Hobbits truly are remarkable creatures. For such small beings, who crave and love the simple things in life, a comfortable bed, a hearty meal, and a beautiful garden in the summer sun, they are amazingly hardy and resilient, and are able to survive monumental challenges, and escape incredible dangers. Throughout The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, there are many times when Bilbo and the four hobbits from the fellowship have some narrow escapes.

That is because hobbits have a unique skill set that makes them excellent allies on a quest. Hobbits aren’t particularly strong, they aren’t particularly valiant in battle, and they aren’t necessarily smart when it comes to battle strategies and the politics of various kingdoms in Middle Earth. But they are kind, good-hearted, and able to resist the allure of the Ring of Power. But there are some physical attributes that they possess that make them surprisingly adept at Burglary, taking the Arkenstone out from underneath a mighty dragon’s nose, and making their way through the lands of Mordor undetected by the legions of enemies who reside there.

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"At any rate, hobbits can move quietly in the woods, absolutely quietly. They take pride in it." Surprisingly, being able to move quietly in the dark is an essential skill for survival, and is a skill that comes to the rescue of both Bilbo, and Frodo and Sam, many times in their respective adventures. For Bilbo, it allows him to move around in the dark of the goblin caves, and to avoid the clutches of Gollum when their game of riddles goes awry. For Sam and Frodo, it allows them to pass undetected through many dangers, including Sam following the orcs to the tower that the Silent Watchers guard, in order to rescue Frodo, and both of them being able to slip away from the orcs that march them towards the tower of Bharad-Dur. Pippin and Merry too, are able to slip away from their own orc captives, as they are taken to Isengard by the Uruk-hai to face the treachery of Saruman.

Bilbo invisible to Gollum

Not only are hobbits able to move silently, ‘They are more used to tunneling than we are, and they do not easily lose their sense of direction underground. Also, they can move quietly, and hide easily, and recover wonderfully from falls and bruises.’ Perhaps this is what helps each of them to recover from their own traumas and injuries. This skill of springing back after suffering pain could be what prevents Frodo from turning into a wraith when he is stabbed by the Morgul blade at Weathertop. It is also probably what allows Pippin to survive the horrible ordeal he encounters with the Palantir, brings both Bilbo and Sam (who receive several knocks to the head and fall into unconsciousness) back into the waking world quick enough to still save the day, and helps Merry to heal after he has been treated with the ancient magic of the King of Gondor, due to stabbing the Witch King with his sword.

hobbits disguised as orcs

The Ring of Power, of course, possesses the amazing ability of being able to make its wearer invisible, and to understand the language of the enemy. But invisibility is only half of the battle in being able to evade the forces of evil, because they have other ways of being able to sense the heroes than sight. For example, the Fell Beasts, the flying creatures of the Nazgul, are able to feel the presence of enemies of their master from high in the sky, without the need to see them, and Gollum himself has extraordinarily good hearing and sense of smell after so long living in the dark caves beneath the mountains. So if the hobbits didn’t have these qualities of being able to move quietly, and being able to find their bearings, it is quite probable that they would have been caught, even when they were invisible.

Many fans believe that this is how the hobbits were able to stay hidden from Men for so long, and pass out of knowledge and memory of the other peoples of Middle Earth. This, in itself, is a defense mechanism and has kept them safe and undetected in The Shire for many long years before the War of the Ring takes place. Unfortunately, that all changes when Saruman takes over their homeland in the Scouring of the Shire, and they have to rally all of the inhabitants to combat the ruffians who have turfed them out of their homes.

Once they have dealt with the servants, they go to Bag End to confront Saruman himself, and give him a fair chance to leave, despite all of the damage he has done and the trees he has uprooted. He rejects their kindness, and tries to walk away with dignity, but Wormtongue, who has had enough of the wizards cruel treatment, slits his throat instead. After this, the hobbits cant remain concealed any more, and they instead become a part of the Reunited Kingdom of the Fourth Age.

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