“Hrum, Hoom. Do not be hasty, that is my motto.” This weekend, the Hall of Fire chapter-by-chapter discussions on The Two Towers roll on towards December as we arrive at one of the most enchanting and exciting chapters from the Lord of the Rings, one which is not only a favourite of many, but also helps differentiate the realm of Middle-earth from the numerous other mythological worlds that exist in modern science fiction as a result. This weekend, the Hall of Fire welcomes you all to a discussion on

Book III, Chapter IV: Treebeard

When asking people in the past who they’re favourite character from the Lord of the Rings is, often the reply is someone from the Fellowship: Legolas perhaps, or Aragorn, or maybe good ol’ Mr Frodo himself. However when asked who their favourite non-Fellowship character is, the reply is more often than not an emphasised ‘Treebeard!’. This character, due to the uniqueness of his species, his mysterious and clouded past in Middle-earth or just his personality, has captured the imagination of quite a few Tolkien fans throughout the years.

This weekend, we’ll be discussing the chapter that introduces him and the Ents into the War of the Ring one of the most pivotal events which influenced the course of the war itself. What was your original impression of Treebeard/Fangorn upon your first reading of the chapter? Do you share the opinions the consensus have on this character, or do you dislike him and the Ents? Is Treebeard one of the greater characters in literary history, or just a minor element in an otherwise amazing book? Join us for one of our live chats as we discuss all these questions and more with some fellow Tolkien scholars!

Upcoming Discussions
June 15 & 16: The (Ir)Responsibility of Elves in Middle-earth
June 22 & 23: TTT Chapter Discussion: The Return of Gandalf
June 29 & 30: Ask the Experts: A Q&A on Tolkien’s Work

Place:
#thehalloffire on theonering.net server; come to theonering.net’s chat room Barliman’s and then type /join #thehalloffire .

Saturday Chat: 5:30 pm ET (17:30) [also 11:30 pm (23:30) CET and 7:30 am Sunday (07:30) AET]

Sunday Chat: 7:00 pm (19:00) CET [also 1:00 pm (13:00) ET and 4:00 am (04:00) Monday morning AET]

ET = Eastern Time, USA’s East Coast
CET = Central European Time, Central Europe

Questions? Topics? Send ‘em here.