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In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.
— J.R.R. Tolkien · The Hobbit: or There and Back Again
Behind the line May contain spoilers.
Our reading
An editorial interpretation.
The sentence introduces an unfamiliar kind of inhabitant through the plain language of a dwelling place. Its matter-of-fact tone makes a hole in the ground sound like a perfectly ordinary home. The unexplained word 'hobbit' leaves space for curiosity about the life inside.
Context reviewed