Why no one questions Gandalfs background

I have long thought about the fact that no one is really questioning what Gandalf is and where he comes from.
They know he is a wizard of course but they never question him on what he is and where he comes from.

When Denethor and Gandalf have their little tet à tet Pippin starts to think on Gandalf.
"Who is Gandalf? When and where did he come into the world" and he continues to muse on how odd it is that he never have thought about this before, then it just slides off his conscious like water on a goose, it's not brought up or thought of again.

So here is my thought:
It's almost like Gandalf have some kind of cloaking spell as to make people not question and just accept "he's a wizard" and leave it at that.

I know I would have questioned him for days if I where anyone in the fellowship
 
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Yes but Frodo at least asks Tom who he is. He is not given a satisfactory answer (for him to comprehend) but still an answer.
When Gandalf is concerned the questions are ghost
 
I think Gandalf's cloak is his familiarity. Everyone knows him, and everyone you know knows him, so what more could there be to know after all? Sometimes it's the things that are right in front of us that we fail to examine closely.
 
I think Gandalf's cloak is his familiarity. Everyone knows him, and everyone you know knows him, so what more could there be to know after all? Sometimes it's the things that are right in front of us that we fail to examine closely.
Doesn't do it for me fully.
Knowing a person I have known is MUCH more than it first had seemed I think would be cause for questions
 
Doesn't do it for me fully.
Knowing a person I have known is MUCH more than it first had seemed I think would be cause for questions
That's fair. Perhaps it's interesting to consider the other angle, then. What does it say about the hobbits that they are evidently not the kind of people to question such things? Is it a reflection of the individuals we see, or a broader hobbit characteristic? And how do their extraordinary circumstances potentially change things?

Having said that, it strikes me as a perfectly reasonable--albeit unprovable--theory that Gandalf might have some sort of inverted glamour, projecting normalcy.
 
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That's fair. Perhaps it's interesting to consider the other angle, then. What does it say about the hobbits that they are evidently not the kind of people to question such things? Is it a reflection of the individuals we see, or a broader hobbit characteristic? And how do their extraordinary circumstances potentially change things?

Having said that, it strikes me as a perfectly reasonable--albeit unprovable--theory that Gandalf might have some sort of inverted glamour, projecting normalcy.

Well the hobbits are curious about Tom's origins and Pippin himself thought it odd he had never thought about it before.
That strikes me as proof it's not about hobbits
 
I think Gandalf's cloak is his familiarity. Everyone knows him, and everyone you know knows him, so what more could there be to know after all? Sometimes it's the things that are right in front of us that we fail to examine closely.

Not only does everyone know him; he's a legend! Even the narrator in The Hobbit gets excited when Gandalf comes onto the scene. That, combined with the fact that he tends to stay rather secretive about his own affairs might lead people to just accept, "he's a wizard" as sufficient explanation.

Further, Pippin may find it odd that he's never wondered before, but personally I think that's just hindsight. Seeing Gandalf's position among Denethor, Saruman, the Witch-king, and Sauron as the War approaches its climax is recontextualizing Gandalf in a way Pippin's never seen before.
 
Not only does everyone know him; he's a legend!
That just adds to the strangeness.
Everyone knows him, and the hobbits have known him or of him all their life. He started out as a 'disturber of the peace' and a funny old chap who did magic party tricks. That was their idea of who Gandalf was.
And now Denethor, Sauruman, galadriel, elrond regard him as one of great stature, this surely will shake their foundations about who this old man is.
And no one is wondering who, what, when, how, why he is there, like a spider In a web in the greatest test for middle earth.
That is just odd
 
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That just adds to the strangeness.
Everyone knows him, and the hobbits have known him all their life. He started out as a 'disturber of the peace' and a funny old chap who did magic party tricks. That was their idea of who Gandalf was.
And now Denethor, Sauruman, galadriel, elrond regard him as one of great stature, surely will shake their foundations about who this old man is.
And no one is wondering who, what, when, how, why he is there like a spider In a web in the greatest test for middle earth.
That just is odd

I disagree. Personally, I don't recall wondering who or what Gandalf was either, until it was brought up in the story. He was a wizard, and that was sufficient explanation. I wouldn't find it utterly inconceivable for a character to have wondered about Gandalf's past, but neither do I find it bizarre that they haven't.
 
Might have just been me then.
I wondered, I was perplexed it never came up. And confused when it came up like something suppressed in Pippin at Minas Tirith and never brought up again.
And again, might just be me
 
Given Gandalf’s long association with the Shire and hobbits, it’s entirely possible that those wonderings and questions occurred “offstage“ in the distant past. After all, if your grandparents vouched for someone’s trustworthiness you’d be more likely to accept them than some random stranger. Also, given how insular the Shire is, it’s entirely possible that the hobbits are ignorant of the length of human lifespans to be able to compare. Then when he is known everywhere he goes it is reasonable to see them performing minor refactoring, rather than complete reassessment.

You also can’t discount the class based system and the tendency for folks at all levels to avoid getting mixed up in the business of their betters.
 
No problem, especially considering that they don't actually know that he died, merely assumed so.
In alphabetical order:

Aragorn (88) of the long-lived race of Numenor has known Gandalf (the old man) for 63 years at the time of his fall and rebirth. He knows that he isn't an elf or of Numenorean race, so his questioning of Gandalf's background has long ago been satisfied or put aside. In the context of the story he has many other things of greater import to occupy his mind.

Boromir (41) is dead at the point of Gandalf's return.

Denethor (89) has known Gandalf his whole life and has little respect for him. He also isn't really aware of Gandalf's death and rebirth, especially given Gandalf's efforts to conceal his "upgrade" from casual observers.

Elrond (6515) knows Gandalf's background. He doesn't see Gandalf again until after the fall of Sauron.

Fangorn (Treebeard; age unknown, but ancient) has likely known Gandalf for the last 2000 years, and encourages the hobbits not to be hasty. It seems unlikely that he has truly accepted Gandalf as dead before Gandalf reappears.

Frodo (51) has known Gandalf for at least 30 years. He doesn't meet reborn and upgraded Gandalf until after the fall of Sauron and expresses surprise.

Galadriel (7185) knows Gandalf's background (from back in Valinor) and appears to hold some doubt as to whether Gandalf is truly lost.

Gimli (140) has known Gandalf presumably for more than half his life at this time (since the fall of Smaug) so is in the same situation as Aragorn.

Legolas (approx. 2000) has had the opportunity to know Gandalf for around 2000 years. I doubt there's any surprises in this for him.

Merry (37) has known Gandalf for most (maybe all) of his life. He is surprised by Gandalf's return, and he and Pippin discuss how he is different. This in the context of having just seen Saruman deposed by Gandalf.

Pippin (29) is the same circumstances as Merry.

Sam (39) has known Gandalf for about as long as Frodo, but from a greater social distance. He also doesn't meet Gandalf 2.0 until after the fall of Sauron. If Gandalf were to sprout wings and fly I don't think Sam would question it much, writing it off as the business of his betters.

Saruman (Curunir; predates the world) is fully aware of Gandalf's (Olorin's) background, but is probably unaware of Gandalf's death and rebirth. He certainly isn't aware of the upgrade until it is too late.

Théoden (71) has known Gandalf his whole life, isn't in the clearest of minds when Gandalf turns up, and is unaware of Gandalf's death and rebirth. After his recovery everything has a new shine to it, so I doubt he much notices the change in Gandalf until the confrontation with Saruman. It's possible at this point that Théoden sees Saruman as lesser (which he is) without recognizing Gandalf's elevation.

Wormtongue (45) through his association with Saruman is more familiar with Wizards than most, but still is unaware of Gandalf's death and rebirth. He sees Gandalf's return as an impediment to his job, but doesn't see the upgrade to Gandalf until it is too late.

I don't think anyone else in the narrative is really familiar enough with Gandalf for their reaction to be relevant.

So we see that the mortals associated with Gandalf that known of his death and rebirth prior to the fall of Sauron are Aragorn, Gimli, Merry, and Pippin; Not a particularly large group.

As such, those most likely to question his background in the light of his death, rebirth and upgrades are Merry and Pippin, who have been familiar with this "old man" doing somewhat miraculous things (with fireworks) their entire lives.
His apparent comfort in walking into the courts of king and steward and speaking on equal terms would cause them to wonder at his background.
We see Pippin asking questions that get evasive answers. How long do you continue asking these types of questions knowing (and fearing) what he is capable of, and sensing his unwillingness to answer?

Prior to his death and rebirth he is, as has been said, a legend to mortals, and known to the immortals.
 
I’m not sure if Gandalf’s first encounter with hobbits was ever detailed, but I imagine it thus:

Hobbits: “Hullo stranger! We’ve naught seen the like of you before. Are you one of the Big Folk?”

Gandalf: “Nay, I am Olòrin of the immortal Maiar, servant of the Creator, veiled in the form of man and sent forth from the Undying Lands to aid and advise the good peoples of Middle Earth in their epic struggle against the evil forces of Sauron.”

Hobbits: *confused looks and awkward silence*

Gandalf: “Er, that is, I’m Gandalf, the silly wandering wizard! Want to see some fireworks?”

Hobbits: *cheers and applause*
 
I’m not sure if Gandalf’s first encounter with hobbits was ever detailed, but I imagine it thus:

Hobbits: “Hullo stranger! We’ve naught seen the like of you before. Are you one of the Big Folk?”

Gandalf: “Nay, I am Olòrin of the immortal Maiar, servant of the Creator, veiled in the form of man and sent forth from the Undying Lands to aid and advise the good peoples of Middle Earth in their epic struggle against the evil forces of Sauron.”

Hobbits: *confused looks and awkward silence*

Gandalf: “Er, that is, I’m Gandalf, the silly wandering wizard! Want to see some fireworks?”

Hobbits: *cheers and applause*
That's more like it!
For the common hobbit (combit) I totally get that. For the inner circle though, I think they could handle the information. But I don't think they are privy to it, and don't seem to care or show interest in his history, and that's what I find odd, and Pippin finds it odd too.
"How odd it was that he had not thought about it before" - "Who is Gandalf" that is
 
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The observation on Pippin's passing notice of his lack of real knowledge of Gandalf is interesting. It is quite possible that Tolkien had something like this "anti-glamour" in mind. But the explanation could be much simpler and is implied by Gandalf's name. Remember, it comes from the Edda and means "Elf with a staff". Gandalf would probably have become known to the Shirefolk through his association with Elves, and his name among the non-Elves would very likely be a Westron equivalent of the one that Tolkien borrowed. And, just like Sam seems to think Elves are automatically good people, I suspect most of the population of the Shire would also tend to accept anyone that Elves are known to accept. Though they must meet Elves very rarely at the time of the story, this might not have been the case in the past. Only as the Shire became large and self-sufficient could they afford to be so insular. But Gandalf's arrival, like the different culture in the Shire, would have been so long ago most people would have forgotten when Gandalf was not known.
 
I like this point of view with regard to the hobbits. Not because of the 'Elf-with-a-staff' meaning, because I don't think the average hobbit was learned enough to translate the name. But I think it likely that the hobbits did associate Gandalf with Elves because of his ability to do 'magic.' He's not like the Men in Bree, who are just large and clumsy (and stupid) hobbit-ish folk who marry and procreate and die. Perhaps most hobbits just accepted Gandalf as an elf-like creature. And clearly, very few hobbits had any experience of true Elves. Among the Fellowship, only Frodo had met them at all before they left Bag End. And as Frodo makes clear, none of them had any real experience of men. The only Men the four hobbits knew were Aragorn and Boromir until they met, respectively, Theoden and the Rohirrim, Denethor and the Gondorians, and Faramir and the Rangers of Ithilien.

I imagine it was the impact of having travelled through this "brave new world that has such people in't" that caused Pippin to look anew at this one strange person whom he has known for most of his life.

I think the rest of the company just know that Gandalf is part of a special class of being -- neither Elf, nor Man, nor Dwarf. And certainly not Hobbit!

The observation on Pippin's passing notice of his lack of real knowledge of Gandalf is interesting. It is quite possible that Tolkien had something like this "anti-glamour" in mind. But the explanation could be much simpler and is implied by Gandalf's name. Remember, it comes from the Edda and means "Elf with a staff". Gandalf would probably have become known to the Shirefolk through his association with Elves, and his name among the non-Elves would very likely be a Westron equivalent of the one that Tolkien borrowed. And, just like Sam seems to think Elves are automatically good people, I suspect most of the population of the Shire would also tend to accept anyone that Elves are known to accept. Though they must meet Elves very rarely at the time of the story, this might not have been the case in the past. Only as the Shire became large and self-sufficient could they afford to be so insular. But Gandalf's arrival, like the different culture in the Shire, would have been so long ago most people would have forgotten when Gandalf was not known.
 
One thing that I'd note is that the term "wizard" certainly seems to have some meaning beyond the Istari. This is most common in The Hobbit, for example, Beorn seems to talk about wizardry as an occupation. The dwarves certainly seem to have associations in their minds that the term "wizard" conjures up. Is it possible that there are "wizards" beyond the Five? Not real ones, perhaps, but Middle Earth surely must have its share of magicians, herbalists, and tinkers who might earn the name "wizard" in different ways. If you told someone in medieval Europe that a man was a wizard, and he proceeded to produce some light magic (small fireworks, illuminated crystals, etc.), would that person really need to delve into how the "wizard" was capable of such feats?
 
If you told someone in medieval Europe that a man was a wizard, and he proceeded to produce some light magic (small fireworks, illuminated crystals, etc.), would that person really need to delve into how the "wizard" was capable of such feats?

Quite possibly, actually, because depending on how that person acquired his power, he may be deserving of death!

Though, I agree that the hobbits may be seeing Gandalf and much else beyond the Shire as simply lumped together under "other" and only really begin to want to dig deeper once they've already begun to learn more.
 
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