Before long he found that the path on which he had started had disappeared, and the bicycle was rolling along over a marvellous turf. It was green and close; and yet he could see every blade distinctly. He seemed to remember having seen or dreamed of that sweep of grass somewhere or other. The curves of the land were familiar somehow. Yes: the ground was becoming level, as it should, and now, of course, it was beginning to rise again. A great green shadow came between him and the sun. Niggle looked up, and fell off his bicycle. Before him stood the Tree, his Tree, finished. If you could say that of a Tree that was alive, its leaves opening, its branches growing and bending in the wind that Niggle had so often felt or guessed, and had so often failed to catch. He gazed at the Tree, and slowly he lifted his arms and opened them wide. 'It's a gift!' he said. He was referring to his art, and also to the result; but he was using the word quite literally.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Niggle falls off his bike and sees his finished Tree alive, calling it a gift.
- In plain terms
- He arrives and finds his Tree finished and living, calling it a gift.
- What can you take from it?
- Creation can feel like receiving something given rather than made.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Is creation a gift or work?
- How do we recognize art?
Another view
The quote does not explain how the tree became alive.
More from J. R. R. Tolkien
Niggle thought that he had never heard anything so generous as that Voice. It made Gentle Treatment sound like a load of rich gifts, and the summons to a King'…
Permalink to quote #22 He went on looking at the Tree. All the leaves he had ever laboured at were there, as he had imagined them rather than as he had made them; and there were othe…
Permalink to quote #24 It is your task, of course, to put the best interpretation on the facts. Sometimes they will bear it. What do you propose?
Permalink to quote #21
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