Summer Reading Guide for Logic School, Lecture notes of Logic

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The Fellowship of the Ring

Summer Reading

Summer Reading Guide for Logic School

In the sixth grade we start the adventure of Bilbo Baggins, in seventh grade watch Frodo take the sought-after ring on a journey, and in eighth grade watch the forces of good and evil battle as the journey continues. These books are not books that can be easily discerned at first glance, but require many levels of reading and understanding. The summer is a good opportunity to bring this literature to the student and have each one read and ponder the great questions of life.

In Humanities our mission statement is:

We, the Humanities Department at the Geneva School of Boerne, desire to engage our students in the Great Conversation of Human Civilization and to enable them to see the beauty and power of the written and spoken word so that their minds may be sharpened to properly understand the world in which they live. To this end and for these reasons, the Humanities Department at Geneva is wholeheartedly dedicated to the worth of grammar mastery, the warrant of logical reasoning, and the weight of rhetorical skill.

Our desire is for our students to enter this “great conversation” with Tolkien’s literature, and thereby start to formulate the early muscle of sharpening their minds. A packet of information will be provided for each student with a brief summary of each chapter and questions to answer for each chapter.

Requirements:

 All work is to be written in blue composition books (no other format will be accepted). If you are new and do not have one you can obtain one in the Logic/Rhetoric administration building. If you lose your book, you can purchase one for $10.00.  These must be written in blue or black ink.  Handwriting can be in cursive or print, whichever is most neat.  Please be attentive to spelling and punctuation.  All questions need to be answered with complete sentences.  Notes should be made in the book as well.

Facts: Please use the required text. The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien (ISBN: 9780547928210 , Houghton Mifflin 1999)

The summaries will be a homework/quiz grade. The grading rubric begins at a 90. Points will be added for well-written answers that include insight and detail. Points will be taken off for the following: missing key events and information, wrong information and missing chapters. Late summaries, wrong format or incomplete answers will be docked points.

The Fellowship of the Ring

Three Rings for the Elf-kings under the sky,

Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,

Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,

One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne

In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,

One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them

In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

Book One

Chapter 1: A Long-expected Party

The book opens many years after the events of The Hobbit. Bilbo is preparing to celebrate his 111th^ birthday, but is still as robust as he was when he was younger. The book also quickly introduces a new character: Frodo Baggins, a cousin of Bilbo’s who he has adopted as his nephew. They are preparing for a huge party to be thrown in Bilbo’s honor. It is a huge affair, with plenty of food and drink to satisfy even the hungriest hobbit. Gandalf even arrives, bringing fireworks to enliven the affair. However, Bilbo throws a twist at the end. At the end of his speech, he puts on his magic ring and disappears. He returns to his house, where Gandalf is waiting for him. He reveals that he is leaving the Shire to travel to Bree and see the dwarves again. Before he goes, Gandalf asks him to leave his ring. Bilbo is very hesitant and has to be pressured into giving it up, but expresses relief upon doing so. This puts Gandalf into a thoughtful mood and when Frodo returns, Gandalf informs him of Bilbo’s departure and then leaves himself, telling him to keep the ring secret and safe.

1. What does Tolkien do to connect this book with The Hobbit? (title of chapter, things he owns from the last adventure)
2. How are Hobbit birthdays different from ours?
3. What is life like in the Shire? Would you want to live there? Why or why not?
4. How do you know that Bilbo does not want to leave the Ring behind? What affect has the Ring had on Bilbo?
5. Why do you think he ends up leaving it?
6. Gandalf says “Let it go! And then you can go yourself and be free.” What do you think he means by that? How will he be free?

Chapter 2: The Shadow of the Past

The second chapter begins roughly a decade after the first. Gandalf has not been seen in the Shire for many years, and Frodo has taken to wandering the Shire, often talking with elves and dwarves traveling through. Frodo shows little sign of aging, just like Bilbo. As he approaches his fifties, however, Gandalf returns. He reveals that he had spent his time finding Gollum, the creature from whom Bilbo found the Ring. From Gollum and from research he had undertaken in the Kingdom of Gondor, he discovered that the magic ring Frodo has is in fact the Ring which Sauron forged and stored his might in. Gandalf reveals that when Sauron was last defeated, a king of men named Isildur took the Ring, but lost it when he was ambushed by orcs. Gollum found it and kept it with him under the mountains for centuries, until Bilbo found it. Gandalf also reveals that the Ring is why Bilbo always looked so young, but Gandalf also explains that the Ring is evil and slowly corrupts whoever

1. What event coincides with Frodo’s leaving of the Shire?
2. Write down a description of the black riders and their actions. (You can draw a picture if you would rather do that than write.)
3. What about their appearance and actions makes you think they are “evil?”
4. Write down a description of the elves and their actions. (You may need to use info from chapter 4 as well.)
5. What about their appearance and actions make you think they are good?

Chapter 4: A Short Cut to Mushrooms

When they awake, they continue their journey. Pippin decides to take a shortcut, only to get the group lost. They end up at the house of a farmer named Maggot, who Frodo used to know. Farmer Maggot feeds them and gives them a ride to a ferry, where they meet Merry.

1. How do you know that Gandalf has chosen Frodo a good companion in Sam?
2. What kind of qualities do you look for in a friend?

Chapter 5: A Conspiracy Unmasked

When the hobbits reach Frodo’s new home, Frodo’s friends reveal that Sam had told them all about the Ring and that they want to help him get to Rivendell. Frodo reluctantly agrees to their offer for aid. They then discuss their options and decide that the best option is to take the road through the Old Forest, an ancient forest filled with trees that are so old they still can think and talk to some degree, though not in a way obvious to anyone besides other trees. The path is risky, as the hobbits of the Shire had burned many of the trees years before. They end up agreeing to take the route, however, as they wager it is safer than running into the black riders again.

1. Using a dictionary, write the definition of the word conspiracy.
2. What kind of a conspiracy had been going on without Frodo’s knowledge?
3. What does this say about his friends?
4. Frodo says: “This is no treasure-hunt, no there-and-back again journey, I am flying from deadly peril into deadly peril.”

What journey is Frodo referring to when he talks about the treasure-hunt, no there- and-back again journey? How is this journey different in essence than the previous journey?

Chapter 6: The Old Forest

They wake up early in the morning and begin the journey through the forest. They lose their way, however, and end up next to a large ancient willow. There they fall asleep, only to wake up with Merry and Pippin trapped by the tree. Frodo and Sam call for help, and are surprised when a man calling himself Tom Bombadil appears and forces the tree to release the two hobbits. He then takes them all to his house.

1. Tolkien takes a long time to describe the forest. Give at least five things you notice about the forest.
2. Why do you think Tolkien writes in such detail? Did he like forests or not? Do you think he spent a lot of time in one? Explain.
3. Describe Tom Bombadil or draw a picture of him.
4. Who does he remind you of?

Chapter 7: In the House of Tom Bombadil

When they get to the house, Tom reveals that he knows of the Ring, but shows it has no power over him. They quickly forget about all their troubles though, as Tom tells them many stories and feeds them a wonderful supper. They are then given fresh beds to sleep in.

1. The hobbits have been journeying on a tough path up to this point and then end up in this place with Tom Bombadil. What about it makes it so restful for them? Describe it.
2. Describe a time in your life that was hard and you then came to a restful part and how it made you feel. It could be camp/home or car drive/vacation spot.
3. Why didn’t the ring seem to have any control over Tom Bombadil?
4. Tom does not continue in any of the books of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Why do you think Tolkien introduces him?

3. Who don’t they meet?
4. What was the reaction of the crowd when Frodo showed up again?

Chapter 10: Strider

When they return to their rooms, a man named Strider is waiting for them. He says that the hobbits have drawn too much attention to themselves and offers to help them. Frodo and his friends are wary, until the innkeeper remembers to bring them a letter from Gandalf, which reveals that Strider is a man to be trusted. Not only is he a man to be trusted, he is a strong and noble ranger from the north, and his name is Aragorn. They accept his offer and Frodo reveals that Gandalf was supposed to have met them at the inn. Strider expresses worry at the disappearance of the wizard. Just then, Merry comes in and says that he saw a black rider. Strider tells them to go to his room and stay in there for the night.

1. Gandalf writes a letter telling them to trust Strider. What are some of Gandalf’s instructions?
2. What about Strider makes him seem untrustworthy or trustworthy? Explain.
3. Write out the poem Gandalf included. “All that is gold does not glitter…”
4. Gandalf has a seal for his name and so does Tolkien. (Go back to the title page and look at the top of the page. In the black oval, you will see J R R T as a form.) Design your own seal using your initials. Take a whole page of your blue book to do this.

Chapter 11: A Knife in the Dark

When they wake up in the morning, the group finds the room they were going to sleep in torn up. Strider tells them to prepare to leave immediately, but they are delayed when they discover their ponies are missing. They manage to find others, but unfortunately the story of Frodo’s disappearance had spread and they leave with many watching. Strider takes them off the road, however, and they manage to make good time. (Rangers have great skill maneuvering themselves through different landscapes). Eventually, after several days, they reach an ancient ruin called Weathertop, where they make camp for the night. The black riders find them, though, and the hobbits are driven to the top of the tower. There Frodo puts on the Ring and sees through the riders’ cloaks. They appear as pale men with keen, merciless eyes, clothed in robes and armor. One of them comes forward and stabs Frodo in the shoulder with a knife, and he passes out.

1. Where does the group get a pony? What does he look like?

2. Why does Frodo look “twice the hobbit that he had been”?
3. What does Sam do that surprises the company?
4. Where was the company ultimately traveling?
5. Give a brief summary of the story of Beren and Luthien. (You can tell in a cartoon strip or in pictures.)
6. How many ringwraiths are there at Weathertop?
7. What does Frodo do to protect himself? (There are several things.)

Chapter 12: Flight to the Ford

When he awakes, he finds the riders gone and his friends worrying over him. Strider gives Frodo temporary relief from the wound and then has the group move. They eventually stumble upon the trolls that Bilbo had stumbled upon, now turned to stone, of course. This cheers them up, but the hobbits and Strider soon return to worrying about Frodo, whose arm is completely numb, and who is starting to grow very weak. Soon, however, an elf lord by the name of Glorfindel finds them. He puts Frodo on his horse and directs the company towards Rivendell. But they are found by the riders again, who give chase. Glorfindel sends Frodo ahead on the horse, and Frodo manages to cross the river into Rivendell just ahead of the riders. The river then suddenly rises up and overwhelms the black riders, just as Frodo passes into unconsciousness.

1. What kind of effect does the stabbing wound have on Frodo?
2. Name some things that make the journey so rough. (weather, terrain, supplies)
3. What things do they find along the way that give them hope? (jewel, stones, people)
4. God also works that way in us. He never gives us more than we can handle. Describe a situation where you or your family had a difficult time but something good happened to get you through.
5. Who does Frodo call out to at the final stage of the chase at the Ford? Why is this significant?

Final Questions