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Well...this doesn't really qualify as an entry...

dernwyn
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Oct 5 2007, 3:05am


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Well...this doesn't really qualify as an entry... [In reply to] Can't Post

It's quite over the word limit! But in honor of the Anniversary, may I present, for your enjoyment:

On the leporine characteristics of Hobbits

Hobbits must be related to rabbits, and may possibly even be a type of rabbit.

Tolkien, of course, denied this vehemently. In Letter #24 he states, “Nor indeed was [Bilbo] like a rabbit. He was a prosperous, well-fed young bachelor of independent means. Calling him a “nassty little rabbit’ was a piece of vulgar trollery, just as ‘descendant of rats’ was a piece of dwarfish malice - deliberate insults to his size and feet, which he deeply resented.”

But was this a mere insult? Why is Bilbo constantly compared to a rabbit, throughout The Hobbit? Consider:

- Hobbits are hole-dwellers, in their natural state, as are rabbits.

- The words “hobbit” and “rabbit” have two-thirds of their letters in common.

- A rabbit-eared bandicoot is called a “Bilby”.

- From Chapter 2 of The Hobbit, “Roast Mutton”, we have the quote referred to above:
"’P'raps there are more like him round about, and we might make a pie,’ said Bert. ‘Here you, are there any more of your sort a-sneakin' in these here woods, yer nassty little rabbit,’ said he looking at the hobbit's furry feet; and he picked him up by the toes and shook him.”

Now, a Troll would have known (and eaten) many different kinds of animals; why did he select “rabbit” as his assumption, for what kind of animal Bilbo was?

- From Chapter 6, “Out of the Frying-Pan”, we have Bilbo’s actions as he tries to climb to safety, and a mention of ‘holes’:
“And Bilbo? He could not get into any tree, and was scuttling about from trunk to trunk, like a rabbit that has lost its hole and has a dog after it."

- And this one, in which he compares himself to a rabbit:
“Soon another eagle flew up. ‘The Lord of the Eagles bids you to bring your prisoners to the Great Shelf,’ he cried and was off again. The other seized Dori in his claws and flew away with him into the night leaving Bilbo all alone. He had just strength to wonder what the messenger had meant by 'prisoners,' and to begin to think of being torn up for supper like a rabbit, when his own turn came.”

- From Chapter 7, “Queer Lodgings”, it seems that the sharp-eyed eagles also see a resemblance:
"’Don't pinch!’ said his eagle. ‘You need not be frightened like a rabbit, even if you look rather like one. It is a fair morning with little wind. What is finer than flying?’”
(And these Eagles know their creatures: “But eagles have keen eyes and can see small things at a great distance. The lord of the eagles of the Misty Mountains had eyes that could look at the sun unblinking, and could see a rabbit moving on the ground a mile below even in the moonlight.”)

- From Chapter 17, “The Clouds Burst”, why is the word “rabbit” used, rather than, say, “carpet”?
"’You! You!’ cried Thorin, turning upon him and grasping him with both hands. ‘You miserable hobbit! You undersized-burglar!’ he shouted at a loss for words, and he shook poor Bilbo like a rabbit.”

- Chapter 1, “An Unexpected Party”, shows an interesting relationship between Hobbits and rabbits in sports:
“If you have ever seen a dragon in a pinch, you will realize that this was only poetical exaggeration applied to any hobbit, even to Old Took's great-granduncle Bullroarer, who was so huge (for a hobbit) that he could, ride a horse. He charged the ranks of the goblins of Mount Gram in the Battle of the Green Fields, and knocked their king Golfimbul's head clean off with a wooden club. It sailed a hundred yards through the air and went down a rabbit hole, and in this way the battle was won and the game of Golf invented at the same moment.”

And here is a most important piece of evidence! I had concentrated on the instances where the word “rabbit” was used; but there are other words which refer to the same creature. I now present proof, that Bilbo Baggins is, indeed, a rabbit. From Chapter 7, “Queer Lodgings”, Beorn, that being most knowledgeable in animals, states this fact:
“Next morning they were all wakened by Beorn himself.
"’So here you all are still!’ he said. He picked up the hobbit and laughed: ‘Not eaten up by Wargs or goblins or wicked bears yet I see’; and he poked Mr. Baggins' waistcoat most disrespectfully. ‘Little bunny is getting nice and fat again on bread and honey,’ he chuckled. ‘Come and have some more!’"

Now, can there be any doubt, of the rabbit-like nature of Hobbits?

In conclusion, allow me to present the American Heritage Dictionary definition: "hob’bit (hob'it) n. An imaginary creature resembling a diminutive human being, having some rabbitlike characteristics, and being naturally peace-loving, domestic, and sociable."

If it says so in the dictionary, then it's got to be true!  Wouldn't the Professor agree?


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Only I hear the stones lament them: deep they delved us, fair they wrought us, high they builded us; but they are gone. They are gone. They sought the Havens long ago."
(Avatar pic: The Calanais stones, Isle of Lewis)

"It struck me last night that you might write a fearfully good romantic drama, with as much of the 'supernatural' as you cared to introduce. Have you ever thought of it?"
-Geoffrey B. Smith, letter to JRR Tolkien, 1915

Subject User Time
WINNERS NOW POSTED! - 'Show us Your Hobbit Pride' Giveaway - Celebrating 70 Years of the Hobbit! calisuri Send a private message to calisuri Sep 22 2007, 2:31pm
    Well... Rabittooth Send a private message to Rabittooth Sep 22 2007, 2:57pm
        Hobbit Pride Gandalf_the_grey32 Send a private message to Gandalf_the_grey32 Oct 12 2007, 9:57pm
            comment! Aranel Skywalker Send a private message to Aranel Skywalker Oct 29 2007, 9:32pm
                :] Gandalf_the_grey32 Send a private message to Gandalf_the_grey32 Oct 29 2007, 9:46pm
    There once was a Hobbit from Nan. . . MrCere Send a private message to MrCere Sep 22 2007, 4:55pm
        who was loved by a tall, western man... greendragon Send a private message to greendragon Sep 23 2007, 9:05pm
            I started to type "Nantucket" but you decided better of it MrCere Send a private message to MrCere Sep 24 2007, 11:25pm
            Darnit indeed! Aunt Dora Baggins Send a private message to Aunt Dora Baggins Sep 30 2007, 11:54am
    Everything I needed to know, I learned from The Hobbit sharonl7340 Send a private message to sharonl7340 Sep 23 2007, 11:59am
    resending entry to Hobbit Pride Giveaway thecarol914 Send a private message to thecarol914 Sep 23 2007, 9:18pm
    King Thranduil's Halls annarepp Send a private message to annarepp Sep 24 2007, 3:11am
    I have ridden the barrels and riddled in the dark. pauljessup Send a private message to pauljessup Sep 24 2007, 12:43pm
    'Show The Way' rakshi Send a private message to rakshi Sep 24 2007, 1:39pm
        Oh, that's beautiful.// White Gull Send a private message to White Gull Oct 4 2007, 6:38pm
    My hobbit pride Mimmi Send a private message to Mimmi Sep 25 2007, 2:16am
        Nice! {NT} SandWitch King Send a private message to SandWitch King Sep 25 2007, 5:52am
    A hobbity little poem BuckyUnderbelly Send a private message to BuckyUnderbelly Sep 25 2007, 11:07pm
        I just had to say... annarepp Send a private message to annarepp Sep 27 2007, 4:11am
            Thanks! Evernight Send a private message to Evernight Sep 28 2007, 1:55am
                Art & poetry... annarepp Send a private message to annarepp Oct 8 2007, 3:35pm
    Hobbit Pride Entry. Evernight Send a private message to Evernight Sep 26 2007, 4:47am
    Using the hero machine, here is the start of a party of Dwarves SandWitch King Send a private message to SandWitch King Sep 28 2007, 12:11am
        Hmmm.... Rabittooth Send a private message to Rabittooth Sep 30 2007, 9:31pm
            oops... Rabittooth Send a private message to Rabittooth Oct 1 2007, 12:13am
                Gandalf's been working out! Curious Send a private message to Curious Oct 1 2007, 9:26pm
            Nicely done! SandWitch King Send a private message to SandWitch King Oct 1 2007, 5:56am
                Hobbit Pride Entry Deenan Send a private message to Deenan Oct 8 2007, 1:55am
    My Hobbit Pride Entry Celebrian Send a private message to Celebrian Sep 28 2007, 9:10pm
        My Hobbit Pride Entry Marcil08 Send a private message to Marcil08 Sep 29 2007, 1:15am
    Hobbit Pride Poem Entry Kdgard Send a private message to Kdgard Sep 29 2007, 7:07am
    Okay, I'll bite. Here's my entry. Curious Send a private message to Curious Sep 30 2007, 11:15am
    Thank You Bilbo Kate Send a private message to Kate Oct 2 2007, 4:19am
        wow Gandalf_the_grey32 Send a private message to Gandalf_the_grey32 Oct 29 2007, 9:49pm
            thanks Aranel Skywalker Send a private message to Aranel Skywalker Oct 29 2007, 11:06pm
    Entry for the Hobbit 70th celebration cannonball Send a private message to cannonball Oct 2 2007, 3:30pm
        Question. Evernight Send a private message to Evernight Oct 2 2007, 7:43pm
    Sam's Garden frekotw Send a private message to frekotw Oct 2 2007, 5:25pm
    Well...this doesn't really qualify as an entry... dernwyn Send a private message to dernwyn Oct 5 2007, 3:05am
        An entry dernwyn Send a private message to dernwyn Oct 6 2007, 3:39am
    My entry. Hope you like it! (195 words) Compa_Mighty Oct 5 2007, 4:30am
    Entry-barrels out of bond Rochon_Methestel Send a private message to Rochon_Methestel Oct 7 2007, 12:19am
    Poem Entry: The Death of Smaug the Golden Tinfang Send a private message to Tinfang Oct 7 2007, 5:06pm
    I present the folkdance, "In the Shire" Magpie Send a private message to Magpie Oct 10 2007, 3:27am
        Wow! This is fascinating! dernwyn Send a private message to dernwyn Oct 11 2007, 5:37pm
        Nothing wrong with 'outside the box' Garfeimao Send a private message to Garfeimao Oct 20 2007, 8:42am
    Tookish Wedding annarepp Send a private message to annarepp Oct 10 2007, 4:06am
        This is really pretty! Shadowfaxfan Send a private message to Shadowfaxfan Oct 12 2007, 9:51am
    Hobbit Pride Contest "Movie Poster" Rogue Send a private message to Rogue Oct 10 2007, 8:22am
    Hobbit Poem jimble12 Send a private message to jimble12 Oct 10 2007, 1:24pm
    The Hobbit Poem kuhnie4 Send a private message to kuhnie4 Oct 11 2007, 4:34am
        Bilbo's Birthday Present Earl Send a private message to Earl Oct 11 2007, 12:41pm
    More than Meets the Eye Lausus Send a private message to Lausus Oct 11 2007, 2:20pm
        Welcome, Lausus! Patty Send a private message to Patty Oct 11 2007, 2:26pm
    My Entry: Half The Height Yechidah Send a private message to Yechidah Oct 11 2007, 9:07pm
    My very own entry Thorgaz Send a private message to Thorgaz Oct 11 2007, 9:08pm
    Hobbits ccoonce1971 Send a private message to ccoonce1971 Oct 12 2007, 12:01am
    Showing pride in "The Hobbit", the professor, and all of you here. hobbitlove Send a private message to hobbitlove Oct 12 2007, 2:27am
    Burglar steals the lead, Wizard summons more speed! Shadowfaxfan Send a private message to Shadowfaxfan Oct 12 2007, 8:36am
        What the picture really looks like now that Shadowfaxfan Send a private message to Shadowfaxfan Oct 30 2007, 6:27am
    18 years and older? Ainu Laire Send a private message to Ainu Laire Oct 12 2007, 8:37am
    art entry palantiriel Send a private message to palantiriel Oct 12 2007, 4:17pm
    The Arkenstone fourmis Send a private message to fourmis Oct 12 2007, 5:37pm
    Hobbit Pride Poem Aranel Skywalker Send a private message to Aranel Skywalker Oct 12 2007, 8:23pm
    Time's up! White Gull Send a private message to White Gull Oct 18 2007, 6:41pm
    When will the winners be announced? kuhnie4 Send a private message to kuhnie4 Oct 26 2007, 10:54pm
    Winners Announcement! Coming Soon calisuri Send a private message to calisuri Oct 27 2007, 2:17am
        Jolly good Eregian Send a private message to Eregian Oct 27 2007, 9:54am
            Bilbo of the Shire PrincessWhat Send a private message to PrincessWhat Oct 28 2007, 3:32am
        Thanks for everything! Curious Send a private message to Curious Nov 7 2007, 11:10pm
    The suspense is delightful Lausus Send a private message to Lausus Nov 2 2007, 3:16pm
        Wow! Rabittooth Send a private message to Rabittooth Nov 2 2007, 9:30pm
            Congratulations... Evernight Send a private message to Evernight Nov 2 2007, 10:53pm
    congrats Gandalf_the_grey32 Send a private message to Gandalf_the_grey32 Nov 3 2007, 2:02am
    Congratulations! dernwyn Send a private message to dernwyn Nov 3 2007, 2:24am
        Thanks! Compa_Mighty Nov 3 2007, 3:58pm
            Me too Magpie Send a private message to Magpie Nov 3 2007, 4:25pm
                Congratulations ! Rivendweller Send a private message to Rivendweller Nov 4 2007, 12:40am
    Thank you! annarepp Send a private message to annarepp Nov 4 2007, 6:27pm
        Congratulations to the winners PrincessWhat Send a private message to PrincessWhat Nov 5 2007, 12:02am
    Excellent entries, all! labingi_maura Send a private message to labingi_maura Nov 5 2007, 3:47am
    Happy Winning to all the winners!!!! Shadowfaxfan Send a private message to Shadowfaxfan Nov 7 2007, 4:41am
    Thanks so much! BuckyUnderbelly Send a private message to BuckyUnderbelly Nov 7 2007, 7:40pm
    A sincere thank you. Kdgard Send a private message to Kdgard Nov 10 2007, 7:08am
        Congrats & Thanks Yechidah Send a private message to Yechidah Nov 18 2007, 4:05pm

 
 
 

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