The Hobbit: Curse of a Dragon "In a hole in the ground lived a hobbit" (P.1). This is how JRR Tolkien begins his world-famous book The Hobbit, published in 1966. This book is the story of a little hobbit named Bilbo and his memorable journey through the evil world during his time. Living in the Shire, as his homeland is called, is very peaceful and pleasant for Bilbo, but once he reaches the outer limits of the land, Bilbo is in for a big surprise. Needing a thief on his journey, Gandalf the Grey, famous for his magic with fire and light, came to ask for Bilbo's help. Gandalf was accompanied by thirteen dwarves who searched for their treasure taken long ago, but never forgotten. The last evil dragon, Smaug, who many years ago conquered the dwarf kingdom of the Lonely Mountain, took this desired treasure. Bilbo wanted not to go, but with his ability, along with that of all the other hobbits, to escape silently, quickly and easily into the woods and mountains, Bilbo was a perfect thief for the journey. The adventurous group of fifteen set out in search of trolls, orcs, goblins, wargs (evil talking wolves), aggressive elves, giant spiders, dragons, and countless natural disasters including wind, snow, rain, and scorching heat. None of these obstacles came to be the most powerful and dangerous enemy for Bilbo and the others, though. This ever-powerful enemy was greed and the lust for the horde of gold, silver, and precious jewels that enticed the dwarves to pursue it, no matter the cost. Bilbo was a little taken aback and didn't really understand the purpose of this adventure, so he asked for some explanations. With the dwarves was Thorin son of Thrain King under the Mountain, as he was known. Thorin was now the rightful king and heir to the treasure of the Lonely Mountain as he was the one doing the explaining. Bilbo listened intently as the dwarves sang songs and told poems about their long-ago conquered land. Singing of "golden treasures" and "gold long forgotten" Bilbo began to become very enthusiastic about the upcoming journey (P.22). As the dwarves continued on, the hobbit felt that this journey would do him good. He accepted the task, but not before the Dwarves, along with Gandalf, enchanted the young hobbit with the treasure to be found. Being quite wealthy, Bilbo had no need of this wealth, but before long the hobbit could feel "the love of beautiful things made with hands, with cunning and with magic move through him, and a fierce love and jealous, the desire of dwarfs' hearts" (P.24). Then, before Bilbo knew what was happening and even before dawn the next morning, the group of fifteen set off. There was no adventure or trouble in the Shire, but things soon changed. A few leagues from the Shire border young Bilbo encountered his first adventure. Walking slowly through the darkness, Gandalf quickly stopped and silenced the others. High above the road a small fire could be seen and cold, low voices could be heard singing about roast mutton. Bilbo was sent to see what was up there as he could sneak in almost silently. To his amazement he saw three very large Trolls surrounding the fire and singing. His work was done, but Bilbo was drawn to tales of the Trolls' riches. He decided to try to steal some of the Trolls' pocket jewels, but to no avail. Before long the Dwarves came looking for Bilbo due to his long absence and knowing that he should have returned long ago. The Trolls captured all the company except Gandalf, who very cunningly kept the Trolls arguing among themselves until the sun rose. As the rising sun caught a glimpse of the Trolls, they turned solidstone and never threatened the world again. Gandalf untied the others and they all thanked him kindly for several days, but before leaving they decided to look into the Troll's cave. Inside they found several golden vessels, which they went to "bury very secretly not far from the trail near the river, casting a great number of spells upon them, in case they should ever have a chance of returning" (P.53 ). Even though they set out to recapture more gold and treasure than any of them had ever seen they still wanted more, knowing that if they were recaptured they would be bestowed with more wealth than imaginable, but these adventurers were under the dragon's spell ( an old spell that makes people greedy no matter how much wealth they possess) and they cared little about how much they would make. get until no one else got these stolen pots of gold. The Dwarves, Bilbo and Gandalf traveled for many days and weeks during which they had many encounters. Some were with the still healthy people of the evil world like Elrond, who hosted the crew for many days and healed all their minor wounds. Other encounters were less joyous such as their encounter with the Goblins of the Misty Mountains. In this meeting Bilbo was separated from the rest and had to find his way out of the evil mountain by himself not only silently, but also intelligently, Bilbo soon found the others and they all got back on track. Before long they arrived at the forest of Mirkwood, which proved to be another worthy adversary. In Mirkwood they met countless protagonists but their own hunger led them astray. After losing their way they were captured by the Elves and held prisoner. This king was not an evil fellow, but he distrusted the crew of fourteen, as Gandalf had to leave and settle other affairs. The king was powerful, but if he had a weakness "it was for treasures, especially for silver and white gems; and although his treasure was rich, he was always eager to have more" (P. 179). This proved useful to Bilbo and his friends because they were able to somehow bribe the king with the jewels and metals they had not yet earned in exchange for their release. Bilbo, Thorin, and the others finally escaped, and though the road became less terrible, Smaug still remained ahead. They reached the village of the Lake Men who lived at the foot of the Lonely Mountain. These people warmly welcomed Thorin and his companions because of Thorin's position as King under the mountain. The lake men helped them a lot and provided them with more food and new horses. In exchange Thorin promised the village a fourteenth of the treasure that awaited them on the mountain. Going out again they headed towards the Dragon's lair and prepared for a great battle. The company reached a secret door that not even Smaug knew about and which was supposed to be their entrance. Sending Bilbo first to take a look, the dwarves waited behind. Bilbo was terribly frightened: "I have absolutely no use for this treasure guarded by the dragon," he muttered in a low voice, but continued walking (P. 227). Some force pushed him forward until he was right at the dragon's feet. Sleeping soundly, Smaug took no notice of Bilbo that night, but Smaug's morning wrath was much to Bilbo's surprise. “Dragons may have no real use for all their wealth, but they know it down to the ounce” and Bilbo made the deadly mistake of taking a cup of gold on his nightly visit to the dragon's lair (P.229 ). The dragon was furious and hunted the mountain and the surrounding lands but the hobbit hid his friends well in the secret passage they discovered. That night Bilbo was sent again and once again he was horrified, yet he continued, 1996.