HOBBIT JOURNAL 1

Andrew Beck Per.7 9/20/98 Mr. Luizzi

The Hobbit is a stunning book for everytime I pick it up it makes my imaginationrun wild. J.R.R. Tolkien has created a fantasy world with everything you could ever want in it-dragons, elves, dwarves and goblins. Yet within this very large and complex world Tolkien has not lost sight of his main characters. He has developed them in such a way that you don't love them but can really understand and feel what they are going through. For example, the main character Bilbo Baggins has developed from a lazy, carefree hobbit to an all-out hero for the group of dwarves. We enjoy that Bilbo is liked by the group but we also are feeling a little annoyed when he whines that he is hungry or tired. Also Baggins has grown to feeling better about himself In the beginning of the novel the hobbit was doubtful about himself, as was the rest of the group. Perhaps if Gandalf hadn't been there to keep his head up, Bilbo might've turned back.It also is interesting to look at how Baggins' discovering of the invisibility ring has affected Mm. Directly it has raised his self confidence level, but indirectly it has proven to be an invaluable tool therefore rendering the hobbit himself an invaluable tool. Another interesting though small character was Gollum. Gollum though having tried to kill Bilbo was not entirely evil. This was evident in several cases. First, Gollum is extremely lonely. This was why Gollum decided to play a game with the hobbit rather than kill him immediately. Also, Gollum's only way of answering the riddles was to think back to his time in the outside world with his grandmother. This showed that he cared About his grandmother and family thus making not the evil person he appeared to be.