Unfinished Tales - Part Three - III - The Quest of Erebor

[Estelyn Telcontar]

This wonderful chapter is fun to read, very lively writing! It is a retelling of the story of The Hobbit, in Gandalf's own words and from his point of view. It is therefore a bridge to the Hobbit ( = Bilbo's point-of-view) rereading we will be doing when we finish the UT discussions.

The chapter includes two different accounts of the same events. Each one has details that round off the picture. We find out a lot of background information - how Gandalf wove his web to accomplish a greater purpose than just helping to re-establish the Dwarven kingdom under the mountain. We also come to realise that the War of the Ring turned out well because of the preparation done by the quest of Erebor.

There are some really remarkable lines in this narrative - or rather, these two narratives. One of my particular favourites is this one about Bilbo:

...his old desires had dwindled down to a sort of private dream. Nothing could have been more dismaying than to find it actually in danger of coming true!

Another interesting element of the story is the role played by "chance", and Gandalf's foresight in coercing Thorin to change his plans for conquering the Lonely Mountain and to take Bilbo along.

What do you think of the brief passage in which Gandalf explains Bilbo's probable reasons for not marrying? Convincing? How do you like the conversation that precedes the impression he gave the Dwarves that Bilbo was a professional thief? What do you think of Thorin's role in the background story? Do you think he displays the sort of pride that precedes the proverbial fall?

One of the most interesting details I found here is that of "scent". A Hobbit was chosen because he would smell unfamiliar to the Dragon. How important does that seem to you?

Do you have any favourite lines in this chapter?

[Formendacil]

Look at me being caught up and everything!

Anyway...

"The Quest for Erebor" has always been one of my favourite pieces in Unfinished Tales, largely because it's the closest we ever come to meeting our favourite characters from The Lord of the Rings again--and here we have Gandalf telling another story, just like "The Return of the Shadow" or "The Council of Elrond," with Gimli and the Hobbits hanging out in Minas Tirith.

Perhaps what fascinates me the most about "The Quest for Erebor" at this point is how it dovetails nicely with the "new" version of The Hobbit that's included at the end of Rateliff's History of the The Hobbit, when Tolkien set out to rewrite The Hobbit in the style of The Lord of the Rings. While he only gets as far as the trolls, the change in style in that piece goes some of the distance towards imagining what that book would have looked like if Gandalf had told it--and as we're told in "The Quest for Erebor," it would have looked rather different indeed.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who wishes Tolkien had actually written Gandalf's version of The Hobbit--not to supersede the original text, like the replacement Gollum chapter, but to complement it.

[Galadriel55]

Gandalf is a much, much sneakier fellow than I thought until I read this chapter... Well, no, I still had my suspicions, and the appendices are somewhat enlightening, but here we see Gandalf the Schemer, not warrior or healer or magician or messenger or etc. with a bit of planning mixed into it.

[Guinevere]

I enjoyed reading this chapter very much, but have nothing to add which Formendacil and Galadriel55 haven't already said.

My favourite line in this chapter is the last sentence of version B:" A small oversight, but it proved fatal. Small oversights often do."