The Idea of Good and Evil Throughout The Book 'The Hobbit'

Ever since the beginning of time, people have been plagued with the ever existing evils of the world. However, in a world where darkness exists, the forces of good are present to maintain balance. In today’s world, many take this belief for granted because in all stories and movies there are both good and bad, a hero and a villain. What is seen in a closer look to the concepts of good and evil is that many people’s perception of the topic is usually not the truth. These opinions are influenced by what is seen laid before us. Why look at problem that’s already been answered? The problem in this case would be, what is the true status of good and evil within the world, and the answer being presented to them as the Manichaean view in which the two equal and opposite forces of good and evil both play roles in the influencing of the world. However, what if the answer was wrong? Could a society be lead astray? For this reason I will look myself to find the truth. So, to find the truth about good and evil within the world, I will examine the novel, The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. Within this novel, we see the pure untainted character of Bilbo jump into a world of adventure, danger, greed, corruption, and most of all, evil. Through his adventures he becomes a character unlike the person we were first introduced to. In a setting so contaminated by the evils of the world, how could an innocent hobbit actually emerge as a character that has truly progressed for the better? This brings us to the final question. Is there truly good in the world according to J.R.R. Tolkien in The Hobbit?

This idea of good in the world has often been explored within countless pieces of literature and has marked itself as a truly meaningful concept to be evaluated. The main questions appearing from this concept usually concern the presence of good and evil within a situation or setting. That being said, I have chosen the concepts of good and evil as a base for the essay. This will be expanded in my evaluation of The Hobbit and will be explored in terms of both the Boethian and Manichaean ideologies. I chose these specific ideologies to focus on because they represent both sides of the argument. The Boethian notion of good, in my opinion, asserts that the only force in the world is “good”, and that evil is simply the absence of good. The Manichaean ideology seems to be more of a modern interpretation of the working forces in the world. This ideology says that good and evil are forces, both equal and opposite. In my opinion, The Hobbit was an ideal choice because it can be seen in both ways, good and evil. What makes The Hobbit more appealing is the presence of innocence in Bilbo, the protagonist. Through Bilbo’s innocence I can track the influential powers that leave their mark upon him throughout his adventures. Without this innocence in Bilbo at the start of the novel, we would be unable to track the progression as we have no starting ground. Therefore The Hobbit has the perfect setting to a study on the presence of good in the world, as well as the application of the Boethian and Manichaean ideologies, which help expand upon the discussion.

Regardless of which ideology you choose to see within The Hobbit, I believe the novel is a tale with the centralized theme of coming into one's own. I see this through the initial innocence of Bilbo at the beginning of the tale, and how content he is in his peaceful lifestyle. However, despite this he abandons his old life to assist the dwarves on their journey. Through the adventure, Bilbo is exposed to things that he has never seen before, and faces them with courage. He steals from trolls, fights giant spiders, and even attempts to bring peace to warring armies. Although his transformation comes slowly, the theme of character progression shines throughout the The Hobbit. Through this novel I realized that regardless of what someone may think of themselves, the truth of their character can not be seen until they are put to the test, in very difficult situations. Without this adventure Bilbo would have never known of his courageous nature, because within his own protected world he would have never required such a trait. In the eyes of his fellow hobbits, Bilbo had lost his respectability, but to me, Bilbo’s perceived loss is a true gain. This gain was due to the fact that he left his world innocent and untainted and returned with not only a new sense of life, but a new sense of himself. Now while this theme of coming into one's own is generally seen as good, the fact still remains that the transformation could inevitably still be a degradation instead of progression. The only way to fully interpret which view is truly prevalent is through the previously stated investigation as to whether there is actually good in the world according to J.R.R Tolkien within his novel The Hobbit.

To fully examine whether there is truly good in the world, we have to analyze the characters and their progression throughout the novel. To begin the analysis, we have to evaluate the initial character attitudes of Bilbo Baggins and the environmental factors that have influenced him and shaped his overall character. This will form a frame of reference to track Bilbo’s change throughout the novel. At the beginning of The Hobbit, we start in a little village known as The Shire. The Shire was based off of Tolkien’s childhood home in Sarehole, what he considered a “country oasis” and representing “rural tranquility” and an “aura of the long-lost pastoral Eden”. This therefore grounds Bilbo in the setting of a world in its untainted state of innocence. Bilbo is likewise considered “very respectable” in his community which means that he is of, “good or fair social standings and having good moral qualities naturally appropriate to this”. He has also maintained a comfortable lifestyle and has, in other words, only been exposed to “Fortune’s smile”. In the eyes of most this would allow for Bilbo to fall into the classification as good. Boethius would state, concerning the character of Bilbo, that he is a man in which fortune has delighted to bestow her gifts upon, and is therefore in possession of the only power within the Boethian ideology. This statement is realized in the understanding that according to Boethius there is no such thing as evil, but rather only the absence of good. Therefore since Bilbo has never experienced this absence he has never experienced what the Manichaean view would consider evil. The Manichaean concept of good and evil can be contrasted to the Boethian view in that Manichaean ideology believe there are two forces of influence, good and evil, rather than just one and it’s absence. However, regardless of the opposing theories, at this point in the novel, they both tend to agree that Bilbo lies on the side of good and innocent. I on the other hand view Bilbo as neither of these. I see Bilbo as the Tabula Rasa. This basically means a young mind not yet affected by the ways of the world. My idea stands in direct opposition to the Boethian idea in that rather than there being only good, I see the world as being evil. Bilbo therefore in my opinion is not good at all but simply untainted. Therefore when Bilbo jumps into the world he will prove one of the three presented theories through the way in which he is affected and or influenced. This will then give us the answer on the question of whether there truly is good in the world, or just the absence of evil.

Bilbo gets his first taste of the world when he meets the cast of characters known as Thorin and Company. These characters encompass twelve dwarves, and are introduced to Bilbo by Gandalf, a witty and mysterious old wizard, after Gandalf asserts that the dwarves need Bilbo’s help on an adventure to recover the gold taken from their ancestors by an old dragon named Smaug. Now before this moment Bilbo had only been exposed to people within The Shire who had no influence on him. However at this point we insert the characters of the dwarves, who have been outside of this “long-lost pastoral Eden” and carry new concepts new to Bilbo. The dwarves themselves have encountered a problem that can be described as the Boethian theory of Lady Fortune. According to Boethius, Fortune belongs to no man, but is rather given and taken away by an entity of fortune. When Fortune is bestowed upon someone, that individual is then considered within the presence of that which is good, when fortune decides to take back its gifts, good has officially now taken its leave of absence. The problem is that during the time one enjoys the gifts of Fortune, they develop a sense of entitlement, as though the Fortune is theirs and they deserve it. This causes the individual to be wroth when Fortune is taken away. This attitude is what brings about the Manichaean ideals of evil, these being the evils of anger, greed, envy, and a want for revenge. Boethius would say that these were developed from the absence of good, Manichaean views would argue they were always there and can be won out over the powers of good. However, what if they were continually present, but rather than battling the powers of good they were simply being fed by the evil represented in the worldly pleasures of wealth and affluence? So that when the evils of worldly pleasures were used up, the evils of greed, anger, and revenge came up to take their place. This would reinforce my idea that only evil is present within the world and would give an explanation as to why some evils find themselves less prevalent at times than others. A new concept would then be found, that is that evil feeds off of evil to maintain a balance. If this throughout the novel proves consistent then the question of whether there is truly good within the world can be answered with no.

Bilbo eventually accepts the quest and is removed from the safety and innocence of his Shire. He is then thrown into the world and now has many influential forces of the varying ideologies. One of the first key events we begin to see the character of Bilbo begin to be influenced, is seen through his encounter with the trolls. This encounter begins after Bilbo is sent by Thorin and Company to scout out the light in the midst of the woods, where they are currently camping. Bilbo stumbles into the trolls, yet luckily remains hidden just outside the firelight. At this point Bilbo, “was very much alarmed, as well as disgusted, he wished himself a hundred miles away, and yet- and yet somehow he could not go straight back to Thorin and Company empty handed”. Standing outside the firelight Bilbo meets his first true decision: warn the others or pickpocket the trolls. When reading this part of the novel, you can see Bilbo's innocence . This is seen by the fact that he was “alarmed” and “disgusted” by the very presence of the trolls. These initial reactions were due to the fact that the trolls were completely foreign to Bilbo. Also, from having heard tales of trolls from the dwarves, he instantly recognized the danger and threat they posed. Because of these factors, Bilbo reacted in the way he did. I assume this was formed from his years of innocence within The Shire. Therefore he would naturally be “alarmed” by danger and wish to be “a hundred miles away”. However, after his initial response, the influences of the greed possessed by the dwarves, which Bilbo has been exposed to and influenced by, begins to make itself manifest. This presentation of evil is made evident through the line, “and yet-and yet somehow he could not go straight back to Thorin and Company empty handed.”

 The obvious point in the quote is that the previously mentioned Tabula Rasa has now been influenced to the point where the characters actions change from what they would have once been. This presents itself in many views according to the varying ideologies. Boethius would view this scenario as Bilbo having been cut of from Fortunes blessings and therefore left in the absence of good. However, since having been used to a comfortable lifestyle in The Shire, he developed a sense of entitlement and therefore longs for the Fortune he once hand. This leads the way for the Manichaean concept of evil to get its way into Bilbo’s mind in the form of greed. Greed, the present force of evil, is driving Bilbo to commit theft, something his uninfluenced self would have never done. This therefore displayed the forces of evil taking over the forces of good. However, the Manichean ideology holds more weight due to one small detail: repetition. The fact that the author uses the wording, “and yet-and yet” tells me that there is a conflict going on within Bilbo’s mind. This simple hesitation causes me to assume that Bilbo is weighing the pros and cons of the situation within his mind, causing a momentary uncertainty within the character. We could assume that this would represent the forces of good and evil within Bilbo’s conscience. Yet the question in this scenario is that if greed was the force of evil, then what was the force of good? The opposite of greed in this situation would be generosity. However when referring back to the initial frame of reference for Bilbo, there was never an indication that this initial Bilbo was generous. Therefore if this force of good is not present, and never was, then only the power of evil is influencing Bilbo. If this is true then the hesitation could be seen as simply the force of evil slowly changing Bilbo’s character until the point that it finally affects his actions. Through this early point in the novel, we see that the Bilbo we once knew is now gone. The worst part yet is that, in the words of Bilbo shortly after this part, he says “This is only a beginning!” This statement leads me to believe that the trend of evil influences in our character Bilbo will only continue. Through this we are already beginning to get closer to the answer of whether there is truly good in the world.

To summarize, through the adventures of Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, we learn that the world simply isn’t as good as people like Boethius would have you believe. In all avenues and characters he said that there was only the presence of good and that anything else was simply that of its absence. However, with further analysis I have discovered that this ideological concept does not account for things such as the development of greed, anger, or a want for revenge. It is true that Boethius explains this partially through his explanation of the developing of a sense of entitlement to Fortune. Yet if these evils still develop from this sense of entitlement then this is proof to a break in his logic. For if these things develop in the absence of good, then this fact alone provides the proof of the presence of evil. Therefore, I cannot accurately label the world of The Hobbit in terms of the Boethian model. The Manichaean concept holds true in all situations throughout this investigation until I discovered that there was no proof as to Bilbo ever possessing the characteristic of generosity. If he contained no generosity then there would have been no force to oppose the greed in Bilbo. Building on that, if there were no opposing forces to cause the hesitation, then I could not use the Manichaean mode of thinking to classify the world of The Hobbit either. The failure of the previous two ideologies to classify The Hobbit led me to one final conclusion. The conclusion that Bilbo’s state of innocence, or Tabula Rasa, was not a state of good at all, but rather a state of the absence of evil. When Bilbo enters the world, evil is seen to be the only influencing factor. For this reason I have concluded that there is truly no form of good in the world as shown in The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien.