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The
Hobbit
Characters
The Hobbit
characters
lead us through Middle
Earth on the adventure of
a lifetime.
Bilbo, Gandalf and the dwarves as depicted in
the 1977 movie The
Hobbit
In The
Hobbit by JRR
Tolkien, we meet
many different characters from many different species. They include two types
of elves, trolls
with
cockney accents, goblins who live
in
caves, giant talking spiders, heroic eagles, wicked wolves and a town
full of humans.
We get to know two characters who feature prominently in Tolkien's
famous fantasy series, The
Lord of the Rings. They are the wise wizard Gandalf and the
miserable wretch Gollum.
And we follow the development of the most famous of all The
Hobbit characters, Bilbo
Baggins, as he transforms from an unassuming hobbit into a
courageous hero.
Here
are portraits of three Hobbit
characters, Bilbo Baggins,
Gollum
and the
dragon Smaug:
Bilbo
Baggins
 Bilbo Baggins (left: as depicted by Ian Holm in The Lord of the Rings
movies, directed by Peter
Jackson) is the hero of The Hobbit and my
favorite of all the
Hobbit
characters. Until the wise wizard Gandalf
enters his life, he is a typical
hobbit,
concerned mainly with the amount of food in his larder (which has to
stretch over the six meals hobbits like to eat in a day).
Hobbits
are distant relatives of men and enjoy nothing more than a hearty meal, a pipe
full of fine tobacco
and good company.
Perhaps to
reflect their love of nature, they dress in colorful clothing, mainly
green and yellow, and wear no shoes on their hairy feet. Most
hobbits are happiest at home tending their farms and keeping their
larders full.
All
this is true for Bilbo until he embarks on an adventure that will earn
him nothing but disapproval among his fellow folks. Hobbits
are, by and large, unconcerned with worldly affairs and disapprove of
Bilbo’s adventurous spirit, which he attributes to his Tookish side.
Prodded by
the wizard Gandalf, who has a reputation for leading young hobbits
astray, Bilbo sets out reluctantly towards the Lonely Mountain
with 13 dwarves to steal back their treasure from the dragon Smaug. As
he and his comrades face one danger after another, he regrets many
times leaving his cosy home in The
Shire.
But
after his encounter with Gollum, during which he outwits the miserable
creature and claims the One
Ring, he becomes the group’s unlikely hero. He saves his
companions from a group of giant
spiders and rescues them from the dungeons of the Wood-elves. And when
the party reaches the doorway to the Lonely Mountain at last, he
ventures forth to face the dragon alone.
Gollum
 Gollum (left: as
depicted in The Lord of
the Rings movies, directed by Peter Jackson) is one of
the most memorable Hobbit
characters and plays a major role in the fantasy series The Lord of the Rings.
Gollum was a carefree hobbit before he found the
One Ring and became corrupted
by its power. When Bilbo meets him in The
Hobbit, he is a miserable creature living alone on an island under the
Misty Mountain,
where he survives on a diet of raw fish and stray
goblin.
Tolkien had to rewrite
the scene between Bilbo and
Gollum to bring the story into line with The Lord of the Rings.
In the
original version of The
Hobbit, Gollum willingly offers up the One Ring
as a prize in a battle of riddles and he and Bilbo part on good terms.
In
later editions however, published from 1951 onwards, Gollum is distraught at
losing the Ring and tries to kill and eat Bilbo instead of leading him
to safety.
These and other updates were included to
reflect the ring’s corruptive powers and establish Gollum as a creature
utterly lost to its power.
CLICK HERE to read a Lord of the Rings
summary
Smaug
 Smaug
(left: as depicted in the 1977
movie The Hobbit)
is one of the last great dragons of Middle
Earth and the main antagonist in The Hobbit. About
200 years before Bilbo's journey began, Smaug destroyed the town of Dale and took
over the nearby Lonely Mountain. He claimed the
gold that lay within the mountain as his own and drove out its rightful
owners, a dwarf king and his kin. Like most
dragons, Smaug is consumed by a desire for treasure and can
account for every ounce of gold in his massive hoard.
Smaug
has many strengths and talents, including the firey breath
associated with his species and a powerful sense of sight and smell. He
can use his tale as a battering
ram, hypnotize
people with his eyes and sleep with one eye open - so he can watch over
his treasure even while he rests. Smaug also has a sharp mind, a strong
personality and a cruel
sense of humor, all of which he uses to bully and
manipulate his enemies.
However,
it is Smaug’s sense of invulnerability that is his greatest vulnerability.
His belly is covered with gems and gold for protection but he is unaware
of the bare patch on his left breast. Bilbo notices the patch and
passes on the information to Smaug’s enemies, which leads to the
dragon’s demise.
The
Hobbit
characters include some of my most beloved fantasy characters. I can't
wait to see them brought to life in the movie The
Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, coming to cinemas soon.
RETURN HOME from The Hobbit
Characters to read more about the top 100 fantasy
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