Isaac Watts once said, "Learning to trust is one of life's most difficult tasks." Trust plays a significant role in The Hobbit because the dwarves and Bilbo have to learn to trust each other on the quest, the dwarves have to trust Gandalf, and Beorn has to trust Gandalf.
When the dwarves found out that Bilbo was going to be their burglar they were skeptical. In fact, Gloin says, "As soon as I clapped my eyes on the little fellow bobbing and puffing on the mat, I had my doubts" (Tolkien 18). On the other hand, Bilbo didn't trust the dwarves, nor did he want to go on the quest. To illustrate, Bilbo says "As soon as I saw your funny faces on the door-step, I had my doubts" (Tolkien 19). Over time the dwarves and Bilbo start to trust and respect each other more. For example, in chapter nine the book says that Thorin "...began to have a very high
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Beorn has no love for dwarves, but because of the story Gandalf told him, he provided the group a place to stay. The trust between Gandalf and Beorn was made solid when Beorn went to check if they were telling the truth in their story. He says, "It was a good story, that of yours, but I like it still better now I am sure it is true" (Tolkien 123). Beorn had to trust that the company would be courteous and good guests. There was also the chance that one of them could be untrustworthy and try to hurt him. It says in the chapter, “Queer Lodgings” it’s explained Beorn never invited more than a couple friends to his house but all of a sudden, he had fifteen strangers in his house (Tolkien 116)!
I may not invite fifteen people I don't know into my house, but there are people in my life that I trust. Just like I trust my friends, the dwarves and Bilbo trust each other, the dwarves trust Gandalf, and Beorn trusts Gandalf. Isaac Watts is correct, learning to trust people is hard, but with hard work and friendship, it is