The Hobbit – Book Review | DauntlessMedia.net

The Hobbit – Book Review

Posted by Samuel Walters

The Hobbit is a classic hero quest story. It has become the inspiration and template for the modern fantasy genre. And it is an adventure that is filled with wonder, magic, action and vividly memorable characters. These are impressive accomplishments for any story. But considering the fact that The Hobbit was originally intended to be a simple children’s tale, the success of the book is all the more pronounced.

Potential readers who are interested in the entire Lord of the Rings saga would do well to begin their journey with The Hobbit. Although the Lord of the Rings books loosely follows the overall structure of The Hobbit, there is a distinct difference in tone, mood and accessibility. The Hobbit is a simpler tale than The Lord of the Rings. It isn’t nearly as epic. But it is a more efficient, more humorous, more pleasing story.

The hero quest begins with the diminutive Bilbo Baggins who professes to dislike adventures (they do make you late for supper, afterall), but who secretly harbors a love for things like maps and stories of princesses and dragons (preferably told after supper). He’s a wonderfully simple, even innocent character. Bilbo’s love for simple things evokes a similar pull in many of us – that longing for a simpler time, when there wasn’t a care in our personal world. But of course, that’s not the way things are in the real world. And it’s not the way things are even in Bilbo’s world. The Hobbit, then, is about how Bilbo goes out into the wild world and discovers something about himself – a self-realization that is essential to the hero quest journey.

Bilbo’s call to adventure comes from another classic archetype – that of the wise old man – in the form of the wizard, Gandalf. Although Gandalf will become a central figure in the Lord of the Rings books, his presence here is nowhere near as prominent. Gandalf does have an important part to play, however, as he facilitates the beginning of Bilbo’s quest with the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain, and guides the troop about halfway to their destination. But more important than the geographical journey across Middle Earth, Gandalf’s guidance brings Bilbo closer to reaching his full potential.

The quest itself is fairly straightforward. Bilbo will accompany twelve Dwarves from his home in The Shire, through Rivendell, across the Misty Mountains, and through Mirkwood to the Lonely Mountain. There, Bilbo’s job, as burglar, will be to gain entrance to the mountain so that they may defeat the might dragon Smaug and reclaim the Dwarven treasure which Smaug stole many years before. The quest may sound unremarkable in today’s age, but that is simply because it has been replicated so many times since The Hobbit was first published. But even if you think you’ve heard this story before, Tolkien’s version is worth reading.

The Journey fits the typical archetype of the Hero Quest. The further into Middle Earth he travels, the difficulty, and risk, of the challenges Bilbo faces increase. He begins with an abortive attempt to pickpocket a group of Trolls and eventually discovers the courage and strength to confront the great dragon Smaug, all alone, deep in Smaug’s lair. Of course, Bilbo’s journey has been guided by Gandalf, aided by the Dwarves, the Elves of Rivendell, the Eagles and a fateful encounter near the dark roots of the Misty Mountains. But the story clearly illustrates that none of this assistance would have matter had it not been for something within Bilbo himself – a tiny seed of adventure – and the choices he makes on his quest. This, too, is essential to a Hero Quest, to the discovery of our true selves. Indeed, as Campbell would no doubt confirm, the Hero Quest is an allegory for our own personal quests to find our true selves.

As for Bilbo’s chance encounter deep within the Misty Mountains, it isn’t just fate – it’s another archetype of the Hero Quest. In fact, it’s a couple of archetypes. First, the journey under the mountain symbolizes the descent into hell – the darkest places of our personal selves. Without confronting that, we will be unable to discover our true selves, and our quest would fail. Within the darkness of the mountain, Bilbo bravely presses on. He is rewarded for doing so by way of his discovery of a mysterious ring. But before he can claim this treasure as his own, he has one more archetype to confront: a dark shadow of himself. This shadow is represented by the miserable, pitiful creature Gollum.

Bilbo’s confrontation with Gollum is important because of its implications for the quest – as well as its implications for the Lord of the Rings saga that will soon follow. But more importantly for Bilbo is the necessity that he must confront what he could become, if he were to be consumed by evil. Indeed, immediately after acquiring the ring, Bilbo’s innocence is lost. He bends the rules in a game of riddles against Gollum. And, later, he flat out lies to Gandalf. These are minor occurrences, but they would be harbingers of a great danger had Bilbo not “defeated” his shadow. The defeat itself doesn’t come during the riddle game, but rather a few moments later when Bilbo, made invisible by the ring, has an opportunity to murder Gollum. He doesn’t, however, and so he defeats the darkness within and his quest can continue.

In the end, the confluence of events, including his daring rescue of the Dwarves, from a horde of larger-than-life spiders in Mirkwood, teaches Bilbo that he does indeed have a strength within himself. Quite literally, Bilbo begins to know himself. And that confidence helps him in the final transformation which he must undergo – from a timid, simple, innocent person into a crafty, intuitive and brave adventurer. Bilbo finally faces the worst of his fears, conquers them, and confronts the deadly dragon Smaug, deep in the bowels of the Lonely Mountain. The moment when Bilbo overcomes his fear is the moment in which he, finally and completely, transforms from who he was into who he was always meant to be. Bilbo achieves his full potential and, as a result, gains treasures far greater than the gold he carries away from the Lonely Mountain.

And like all Hero Quest stories, Bilbo must make his return journey, back to his home where is transformation can provide benefits to himself and those around him. As he and Gandalf finally take their final steps toward The Shire, Gandalf says, quiet profoundly, “My dear Bilbo! Something has happened to you. You are not the Hobbit you once were.” Even Gandalf has noticed the transformation.

The Hobbit is the epitome of adventure stories, hero quests and fantasy. Tolkien proves himself to be a master storyteller. The culminating event of the book, the Battle of Five Armies, is a wonderfully constructed event, drawing on elements from across the entire novel. If there is a criticism of Tolkien’s craft it is in his tendency to be highly descriptive. In many cases this can help accurately portray his vision of Middle-Earth. But there are times when his descriptive language can be an impediment to the story – though that happens more often with The Lord of the Rings than with the Hobbit. But despite the few legitimate criticisms that can be aimed at this book, I still believe it is a classic work of literature that will be enjoyed and appreciated for generations to come.

Rating: 4.4/5 (5 votes cast)

Rating: +3 (from 3 votes)

Topics: Book Review, Literature
Filed under: Hobbit