Listen&Learn: The Lord of the Rings

Posted by: Jaksyn Peacock

Learn about the books that inspire fantasy writers to this day

Pre-listening vocabulary

• fantasy: a genre of stories about magic and imaginary worlds
• prequel: a story that takes place before the main series
• volume: a single book in a series
• influential: inspiring or affecting many people
• folklore: stories and legends that are important to a culture
• principle: an idea that is part of a belief system
• allegory: a story that has a second meaning under the literal meaning

Listening activity

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Gapfill exercise

The Lord of the Rings is a of fantasy novels by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. Tolkien wrote the series after the success of his original fantasy novel, The Hobbit, which is now described as a prequel. The series has three volumes, which Tolkien began writing in 1937 and in 1954. The books are known for their extensive worldbuilding. They contain invented and centuries of fictional history. For this reason, Tolkien’s stories are some of the most and influential works in the fantasy . Tolkien was inspired by Germanic folklore, as well as the principles of Catholicism. The stories can be read as religious allegories. 

Comprehension questions

See answers below

1. The Lord of the Rings is a
   a. fantasy series
   b. mystery series
   c. religious text
   
2. The Hobbit is
   a. the first volume in the series
   b. a prequel to the series
   c. a sequel to the series
   
3. Tolkien’s writing contains allegories for the principles of
   a. Catholicism
   b. Judaism
   c. Anglicanism

Discussion/essay questions

1. Do you enjoy fantasy stories? Why or why not? What do you think makes them popular?

Transcript

The Lord of the Rings is a series of fantasy novels by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. Tolkien wrote the series after the success of his original fantasy novel, The Hobbit, which is now described as a prequel. The series has three volumes, which Tolkien began writing in 1937 and published in 1954. The books are known for their extensive worldbuilding. They contain invented languages and centuries of fictional history. For this reason, Tolkien’s stories are some of the most popular and influential works in the fantasy genre. Tolkien was inspired by Germanic folklore, as well as the principles of Catholicism. The stories can be read as religious allegories. 

Answers to comprehension questions

1a 2b 3a

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Written and recorded by Jaksyn Peacock for EnglishClub

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13 comments

• English Club Indonesia says:
  

  I do enjoy fantasy stories. I really like them. Fantasy stories are filled with things you could never imagine before. This genre of story is popular because of the variety it offers. The story can be about anything, based on the author’s imagination.

• abdolmonem says:
  

  yes i like fantasy stories. its connect reality to dream. People like this kind of stories because its free our dreams.

• Aziz says:
  

  I really love this , these are my favourite stories , I read them when I was student , thanks a lot for reminding them , thanks a lot

• Miriam de Oliveira says:
  

  The Lord of Rings was the first movie I watched at the cinema.
  The movie has a spectacular setting, but the plot and story leave something to be desired.

• Joseph GLON says:
  

  with a such variety of articles we immprove our knowledge and culture in english
  Thank you so much I’m fond of your site
  Awink from France

• Sukanya Thunsap says:
  

  Thank you for the lesson!

• Tchatchoua Ambroise Rodrique says:
  

  Amazing! This is the a type of exercise I want to improve my listening and vocabulary in English. Thanks be to the team of Englishclub.

• Bissongo Albert says:
  

  These exercises allow so many people to improve their English day to day. “Practice makes perfect”.

  From Albert Bissongo
  Trainer,Interpreter and Translator
  Kisangani/DR Congo

• AIDA says:
  

  it is very hard exercise

• Marlene Lublanski says:
  

  Good job! This kind of exercise helps us improve our learning in listening and comprehension. It is important for English students.

• Marlene Lublanski says:
  

  Good job! This kind of exercise helps us improve our learning in listening and comprehensive text. Thank you so much.

• Maricarmen Gutierrez novoa says:
  

  excellent work. This helps us to have more vocabulary, which is what many of us need.

• Issa Tahir Hamit says:
  

  It’s fantastic exercise.