Abstract
It is not altogether clear from reading The Lord of the Rings for the first time how political the hobbits Bilbo and Frodo are, even in the introductory chapter “A Long-expected Party”. For there exist power struggles among the different hobbit families in the Shire, absurd in some cases, significant in others. One mark of the ability of Bilbo and Frodo is their sensitivity to the politics of the Shire, a faculty bom of nurture and nature that will enable Frodo’s mission and attract followers. This paper will reveal how Tolkien’s understanding of leadership rests upon what might be termed a Post-modernist relationship between power and knowledge.
