The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

Journal 1

Kathy

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien is an enchanting story about a little hobbit, named Bilbo Baggins, on a dangerous journey. From page one to page one fifty two, I see Bilbo changing as a character. At first, he was so innocent and na•ve, and really didn't know anything outside of his hobbit hole. At the halfway point in the book, he's learned so much about the rest of the world, and is no longer reluctant to do what he has been set out to do. He's much braver, for instance on page 147, "Of course "somebody" meant Bilbo. They chose him because to be of any use the climber must get his head above the topmost leaves, and so he must be light enough for the highest slenderest branches to bear him. Poor Mr. Baggins had never had much practice in climbing trees, but they hoisted him up into the lowest branches of an enormous oakÉ" Even though he didn't have much practice, he still did it because he knew, this would be for the benefit of thirteen others. He was afraid, but that he got over, and did his job. Also, climbing up the tree, he slipped. He still didn't give up, and he kept of going. If he was faced with this kind of dilemma at the beginning of the story, he would have just sat down and cried his little eyes out.

Even the thirteen dwarves have grown a liking for this little hobbit. They at first were all very skeptical of whether Bilbo could do anything. At this point in the book, they are still a little skeptical, but I'm sure by the end, Bilbo will have proved himself to them and to himself. The only one that had faith in Bilbo was Grandalf, and I'm sure Bilbo is determined to show Grandalf that he was right.

I believe that turning point in the book for Bilbo was when he was stuck in the cave with Gollum. He was in there all by himself and nobody could save him except himself. In order for the book to go on, he had to be brave. He was scared, but not scared enough to give up. Getting himself out of the hands of Gollum gave him much self-confidence and gave him the strength to go on, knowing he's still alive. If people who read this book, learn one thing, I want them to learn that nothing can be accomplished if you don't try.

One thing I found very particular about this book is that every time someone dreams, and the dream is described in detail, that exact same thing happens in their reality. Page 59, says, "He dreamed that a crack in the wall at the back of the cave got bigger and bigger, and opened wider and wider." When Bilbo wakes up from this dream, that's exactly what happens. There's a lot of foreshadowing, which means a lot of the things they think about for example the gold and the riches, will probably come true. It's like in the movies, when something bad is going to happen, you start hearing the music, except in this book, every time something's going to happen, a character thinks or dreams about it.

The wizard, Grandalf, I also found to be very strange. He always happens to know when something "bad" is going to occur. He's always there to save them and to give them a hand in their tough times. When he says he's gone, I really think he's watching them from somewhere. Not really following them and watching them from behind. But I picture it as if, he's flying above and witnessing their whole journey. That's how he always knows that's going on and when he should appear to help them.

This book is definitely very different compared to The Catcher in the Rye, but there are the similarities, too. Holden is in some ways like Bilbo. They are both having a hard time trying to find themselves. They need to realize who they are inside and let that part grow and prosper. They both went their separate journeys to find themselves.

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