Warning: Plot Spoiler
When I read that Tolkien’s "The Hobbit" was being made into a motion picture along the lines of Peter Jackson’s wonderful ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy (‘The Fellowship of the Ring,’ ‘The Two Towers,’ and ‘Return of the King’), I just had to read it again. The last time I carried this tale around under arm was the tail end of junior high school.
The story, also called "There and Back Again, A Hobbit's Tale," introduces Bilbo Baggins -- hobbit extraordinaire – in his cozy under-hill home in Hobbiton, the Shire. A rap at his door begins an unexpected party where Bilbo hosts numerous dwarves and the conjurer, Gandalf. After his larder and barrels of ale are all but empty, Bilbo learns he is to join the dwarves on a quest to Lonely Mountain, where Smaug the Dragon sits atop his ill-gotten booty once belonging to the King under the Mountain in the realm of dwarves. Since hobbits are better at smoking pipes by warm fires, eating seed cake, and drinking stout brews, Bilbo reluctantly agrees to be the party’s burglar.
On the road with supply-laden ponies, and among the long-bearded dwarves, Bilbo and company encounter two trolls that have it in mind to eat the small folk for dinner. Haggling over how to prepare the feast, the trolls argue past daybreak, and the sun turns them to stone. After a visit with Elrond and the Elves of Rivendell, the company begins its trek through the Misty Mountains and into the wild lands that lie beyond. Resting in a small cave, the company finds itself the prisoners of goblins. Deep in the mountain dark, Gandalf frees the travelers and kills the King of the Goblins. Chased through tunnels by enraged goblins, Bilbo is separated from his friends and finds himself in a cavern with a subterranean lake. It is here that he finds the ring: a cold gold-forged treasure that belongs to Gollum, a twisted and evil creature that rows about the lake in his small skiff. Bilbo is challenged to a contest of riddles in exchange for being shown the way out, and not being eaten by the lonesome Gollum. Gollum realizes the ring – his 'Precious' – has been lost, and charges after Bilbo. Donning his new-found jewelry, Bilbo disappears – becomes invisible – and escapes the chilled darkness.
Escaping the goblin’s clutches, the company enters the surrounding woods with the goblins in pursuit and seeking to avenge the death of their monarch. Attacked by goblins and wargs – wolven creatures of the night – the company is rescued from tree-tops by the majestic eagles. Beorn, a shape-shifting man-bear, welcomes the weary party to his lodge with food and soft beds before setting them upon their quest again with ample supplies and new ponies. When the party reaches the edge of Mirkwood, a dark and foreboding tangle of trees and undergrowth, the ponies are sent back to their owner riderless. Soon the company are among the shadows of the woods, and, not much later, the party is tangled in the webs of giant spiders, waiting to be sucked dry. Bilbo uses his new-found magical ring to distract the spiders and free his comrades. However, soon after, they become prisoners of the wood elves and the Elvin King. Once again, Bilbo disappears into the shadows and eventually manages to free the dwarves by hiding them in barrels. The barrels are floated down the River Running towards Long Lake, the realm of men.
At Long Lake, free from their barrels, the Hobbit and dwarves convince the merchants to supply and guide them to Lonely Mountain. The men’s prophecy of the return of the Dwarven king, and resumption of the precious cargo and trade that once came their way, the elders of Lake Town agrees. Arriving at the sheer walls and loose rock of Lonely Mountain, the company seeks a secret entrance marked on a map of old. As they are about to give up on the hidden door, a thrush cracks an acorn on a rock, and a beam of the setting sun pin-points the secret door's location. The party convinces their diminutive burglar to enter the secret tunnel and reconnoiter the way ahead. Bilbo dons his ring of invisibility and enters the mountain side. Here, the slumbering worm Smaug dreams atop his pile of dwarven loot. Bilbo is able to pilfer a small item and escape undetected. But, the Hobbit’s lingering smell is caught in the sensitive nose of the dragon, and his fury is quick and sure. The dragon awakens to scourge the mountain-side with his fiery breath, killing the party’s ponies; yet he does not find the questing company. Bilbo returns to the great hall – the throne of the dragon – and is detected at once despite remaining unseen. “I smell you, thief,” Smaug hisses. Bilbo engages the dragon in conversation, plying him with compliments and worship. During the rapport, Bilbo spots a vulnerability on the beast’s belly; a small area unprotected by scales. Bilbo escapes again with his life and Smaug destroys the tunnel that leads to the secret entrance. The great worm then turns his attention to those he is sure have assisted the thieving hobbit: the man-folk of Long Lake.
During a great battle and conflagration, Lake Town is destroyed. However, the leader of the guards spots the dragon's soft underbelly, and unprotected spot, sending an arrow deep into the flying dragon’s flesh. The dragon crashes to the lake with a hiss and jet of steam. Smaug is dead. What follows is a great battle for the spoils of Lonely Mountain. Men, dwarves, and elves unite to repel a goblin army. The gold and halls are again in the hands of dwarves, and Bilbo begins the long road back home, where his fire, larder, and ale await.
Bibliography: Tolkien, J.R.R. (1966). The Hobbit. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company.
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