God Has Chosen the Little Ones: The Hobbit and Tolkien's Theological Framework

J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit is not immediately striking as a “Christian” work. But with a properly calibrated reading The Hobbit can be seen as the work of a Christian author presenting truths of the actual world in the forms of his fantasy setting. As the fantasy setting is supposed to be an imaginary time thousands of years before the Incarnation (that is, in the past of our world), it is apparent that Tolkien’s theological framework would exert influence on how he wrote The Hobbit in terms of the truths he presents, as well as the fantasy forms he uses to present them. To calibrate our own reading of The Hobbit accordingly, this book explores Tolkien’s general theological framework, his specific theological reflection on his form of artistic work, and details of the story that highlight Tolkien’s theological framework in how he is presenting God at work in Middle-earth through the little ones like Bilbo Baggins.Lisa Coutras, PhD, author of Tolkien's Theology of Beauty, says, "In