Jamie Beckman
English period-2
October 6, 1998
I've enjoyed reading the first half of The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien very much. I think it's extremely creative, so that makes it fun to read. The characters are interesting, and they drew me in to the story.I especially liked Bilbo's innocence and unawareness of this broad world that he's never experienced. In a way, I think I enjoy having a character that is experiencing the adventures for the first time, the same way I am.
What confused me in the beginning was how Gandalf chose Bilbo to be the fourteenth person on the adventure. Bilbo obviously doesn't have as much experience with adventures or burglary as Gandalf claims. Bilbo also seems extremely afraid of adventure, yet when he wakes up and all of his house guests are gone, he says he felt disappointed. I think that, in a way, Bilbo wanted to try something new and go on this adventure, but he wouldn't admit it because it was not something his people were accustomed to.
Once the journey actually started, I think Bilbo felt left out. He didn't blend well with the dwarves and they weren't very willing to accept him as part of their group. When Bilbo met the dwarves at the Green Dragon Inn, he told them that he forgot his hat as well as some other items. Dwalin offered Bilbo his spare hood and cloak. The narrator says that "they were much to large for him, and he looked rather comic." If that was the case, then I think Bilbo wore the cloak and the hood to attempt to fit in with the dwarves.
I look forward to reading the second half of the novel very much. One the author left me wondering is about the frequent references Bilbo makes to his living room. He often says how he'd much rather be sitting in his hole in a chair before the fire. I've come to believe this may be some sort of foreshadowing. I guess I'll have to read on to see . . .
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