Bilbo Character Analysis

In reality, people don’t always stay the same - they change based on their experiences. The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien is a novel about a group of dwarves who recruit Bilbo, a humble hobbit, to help them take back their home from Smaug, a dragon. Most hobbits dislike adventure, Bilbo being no exception, but his curiosity gets the better of him and he travels with the dwarves. Firstly, Bilbo conflicts with his own personality when he decides to go with the dwarves and changes from being homely to being more adventurous. Then, he conflicts with the spiders in Mirkwood and changes from being honest to being more deceitful. Lastly, he conflicts with his own fears on his way towards smaug where he evolves from being non-confrontational to being more brave. Thus, the purpose of the novel is to show that through conflict, a person can change unexpectedly, resulting in a positive outcome. Bilbo’s very first unexpected change in the novel is when he leaves with the dwarves. here he changes, becoming more open to adventures. Here he conflicts with his own personality and his background as

This shows that he changes from being more honest to being deceitful when required. The result of this is that Bilbo becomes smarted when dealing with foes. It is soon after Bilbo starts throwing rocks at the spiders when the narrator says, “The idea came to him to lead the furious spiders further and further away from the dwarves, if he could; to make them curious, excited and angry all at once,”(Tolkien, 170). Here the reader sees Bilbo becoming more quick thinking when in situations that require it. He suddenly shows change from someone who would either give up or try to fight the spiders head on, and he does neither. In summary, from his conflict with the spiders, Bilbo changes from an honest person to a more deceitful enemy. This results in him becoming more