Hobbits. What are they? Who motivates them to stock their cellars and feed their pigs? Who says anyone needs to motivate a Hobbit for toils of the day, the second breakfasts, and the farmwork? Although most people see Hobbits as mere fictitious creatures, I see them as real, legitimate and heroic, people who, through the ages, have faded into comfortable obscurity. Hobbits have been heroes and villains, but are mostly everyday folk who love food, friends, and invitations. The greatest Hobbit heroes are Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee, who cast the One Ring into the fires of Mount Doom and destroyed the threat of Sauron, bringing about the Fourth Age of Arda.
This epic tale is chronicled in The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, who adapted the Red Book of Westmarch to create the best-selling history. Starting in the Shire, the elder Bilbo Baggins entrusted the One Ring—which he had found in a long forgotten cave in the Misty Mountains—to his beloved nephew, Frodo Baggins. Frodo was tasked by Gandalf, a wizard of the Istari order, to travel to Rivendell. Frodo did so, along with his three hobbit friends Samwise Gamgee, Meriadoc Brandybuck (Merry) and Peregrin Took (Pippin). On the way, they were joined by Aragorn, the rightful king of the kingdom of Gondor, though he was disguised as a simple ranger. At Rivendell they established the need to destroy the One Ring to save the world and maintain the freedom of the peoples of Middle Earth. The Fellowship of the Ring was then formed and set forth to destroy the ring in the place of its creation, Mount Doom, located in the heart of Sauron’s domain. They faced many difficulties along the way and were eventually separated; Sam and Frodo pursued the ring’s destruction, while Merry and Pippin journeyed to Gondor and eventually became knights of great valor.
While Merry and Pippin were off fighting great battles, Sam and Frodo had to complete the arguably more difficult task, the destruction of the One Ring. Along the way, Frodo and Sam met Gollum, a former Stoor (which was a race similar to Hobbits) who had been twisted to evil and unrecognizability by the power of the One Ring. He was seduced by the desire to possess the ring, and, when Bilbo had inadvertently taken it in the Misty Mountains, he had been driven even further insane For complex reasons he joined them, and together they continued their journey to Mount Doom, though Gollum was separated from them after he tried to trap them in the lair of Shelob (a giant spider (who they defeated using Hobbit bravery)). Then, when they had made it to the cracks of Mount Doom, Frodo, who had been corrupted by the Ring (had he not been a hobbit this would have happened far sooner), attempted to claim the ring’s power for himself. Thankfully, Gollum, possessed by greed and desire, stole the Ring and accidentally flung himself into the abyss of fire consuming himself and the ring, saving Middle Earth. Through these actions the hobbits saved the world then and thus ensured the lives and freedom of every man, woman and child alive today.
If you want to thank a hobbit, you should do so on July 25th, which is Thank a Hobbit Day. To celebrate, you could look for a person, no more than four feet tall and with very hairy feet, to the degree that they choose not to wear shoes. Hobbits, while quite important to history, are relatively shy and can move almost silently, and thus they are difficult to sneak up on. They are also good shots with rocks and you would do well to be respectful towards the fellows, not surprising or playing mean tricks on them. Their throwing ability is displayed especially well in “There and Back Again: A Hobbit’s Tale” during Bilbo Baggins’s battle against the giant spiders of Mirkwood in which he uses excellent accuracy to kill the spiders in the dark!
In this demonstration of Hobbit bravery and courage, from battling spiders to destroying rings, as well as the useful identification guide, I hope that you, dear reader, have gained a greater appreciation of the small and quiet folk. Though they may be a different size and eat a fair bit more than us, they are still people and should be treated as such. With the recent increase in hate crimes across the US, it is no wonder how Hobbit sightings have declined dramatically, and in this age of low reading, especially low in secondary school demographics, it is essential to remember those great heroes who saved our freedoms and the freedoms of all who live on this great earth.