A.i.

[webwizard333]

In the Hobbit, most of the animals seem to be intelligent. For instance, the dwarves and Bilbo were able to converse with a raven. The spiders understood very well what Biblo was saying to them. Also, Beorn seemed to be able to converse with the animals, implying they have their own languages. Were these all just exceptions to the rule, or are they all this intelligent? I personally, think that Tolien gave all the animals some degree of intelligence, though not all are intelligent enough to converse (such as the horses).

[Draken]

Hmmm interesting point...do any Men converse with animals at any stage, either in The Hobbit or LOTR? I can't remember...but if not then perhaps he was showing that the coming dominion of Men would be less in touch with nature than the races it would eventually replace.

[Wayfarer]

Bard could understand the thrush.

I think perhaps that all animals were intelligent, but some individuals were easier to communicate with than others.

Roac, for example, could speak westron, and so could translate for the thrush, who merely understood it.

[Strange-Looking Lurker]

Interesting topic.

I do know that there was a fox who was smart enough to notice that it was odd for Hobbits to be sleeping outdoors (when Some, Frodo and Pippin are heading for Crickhollow). But I don't think all animals were that way: Sam doesn't seem at all upset that Smeagol killed a rabbit.

[webwizard333]

Good point S-LL. Perhaps there were only a few certain intelligent animals by the Hobbit. Maybe the intelligence level was going down as men rose. I'll look through the Sil to see if there are any cluse about animal intelligence in the beginning.

[katya]

i kind of figured that for the most part the hobbit was just written differently because the animals are much more like people than in lotr but not always, like the eagles. it's kind of confusing. the hobbit seems more like a childrens story (obviously) and animals seem to talk more often in children's stories a lot of them are actually about animals anyway. but lotr seems more serious and a history. there are still things like the eagles though and the fox. i can't remember other times. the fox doesn't talk though, it's just smart...right? i hope this made sense.

[Radagast The Brown]

it have an easy explenation. Tolkien wanted that the animals in the hobbit will speak, so he made them speakable. and when he wanted that the animals will understand them, they will.

[The Lady of Ithilien]

Well, there's Sam comment in Rivendell, which I didn't take very seriously at the time, that his horse, Bill, could just about talk and soon would if he stayed in Rivendell much longer. And Treebeard said that the Elves started it, getting the trees to talk. None seemed to in Mirkwood, though.

Maybe it went back further to the First Age and maybe even to Valinor -- there was Huan the hound who talked, and didn't that vampire bat of Sauron's talk or at least spy for him?

[Caleb]

I can talk to cows.

[Duddun]

I don't know, I think he was just trying to make them a part of the movie more and the bird listened to them the hole time and supposedly could listen to english but not speak it, hmmm, as for the ravens only a few may have known it like the old one that came to tell them stuff most often.