Lizzy Ureno
Ms. Phillips
English 9H per. 6
12 February 2015
Bilbo Baggins: Hobbit and Hero
Bob Riley once stated that “Hard times don't create heroes. It is during the hard times when the 'hero' within us is revealed.” With hard times come opportunities to prove one’s self either a hero or a coward. In Tolkien’s fictional novel, The Hobbit, there are multiple calls to adventure and countless challenges to be conquered. Bilbo Baggins, an uncomplicated hobbit, is called to adventure and ventures on a journey, fit for a hero, with a band of dwarves. Throughout Bilbo’s expedition he must endure a multi-step process to …show more content…
The call to adventure is when the initiate receives an invitation to face the unknown. The call can be totally unexpected; this is very much like Bilbo’s call. One day while outside his home, Gandalf, a wizard, shows up at Bilbo’s house and invites Bilbo “on this adventure” (Tolkien 6), to retrieve treasure from a dragon. This call is very out of the ordinary, especially because Gandalf does not provide any additional information on this journey. Any regular human would most likely decline this invitation; this is particularly expected from a meek hobbit like Bilbo. Bilbo politely declines Gandalfs offer, stating that he does not “want any adventures” (6). Bilbo does not hesitate to decline which articulates Bilbo has never seen himself on an adventure “Not today” (6), or ever. Succeeding the call is the crossing of the threshold. The Threshold is the barrier between the known and unknown worlds. Despite Bilbo’s rejection to the adventure, …show more content…
Regardless of Bilbo’s protests, Gandalf persisted and Bilbo set off, yet “Bilbo could never remember how he found himself outside...and running as fast as his furry feet could carry him down the lane” (30). This can be seen as the crossing of the threshold because he, although unconsciously, decides to operate with the dwarves. Although this, from some perspectives, commences the adventure; it could believed that when they actually set off on the journey that Bilbo had crossed the Threshold. As the dwarves welcome Bilbo to the inn the narrator notes, “That’s how they all came to start, jogging off from the inn... on laden ponies (30). Seeing as Bilbo willingly, and consciously, gets on the pony and sets forth with the dwarves, this can perceived as the more notable