JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit is said to be one of the greatest children's novels of all time. The novel, thanks to the use of characters such as goblins, elves, trolls, giants and others, is traditionally a fairy tale. The story centers on a little hobbit named Bilbo Baggins. It follows the journey of a band of dwarves, a wizard named Gandalf, and their thief, Bilbo, as they attempt to recover a treasure that had long been taken from them. The hobbit traveled throughout Middle-earth, starting from Bilbo's little hobbit hole in the ground, to the forest of Mirkwood, finally reaching the Mountain where the dragon Smaug lives. Tolkien uses a large amount of imagery in his writings which can be seen through the settings of The Hobbit. The images are usually dark or light, depending on Bilbo's mood and the contrast of his surroundings. JRR Tolkien uses images of light and darkness in The Hobbit to effectively create an eerie and mysterious atmosphere and to foreshadow events such as Bilbo's journey to Mirkwood and his adventure in the Mountain. To understand Tolkien's use of imagery, it is necessary to understand imagery as a concept. “Imagery refers to words that stimulate a reader's mind to recall images, or mental images, that involve one of the five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch” (Poxon). “There are two common types of imagery: literal and figurative” (Poxon). A literal image represents a "literal object or sensation. Its meaning is obvious and realistic and needs no interpretation. It is what it says it is." Tolkien uses a greater amount of figurative language in The Hobbit than literal language. A figurative image means more than it says it does. It suggests some meanings that need to be interpreted. Similes, encountered... in the middle of the paper... had long remained silent" (Tolkien 259). By the time the narrator had proclaimed this to the reader, Smaug had not yet returned. This quote foreshadowed his death and leads to the War of the Five Armies. Imagery in The Hobbit plays an important role in setting the atmosphere of the novel. JRR Tolkien also uses this technique to provide hints to the reader and help him foreshadow future events in The Hobbit serves a number of purposes. different. Imagery is also a figurative language that enhances the character, setting, meaning and theme of the literature. It paints a picture in the mind of the surroundings and situations and helps the reader relate to the main character of the novel The images also increase the reader's perception of the novel and deepen the emotional connection between reader and character, forcing the reader to be more involved in the story..