Compare And Contrast: George Babbitt Vs. The Hobbit

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Babbitt vs. The Hobbit

Sinclair Lewis’ character of George Babbitt is similar to J.R.R Tolkien’s character of Bilbo Baggins, but they are also very different. These two characters are alike in two different ways: in personality and the heroic journey. However, on every other subject these two characters are extraordinarily different. The most basic of these differences being that George Babbitt is an anti-hero and Bilbo Baggins is a hero.
In the beginning both characters seem very much alike in the way that they are portrayed. Babbitt is shown as a well to do middle aged man enjoying an afternoon nap. He is also shown to be extremely …show more content…

Bilbo was tested several different times, each dealing with his loyalty and service to the dwarves. One example of such a test was at the Lonely Mountain just before the Battle of Five Armies. Bilbo had stolen the Arkenstone from Thrain and decided to use it as a bargaining tool between Bard and the dwarves. The hobbit had to choose between his own desire for the stone and the good of everyone barricaded inside the mountain. Bilbo decided to help the dwarves and Men settle their differences. This looked like it was a bad decision at the time. Nevertheless, it was the right choice and if it hadn’t been for Bilbo’s actions the goblins would have won in the end. Babbitt’s test was of a similar kind, he had to choose between two different women and decide which one would give him a better life. Babbitt starts to cheat on his wife, Myra, with Tanis Judique. Under her influence Babbitt starts to smoke and drink more than usual, and under the influence of these drugs, Babbitt begins to discover that his long-held opinions are crumbling before him. Babbitt refuses to join the Good Citizen’s League which is full of hypocrisy, much like Babbitt himself, because of this decision Babbitt’s entire world starts to fall apart. He is thrown into a state of indecision, not knowing whether to stay with Tanis and be rejected, or to stay with Myra and go back to his unrewarding conformist lifestyle. Myra has a bout of appendicitis, which brings Babbitt home to his family and his old way of

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