Anders+Hobbit+Page

link to home page

**__Discussion Question 1__**
Choose one conflict in The Hobbit, and explain how Tolkien uses it to move the story forward. Don't forget to cite page number when appropriate.



__The Riddle at the Lake __
 There are many conflicts that Bilbo Baggins and the rest of the dwarves face in __The Hobbit__ so far. They have run into many unimaginable conflicts that would be extremely difficult and scary. One main problem is when Bilbo is all alone stranded with the ugly, odd, mysterious, and potentially dangerous creature called Gollum. Bilbo already was in deep trouble since he had lost all the dwarves and Gandalf and was all alone in a dark, gloomy, and dangerous tunnel. Then, after running and running in that tunnel he approched a lake and there he met Gollum. The instint Bilbo meet Gollum he was scared. He had never seen a creature so odd and had never heard anyone talk in such a wierd way. Gollum always hissed and talked to himself not to Bilbo calling himself "my precious". Soon, Bilbo and Gollum made a compromise. They were to play the riddle game. Their deal was that if Gollum asks Bilbo a riddle which he does not answer, then Gollum gets to eat Bilbo. But, if Bilbo asks Gollum a riddle that he does not answer, then Gollum must show Bilbo the way out of the mountain. The riddle game went on and on each Bilbo and Gollum eventually guessing everything that was thrown at them. Some riddles were very easy and others took very long to guess, but after almost ten riddles the game ended. Bilbo could not think of another riddle to save his life. It was his turn to ask and he felt something inside his pocket. So, he unintentionally said, "What is in my pocket?" since he had forgot that he found a ring on the tunnel floor awhile before he had meet Gollum. Although, Bilbo did not mean for this to be his riddle, Gollum thought it was and could not think what it could be. Bilbo remembered the ring and then realizing that Gollum wouldn't guess what was in his pocket stuck with that riddle. Gollum was granted three guesses from Bilbo and still could not guess it. Bilbo had won, but Gollum was angry and hungry. So, Gollum left to get his ring that made his invisable so that he could sneak up on Bilbo and kill him. Little did he know, he had lost the ring on a previous hunting trip and Bilbo had stumbled upon it. Gollum could not find his ring and realized what had happened.This was a good conflict! There were so many to choose from, and you did a FANTASTIC job explaining this particular conflict. Very well done. Wonderful voice! Just a few spelling errors to fix! Mrs. Best