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EDfTOR NANCY MARTSCH; PO Box 55372, Sherman Oaks, CA 91413; [email protected]
The contents of this publication represent the opinions of the writers and not of Mensa, which has no opinions.
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June 2012
"Bilbo"
by Ted Nasmith
ONE LUCKY HOBBIT: THE SPIRITUAL
JOURNEY OF BILBO BAG GINS
by Anne Marie Gazzola
The Hobbit may appear on the surface merely a children's story, but to those with deeper sight, it is much more.
What happens in it has a profound effect on the events that follow decades later, and it is through Bilbo's cooperation
with grace that helps many things to unfold as they do. As Katharyn Crabbe noted in an essay about the tale, "Both
God and man have a hand in shaping all that happens: God through the medium of grace, which Tolkien calls 'luck,' and
man through his physical and rational excellences, bravery and sense, which, at their best, represent the God-like in man"
("Nature" 57). Crabbe means for this to apply also to a particular hobbit, but how does this all come to pass to become
the great adventure of Bilbo's life?
1
During Gandalf's
of his
search foragain
a way
defeat
Smaug,
he tells in him
the during
unfinished
tale visit
"The to
Quest
of Erebor,"
he speaksrecounting
of his hope
of meeting
withto the
hobbit
who which
had impressed
his last
the
Shire years before. Bilbo had not yet come of age then and was curious about the outside world. After the wizard returns
in
spring mind.
of 1341,
he hears
the aeccentric
often travels
and also
has gone
yet again.
in the
Gandalf's
He knows
thatreports
Bilbo, that
though
thoroughlyhobbit
conventional
Baggins,
has aoffstrong
streak Aofplan
Tookforms
and
shares their unrespectable taste for adventure. From what Gandalf hears and his own memories, Bilbo appears an ideal
candidate to help defeat the dragon.
Gandalf admits in his recollections that he later thought it a mistake not to check with Bilbo personally first. The
fact that the hobbit just happens to be away at the time, however, is meant to be, for the cloaked Maia could have
sought elsewhere if he found out earlier that Bilbo had changed. But anyone other than this particular hobbit would have
proved ruinous, for a Power beside Gandalf had selected him, as the wizards hints. "I dare say he was 'chosen' and I
was only chosen to choose him," (UT 331).
All Gandalf had to do was convince Bilbo himself. Though the hob bit makes it perfectly clear he is not at all
interested in having any adventures, the wizard is not put off and returns later with the dwarves. Bilbo still feels
unqualified for and undesirous of what they want to put him up to and insists that some sort of terrible mistake was
made. But as the hob bit listens to the dwarves sing of their gold, his Tookish side begins to assert itself, while terror
fills his Baggins side so completely he collapses.
Both parts of Bilbo have been aware for some time that he was "chosen and selected" (H 21) for some great quest,
which only now becomes clear. In the "Erebor" narrative, Gandalf gives his hypothesis of why the hobbit chose to remain
unmarried. "I guessed that he wanted to remain 'unattached'
for some reason deep down which he did not understand
himself - or would not acknowledge, for it alarmed him. He wanted, all the same, to be free to go when the chance
came, or he had made up his courage" (UT 331). This captures in a nutshell how Bilbo and Frodo were both prepared
in advance for their vocations, which ultimately carry the heavy cost of leaving behind all they love but each other.
Before the whole plan for Bilbo to discover, embrace, and fulfill his vocation can fall apart, Gandalf reveals two things
he has long kept secret. Sauron had captured and tormented Thorin's father and taken his Ring from him. Thrain died
in the dungeons of Dol Guldur, but not before he passed a map and key to Gandalf. The wizard then heeded an intuition
to keep them hidden for nearly a century. Musing in the "Erebor" narrative about the odd luck to still have the things,
he says he realized only at Bag-End exactly what Providence had put into his hands. The items make Thorin more hopeful
about the quest, though the dwarves remain doubtful about Bilbo. Gandalf, however, is most adamant that they include
the hobbit in their party. The wizard does not know the future, but, as a Maia, he has a deeper intuition than most. He
senses that without Bilbo the other much more important events that are to happen will not occur.
.
wakes
morning,
he finds
the dwarves
gone.forGandalf
enters ofshortly
afterward
and have
practically
forces
him After
out theBilbo
door.
It is in
stilltheBilbo's
choice,
however,
that allows
the success
this push.
He could
refused,
but
instead he hurries down to The Green Dragon without even a handkerchief and allows himself to be drawn into that
unique part of the Great Music only he can sing.
Theupreasons
Bilboasmust
go and
on his
journey
soon begin
themselves.
hobbit
decides
to live
to his why
job title
burglar
picks
the pocket
of oneto ofmanifest
the trolls.
However The
foolish
this imprudently
is, much good
also
comes. After Gandalf comes to the rescue and the trolls turn to stone, this part of Middle-earth is now safe for travelers.
Even more importantly, Bilbo providentially finds an Elven knife in the trolls' cave to use as a sword.
Thorin and company continue on to the Last Homely House. It is in this Elven haven that another "chance" happening
takes place, as Elrond discovers and translates the moon letters on the dwarven map. The timing of this is nothing but
providential, for, as John Rateliff points out, "one particular phase of the moon would only coincide with a specific night
of the year roughly once per century" (HH 124). The dwarves, Bilbo, and Gandalf leave refreshed and ready once more
to resume their journey.
Another moment of grace occurs after Thorin's company find shelter in a cave from a raging thunder-battle.
A
restlessness
Bilbo
that does
anyone
The ponies
hobbit disappear
rouses from
uneasyin dream
and What
gives causes
a loud
cry
after he afflicts
sees it is
actually
reality.notHeaffect
sees the
last else.
of their
into an
a crack
the wall.
Bilbo to wake in time to raise the alarm? It is another hint of the Power watching over them. The hobbit's cry wakes
Gandalf, who is the only one who remains free after goblins pour out of the crack and take everyone else captive.
Gandalf rescues Bilbo and the dwarves, but the goblins nearly apprehend them again. In the confusion, the hobbit gets
separated from his companions and trapped underground. In a black tunnel, in what appears to be merely a lucky chance,
Bilbo blindly puts his hand down upon a small ring lying on the ground. He puts it in his pocket without much thought
and continues on his way. He has no idea what he just picked up, what value it has, or what a profound impact this
simple action will have on him, his yet unborn cousin Frodo, and, indeed, on all Middle-earth.
This ring is, of course, none other than the Ring, which just shortly before Bilbo came heard its master's call and
slipped away from its bearer to answer. However, it needs a host to travel, and Iluvatar makes sure it has the right one.
From Gandalf's comments later to Frodo, it is clear that it is neither Bilbo's choice nor Sauron's will that the hobbit find
the Ring. This event is unforeseen by anyone other than Iluvatar, who has carefully placed everything and everyone where
they need to be for their parts in the Music. Words of King Alfred the Great apply here. "I say, as do all Christian men,
that it is a divine purpose that rules, and not fate."
In the horrible dark, another fateful meeting takes place when Bilbo comes upon Gollum. The creature challenges him
to a riddle-game with two possible endings. If Bilbo wins, Gollum will show him the way out; if Gollum wins, he will eat
Bilbo.
While Bilbo desperately seeks for answers, Gollum becomes increasingly hungry and begins to get out of his boat in
anticipation of a delicious meal. The wicked creature's lustful haste, however, gives one of the solutions after he puts
his foot in the water and disturbs a fish that leaps out and lands right on Bilbo's feet, for the answer is "fish". It is
2
"pure luck" (H 74) that provides the next response after Gollum starts to get out a second time. Filled with fear, Bilbo
wishes to blurt out a plea for more time to think, but all that comes out is "Time!" which is precisely the correct
response. The hobbit does not even mean it as an answer, but lIuvatar provides it.
Bilbo is unaware of this providential guidance, but it is easy to see lIuvatar's hand in this, for the hobbit is given the
answers he needs at the time he needs them without consciously coming to them himself. As the Prologue in The Fellowship of the Ring states, "In the end Bilbo won the game, more by luck (as it seemed) than by wits; for he was stumped
at last for a riddle to ask, and cried out, as his hand came upon the ring he had picked up and forgotten: What have /
got in my pocket?" (FR 11). It is clear throughout The Hobbit and The lord of the Rings that whenever words such as
seem, chance, or luck appear, it is a hint of an invisible Power at work. Bilbo does not actually intend his question to
be a riddle. Gollum protests vehemently against the breach in the rules, but he attempts to answer anyway. After he
cannot,things
Bilbo before
holds the
word
that hethe
will Ring,
showwhich
Bilbo he
the plans
way to
out.useGollum
agrees,
saysinvisibly
he must
some
they creature
set out. toByhisthis
he means
to come
upon but
Bilbo
andgather
have
his meal after all. Grieved to discover that his precious is missing, and suspecting the loved and loathed treasure is the
answer to Bilbo's non-riddle, Gollum then asks what the hobbit has in his pocket. Bilbo cannot think of a reason why
he should not answer such a seemingly innocuous question, but he refuses out of annoyance and impatience to escape.
How different things may have turned out if Bilbo had replied and given the Ring back or had it taken from him!
In Bilbo's desperate flight from his would· be murderer, grace continues to look after him, as is shown after evil
defeats
left hand wills
in hisbutpocket,
the initiates,
Ring "quietly
slip[s] with
on to
groping
forefinger"itself(H yet
78). again.
This isThe
not hobbit
an act puts
Bilbohisconsciously
one theandRing
as it does
all his
its bearers
in its desire to be discovered. Yet such malevolent intent saves Bilbo's life at the precise moment it is most needful. The
now invisible hobbit trips and falls, and Gollum goes right past him. If Bilbo was not wearing the Ring, Gollum could have
easily overwhelmed him in his vulnerable position, but the fleeing hobbit instead is given a great advantage in being able
to pursue his pursuer in the hope of escape rather than blindly running away in the dark.
Richard Mathews notes the Ring is "just the size to fit a hob bit finger" (Lightning 13). Of course it was not made
to do so, yet it does, just as the size of the Elven knife Bilbo found in the troll's cave is perfect, which Mathews
observes as well. Everything is waiting for Bilbo to find and thus fulfill this part of his vocation.
It is not long after Bilbo begins to chase Gollum that he fights within himself one of the most important battles ever
waged in Middle·earth. He finds Gollum has unintentionally brought him to the way out, at least as far as the wretched
creature by
is hearing
willing to
without
capture"thief"
by the
but then
there,
blocking desperation
Bilbo's way.
Gollum with
then
detects
andgosmell
that risking
the invisible
of goblins,
his precious
ring isstops
nearby.
In Bilbo's
to escape
his life, he faces the temptation that to do so, he must slay his enemy. Certainly this is something that could be easily
justified as self-defense. The impulse to kill Gollum disappears, however, as fast as it comes. Sensing for a moment the
agony of the creature, the Ring-finder intuitively understands what it means to love an enemy, and this turns Gollum from
a feared adversary into a human being with a tormented heart and soul. By restraining his hand, Bilbo has once more
laid some important groundwork for the destruction of the Ring and the salvation of his future cousin and heir. No
foreknowledge
of this moves his heart, however. Rather he responds even more admirably, for he shows "mercy for
mercy's sake a/one" (Finding God 53; italics in original). T olkien notes, "[Gandalf] did not mean to say that one must be
merciful, for it may prove useful later . it would not then be mercy or pity, which are only truly present when contrary
to prudence" (l 253). It is easy to see how this merciful act could well turn out to be fatal for Bilbo, as Gollum is still
quite leave
intentGollum
on eating
him, but
new strength
the from
Ring-finder
ability
to spring
and for
overif his
and
unharmed.
Providence
protectsgives
Bilbo
knowingthehow
dangerous
thisforward
jump was,
he adversary
had leapt
any higher, he would have hit the ceiling, exposed himself, and likely been killed before he could recover. Instead, he gets
away and reunites with his companions.
At the edge of Mirkwood,
Gandalf warns them not to depart from the path and then leaves. After starvation,
however, begins to haunt Bilbo and the dwarves, they veer away after seeing mysterious lights in the woods. Each time
the lights disappear at their approach and then spring up elsewhere. After the third unsuccessful attempt to reach them,
another danger ensnares the company as myriad spider webs bind them.
With his Elven knife, Bilbo fights and kills the spider which is attempting to bind him, then christens his knife Sting.
The hobbit takes advantage of the lust of evil to destroy its prey. In its hurry, it destroys itself. Bilbo puts on the Ring,
and the multitude of spiders spin web after web in an effort to trap their invisible and mocking foe. They nearly succeed,
but the tale makes clear luck is on Bilbo's side. Sting "luckily" destroys one web that is threaded too hastily. Bilbo leads
the spiders on a merry chase before quietly hurrying back to his captured companions. He reaches them because "luckily"
one of the spiders left a thick rope hanging down, which the hobbit uses as a ladder. He kills the spider guarding the
prisoners and frees Fili and they release the others.
The next day, the Wood-elves, who have already captured Thorin, take the rest of the dwarves prisoner. Bilbo follows
invisibly to the gates of the Elvenking's palace. He battles again with his fear of continuing, but in the nick of time, he
decides to go forward. He finds the cells of his companions and tries to figure out how to free them. Providence guides
him much here and guards him from discovery by both the Elves and Sauron, as he is wearing the Ring to avoid capture.
In Bilbo's investigations, he learns of a grand feast, which the king's butler and chief of guards decide to start early
on their own. Their drinking of a particularly potent wine is another lucky event, which is crucial to the implementation
of the hobbit's rescue plan. It puts the Elves to sleep and allows Bilbo to steal the keys to his companions' cells and
free them.
Bilbo has already made the fortunate discovery of barrels that are regularly taken down from the Elvenking's palace
to lake·town,
and it is into these the hobbit stuffs his companions. His luck is particularly evident here because he forgot
to plan for his own escape. Unable to close himself into a barrel, he invisibly clings for dear life to the outside of one;
He struggles to get on top of it but cannot. His failure is actually a blessing, for it saves him from either being thrown
3
off or crushed between the barrel and the suddenly and steeply sloping roof.
There are two more moments of grace during the trip to lake·town.
Because the stowaways
arrive at the tie-up point
at night, thethatElves
do nottheinspect
the barrels.
overhearing
Elves
talkingthe the
Bilbo
realizes tocould
his
amazement
forsaking
strict warnings
not Upon
to leave
the path is
actually
bestnext
thingmorning,
he and his
companions
have done. With the river the only way to get to the town, the only way Bilbo and company could have come is the way
they actually did.
Another moment comes after Bilbo and the dwarves reach Smaug's Mountain. After a few days of trying to find a
way in without success, the hobbit has a strange feeling something important is about to happen. With this comes the
excitement of a ray of sunlight streaming through the clouds and shining upon the keyhole of the door into the Mountain.
Thorin turns the key, and they push against the door that allows them entrance.
Bilbo presses beyond his terror to continue into the darkness, but then he stops after he hears Smaug snoring. "Going
on from there was the bravest thing he ever did. The tremendous things that happened afterwards
were as nothing
compared to it. He fought the real battle in the tunnel alone, before he ever saw the vast danger that lay in wait"· (H
197). This is the same spiritual warfare the hobbit fought and won while trapped in the goblin tunnels before he met
Gollum. Indeed, Bilbo has grown so much that he enters into Smaug's dreams as a small but mighty warrior. The hob bit
makes
way approaches
into the dragon's
roomtime,
whilehewearing
theknows
Ring and
a cup.
Afterhis Bilbo
Smaug treasure
the second
thinks he
what steals
is ahead
because of what he has endured
already, but he does not. The dragon wakes and confronts the invisible hobbit who fills the room with riddles and is
confident in his ability to evade the worm. In their conversation, Smaug attempts to drive a wedge between Bilbo and
his companions and cause the hobbit to doubt the sincerity of the dwarven promise to share an equal part of the treasure
or to share at all. Bilbo tries not to let Smaug's lies bother him and tricks the worm into revealing his vulnerable spot.
After Bilbo returns to the dwarves, he convinces them they must all hide from the dragon. Smaug leaves to get his
revenge against lake·town
and while he is gone, Bilbo enters the worm's treasury a third time. The dragon·sickness
inflames the hobbit's heart the moment he sees the Arkenstone, but lIuvatar uses this to bring good out of evil, for it
becomes clear that Bilbo is not only meant to find the Ring but also this precious artifact. Bilbo takes it and keeps it
secret, though rather guiltily.
The dwarves eventually gather their courage to enter and reclaim what stolen wealth they can. It is then one of the.
greatest moments of grace in this tale, second only to the finding of the Ring, occurs. Thorin finds and gives Bilbo a coat
made of priceless mithril as partial payment for all his services. This is the same mail shirt that later saves Frodo'slife.
coming
Bilbo's the
temporary
fall into
made with
clear what
after Thorin
he goeshad
intosaid
the and
camp
of since
Bard
and The
the good
Elvenking
andfrom
surrenders
Arkenstone.
Thedragon'sickness
hobbit does notis agree
done
other claims were made on the treasure, and so he makes his own moral choice. Bilbo has served the dwarves well and
faithfully,
and his theft of the Arkenstone is part of this, even if they do not realize it at first. Though it is a wrench
to
the jewel
away,
Bilbo
where tohisdetach
true treasure
wants is toforgothe
home,
havegood
his six
meals him
a day,
andgive
smoke
his pipe
by the
fire.knows
His ability
himself lies.
from All
theheArkenstone
greater
prepares
to
later part with the Ring. Bilbo knows Thorin will not be pleased after finding out what happened, but the hobbit returns
out of loyalty to his friends.
After the Battle of the Five Armies, Bilbo and Gandalf return to the Shire. The hobbit comes home with his worldly
treasures in time to stop the remaining auction of his more homely ones. In the aftermath, he discovers not only are his
silver spoons beyond recovery, but so is his reputation as a conventional hob bit. The latter does not matter to him
because through such loss, he has gained so much more. The Baggins part has decided it is not so bad to be a Took,
and the T ookish part has decided it is not so bad to be a Baggins. Bilbo is now free to indulge both sides without fear
of conflict.
Just as the tale is at its end, Gandalf makes one of the clearest statements about the role of providential guidance
in Bilbo's life. "You don't really suppose, do you, that all your adventures and escapes were managed by mere luck, just
for your sole benefit?" (H 276). These veiled words become clear after it is understood who preserved Bilbo through his
trials. In his embrace of the will of the One who sent him on his way, he has proved a very lucky hobbit indeed.
Works Cited
Crabbe, Katharyn F. "The Nature of Heroism in a Comic World." Readings on JRR Tolkien. Ed. Katie de Koster. San Diego: Greenhaven
Press, 2000. 54-60.
Mathews, Richard. Lightning from a Clear Sky. San Bernardino: Borgo Press, 1978.
Rateliff, John D. The History of The Hobbit, Part One: Mr. Baggins. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2007.
Tolkien, JRR. The Fellowship of the Ring. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1965.
--'. The Hobbit. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2007 .
.... The Letters of JRR Tolkien. Ed. Humphrey Carpenter. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000.
---. "The Quest of Erebor." Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-earth. Ed. Christopher Tolkien. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1980.
321-336.
Ware, Jim. Finding God in The Hobbit. [Colorado Springs, CO?]: SaltRiver, 2006.
[Future issues: NtJmenor, Atlantis,
& the Notion Club; Other Anniversaries,
4
book reviews, poetry, more.]