Hi, need to submit a 2000 words paper on the topic The Hobbit and Childrens Literature. In the 20th century, it was considered a simple fantasy novel for children primarily because of a widespread opinion that it lacked allegory and the themes were too simplistic for an adult audience. However, there remained some critics who claimed that the novel must have been intended for an adult audience because of the complexity of the language used and the level of violence that appears in some scenes. The fight with the dragon was considered particularly distressing for a young audience. Although The Hobbit has some sophisticated elements that could justify its placement with adult literature, it remains clearly a novel intended for a younger audience as is demonstrated through its structure, content and the ideas contained within the story.

One of the main arguments that the novel is intended for children can be found in its structure. The book is written with a simple linear pattern, progressing from the beginning of the story to the end with no flashbacks and very little foreshadowing. There also isn’t much in the way of concurrent time sequences, such as one character doing one thing for a chapter and then another character doing another thing in the same time period in another chapter. Assumptions are made occasionally regarding what the other characters must have been doing during times of separation, but their actual story is not told. Tolkien tells the story straightforwardly and quickly, which helps children understand it on their first reading. Although they are capable of delight in the suspense of what is about to happen and the manifestation of the unexpected, they cannot patiently sustain a sense of incompleteness for any great length of time. Simplicity is absolutely needed for young readers. This type of straightforward timeline is a basic element of all fairy tales for exactly this reason.