The Hobbit Lessons Learned, Chapter 2: Roast Mutton

Good morning and welcome back to another installment in the adventures of Mr. Bilbo Baggins in our chapter-by-chapter reading of The Hobbit. J.R.R. Tolkien created this story for his children and it makes sense that he uses common figures from folklore. In "Roast Mutton," we get to see his version of trolls.

Bill, Bert, and Tom

According to Wikipedia, trolls "live far from human habitation...and are considered dangerous to human beings." We also know that they tend to "be ugly and slow-witted or look and behave exactly like human beings." The etymology might refer to the Proto-Germanic "Trullan," which means "to tread, step on." I feel as though Tolkien rolls all of this into one type with his three trolls.

The three who cause the company of Thorin Oakenshield so much trouble are definitely in the type of being ugly and slow-witted and tempted to tread on interlopers. On the other hand, they work in community. They have a sense of manners and are offended when someone displays bad manners.

Bilbo, meanwhile, is thrust into the role of burglar and expected to sort out the trouble with trolls. Not only is he to do this single-handed, but he also is instructed to give a signal that is completely beyond his capabilities. He has no time to prepare or educate himself in dealings with these creatures and is even more ill-at-ease when he's discovered. The best he can do is, as another crazy old wizard in fiction suggests, "let go of [his] conscious self and act on instinct." He knows how to be overly gracious to strangers, as we know from Chapter 1, and he knows how to have a good, long discourse on food. Granted, this all leads to a night-long stalling effort that leads to the trolls' demise, but it is a good approach for other things.

Lesson Learned: Rely on common ground

I don't ever advise dealing with trolls, but this encounter with Bill, Bert and Tom reminds me of another work by Tolkien. In The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, we read of a lonely troll who is no threat to anyone, but is treated as a grave threat whenever he approaches people unlike himself. It is his luck to meet a winkle named Perry, who not only offers him friendship, but welcomes the chance to learn from him. They share common interests and find a way to treat each other as equals, to the envy of everyone not invited to the afternoon teas.

When approaching an unfamiliar person, it's often best to act on the assumption that you can find something about them to relate to. Chances are, you'll have something in common or learn to develop that shared interest.