Tolkien scholar sheds light on The Hobbit

(Vatican Radio) The film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s world-renowned book The Hobbit opened in theatres this weekend throughout the world. Serving as a prequel to The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit follows the character of Bilbo Baggins, a Hobbit who joins a wizard and a band of dwarves on a quest to slay the dragon Smaug and reclaim the kingdom of the dwarves. Award-winning director of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson, has returned to direct the film adaptation of The Hobbit, which has also been divided into three films. Beginning with the first instalment “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the films will be released each December over the next two years.

Tolkien’s The Hobbit , published in 1937 as chidlren's book, is “partly a meditation on sin, but also in a way it’s a satire… the Shire is, to some extent, a satire on Tolkien’s own country, on England, especially England in the 1930s in its state of false security,” said Tom Shippey a scholar of medieval literature, who is considered to be one of the foremost experts on the writings of Tolkien.

In an interview with Vatican Radio’s Ann Schneible, Shippey spoke about the themes contained within the book, and how they remain relevant for people today.

Although The Hobbit was written for children (unlike The Lord of the Rings), he explained that it nevertheless explores various theological themes, such as providence, and sin.

“There are hints that Bilbo’s ‘luck,’ as he calls it, is to some extent providential – perhaps I should say is entirely providential, because everything is providential in the end.”

Another key theological theme in The Hobbit, Shippey continued, is the question of sin. “If you think of the book in terms of the Seven Deadly Sins, and the Cardinal Virtues, it’s surprising how much actually shows up.”

One of the more ominous sins presented in the story, he continues, is the “sin associated with the great dragon Smaug… [who is] an emblem of avarice. What he likes to do is collect his treasures and pile them up in a great heap, and then lie on them. They are no use to anybody. They are not even any use to him. But at the same time he is furiously attached to them.”

“Our society is currently very strongly marked by avarice, which is not seen as a sin anymore.”

Listen to Ann Schneible’s full interview with Tom Shippey: