Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, and literary
devices that can help to develop and inform the text’s major themes.
Contrasting Worldviews
Tolkien was a scholar of ancient languages at Oxford.
A major source of inspiration for The Hobbit’s
plot was the body of ancient epic literature that Tolkien studied,
particularly Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon epics like Beowulf. Elements
of the story originate from literature, including the form of the
heroic quest, the dragon’s treasure hoard, the importance of named
swords, the elves’ mysterious magic, and the grim focus on birthright
and family lineage.
The Hobbit revisits many of these ancient
conventions with a playful, comic tone that is thoroughly modern.
Bilbo himself, with his common sense, love of peace, and warmhearted
self-doubt, is in many ways a rural Englishman of the 1930s
transplanted into a medieval adventure. Tolkien’s exploration of
this contrast between the world in which he lived and the worlds
he studied is the source of a large part of the book’s comedy. This
contrast also has some thematic importance—Thorin’s last words to
Bilbo indicate that despite the grandeur of epic heroism, the simple
modern values of the hobbits perhaps have a more important place
in the world.
The Nature and Geography of Middle-Earth
Since The Hobbit takes place in a world
of the author’s own creation—complete with its own history, language,
geography, and mythology—much of the narrative is devoted to incidental
descriptions of the places, people, and things that Bilbo encounters.
As a result, Middle-Earth emerges as a finely detailed reality with
a convincing visual presence and its own unique atmosphere. Taking
the reader through this world is one of the primary considerations
of the novel, and a great part of Tolkien’s literary ingenuity is
devoted to making Middle-Earth seem as real as possible. For many
readers, experiencing Middle-Earth as a self-contained whole is
probably the most striking aspect of reading The Hobbit.
