Bilbo cheated?

[the Lorien wanderer]

<font face="Verdana"><table><TR><TD><FONT SIZE="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Pile o' Bones
Posts: 13</TD><TD></TD></TR></TABLE>
<img src="http://www.barrowdowns.com/images/posticons/onering.jpg" align=absmiddle> Re: Bilbo cheated?

Actually, while Tolkien said that even Gollum would not cheat at such an ancient game of honour, he strongly implies that Gollum was so wretched that he may do even that. Hence, 'cheating', as you call it, would probably have been justified in this situation.

Bilbo, on the other hand, did not have an inkling of Smeagol's real nature. He just thought him another wild, dangerous beast who would respect the laws of the ancient riddle game. However, Bilbo 'cheated' anyway, and instead of coming up with a tough riddle, he said, &quot;What have i got in my pocket?&quot;, which i think cannot be classified as a riddle even by those who are partial to Bilbo Baggins.

Thus, I think it is safe to establish that Tolkien wanted to show his central Hobbit character with shades of grey.


Not all those who wander are lost.</p>