Could animals talk?

[davem]

I wonder where the talking badgers of the Adventures of Tom Bombadil fit in? I suppose this poem could be seen as a link between the world of traditional fairy tale & that of mythic history. Those two worlds seem to meet & blend in the Old Forest.

One thought did strike me- a 'connection' of sorts between The Hobbit & the story of Sigurd & Fafnir. Sigurd slays the dragon Fafnir & by consuming his heart comes ot understand the speech of birds. Bard, on the other hand, through his ability to understand the speech of a bird is able to kill Smaug - by shooting him through the heart.

I wonder also about Sam's words in reference to Bill, that if he statyed in Rivendell much longer he'd learn to speak. As Lalwende pointed out *about Ents, it was the Elves who taught them to speak. One wonders if they had equal facility in teaching animals speech...

(From Aldarion & Erendis: To Erendis they gave a pair of birds, grey, with golden beaks and feet...

'How shall I keep them?' said Erendis.

'Let them fly & be free,' answered the Eldar. 'For we have spoken to them & named you; and they will stay wherever you dwell.'

* Without once mentioning sanwe

[Thinlómien]

A new aspect/detail: in the lament for Gandalf by Frodo is said that Gandalf spoke the language(s) of animals. (Sorry, I couldn't quote the thing - I don't have the book in english.) That mention could be only poetry and so not necessarily (clearly) true. I think that animals didn't really talk physically, but some people could understand their thoughts (refering eg. to the lament of Gandalf). Great eagles, dragons, Huan and Erendis' birds are different cases.

[HerenIstarion]

When evening in the Shire was grey
his footsteps on the Hill were heard;
before the dawn he went away
on journey long without a word.

From Wilderland to Western shore,
from northern waste to southern hill,
through dragon-lair and hidden door
and darkling woods he walked at will.

With Dwarf and Hobbit, Elves and Men,
with mortal and immortal folk,
with bird on bough and beast in den,
in their own secret tongues he spoke.

A deadly sword, a healing hand,
a back that bent beneath its load;
a trumpet-voice, a burning brand,
a weary pilgrim on the road.

A lord of wisdom throned he sat,
swift in anger, quick to laugh;
an old man in a battered hat
who leaned upon a thorny staff.

He stood upon the bridge alone
and Fire and Shadow both defied;
his staff was broken on the stone,
in Khazad-dûm his wisdom died.

***

The finest rockets ever seen:
they burst in stars of blue and green,
or after thunder golden showers
came falling like a rain of flowers.

[Thinlómien]

Thank you. That was the thing I was looking for.

[drigel]

I do not have the books handy, but did Legolas not whisper a few nothings into Arod's ear as well? I liken animals speaking in the works somewhat to the eagles: a lesser Deus ex machina or to more define a point (a fortiori), example: of course the animals knew this was the case, silly humans...

[Essex]

Did the fox speak?

I believe he 'thought' what the hobbits were doing.

A fox passing through the wood on business of his own stopped several minutes and sniffed.
'Hobbits!' he thought. 'Well, what next? I have heard of strange doings in this land, but I have seldom heard of a hobbit sleeping out of doors under a tree. Three of them! There's something mighty queer behind this.' He was quite right, but he never found out any more about it.

Now to go totally off tangent, but do we need to be able to SPEAK in order to have structured THOUGHTS? I've always wondered if a human brought up in the wild by animals would have any 'thought' processes at all.

As I said, totally off tangent, but something I've always been fascinated with.

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

What if your mouth was tied by powerful wires?

But you could infer from that section that said fox went home and told his wife all about the Hobbits over a nice cup of tea.

It's just....nice, isn't it?