The Hobbit Unit Study

A middle-aged hobbit, a dangerous quest, a magic ring, and a fearsome dragon: middle school and high school students explore symbolism, themes, and genre while dodging orcs and enjoying Tolkien's highly acclaimed fairy tale.

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Student Study Guide AND Teacher's Answer Key Included
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The Hobbit Analysis

Uncover Symbolism, Themes, and Genres in The Hobbit

Chapter by chapter, our unit study guide analyzes the literary elements in the Hobbit to reveal the symbolism, themes and genres in The Hobbit.

Students are taught to search for motifs through repeating elements and investigate what, if any, symbolism might be present. Discussion questions and multiple choice questions unlock the meaning that Tolkien sprinkled through his tale.

Of course everyone knows that The Hobbit is fantasy literature, and fantasy alone, right?

Right?

Wrong. Compare fantasy and fairytales, and learn the other three genres that this work belongs to.

Hobbit Runes

Have Fun With Runes

We have incorporated Tolkiens runes from The Hobbit in many of the activities in The Hobbit Unit Study. Translate the hidden messages on Thror's map, learn about the secret passage, reiterate Gandalf's warning, and match symbolic elements - all with our Hobbit Runes Alphabet Worksheet pictured above.

Action Plot in The Hobbit

One of the many projects students can participate in is tracing the chapter by chapter action plot. What does this do?

We investigate how each piece of the action is like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle: it leads towards the climax and denouement. At the conclusion of the narrative, they analyze why each part was included and how it affected the whole.

The Hobbit Vocabulary Lists

If you haven't used our vocabulary word lists before, you are in for a treat. Words are listed chapter-by-chapter and in the order they appear in the text. Definitions are provided. (I remember a teacher who thought we would all look them up in a dictionary. Didn't happen.)

The vocabulary words are listed in three columns, which make great book marks.

The Hobbit Point of View

What is the point of view in The Hobbit? You might be surprised. (That sentence in itself is a clue.)

There IS some debate on the matter, but after a careful search, the The Hobbit Unit Study Guide article linked to in the line above indicates that this is:

• Main narrative - 3rd person limited (Bilbo's perspective)
• Outer Frame - 2nd person (a wise though bit sarcastic narrator invites the reader to agree with his analysis.)
• Infrequent 3rd person omniscient breakthroughs (usually the narrator foreshadowing)

Our Hobbit Unit Study guides the student through the court of literary opinion to see if Tolkien is guilty is POV impropriety. (He actually is, but he is Tolkien, so he can do what he wants.)

The Hobbit Characters

The Hobbit Dwarves

Students will have fun with The Hobbit Dwarves Worksheet. Activities on our worksheet include:

• Find the two identical dwarves
• Indicate the colors, tools, and instruments for each pair (or trio) of dwarfs
• Distinguish different roles played by different dwarves
• Find the hidden magic ring

Bilbo and Hobbits

Bilbo, of course, is the main character. The Hobbit Unit Study investigates these questions:

• Why did Gandalf want a hobbit to accompany the dwarves?
• Why did Gandalf choose Bilbo as the specific hobbit?
• What do hobbits represent? (Answer: British villagers or common people.)
• What does Bilbo represent? (Answer: A common hero.)

Gandalf

For this unit study, Gandalf is accepted as himself. (We delve more deeply into his character in The Fellowship of the Ring Unit Study.)

But in The Hobbit we ask this question:

Why did Gandalf leave them and where did he go?

(Answer: He left to go to the White Council and drive the necromancer from Dol Guldur where Thorin's father had been captured.)

That answer is of great interest to fans of both The Hobbit as well as the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

New Genre of Characters

Many of the genre of characters are familiar to readers of fantasy or fairytales: dwarfs, elfs, trolls.

But Tolkien adds new genres or good guys and bad guys. Can you guess which of these are Tolkien inventions and which he borrows from foreign mythologies?

• Skin changers
• Wargs
• Orcs
• Gollum
• Stone giants

Buy The Hobbit Unit Study

Student Study Guide AND Teacher's Answer Key Included
$2.99 Download - 136 pages
See below for contents of unit study

The Hobbit Pages

All of our Hobbit pages mentioned above.