Beorn the skin-changer
Beorn the skin-changer is one of the most formidable and enigmatic figures encountered by Thorin and Company on their quest to the Lonely Mountain. A being of immense strength and solitary habits, he possesses the rare ability to change his skin at will, shifting between the form of a huge black bear and that of a great strong black-haired man with huge arms and a great beard. His dual nature, his deep connection to the wild, and his decisive interventions—first as a generous host and guide, and later as a battle-winning force in the Battle of Five Armies—mark him as a pivotal ally whose power and independence command respect from all who cross his path.
Identity and Nature
Beorn is described by Gandalf as a "skin-changer," a term that Bilbo Baggins initially misunderstands, thinking it refers to a furrier. Gandalf corrects him emphatically, explaining that Beorn changes his own skin: sometimes he is a huge black bear, sometimes a great strong black-haired man with huge arms and a great beard. The wizard offers two possible origins for Beorn: some say he is a bear descended from the great and ancient bears of the mountains that lived there before the giants came; others say he is a man descended from the first men who lived before Smaug or the other dragons came into that part of the world, and before the goblins came into the hills out of the North. Gandalf himself favors the latter tale, noting that Beorn is under no enchantment but his own. He lives in an oak-wood and has a great wooden house; as a man he keeps cattle and horses which are nearly as marvellous as himself, working for him and talking to him. He does not eat them, nor does he hunt or eat wild animals. He keeps hives and hives of great fierce bees, and lives most on cream and honey. As a bear he ranges far and wide. Gandalf once saw him sitting all alone on the top of the Carrock at night watching the moon sinking towards the Misty Mountains, and heard him growl in the tongue of bears: "The day will come when they will perish and I shall go back!" This leads Gandalf to believe he once came from the mountains himself.
Role as Host and Guide
When Gandalf leads Thorin and Company to Beorn's house after their escape from the Misty Mountains, Beorn is initially gruff and suspicious. He has never heard of Gandalf, though he knows of the wizard's cousin Radagast. He is not over fond of dwarves, but after hearing the full tale of their adventures—including the killing of the Great Goblin—he becomes interested and eventually offers them hospitality. His hall is served by wonderful animals: four beautiful white ponies and several large long-bodied grey dogs that carry torches, set tables, and bring food. Snow-white sheep led by a large coal-black ram bear trays with bowls and platters. Beorn provides the company with ponies for their journey to the forest, and lades them with food to last them for weeks: nuts, flour, sealed jars of dried fruits, red earthenware pots of honey, and twice-baked cakes that keep good a long time. He also gives them bows and arrows, and warns them of the dangers of Mirkwood, particularly the enchanted black stream that crosses the path, which they must neither drink from nor bathe in, and the absolute necessity of not straying from the path. He advises them to take a northern route to the forest, as the goblins will not dare to cross the Great River for a hundred miles north of the Carrock nor to come near his house, which is well protected at night.
The Bear's Vigil
After the company leaves Beorn's house, Bilbo Baggins notices each night after dark a great bear prowling along in the same direction or sitting far off in the moon watching their camps. Gandalf tells him to take no notice, and later explains that Beorn has been following them not only to guard and guide them, but also to keep an eye on the ponies he lent them. Beorn loves his animals as his children, and the wizard notes that the company does not guess what kindness he has shown in letting dwarves ride them so far and so fast. When Gandalf investigates the area around Beorn's house after their departure, he finds bear-tracks of various sizes—little bears, large bears, ordinary bears, and gigantic big bears—all dancing outside from dark to nearly dawn, coming from almost every direction except from the west over the river from the Mountains. In that direction only one set of footprints leads, going away from the house, which Gandalf follows as far as the Carrock, where they disappear into the river.
Intervention in the Battle of Five Armies
Beorn's most dramatic appearance comes at the climax of the Battle of Five Armies. When the goblins and Wargs have the forces of elves, men, and dwarves surrounded and hard-pressed, Beorn himself appears—no one knows how or from where. He comes alone, and in bear's shape, and seems to have grown almost to giant-size in his wrath. The roar of his voice is like drums and guns; he tosses wolves and goblins from his path like straws and feathers. He falls upon the goblin rear and breaks like a clap of thunder through the ring. He stoops and lifts Thorin Oakenshield, who has fallen pierced with spears, and bears him out of the fray. Swiftly he returns, his wrath redoubled, so that nothing can withstand him and no weapon seems to bite upon him. He scatters the bodyguard of Bolg, pulls down Bolg himself, and crushes him. This act causes dismay to fall on the goblins, who flee in all directions, and the battle is won.
Legacy and Significance
After the battle, Beorn travels with Gandalf and Bilbo part of the way back towards the West. He becomes a great chief afterwards in those regions, ruling a wide land between the mountains and the wood. It is said that for many generations the men of his line had the power of taking bear's shape, and some were grim men and bad, but most were in heart like Beorn, if less in size and strength. In their day the last goblins were hunted from the Misty Mountains and a new peace came over the edge of the Wild. Beorn's dual nature—both fierce and kind, solitary yet capable of great generosity—embodies the wild, untamed power of the lands beyond the civilized Shire, and his aid proves indispensable to the success of the quest and the restoration of peace in the North.
