Anna Barth 10/24/2010 Period 1

The Adventure Bilbo Baggins Takes

My dear Bilbo! [Gandalf] said. Something is the matter with you! You are not the hobbit you were. Throughout The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien, Bilbo Baggins discovers plenty about not only himself, but also about the world around him. By the end of the novel, Bilbo sees how brave and fast-thinking he can be, as well as how wide the world truly is. Over the course of the novel, Bilbo finds his courage. Near the beginning, Bilbo has never had an adventure and isnt particularly brave. On page 3, it says Bilbolooked and behaved exactly like a second edition of his solid and comfortable father and on page 2, it says in the first paragraph that a Baggins has never had an adventure. Thus, Bilbo cant tell how brave he was because he never had the chance to see, since no member of the Baggins family ever had an adventure, and he is no exception. By page 156, he starts to understand how bold he can be: [Bilbo] felt a different person, and much fiercer and bolder By page 159, he is taunting giant spiders. Much later in the book, in chapter 12, he even confronts the terrifying dragon Smaug. This shows the bravery he has found. By the end of the book, Bilbo has discovered how quick-minded he is. At the beginning of the book, Bilbo has never gone on an adventure, as is proved in the paragraph above. So, he could not have known that he was fast-minded; he never had the opportunity to find out. During the adventure, on page 183, when he is putting his plan to free the dwarves from captivity into

action, he realizes the weak point: Bilbo suddenly discovered the weak point in his plan Of course he was not in a barrel himself, nor was there anyone to pack him in, even if there had been a chance! It looked as if he would certainly lose his friends this time Clearly, this was a moment of panic for Bilbo. Still, he kept a clear head. On page 184, he clings onto a barrel with the idea he would ride it to their destination. Additionally, when he faces Smaug, he improvises a riddle on pages 222 to 223 for the dragon when asked who he is. These examples show that Bilbo has discerned how quick-minded he is. Bilbo begins to perceive and appreciate how wide the world is. At the start of the book, Bilbo is a bit close-minded. He does not desire an adventure, as he shows on page 4, when he says, We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner! I cant think what anybody sees in them. This shows he is close-minded. An open-minded person would not be so quick to jump a conclusion about something theyve never tried. Furthermore, all Bilbo knows is the comfort of his hobbithole. He doesnt know of how large the world is; all he knows is his own life and home. Alternatively, as his adventure ends, on page 302, he reflects on how large and beautiful the world is: Roads go ever ever on This dramatic change in attitude shows how open-minded he has become and that he now can see how wide and beautiful the world is. Throughout the novel, Bilbo Baggins takes not only a physical adventure, putting distance between him and his home, but also a deep emotional adventure. He finds wisdom, learning much about himself and the world around him, and he mentally grows apart from the world he once knew.