour associated with wisdom, the sea and also royalty. Silver is a colour of wealth and one that Tolkien valued more than gold for some reason, and the description of yellow beards shows how youthful these two men are in comparison to their predecessors.
What is more is that they carry tools, so that we know they have in spite of their wealth been made to work very hard for what they have earned.
And yet in spite of these ‘blue collar’ means by which they’ve earned their bread, they give courtly bows, showing themselves to be no less courteous than their predecessors. As to their names, the pair are noteworthy in that Kili sounds strange but is an Old Germanic or Frisian name that means ‘Wedge’. While Fili has a duo of meanings; in the same languages it means ‘to File’ (as in to file with something sharp), but in Latin it means when properly conjugated, ‘Filius’ or ‘Son’ or when female ‘Filia’ ‘daughter’. So Fili is quite literally child.
Doubtless none of these meanings escaped Tolkien’s attention. So that he’s commenting about how one is filing away at something, while also being a child while the other is a wedge of sorts. Quite the interesting notions, one could see the two as a reflection though of their beloved Uncle Thorin.
How so you might wonder? Well here it is.
There is a wedge driven between Thorin and others, and Thorin is himself someone who files away at others’ goodness and is also the son or heir of the old Dwarvish line of Kings. It is no secret nor all that unexpected that on a thematic level that his nephews, his only possible heirs should perish with him in the Battle of the Five Armies.
Bilbo when he welcomes the most recent of his guests is keen to bookend the whole affair but is cheerfully informed by Fili a few minutes later to his horror that there’s four more Dwarves soon to join them for dinner.
“Then the bell rang again louder than ever, and he had to run to the door. It was not four after all, it was five. Another dwarf had come along while he was wondering in the hall. He had hardly turned the knob, before they were all inside, bowing and saying “at your service” one after another. Dori, Nori, Ori, Oin, and Gloin were their names; and very soon two purple hoods, a grey hood, a brown hood, and a white hood were hanging on the pegs, and off they marched with their broad hands stuck in their gold and silver belts to join the others. Already it had almost become a throng. Some called for ale, and some for porter, and one for coffee, and all of them for cakes; so the hobbit was kept very busy for a while.”
One almost begins to feel pity for the poor Hobbit (if one wasn’t too busy laughing loudly at him).
First things first; one of the Dwarves wanders in whilst Bilbo is staggered in the dining-room, while the rest are busy banging at the door and are soon let in by Bilbo. The Hobbit is greeted heartily by the five Dwarves each one with rhyming names (because of course all their names rhyme).
What is interesting is that we have two purple hoods (the imperial colour), a grey hood and a brown one, so that we have two less wealthy or of lower rank than the first two hood-owners are, and then we have a white one (one who ought to be thought of as pure, and if we go by Asian colour psychology someone who is doomed, as white is the colour of death over there).
They have gold and silver belts, so they are quite well to do, they all of course call for ale, for porter and cakes so that these guests are resolved we now know to eat Bilbo out of room and board.
Dori’s name means ‘auger-man’ so that his name signals him as someone capable of seeing the future, Nori means ‘little shaver’, one can fancy he must be good with an axe or sword by virtue of his name alone as to Ori, his name means ‘Violent’. Evidently he’s the one of the trio that is the most dangerous and the one you must not triffle with.
Oin means timid, so he’s the most harmless of the bunch if at first glance, while Gloin father of Gimli we know from Lord of the Rings is the most formidable of all the Dwarves in Thorin’s Company, if his mighty and majestic son is anything to judge by. Gloin means ‘glowing’ and he does truly glow, and as said he should be the one we keep our gaze fixed upon to an extent if by virtue of the magnificent heir he fathered and raised and groomed to be the mightiest and most chivalric of all the Dwarves ever seen in the Legendarium.
“More dwarves, four more! And there was Gandalf behind, leaning on his staff and laughing. He had made quite a dent on the beautiful door; he had also, by the way, knocked out the secret mark that he had put there the morning before. “Carefully! Carefully!” he said. “It is not like you, Bilbo, to keep friends waiting on the mat, and then open the door like a pop-gun! Let me introduce Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, and especially Thorin!””
Gandalf at last makes his appearance once more, chortling and having just erased the mark he had put on the door so that he has cleaned up after himself. He acts to introduce Bifur, Bofur, Bombur the Magnificent and of course the Kingly Thorin.
Bifur means Beaver or ‘Hard Worker’, which is interesting as it proposes that he’s one of the hardiest of the group. Bofur in turn is a name who’s meaning has disappeared from our knowledge, and Bombur whom I dub the Magnificent (and the Fat), has a name that means the ‘Swollen One’, which is fitting for one of his enormous girth.
It is Bombur who is to prove a nuissance to the Quest more than any other figure, even as he is a hero who in some ways helps to save the day with his neglect of his duties and his morality.
Thorin of course all know, for he is the heir of Thror and is the rightful King Under the Mountain. He’s a towering figure where the Dwarves are concerned and is introduced with some measure of honour and respect by Gandalf who makes a point of highlighting him as a figure.
“Then they hung up two yellow hoods and a pale green one; and also a sky-blue one with a long silver tassel.”
We get here the hoods and cloaks of these most recent of guests of Bilbo. Yellow is a sunny and cheerful colour, one that is associated with joy but also cowardice. So that it is both a positive and negative set of traits that are associated with Bifur and Bofur. Bombur it will be assumed as the green cloak.
Thorin of course wore a sky-blue cloak with a long silver tassel, the richest of all the cloaks assembled which is appropriate as Thorin is a King in Exile.
Thorin doesn’t exactly have the best first impression of Bilbo, as he was crushed under the weight of his companions and laid flat upon the Hobbit’s doormat. Something that draws a laugh and a false reprimand from Gandalf, while the flustered Hobbit tries to repair his error.
The King behaves himself in a distant, cold and haughty manner but then melts a little at the profuse apologies from his host. Saying ‘pray don’t mention it’, so that we see here a hint of his true character, of the man’s future character journey; he is to be cold to all around him only to melt and become a warmer fellow who treasures Bilbo. Already we can see that he is not immune to the Hobbit’s timid charm, and even stops frowning at the poor guy.
The King’s name also speaks to his nature as his name means ‘Bold’, and his personality is a gruffer one than all the rest. He’s also interestingly enough, the second of his name to become King of the Lonely Mountain, just as Aragorn Elessar is the second to be crowned King Elessar. This is no coincidence as clearly Tolkien was comparing the two with one another, except where Thorin makes the wrong calls, Aragorn doesn’t.
The two are also quite similar in their backgrounds, in their regal natures and in their choice in companions. Though, where Thorin disdains Bilbo at first and later comes to hold him in high esteem Aragorn values the Hobbits from the start, and where Thorin dies at the end of his adventures, Aragorn does not.
He gets his revenge on Bilbo after a heavy dinner, one in which the Hobbit’s every kindness is taxed to the limit, and his stores are all but emptied, with even Gandalf eating a lion’s share of the food leaving little for Baggins.
It is at this time we get the first of the great songs’ Tolkien writes for us, and this one is honestly a riot, and one of the funniest out there.
“Chip the glasses and crack the plates!
Blunt the knives and bend the forks!
That’s what Bilbo Baggins hates–
Smash the bottles and burn the corks!
Cut the cloth and tread on the fat!
Pour the milk on the pantry floor!
Leave the bones on the bedroom mat!
Splash the wine on every door!
Dump the crocks in a boiling bowl;
Pound them up with a thumping pole;
And when you’ve finished, if any are whole,
Send them down the hall to roll!
That’s what Bilbo Baggins hates!
So, carefully! carefully with the plates!"
Of course they do none of these things. Humorously one can see some of the humour of Walt Disney here, a comparison that Tolkien might well have despised but that is appropriate if in a positive sense.
This threat of tearing apart everything Bilbo loves, of ruining his crockery is him having quite a bit of fun at Bilbo’s expense. What it is also showing is the mischievous nature of the Dwarves, Thorin included.
It shows how good times are, right now before we plunge forward into the darkness that lies ahead. It is a lovely part of the book, and it is also a way of characterizing Bilbo, who hates change, prizes his simple life and possessions above all else and giving us insight into his nature right now, before he sets off on the Quest of Erebor.
Gandalf blows smoke-rings with Thorin, the two of them despite not knowing each other terribly well still showing a camaraderie that is quite moving.
And then we get one of the best parts of this first chapter. The Song of the Lonely Mountain.
“Far over the misty mountains cold
To dungeons deep and caverns old
We must away ere break of day
To seek the pale enchanted gold.
The dwarves of yore made mighty spells,
While hammers fell like ringing bells
In places deep, where dark things sleep,
In hollow halls beneath the fells.
For ancient king and elvish lord
There many a gleaming golden hoard
They shaped and wrought, and light they caught
To hide in gems on hilt of sword.
On silver necklaces they strung
The flowering stars, on crowns they hung
The dragon-fire, in twisted wire
They meshed the light of moon and sun.
Far over the misty mountains cold
To dungeons deep and caverns old
We must away, ere break of day,
To claim our long-forgotten gold.
Goblets they carved there for themselves
And harps of gold; where no man delves
There lay they long, and many a song
Was sung unheard by men or elves.
The bells were ringing in the dale
And men looked up with faces pale;
The dragon’s ire more fierce than fire
Laid low their towers and houses frail.
The mountain smoked beneath the moon;
The dwarves, they heard the tramp of doom.
They fled their hall to dying fall
Beneath his feet, beneath the moon.
Far over the misty mountains grim
To dungeons deep and caverns dim
We must away, ere break of day,
To win our harps and gold from him!”
And here’s the youtube link to the song:
The first paragraph, sings of the sorrows of the Dwarves and of what they must do. The next few of the wealth of the ancient Dwarves, of how men and Elves could only look on in awe at their gold and silver, later they sing of how they fled from their halls in shame and grief.
It really is a haunting song, with this being one of those great songs written by Tolkien, who understood something that very few Mythic writers have since grasped; music, music and music. Poetry and music is your friend not your enemy where world-building and characterization stands.
A good song can tell us more about a people, and an individual character than any actions or description could. Right now, Tolkien has told us the history of the Dwarves, the story of the Hobbit and what the heroes will undertake even as he is establishing the morose, sombre and rather depressed nature that haunts the Dwarves at present.
They have been crushed under the burdensome weight of the sorrow and losses they’ve endured, as they have lost their homes, yearn for home and wish to reclaim it though it might cost them their lives. They know most of them will die, yet are resolved to do so, even Thorin whom is seated apart in the Kingly manner of olde from them.
Really there’s never been a better, more interesting and deeper tale of Dwarves in the genre than this short little fairy-novel and it is also in this scene we get a sense of the great burden laid on them.
This song is not simply them reminding themselves of their duty or telling Bilbo what they intend to do. It is a funeral song. One in which they are singing what they fear to be certain, and yet sing of what they must do. We should regard them then as no less courageous as the likes of say Sam, Frodo, Pippin and Merry.
It is understandable if writers feel shy about writing and composing music and poetry, however it is of the utmost importance that you do. If your world lacks music, lacks characterization than how could it possibly enchant your readers, or help them to escape from this dreary one?
The song though is in a lot of ways the Requiem of Thorin, which is what it ought to be termed for more than any other character, it is his Requiem, his song.
I’ll leave this essay off with a second song, similar to this one composed for Jackson’s movies, and performed down below by the excellent Peter Hollens, do check it out. It is a masterpiece.
Delectable, most delectable! Everyone loves having dinner with dwarves, but maybe even elves, if they are Tolkien's ones :D
A delightful essay. Can you pencil in a future essay on Balin?