The hobbit

All of our main characters in The Hobbit (Bilbo, Gandalf, Smaug, The Bowman, pick a dwarf! Etc), seem spurred to adventure for very specific reasons and motivations. Discuss. Pick your favorite character or the one that provokes you in some way and comment/ question/ discuss their role in this novel. How do they function in the narrative? Why does Tolkien include them? …do they reflect something of Tolkien’s love of myth or his life?