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Examples Of The Hobbit Hero's Journey

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The Hobbit Hero’s Journey rough draft

The book, The Hobbit, follows the archetype of the hero’s journey. In the story, Bilbo Baggins is compelled to leave his ordinary hobbit life and join a band of dwarves and a wizard to reclaim the Lonely Mountain and its treasures from Smaug, the evil dragon who stole it from Thorin’s ancestors. Breaking away from a monotonous life was proving to be a difficult task for the tiny hero. He had to learn how to live life as an adventurer. He also had to come to terms and adjust to a normal life once his journey was over. The Hobbit is a major example of the hero’s journey.

There are many components of the hero’s journey in Bilbo’s Departure. Leaving behind a monotonous life was challenging for Bilbo Baggins. …show more content…

This is Bilbo’s acceptance of the adventure. Next Bilbo got help from a supernatural aid; a ring. He came across the ring underground in the Goblins territory right before he encountered Gollum. The ring turned out to be Gollum’s and was very important to him, but still Bilbo took it for himself; and that was a smart idea, as it became quite a useful tool throughout his journey. With it he escaped Gollum’s lair; “Gollum was defeated. He dared go no further. He had lost : lost his prey, and lost, too, the only thing he had ever cared about, his precious” (Tolkien 87). The ring helped Bilbo escape the goblins, who Bilbo encountered shortly after fleeing from Gollum. The ring also helped Bilbo escape from the treacherous spiders he and the dwarves came across later on in the story. Finally, Bilbo crossed the threshold, or in other worlds, left the old world behind. The morning after the dwarves had convinced Bilbo to join them, Bilbo found his house trashed, but the dwarves gone. So he assumed they went on without him. Ten minutes before he was due at the Green Dragon Inn, Gandalf appeared at his house informing him that they were all waiting for him to arrive. Flustered, Bilbo was shoved out of his house towards the Inn, without …show more content…

During initiation, Bilbo learns how to live in the new world. Amid the road of trials, the first thing Bilbo learns is that adventure is difficult. Many times throughout his journey, he and the dwarves find themselves starving. It is also difficult due to his relationship with Thorin. He is like a father figure to Bilbo in the sense that he is the leader of the dwarves. But in the end, Bilbo had to turn on Thorin for his own good. Ultimately he died from his wounds from the battle that could have been prevented, although he and Bilbo reconciled before his death; “I wish Thorin were living, but I am glad that we parted in kindness” (Tolkien 290). This type of relationship shows atonement with a father figure in the hero’s journey. It was also difficult in Bilbo’s new world, because Smaug represented a temptress whose reputation was intimidating enough to persuade Bilbo and the dwarves to end their journey before they had even been in his presence. The travelers knew he was undoubtedly daunting and that it would be a difficult task to slay him, for he was very strong and powerful. But that fact did not deter their desire for revenge; “My armour is like tenfold shields, my teeth are swords, my claws are shields, the shock of my tail is a thunderbolt, my wings a hurricane , and my breath death” (Tolkien 226). The next thing Bilbo recognizes in his journey is that he has become a true hero, especially

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