The Hobbit

Article written by Emma Baldwin

B.A. in English, B.F.A. in Fine Art, and B.A. in Art Histories from East Carolina University.

The Hobbit, Or There and Back Again, is a children’s fantasy novel that has been enjoyed by a wide variety of readers of all ages. It was published in 1937 to wide acclaim and was nominated for the Carnegie Medal. It was also awarded a prize from the New York Herald Tribune for the best new juvenile fiction. The book is a classic, one that’s read in middle and high schools, universities, and for the simple pleasure of entering the world of Middle Earth.

Key Facts about The Hobbit

• Title: The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
• Published: September 21, 1937
• Genre: Fantasy, Epic
• Point-of-View: Third person omniscient
• Setting: Middle Earth
• Climax: The Battle of the Five Armies
• Antagonist: Smaug the dragon

J.R.R. Tolkien and The Hobbit

Tolkien wrote The Hobbit after serving in the First World War. Some scholars have suggested that his experiences in the war helped to inspire The Battle of the Five Armies at the end of the novel. Just like England formed an alliance with France and Russia, and Germany with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, so too did the dwarves for an uneasy alliance with the elves to fight off the orcs. J.R.R. Tolkien is remembered today as a student of Anglo-Saxon poetry and a lover of mythology. Stories like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, which he made a translation of, in addition to his translation of Beowulf, are studied in schools around the world. These works, along with many others, were integral to his creation of The Hobbit. 

Books Related to The Hobbit

When readers think of The Hobbit it’s likely that they immediately connect it to The Lord of the Rings series for which Tolkien is best known. It takes place in the same universe, approximately 80 years before Frodo leaves on his own journey. Readers who love The Hobbit will also want to read The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers, both published in 1954, and The Return of the King published a year later. These novels are also related to the broader oeuvre that Tolkien left behind after his death. This includes short stories, poems, and lore related to the world of Middle Earth. For example, The Silmarillion was published in 1977 after his death. His works are often also compared to C.S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia, and epic works like The Odyssey and Beowulf. Tolkien was famously inspired by Norse mythology and Anglo-Saxon poetry.

The Lasting Impact of The Hobbit

The Hobbit is a well-loved work in its own right but it’s impossible to ignore the broader influence that it had on The Lord of the Rings. It is this series of three novels that truly made Tolkien’s name. It’s clear that Tolkien felt the success of the structure of The Hobbit and chose to reuse it to some extent in The Lord of the Rings. It focuses on another hobbit, starts and ends in Bag End, and includes many of the same characters and races. Scholars have noted that the main differences come from the audience for which Tolkien was writing. He intended The Lord of the Rings to be read by the same readers as had read The Hobbit as children. Now, adults, the same readers were introduced to a more adult version of Middle Earth. The novel is also credited with helping students prepare to enter the more complex words of Anglo-Saxon epic poetry, Dickens, and Shakespeare. The Hobbit offers a thrilling story with a more complex plotline, new words, and complex themes that much children’s literature does not. Today, the novel is still read by students around the world who are newly introduced to the tapestry of races, mythology, and lore that Tolkien created more than 80 years ago.