The author J. R. R. Tolkien uses many proverbs in The Lord of the Rings to create a feeling that the world of Middle-earth is both familiar and solid, and to give a sense of the different cultures of the Hobbits, Men, Elves, and Dwarves who populate it. Scholars have also commented that the proverbs are sometimes used directly to portray characters such as Barliman Butterbur, who never has time to collect his thoughts. Often these proverbs serve to make Tolkien's created world seem at once real and solid, while also remaining somewhat unfamiliar. Further, the proverbs help to convey Tolkien's underlying message about providence; while he keeps his Christianity hidden, readers can see that what appears as luck to the protagonists reflects a higher purpose throughout Tolkien's narrative.
Appearances
There are many proverbs in The Lord of the Rings; estimates range from 29 to "about 110", depending on the criteria used to distinguish proverbs from other sayings. Some are traditional, some adapted, and many were invented by Tolkien. They are used variously by the free peoples of Middle-earth, namely Hobbits, Men, Elves, and Dwarves, as well as by Wizards and Orcs.
In addition, familiar sayings and platitudes form part of the speech of some characters, and the songs of the Hobbits express sentiments that sound like proverbs.
Analysis
Simple wisdom
David Rowe comments on the simple wisdom of many Hobbit proverbs, describing them as "terse, often humorous, and defiantly pragmatic; ... plain Hobbit-sense". He notes that they are often rooted in familiar daily work, as in "You've got to have grist before you can grind" (6.8 "The Scouring of the Shire"), an allusion to the task of milling grain. He observes, too, that Hobbit proverbs have a "gnarled and rather fatalistic" worldview, countered by their delight in "simple pleasures" like food, beer, and pipe-smoking. He cites as an example of this "Frodo's marvellously vivid 'Short cuts make delays, but inns make longer ones'" (1.4 "A Short Cut to Mushrooms"). In Rowe's view, these embody "a living tradition", enabling shared experience to be "fitted to the present moment and the immediate need."
Portraying character
Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull, in The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, state that Tolkien has Barliman Butterbur, the fat bustling landlord of The Prancing Pony inn at Bree, speak in a mass of "commonplace sayings" such as "I'm run off my feet", proverbs like "It never rains but it pours, we say in Bree", and shortly after that "One thing drives out another, so to speak". Katharyn W. Crabbe comments that Barliman's constant stream of common sayings "is perfect as a representation of the conversation of a man who is too busy to concentrate" on anything, suggesting "a kind of semiconscious conversation", so that when he finally admits he forgot to send Gandalf's letter of warning to Frodo, the reader has "a shock of recognition".
Injecting humour
Esther Clinton, in Proverbium, discusses the playful use of proverbs to inject humour as well as to make a point in the story. In "The Council of Elrond", Gandalf tells of his anger – she notes that he is known for his fiery temper – on finding that Butterbur had failed to send on his letter to Frodo, and humorously combines two proverbs about dogs to describe himself. At another moment in the wild, Merry proposes one river crossing after another, and Aragorn rolls two proverbs into one in reply:
Making the world real
Crabbe notes the proverb-exchange between Elrond and Gimli:
She comments that statements "of traditional wisdom" are entertainingly placed in opposition to each other. In her view, Tolkien was suggesting in exchanges like this one that proverbs are at best only partly true, and as such are of limited use as guides to action. She comments that such proverbs serve to "build the sense of the familiar, but also to create a sense of the individuality of cultures" among the various races. She adds that even if readers do not catch the references, they get a feeling of the solid reality of Middle-earth, since having a folk-wisdom suggests a culture like those that they know makes sense, feels coherent, and appears to be governed by a set of discernible rules: "in short, to seem real".