sent to investigate. Bilbo finds three quarrelsome trolls, who capture him and all twelve dwarves and plan to cook the entire company. Ultimately, Gandalf saves the day in a textbook-example ofdeus ex machina when he mimics the troll’s voices and sparks a brawl, which lasts just long enough for the sun to rise and turn the troll-trio into stone. The Company is saved, and they contentedly raid the troll’s cave, which is loaded with treasure.

Gandalf’s absence during the troll scene is important for three reasons:

1) The episode shows that the dwarves may not be as independent and fearsome as they first appeared to Bilbo. All twelve of the dwarves are quickly bagged by the trolls and most are unable to resist or save themselves. This scene emphasizes the importance of Gandalf to the quest and indicates that the dwarves haven’t hired Bilbo for laughs; they need help!

2) Another second aspect of this scene and chapter 2 in general that it marks a dramatic transformation in Bilbo’s character. At the very beginning of chapter 2, Bilbo is cleaning up the mess from the previous night’s revelries and muttering to himself, “Don’t be a fool Bilbo Baggins . . . thinking of dragons and all that outlandish nonsense at your age.” A few hours later and Bilbo attempts to pickpocket rock-trolls because “he could not go straight back to Thorin and Company empty-handed.” The fact that Bilbo tries to prove himself in such a dangerous and risky manner demonstrate that, despite his earlier remonstrations, he does have a thirst for adventure.

3) Finally, some have suggested that Gandalf’s departure was a set-up designed to test the Company and provide a first-challenge for Bilbo. The fact that Gandalf never reveals why he left the Company and the well-timed return serve as evidence for this theory.

However, whether you accept this interpretation or not, the troll scene marks the first of many trials where Bilbo will be forced to solve problems and save the dwarves on his own.

There are a number of possible reasons for this. Firstly, it is important to see this story as the development of Bilbo Baggins as a hero. Initially, at the beginning of the story, he does not have much that is heroic about him. It is interesting that he is shown to meet the trolls but feels he couldn't return to his friends, the dwarves, to warn them, without proving himself to them as a thief:

...somehow he could not go straight back to Thorin and Company empty-handed. So he stood and hesitated in the shadows. Of the various burglarious proceedings he had heard of, picking the trolls' pockets seemed the least difficult, so he crept behind a tree just behind William.

Of course, the most sensible thing for Bilbo to have done would have been to have warned his friends, but the way that he gives in to pride and then also gets the whole company in trouble shows how inexperienced he is at this stage of the journey. This of course sets Bilbo up for his moment of heroism when he saves the dwarves from both the spiders and the elves later on in the novel.

A second reason for the troll episode occurring without Gandalf is to indicate the way that the company is going to encounter difficulties that will be more challenging than trolls, and this increases suspense. If the first real difficulty that they encounter is only solved through the serendipitous arrival of Gandalf, what will happen later on when they encounter more challenging difficulties and do not have his aid?

This episode in Chapter 2 is crucial for Bilbo's character development because it shows that Bilbo actually has a taste for adventure. More importantly, it allows Bilbo to show that, even though he is not a brave warrior, he can still contribute to the Quest for Erebor.

At this early stage in the story, Bilbo still doesn't fully understand why he chose to join the Dwarves on their quest, and part of him thinks it was a very foolish idea. The Dwarves also have no real sense of what Bilbo can contribute. They accepted Bilbo at Gandalf's urging, and, until this point, Gandalf has always been present as a guide and protector.

Investigating the trolls' fire is Bilbo's first official act as burglar. Bilbo is actually quite keen to test his burgling skills. Unfortunately, it goes poorly: Bilbo is caught attempting to steal a money pouch. The Dwarves hear the racket surrounding Bilbo's capture and are also seized when they come to investigate. Although Bilbo is able to escape, he is unable to help his companions. The trolls start preparing to eat the Dwarves, and the situation looks inescapably grim. It seems like Gandalf and his magic are the only things that could rescue them, but the Grey Wizard is nowhere to be seen—or so it seems.

At this point, it looks like all the doubts Bilbo had about his suitability for the Quest are justified. It almost seems like Tolkien wants the reader to wonder, "Wouldn't it have been better if he just stayed safe at Bag End?"

However, at the same time, we are given clues that Bilbo might be cut out for adventuring after all. He was willing, and almost a little excited, to try to burgle the trolls, even without Gandalf there. We see that he also has enough of his wits about him to take advantage of his small size. This shows that Bilbo doesn't completely crumble under pressure and that he recognizes the advantages of his diminutive stature. While he is out of the trolls' sight, he also finds the key to their treasure horde. 

The fact that Bilbo secured the key to the treasure room ends up being very important and demonstrates he can add value to the Quest. In the treasure horde, Gandalf and Thorin discover the powerful High-Elven swords that Elrond will later identify as Glamdring and Orcrist. Bilbo also finds the small dagger that he will name Sting.