Who is your hero? When inquired on who their hero is, one would presumably answer by possibly saying their mother or perhaps even their father; however, during the sixteenth century, the country of England considered their hero to be Sir Francis Drake and in the book The Hobbit, a children’s fantasy novel written by J.R.R. Tolkien, Thorin’s dwarves were found considering Bilbo Baggins their hero multiple times. Heroes, like Sir Francis Drake and Bilbo Baggins, are made every day. Even though they are from different times and places, they all go through similar paths, or journeys, to become the great people they are extolled for being. You may ask yourself what journey do heroes take to become the greats they are. Well, one man figured this
The dwarves discover something that they didn’t think would happen when they first started onto their adventure, they have relied on Bilbo more than once to get them out of a sticky situation. The dwarves, first heart broke when they hear that Gandalf was leaving them, didn’t think that Bilbo was a worthy burglar to bring onto the trip, believing that he had caused the trip to slow more than necessary. They then begin to realize and discover why Gandalf did leave them though, Gandalf knew that Bilbo would help the dwarves as the journey progressed and he gained more
Have you ever noticed the way characters go on journey’s during movies and books follow a pattern? In I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai it talks about her adventure to make girls have rights and get to go to school just like boys; during The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien it goes through Bilbo's adventure with Thorin and Co. to reclaim the treasures that were taken. Both books have a few similarities and many differences that these author’s uses to portray the Hero's Journey. There are many differences between the steps of these heroes’ journeys.
By the way, when I say hero, I don’t mean someone with superpowers and a cape. I mean someone that helps people in need. A hero is a person that is always there for others, even if this hero doesn’t know the person. My dad is my Michigan hero because we are very similar, he is really smart, and he cares about his family. My dad is my hero because we are very similar.
The Hero’s Journey is a popular archetype that authors and writers around the world use every day to show and explain the adventure of the main character in becoming a hero in literature;much like how J.R.R Tolkien and Eric Greitens used The Hero’s Journey in their books A Warrior 's Heart(Eric Greitens) and The Hobbit(J.R.R Tolkien). The Hobbit, a fantasy book, takes place on Middle Earth and follows Mr. Bilbo Baggins as he adventures off with 13 dwarves and a wizard to defeat the dreaded dragon Smaug that stole the dwarves’ ancestors gold and set fire to the town of Dale. Much different to The Hobbit, A Warrior 's heart follows Eric Greitens journey in finding out who he is and meant to be; as Eric visits different countries to help homeless children and refugees of war, he finally realizes that he cannot just “help” struggling, innocent people, he needs to defend them by joining the military. Though The Hobbit and A Warrior’s Heart seem completely unrelated, their use of the Hero’s Journey has many similarities and differences.
Michael Shermer, a science writer and historian of science said, “Humans are pattern-seeking story-telling animals, and we are quite adept at telling stories about patterns, whether they exist or not.” In J.R.R. Tolkien's novel The Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, the main protagonist, joins a group of dwarves to recover their lost, forgotten gold from Smaug the dragon. Joseph Campbell’s A Hero with a Thousand Faces, he states that many legendary heros follow a pattern in their adventures. Matthew Winkler has his own ideas of the heroic quest pattern, stating the hero's follow a pattern of eleven stages. Both The Hobbit and the heroic journey have similar elements with departure, initiation and then return.
Bilbo Baggins the Burglar Thesis: In the book The Hobbit, the character Bilbo Baggins is a middle class hobbit who must challenged his introverted nature to help the dwarves reclaim their land. Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit, who lives in his hobbit hole. Hobbits are generally short and fat introverted people who don’t leave their house much. Bilbo Baggins was living like that, until one day, thirteen dwarves and his old wizard friend(Gandalf) enter his house and start eating and talking like it was their house.
“Don’t be afraid to change. You may lose something good but you may gain something better.” In the Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien presents an unlikely hero, a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins. Another important character in the novel is Gandalf, a wizard and an old family friend, forces Bilbo to come out of his comfort zone onto a journey to recover the dwarves name and gold from the evil dragon, Smaug. Bilbo fulfills the archetypal hero’s journey by starting of an in ordinary world ,facing Ordeal, Death, and Rebirth, and The Road Back while illustrating the theme of innovation.
A hero could be anyone. Heroes don’t have to shoot lasers or be able to fly. A hero could be someone who simply shows a great act or certain character trait like bravery or courage. Heroes go through a journey containing a call to adventure, a departure and a return to their homeland. A good example of heroism and heroic acts is David from the Chrysalids and Daniel from The Dangerous Days of Daniel X. David and Daniel experienced sacrifice, hardships and bravery through their journeys of becoming a hero.
The “hero’s Journey” begins with a call to an ordinary individual to leave the ordinary world. This calls prompts the individual to leave the common life to venture into the realm of the unknown. The journey continues with the individual leaving the ordinary world to descend into the special world. The decent into the special world brings the individual through different adventures and experiences that reveal weakness and allow for strength and development to conquer those weaknesses. Bilbo baggins journey represents the “hero’s Journey”as he leaves the ordinary world as an ordinary hobbit,enters the special world as a developing warrior,and returns as an unexpected hero.
My Michigan Hero Think about your life without someone helping you. I’m so glad my dad is always there to help me. He is my hero and the pillar that keeps my family strong. I remember when my dad helped me ride my bike for the first time. And stood beside me all the time.
Author’s show the Hero’s Journey in many different and similar ways. In The Hobbit wrote by JRR Tolkien the Hero Bilbo Baggins leaves his home to go on a adventure with the dwarves’. They run into goblins, elves’, and spiders and are heading to Smaug to fight a dragon to get their gold back. In A Dog’s Life wrote by Ann M Martin the Hero Squirrel leaves her home to follow her brother and runs into another home. The person of the home drives them and drops them off at the mall; Squirrel loses her brother named Bone and is left in the mall to find food and shelter.
Joseph Campbell, a renowned mythologist and professor studied mythology and traditional stories. He defined a hero as “someone who has given his or her life for something bigger than oneself.” His creation of the Hero’s Journey structured the storyline for so many stories to come, including The Hobbit. J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel follows the adventure of Bilbo Baggins, an ordinary hobbit turned hero. Gandalf, a wizard forces Bilbo on an adventure to regain treasure with thirteen dwarves.
The concept of “The Hero’s Journey” plays a major role in nearly every piece of fiction humanity has created since its inception, from epic poems to blockbuster movies. In many ways, works of fiction and some pieces of nonfiction could not exist and would not make sense without the concept of a Hero’s Journey; it allows the reader to comprehend and follow the progression of characters over the course of the story. While Cormac McCarthy’s novel The Road may not display most of the archetypal qualities found in classic Hero’s Journeys such as J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit or Homer’s Odyssey and Iliad, it most clearly exemplifies the qualities of a Hero’s Journey through the Boy’s character in relation to the mentor, tests and enemies, and the
Gods and Monsters: Rough Draft If life was easy and without difficulty, then it wouldn’t be called a journey. Life brings countless obstacles. In order to get through these hard times, we need someone to lead us through them.
Legend has it that Professor John Ronald Reuel Tolkien of the University of Oxford was at his desk one summer 's day in 1930 wearily correcting examination papers when he came upon a page in an answer-book that was left blank. " In a hole in the ground," he wrote on the page, "there lived a hobbit." At the time, he had no idea what a hobbit was, much less why it would live in a hole in the ground- but he had to find out.