Blad The Inspirer
New Member
I was hoping we would get to this line in the last class, and we got so close!
I'm never able to tune in live, so I thought I would post this question and hope you can cover it in the next lesson. It is the biggest question I have about this chapter.
When Strider says, "Bilbo must have translated it. I never knew that," it seems to me that Frodo (along with any first-time reader) should respond by asking, "Wait... do you know Bilbo?" So, why doesn't Frodo say anything?
It seems very clear that Strider's "I never knew that" has a tone of surprise. If Bilbo had done something like translate the The Fall of Gil-galad, Strider would expect to know about it. That must mean that Strider and Bilbo are at least acquaintances, if not friends. Maybe it's possible that Strider knows of Bilbo, but has never met him, but in that case I don't see why he would expect to have such an intimate knowledge of his translations.
So, why wouldn't Frodo ask about his relationship with Bilbo? I'm not sure, but I can think of three possible reasons. One: Frodo does ask, but it is not stated in the text. Two: Frodo already knows at this point, because Strider has already told him, in which case, once again, it was not mentioned in the text. Three: He just doesn't think to ask.
Reason one and reason three are both pretty unlikely. I can't imagine why Frodo wouldn't ask about this, and if he did ask about it, why would it be left out of the text?
I have always been reluctant to accept reason two (or reason one, for that matter) because of something that happens later. When Strider joins Bilbo and Frodo in the Hall of Fire, Frodo is surprised. I have always assumed that Frodo is surprised not only to find that Strider has yet another name (the Dunadan), but also that Strider and Bilbo know each other. However, looking at the passage more closely, I don't see any evidence to suggest that Frodo wasn't already aware of Bilbo and Strider's relationship. Frodo is clearly surprised to see Strider, but the following conversation is all about his name, so that may be the only reason Frodo was surprised.
However, that still leaves us with a problem: If, at any point between Frodo meeting Strider and seeing him in the Hall of Fire, Frodo found out about his relationship with Bilbo, wouldn't it be important enough to mention in the text? Also, wouldn't he ask Strider if he knows where Bilbo is now? That seems like an important conversation.
For a long time, I also thought that there was another problem: If Frodo had asked Aragorn about Bilbo already, why would he be surprised to see Bilbo at Rivendell? However, I now guess that Aragorn may not have known Bilbo was there, since it may have been many years since Aragorn has been in Rivendell. Also, even if he did know, Aragorn may not have said anything, but that would seem kind of cruel.
So, in conclusion, I am still very confused. I can't think of a fully convincing explanation. I really hope someone can solve this riddle for me in the next lesson!
I'm never able to tune in live, so I thought I would post this question and hope you can cover it in the next lesson. It is the biggest question I have about this chapter.
When Strider says, "Bilbo must have translated it. I never knew that," it seems to me that Frodo (along with any first-time reader) should respond by asking, "Wait... do you know Bilbo?" So, why doesn't Frodo say anything?
It seems very clear that Strider's "I never knew that" has a tone of surprise. If Bilbo had done something like translate the The Fall of Gil-galad, Strider would expect to know about it. That must mean that Strider and Bilbo are at least acquaintances, if not friends. Maybe it's possible that Strider knows of Bilbo, but has never met him, but in that case I don't see why he would expect to have such an intimate knowledge of his translations.
So, why wouldn't Frodo ask about his relationship with Bilbo? I'm not sure, but I can think of three possible reasons. One: Frodo does ask, but it is not stated in the text. Two: Frodo already knows at this point, because Strider has already told him, in which case, once again, it was not mentioned in the text. Three: He just doesn't think to ask.
Reason one and reason three are both pretty unlikely. I can't imagine why Frodo wouldn't ask about this, and if he did ask about it, why would it be left out of the text?
I have always been reluctant to accept reason two (or reason one, for that matter) because of something that happens later. When Strider joins Bilbo and Frodo in the Hall of Fire, Frodo is surprised. I have always assumed that Frodo is surprised not only to find that Strider has yet another name (the Dunadan), but also that Strider and Bilbo know each other. However, looking at the passage more closely, I don't see any evidence to suggest that Frodo wasn't already aware of Bilbo and Strider's relationship. Frodo is clearly surprised to see Strider, but the following conversation is all about his name, so that may be the only reason Frodo was surprised.
However, that still leaves us with a problem: If, at any point between Frodo meeting Strider and seeing him in the Hall of Fire, Frodo found out about his relationship with Bilbo, wouldn't it be important enough to mention in the text? Also, wouldn't he ask Strider if he knows where Bilbo is now? That seems like an important conversation.
For a long time, I also thought that there was another problem: If Frodo had asked Aragorn about Bilbo already, why would he be surprised to see Bilbo at Rivendell? However, I now guess that Aragorn may not have known Bilbo was there, since it may have been many years since Aragorn has been in Rivendell. Also, even if he did know, Aragorn may not have said anything, but that would seem kind of cruel.
So, in conclusion, I am still very confused. I can't think of a fully convincing explanation. I really hope someone can solve this riddle for me in the next lesson!