Name: GollumRace: At the time of The Hobbit, unknown (later in The Lord of the Rings we find out that Gollum came from a race of beings similar in size and background to hobbits)
Age: About 500
Background: Lives beneath the Misty Mountains on a rocky island in the middle of an underground lake
Gollum appears in only one chapter of The Hobbit, yet it is an important chapter both for the plot of The Hobbit as well as for the later trilogy The Lord of the Rings. At the beginning of this chapter, titled “Riddles in the Dark,” Bilbo wakes up alone in one of the goblin tunnels under the Misty Mountains. Feeling around in the dark, he places his hand on a small metallic ring, and without thinking much about it, puts the ring in his pocket. He has lost the dwarves (or they have lost him) and he has no idea where he is or how to find his way out of the tunnels. Eventually he continues down the tunnel, holding his trusty sword in front of him (being an elven blade, it glows with a faint blue light when goblins are nearby). Suddenly, Bilbo stumbles into water, and stands there flummoxed, not knowing what to do. He has found the lake where Gollum lives.
Gollum is curious about Bilbo, and not being very hungry at the moment, is willing to talk with the creature that is standing at the edge of his lake. He paddles over in his boat, and startles Bilbo by hissing and whispering right in Bilbo’s ear. Gollum is cautious of the sword Bilbo holds, and so becomes polite and invites Bilbo to tell riddles. When Bilbo easily guesses Gollum’s first riddle, Gollum proposes a competition, with the prizes being Bilbo becoming Gollum’s dinner (if Gollum wins), or Gollum showing Bilbo how to get out of the tunnels (if Bilbo wins). Bilbo agrees, not knowing what else to do, and the deadly game begins. The first riddles are old, easy ones, and both Gollum and Bilbo are able to answer them quickly. However, after several rounds, Bilbo cannot think of another riddle. Gollum begins to badger him and move closer and closer, which only rattles Bilbo the more. Without thinking, he sticks his hands in his pockets, and feels the ring which he had forgotten about. He wonders aloud, “What have I got in my pocket?”
Gollum thinks that Bilbo means this question to be a riddle, and he is furious. He demands three guesses, which Bilbo agrees to. When he cannot guess correctly (even with fitting in two guesses for his last one), Bilbo is greatly relieved and demands that Gollum show him the way out. Gollum, angry and now very hungry, says he must go get something to help him. What he is really going for is his “birthday present,” a magic ring that makes him invisible. He intends to sneak up on Bilbo and kill him. However, when he reaches the hiding place, the ring is not there. He realizes that Bilbo has found his precious, the only thing that he cares about. In a fury, he comes at Bilbo. Bilbo turns and runs, and just before Gollum catches up with him, he puts his hand back in his pocket and the ring slips onto his finger. Bilbo trips and falls, and Gollum runs right past him. By cautiously following Gollum, Bilbo finds the way out. However, Gollum sits right in the mouth of the tunnel, blocking the way! Bilbo must decide whether or not to kill Gollum in order to escape.
Bilbo is moved by pity, and instead of stabbing Gollum, jumps over him and runs out the tunnel. Behind him, he hears Gollum screeching, “Thief, thief, thief! Baggins! We hates it, we hates it, we hates it for ever!” This is the last we see of Gollum in The Hobbit, but the ring changes the course of the story and Bilbo’s life. And, of course, Gollum himself reappears in The Lord of the Rings, as he continues to try to regain his lost precious.
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