...The novel The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien emphasizes how an ordinary person can develop into a hero. The reader is first introduced to Bilbo Baggins, the ordinary person who lives in Hobbiton. He is then joined by Gandalf who informs him, along with a group of dwarves, of a quest he needs to perform. Once Bilbo accepts this journey, he faces perilous creatures and challenges on his path to get to the Lonely Mountain. The challenges and creatures include trolls, a giant spider, and sorcerers, all of whom are defeated by Bilbo with the help of Gandalf. Furthermore, once his destination is reached, Bilbo must defeat the dragon Smaug to regain the Lonely Mountain and the gold that lies within. In conclusion, the connection to an archetype stems from...
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...The Hobbit is a wonderful book to read. J.R.R Tolkien who is the author of the Hobbit used various archetypes throughout the novel. Some archetypes that J.R.R Tolkien used in the Hobbit are communion, the hero, and the journey. The main character in the Hobbit is Bilbo Baggins and you wouldn’t think that a person with the personality of Bilbo would be the hero. Bilbo Baggins didn’t have any ambition in his life, he had hobbies but they were boring hobbies. In the beginning of the Hobbit J.R.R. Tolkien uses the archetype of communion. Most people think of holy ceremony that takes place in church were everybody gets a small cup of grape juice and a tiny piece of bread. Communion is the act of intimate fellowship and rapport. Communion doesn’t have to happen in a church in fact you don’t just have to eat bread and drink grape juice. That is shown in the Hobbit because when Bilbo, Gandalf and the twelve dwarfs were eating dinner together that is also known as communion. When Bilbo leaves his Hobbit hole that is when the journey starts. The task for Bilbo Baggins is to help the dwarfs reclaim their treasure from Samug. During the beginning of their journey they encounter three hungry trolls who capture them all expect Gandalf. Gandalf saves them by tricking the trolls to stay outside into the sun comes up because they will have turned into stone. After...
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...J.R.R Tolkien’s novel The Hobbit follows the journey of one central hero, Bilbo Baggins, and his company of dwarves as they embark to Erebor to retake the dwarves’ homeland. This epic tale can be analyzed using a mythological, biographical, or historical critic’s point of view. There are also a few themes seen throughout the novel, including greed and the journey. From a mythological standpoint, one could mention the works of literature that Tolkien himself said has influenced his fantasies about the fabled land of Middle-earth: Iceland’s Poetic Edda and Beowulf. Some tales in Norse mythology can also be analyzed to apply to Tolkien’s novel. Based on a biographically and historically opinion, one might talk about the World Wars’ effect on Tolkien and his novels. Another approach that could be taken is one based on the archetypes seen in The Hobbit; the hero, Bilbo Baggins, and the villain, the dragon Smaug. One could connect the archetypes and events of The Hobbit to those of Beowulf. The Hobbit could also be seen as a novel of the genre bildungsroman, which means “coming-of-age” and focuses on the emotional and physical development of the main character. The use of mythological criticism in the analysis of J.R.R Tolkien’s first novel The Hobbit is by far the most popular among renowned literature critics – one of whom was CS Lewis, an author of children’s fantasy novels himself. It is easy to explain the story from a mythological point of view; many ancient texts have themes...
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