The Hobbit is one of those childhood stories we think about as a grand adventure, but what we don't take into account is how Bilbo lived his life AFTER the war.

This is some philosophical rambling about the nature of the Veteran, so forgive me if I state truths that would have been obvious to any reader of the Lord of the Rings upon first publishing, but modern disconnect from the war experience has relegated to the "Footnotes" category.

Bilbo is a war veteran. Not only is he a war veteran, but his experience of fear, hiding, being brave only because he has loyalty to his friend is nearly universal to the soldier. War stories often emphasize the grand victor, and the conquering hero, but the average soldier is not the one who will ever gain glory.

Bilbo returns from his war with a small amount of booty... enough to keep him in his lifestyle for the rest of his natural days, and a curse. The standards of veterans not talking much about their war experience was in full flower at this time, and so we see only flashes of how badly the war damaged Bilbo.

He lives alone for a great deal of time. The only people he regularly associates with are other veterans, and his family which has taken the time to understand his past. He feels little to no connection to the people around him, his mind on loftier and more disturbing things. Bilbo has seen the elephant, to put it in the terms of the first world war, and wishes nothing more than to completely turn his back on war.

Bilbo treats the weapons and armor of war as things to be hidden away. Kept safe, remembered, and practiced, but never used. He grants it to the next generation not because he aches to see them thrust into danger, but because there will be danger no matter what. And sadly, even the memory of war and the power he wielded causes great distress and behavior that he cannot control.

So, Bilbo smokes his pipe, spends time with wizards and dwarves and elves, and fawns over his younger obsessions of literature and maps... Perhaps he will inspire the young to do greater things, but his war is long over. He will volunteer without a moments hesitation to defend those he loves, because deep down, Bilbo is still the soldier he was made into.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2N_2TOUOdEc]