The Hobbit, Chapter 8: Flies and Spiders quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Why is Bilbo the one sent up the tall oak to look over the forest?

   • He is the only one who knows how to climb
   • Correct answer: He is light enough for the highest, thinnest branches
   • The dwarves draw lots for the job and he loses the draw
   • He offers to go so that he can hunt for food

   The climber had to get his head above the topmost leaves, so he had to be light enough for the slenderest branches to bear him.

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2. 2

   Question 2. Which member of the company first sees a twinkle of light in the forest?

   • Correct answer: Balin, who is walking a little way ahead
   • Bombur, just after waking from his dream
   • Kili, while he is keeping watch at night
   • Dori, while it is his turn to watch first

   Balin, a little way ahead, calls out that he thought he saw a twinkle of light; Dori and Kili spot the later lights.

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3. 3

   Question 3. After the second feast vanishes, how do the dwarves finally find Bilbo?

   • He slips off his ring and they spot him in the starlight
   • Bombur hears him snoring under a pile of dead leaves
   • Correct answer: Dori trips over him in the dark and finds him fast asleep
   • He calls out each of their names until they follow his voice

   Dori fell over what he thought was a log and found the hobbit curled up asleep, dreaming of a gorgeous dinner.

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4. 4

   Question 4. What does Bilbo use first to attack the spiders that hold the dwarves prisoner?

   • A bow and arrows taken from one of the dwarves
   • His sword, slashing at the ropes they hang from
   • Burning branches pulled from an old elf-fire
   • Correct answer: Smooth stones gathered from a dry watercourse

   Bilbo, a fair shot with a stone since boyhood, picks stones from a dry watercourse and knocks spiders out of the trees.

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5. 5

   Question 5. Why can the returning spiders see Bilbo while he guards the branch?

   • Correct answer: He took off his ring to free Fili and forgot it
   • The dwarves' shouting gives away where he is
   • Bombur pulls the ring off his finger by mistake
   • His ring stops working in the shadow of the webs

   He had taken off the ring when he rescued Fili and forgot to put it on again, so the spiders could see him.

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6. 6

   Question 6. Why does Bilbo finally tell the dwarves the secret of his ring?

   • Thorin orders him to explain how he vanished
   • Correct answer: They are surrounded and it is the only plan he has
   • Balin guesses the truth and asks him straight out
   • He wants them to admire him and stop grumbling

   With the spiders closing in and the dwarves too weak to fight long, Bilbo can think of no plan except to let them into the secret.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What happens to Bombur when the spiders come back to their trees?

   • He wakes the others by kicking a spider out of a tree with his foot
   • He climbs back to the branch to help Fili cut the last dwarves free
   • Correct answer: He is tied up again and dragged off until Bilbo drives the spiders away
   • He hides under the leaves and stays hidden until the battle is over

   Some spiders tie Bombur up again and drag him away; Bilbo scrambles and falls down the tree into the middle of them and kills half a dozen before they leave Bombur to him.

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8. 8

   Question 8. Who is the first to notice that Thorin is missing?

   • Fili, who goes back to search the branch
   • Bilbo, when he counts the dwarves by touch
   • Balin, while he is chuckling about Gollum
   • Correct answer: Dwalin, who opens an eye and looks round

   After the others fall silent, Dwalin opens an eye, looks round, and asks, 'Where is Thorin?'

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of these events happen in Chapter 8?

   • The company roasts a black squirrel and finds it horrible to eat.

     Happened

     The company shoots a squirrel, roasts it, and finds it so horrible to taste that they shoot no more squirrels.

   • Bilbo drinks from the enchanted stream and falls asleep.

     Didn't happen

     It is Bombur, not Bilbo, who tumbles into the enchanted stream and is pulled out already fast asleep.

   • Thorin shoots a dark deer that leaps across the stream.

     Happened

     Thorin, the only one who kept his feet, shoots the dark hart as it leaps the water, and its hooves falter and go still.

   • The dwarves shoot and kill the white hind for food.

     Didn't happen

     The dwarves waste their last arrows on the white deer, but none find their mark and the deer vanish into the trees.

   • Bilbo sees black butterflies at the top of the oak.

     Happened

     When Bilbo pokes his head above the leaves, he sees hundreds of butterflies of a dark velvety black.

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10. 10

    Question 10. Which of these events happen during the fight with the spiders?

    • Bilbo sings songs calling the spiders 'Attercop' and 'Lazy Lob'.

      Happened

      Bilbo makes up two songs, one calling the spiders 'Attercop' and one about 'Lazy Lob', to lead them away from the dwarves.

    • Fili has to cut off most of his beard after he is freed.

      Happened

      Fili's beard is so tangled with spider-thread that he has to cut most of it off.

    • Thorin is rescued from a spider bundle along with the others.

      Didn't happen

      Thorin is not among the spiders' prisoners; he fell under a spell at the third feast and the Wood-elves carried him away.

    • Gandalf returns and drives the spiders away with fire.

      Didn't happen

      Gandalf is not with them; Bilbo, with his ring and his sword Sting, holds off the spiders until they give up.

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does 'provisions' mean as used in: "he was always hungry, for they were extremely careful with their provisions"?

    • Plans for the journey ahead
    • Correct answer: Supplies of food and drink
    • Rules for taking turns on watch
    • Warnings given by their friends

    Provisions are stored supplies of food and drink; the company rations its food carefully, which keeps Bilbo hungry.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What does 'disquieting' mean as used in: "At times they heard disquieting laughter"?

    • Correct answer: Causing worry or unease
    • Very loud and rough
    • Cheerful and welcoming
    • Too faint to be heard

    Disquieting means causing unease; the laughter is fair, not goblin-like, yet it leaves the travellers uncomfortable.

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13. 13

    Question 13. What does 'loathsome' mean as used in: "in the silence and stillness of the wood he realised that these loathsome creatures were speaking one to another"?

    • Small, shy and timid
    • Slow, heavy and clumsy
    • Clever, sly and tricky
    • Correct answer: Disgusting and hateful

    Loathsome means causing disgust or hatred, which is how Bilbo feels about the huge spiders.

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