This lecture pack examines the life of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit.  We will examine several important precursors of the book, works that helped establish the genre in which Tolkien was writing, or which influenced Tolkien’s own thinking.  We will then read not the final published version of The Hobbit, but follow the growth of the story in manuscript and typescript, examining carefully how the story developed and in what directions.  We will then turn to the publication and reception of The Hobbit, including its adaptation to film.  We will end with a discussion of the Rankin-Bass animated Hobbit and a discussion of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit films.