Comparing Bilbo Baggins In Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone

J.R.R Tolkien once wrote, “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit” (Tolkien 1). Although this was written decades ago, this quote laid the foundation for a novel that inspired a vast amount of ideas and works of literature later remodeled and revised to develop new versions of tales previously told. From the dystopian novel The Hunger Games, to the mythological tale Percy Jackson, authors have derived their own work from literary works preceding their own. In Harry Potter, many of the characters and their roles are influenced by those seen in the Hobbit including: Gandalf as fatherly figure, Bilbo as an underdog, and Gollum as a mere obstacle for the protagonist who is internally destroyed by power.
In the Hobbit, Tolkien is able to
Bilbo Baggins, a small unnoticed Hobbit, is summoned upon early on in the book to take on the task of stealing back the gold and fortune from the Lonely Mountain. Not only is this request out of the ordinary for Bilbo, but forces him to complete a job that is uncharacteristic for Bilbo Baggins. Additionally, in Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone, as a young eleven-year-old boy, Harry is told he is a Wizard and is brought to Hogwarts where he completes multiple tasks that he would not normally have encountered. Throughout both novels, it is clear that both these main characters are underdogs who save the day and are model examples of typical unnoticed characters developing into great heroes and gaining confidence and capabilities. In the beginning, Bilbo starts as a neat and uptight Hobbit who passes out at the thought of participating in such a journey. By the end, Bilbo has encountered and conquered many tasks, and he is starting to come across as a hero rather than a mere Hobbit that is tagging along. This idea is made clear when Bilbo defeats the spiders in chapter eight. It is at this moment when Bilbo’s abilities are shown, and the reader sees that Bilbo has started to come a long way from the terrified little hobbit he was previously. The narrator describes this moment by saying, “He felt a different person, and much fiercer and bolder in
Formally Tom Riddle, the reader sees a similar transformation from a handsome and promising student, to a serpent-like villain whose hunger for power is so strong his morality and humanity is completely diminished. Furthermore, in The Chamber of Secrets, Voldemort's past is revealed and Harry learns that as a child Voldemort used his decency from Slytherin to unlock a chamber that used dark magic and was harmful to others. Tom Riddle/Voldemort's use of this chamber builds on the idea which is emphasized throughout the series that as Voldemort was able to develop more power, his thirst for it became stronger along with his abilities. In the long term, his physical appearance changed from a sharp young man to what Rowling described as snakelike. It is clear that both characters share the quality of starting as unassuming characters that take an unfortunate turn once their desire for control increases greatly; therefore, it is noticeable that Rowling's character, Voldemort, has characteristics that are imitated from Gollum. Although developed differently, in both The Hobbit and Harry Potter, the authors share similar characters and traits; therefore, it is evident that a vast amount of characters from the Harry Potter series are inspired by many of Tolkien’s. Classics such as the Hobbit have laid the foundation for new novels to come and inspire authors