The Courage of Hobbits

Bilbo's descent into the heart of the mountain

Credit: Warner Home Video

After recently watching The Hobbit trilogy in its entirety for the first time, I decided that I needed a palate cleanser of sorts, so I began listening to The Hobbit audiobook during my morning and evening commutes.

It’s been a breath of fresh air to take the journey There and Back Again with Bilbo, Gandalf, Thorin and Company. I’m almost done with this listen-through—Smaug has been vanquished and the Battle of the Five Armies is about to begin—but what’s stood out to me most this time through Tolkien’s lovely tale has been the interior journey that Bilbo experiences as he goes on the external quest to the Lonely Mountain.

The hobbit we meet at the beginning of the tale who bids Gandalf a good morning and wants altogether nothing to do with adventure is a far cry from the hobbit we watch bravely creep into Smaug’s lair to engage in some burglary and match wits with a dragon.

This bravery is touching and inspiring because it is so unexpected and yet genuine: Bilbo finds himself swept off on an adventure he is not ready for but he gradually grows along the way, rising to meet every challenge while still remaining at the core the same good-natured and sensible hobbit we have known since the start.

And his courage is not something that takes the place of fear but something that coexists with it and overcomes it.

Let’s look at the defining moment of his interior journey together: his journey into Smaug’s lair in the heart of the Lonely Mountain.

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