Cooper Soulak
Mrs. Mucha
British Literature
May 6, 2015
Themes In The Hobbit
Throughout The Hobbit by J.R.R tolkien, themes are portrayed and are necessary for the story line. The three main themes in the novel are the prevalence of greed, how Bilbo changes throughout the story and transforms into a hero and the conflict between good and evil. Greed can change anybody, no matter how heroic or brave they are. In the beginning bilbo is portrayed as quiet hobbit that likes to stay home but that all changes with a knock on the door.
The first major theme in The Hobbit is greed. Greed is represented as evil, it doesn 't matter how big of a hero someone is or how great someone is anyone can fall victim to it. Tolkien illustrates the powerful effect
…show more content…
He remains good hearted throughout the story. At the beginning of the novel Bilbo is neither an adventurous nor brave hobbit. He prefers to stay in his hobbit hole and keep to himself, he is scared of the outside world. When Gandalf comes and says “he is looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging, and it 's very difficult to find anyone.” he immediately shoots the offer down saying “I should think so — in these parts! We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things!”(9). Gandalf though saw Bilbo and knew that there was something special inside of him. So, he pushed him out the door where Bilbo would be able to grow. Although Bilbo refuses at first he builds up the courage. Thorin Oakenshield saw Bilbo as small and worthless. Bilbo, at the time, agreed with him. Eventually Bilbo saved his life and Thorin became family to him. Throughout Bilbo 's adventure he goes from being unheroic to courageous and heroic. One example is when he fight off the Great Spider to save the dwarves with the sword he names sting and says that he feels more confident and fierce, from there on he progresses to become stronger and at the end Gandalf says to Bilbo,"Something is the matter with you! You are not the hobbit that you were."(203). From that you can tell that Gandalf has seen the changes, most of the changes come from the ways he saves …show more content…
In Tolkien 's story, good will always win over evil. The first evil that Bilbo and the dwarves come across is the trolls. The dwarves and Bilbo are caught and put into sacks. Gandalf comes and starts a fight between the trolls about how to cook the dwarves and Bilbo. Gandalf keeps them fighting until daybreak and the sun turns the trolls into stone. The adventure from now on would get more dangerous by the minute. There “are no safe paths in this part of the world. Remember you are over the Edge of the Wild now, and in for all sorts of fun wherever you go.”(98). Another enemy of the dwarves is goblins. The fight with the goblins is the second adventure in the story. While traveling in the Misty Mountains, they are captured by the goblins. Everyone is captured and carried through the tunnels into the heart of the mountain. Gandalf like always manages to stay uncaptured. Gandalf again comes to the rescue by killing the Great Goblin. For a second time, the forces of evil are destroyed by the good doings of Gandalf and the dwarves. It is Bilbo 's third adventure, however, that proves that good will overcome evil. Smaug is where Bilbo 's full glory was revealed. He stands in front of the beast and talks with it. Anyone else wouldn 't hesitate to run for their lives. Smaug smells the dwarves and tries to kill all of the dwarves when he figures out what they are doing. The battle between good and evil
Bilbo cleverly eluded Smaug’s temptation, spared the life of foul creature Gollum, and demonstrate courage more and more throughout his journey. These exquisite traits made Bilbo into the revered character that was loved and respected for generations of readers. Throughout the book, Bilbo’s character had changed. At first, he was the ordinary hobbit who described adventures as “Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things” (4) but by the end of his journeys stated to Thorin, “I am glad that I have shared in your perils” (290). Bilbo’s ability to fight evil, make new friends, and to look beyond his maps and books enable him to become a hero. As Gandalf once said at the very beginning, “There is a lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself” (19). Gandalf was right. What appeared to be an uneasy hobbit who fainted at the thought of adventures, turned out to be a brave leader, a compassionate friend, and an inspiring
...to his own possessions and how his journey made him open his eyes up to a deeper meaning of life. The evil in the story were just test, trying to get Bilbo to give up and go back to his life of comfort, but he didn't he went on to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Tolkien wanted to show the reader how we can overcome our flaws in life such as greed, and temptation by stepping out of our comfort zone.
Within J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, Tolkien uses the character of Bilbo Baggins to reveal to the reader the constant struggle between heroic and anti-heroic qualities within Bilbo and ourselves.
J.R.R Tolkien's action packed, fantasy driven, inspiring novel The Hobbit shows the message that everyone must know, that you should never give up even if all hope seems to be lost. It shows setting of evergreen forests with villages scattered along the paths of which they must take and mountains just on the horizon. The read must go along with bilbo baggins a hobbit that does not realize there is more to him than just being a baggins and that he will live up to his family's name. Even after gandalf tells him that he will embark on a great adventure he still doesn’t believe he is anymore than just bilbo. Therefor this story is inspiring and shows that with the setting, character, and theme combined make this story a great read.
Throughout your life, you will be taken out of your comfort zone with many challenges and uncertainties. This is shown in The Hobbit, The Lightning Thief, and through my grandfather’s immigration story from Germany. Bilbo was taken on an adventure that took him beyond his normal comfort zone. He loved the familiarity of his hobbit-hole until Gandalf and the dwarves arrived at his door. The Hobbit contained many relatable moments about life, which can be explored through the novel, other people’s lives, and other works of fiction.
Bilbo Baggins undergoes a hero’s journey in The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien. He departs from his home, is initiated into a more mature mindset, undergoes a road of trials, goes through his innermost cave, and is returned home and reintegrated into society. Bilbo’s journey is also a quest for self identity, because he realizes his place as “quite a little fellow in a wide world” and learns to balance out his respectable Baggins heritage with his adventurous Took background (Tolkien
In conclusion, The hero’s journey in The Hobbit explores ideas of strength and courage through Bilbo's journey as he becomes a more lively and valiant through his realizations of who he really is. In the beginning, he wishes nothing more than to sit outside, eat, and smoke. This is drastically different to his personality at the end, courageous and outgoing, which develops through his abyss and numerous challenges. Bilbo’s return to the Shire finds him a better person, a
In the Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, Bilbo Baggins, a simple hobbit gets caught up with a group of dwarves looking to recapture their stolen gold. He faces many challenges including; spiders, wood elves, a dragon, goblin, and orcs. He receives help along the way from Beorn, a shapeshifter, and Gandalf, a wise wizard. One theme in the Hobbit was sometimes you’re braver than you think. The other theme was sometimes the path to success is very hard and you have to face many challenges. Bilbo shows the first theme by his many acts of bravery throughout the book. The second theme is shown through the many challenges faced by the characters.
Bilbo Baggins changes a lot in the novel The Hobbit. In the beginning he is a small peaceful Hobbit who lives in Hobbiton. He loves to keep things in order, and hates things that are disorganized. “Please be careful,” and “Please don’t trouble. I can manage” (Tolkein, 12). Then one day a wizard by the name of Gandalf comes and gives Bilbo the opportunity to go on an adventure. Bilbo turns his offer down, but the next day thirteen dwarves come to his house. They have meals together and they sleep at Bilbo’s house. Gandalf then convinces him to go on an adventure with them. Bilbo is many things, in the very begging he is flat, static, main, and he is the protagonist. By the end of the story he is round, dynamic, main, and he is still the protagonist. By the end of the story, Bilbo is a changed Hobbit.
In the book The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, Bilbo, a small hobbit, goes on an adventure with a group of dwarves and a wizard. The goal of this adventure is to retrieve the gold that was stolen from them by the dragon Smaug. Throughout the story, there are many themes that show powerful messages, but there is one theme that is clearly the most important and evident in the book. In the novel The Hobbit, greed is shown as the main theme through setting, plot, and the development of characters.
Throughout Bilbo’s metamorphosis journey, he undergoes many dangers on his path that changes him to become more cunning and courageous. When Bilbo confronted Smaug, he was more prepared. This was especially evident after he was able to make the creature Gollum feel baffled by challenging him with a harder riddle question using his devious skills. When Bilbo heard Smaug snoring whilst he was bravely walking down the tunnel alone, he realized “Going on from there was the bravest thing he ever did. The tremendous things that happened afterwards were as nothing compared to it. He fought the real battle in the tunnel alone, before he ever saw the vast danger that lay in wait” (Tolkien, 260). This quote emphasizes how challenging it felt for Bilbo to find the courage to continue. This was particularly because Bilbo was unsure of the danger that laid ahead of him, but he had certainly realized that it was there and coming. Moreover, when he steeled himself and continued on, it was the single moment o...
Every story has characters with different roles, and each of them are important to make the story complete. Three characters, Bilbo, Gandalf, and Smaug represent three archetypal roles in this story. Their guide Gandalf, represents the mentor, Bilbo represents the hero, and Smaug represents the shadow. Smaug symbolizes fear to the characters, and the dragon represents one of the characters that are most often causing the most terror and trouble to the other characters in the story. The hobbit symbolizes the hero of the story, because he sacrifices himself throughout the book. Mr. Bilbo Baggins learns more and more each day, and he tries to always do the right thing. Gandalf symbolizes the guidance and help as a mentor, and he provides training and motivation to the characters. These three important characters greatly explain the
In Tolkien world, evil is the antithesis of creativity, and is dependent on destruction and ruin for its basis. Conversely, goodness is associated with the beauty of creation as well as the preservation of anything that is created. The symbolic nature of these two ideologies is represented in the Elven Rings, which symbolize goodness, and the One Ring, which is wholly evil. A main theme of "The Hobbit", then, is the struggle within our own free will between good will and evil. "Early in the (Lord of the Rings) narrative, Frodo recalls that his uncle Bilbo, especially during his later years, was fond of declaring that… there was only one Road; that it was lik...
The Hobbit, written by John R. R. Tolkien, is a fantasy novel published on September 21, 1937. It was written as a prelude to the famous series, The Lord of the Rings, written seventeen years later. The Hobbit introduces the reader to an incredibly immersive fantasy world, that enriches the reader into its epic storyline. The story takes place in a land called Middle-earth, a land filled with enchanting surprises and magical wonders. It was the perfect playground for Tolkien to develop his main character Bilbo Baggins. Bilbo Baggins was a small hobbit, who unaware in the beginning would become a large role in the plot. It is through this character that Tolkien implemented the theme of heroism into the story. Bilbo’s unexpected adventure with the dwarves and the wizard gave him the opportunity to develop into the ultimate hero of Tolkien’s tale. Bilbo’s epic journey to become the hero of the story begins when Gandalf, the wizard, tells Bilbo of an expedition that would soon change his life forever.
In the story of “The Hobbit”, each character takes on a specific characteristic. In each of these characters identity on the surface is decided more by their race, family and their past rather than anything else in the beginning of the story. By making definite choices each character comes to define their own fate and