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Originally Posted by THE Ka
What I'm really curious about though, considering the vast amount of book sales over the years of The Hobbit (which, commercially should make it apparent on such a poll), how it isn't mentioned at all. Unless, as with most polls, something obvious is always amiss, or how the poll was comprised wasn't big enough in demographics of diversified interest, etc.
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Depends; but I think it may be that people - even from this sample (but cf. what I think about polls as I said above) - and even those of them who read LotR AND the Hobbit would place LotR over the Hobbit. You know, I can't help to start thinking what most of the Downers would write had we been asked to write one book which is our favourite. I dare to assume that the majority of people would write LotR, and not the Hobbit. Even myself, possibly. Simply when considering it all, you know... well, think for yourself, I don't know whether you'd pick LotR or TH.
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Well, even the original is at the mercy of speculation, since it was taken from a wholly different culture and language (An example, say, you can find going through art history. How with early christian to even late medieval periods Moses is depicted literally, with horns. No, not a social or theological stigma, simple mistranslation and confusion from originals. Makes for much livelier and interesting art though!!! ).
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Well surely. There are lots of things still which can't be determined precisely enough (although of course most of the main things are clear enough - I am now not talking of interpretation, which is a chapter for itself and has nothing to do with this). However, what I was talking about was the very rich "arsenal" of the literary work in the original language, and that the translations, at least speaking of the indo-european (or similar) languages cannot reflect easily these minor things in the original text.
And just as a note for your interest, the horn thing can still be argued. Because actually, horns were taken by many cultures simply as an attribute of divine power. So there are scholars even today speculating that the horns may be there rightfully after all.