Beowulf’s main defense is strength and Bilbo’s is anything he can get. Beowulf defeats his enemies using only his strength. In his battle with Grendel, for example, Beowulf rips off the monster’s arm forcing Grendel to run away and die. He has a similar experience with Grendel’s mother after her skin shattered the sword he brought with him. Bilbo on the other hand does not have that same ability to fight in battle and does not even try until his encounters with the unearthly enormous spiders in Mirkwood. In order to win his battle with Gollum, he uses riddles and wit to succeed and never lays a finger on the creature. Bilbo was never intended to be a soldier. Even when the dwarves signed him onto their mission, he was known as a burglar
