| Quote #1 Let's have no more argument. I have chosen Mr. Baggins and that ought to be enough for all of you. If I say he is a Burglar, a Burglar he is, or will be when the time comes. There is a lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself. You may (possibly) all live to thank me yet. (1.104) |
How exactly does Gandalf know that there "is a lot more in [Bilbo] than [the dwarves] guess"? Do we get a sense of what exactly Gandalf's supernatural powers are? Do they have any limit? Is Gandalf ever wrong?
| Quote #2 Thorin looked and walked as if his kingdom was already regained and Smaug chopped up into little pieces. |
While Thorin and the dwarves hang out in Lake-town, they feel as though their goal of recapturing Thorin's treasure has already been achieved. So they "[drink] to [Bilbo's] health, and they [pat] him on the back, and they [make] a great fuss of him." But when the dwarves are sitting in the cold by the side door of the Lonely Mountain, they start grumbling and blaming Bilbo for lack of progress. The dwarves seem like the definition of fair-weather friends: they respect Bilbo when things are going well, and they criticize him when the going gets tough.
| Quote #3 A sound, too, began to throb in his ears, a sort of bubbling like the noise of a large pot galloping on the fire, mixed with a rumble as of a gigantic tom-cat purring. This grew to the unmistakable gurgling noise of some vast animal snoring in its sleep down there in the red glow in front of him. |
Bilbo's decision to go into the dragon's lair alone is the bravest thing that he has ever done, he feels. Do you agree? Are there other moments in the novel that stand out to you as equally (or even more) brave? What is it about this particular moment that requires all of Bilbo's courage?