The Goldfinch

by

Donna Tartt

James “Hobie” Hobart Character Analysis

Hobie is an antiques restorer who ran a business with Welty before Welty’s death. After Welty dies, Hobie takes care of both Pippa and Theo, though at different times both are removed from his custody due to the fact that they have no official familial connection to him. Hobie is an extremely kind, principled, and sensitive man. When Theo is with him, he feels like Hobie always knows the right thing to say and can almost read his thoughts. A highly skilled antiques restorer, Hobie’s one flaw is that he is overly trusting. This allows customers of the antiques business to take advantage of him by paying criminally low prices, and it allows Theo to deceive him by running a fraudulent scheme. Although Hobie is of course crushed when he learns about Theo’s deception, his fundamental kindness and moral purity encourages him to forgive Theo.

James “Hobie” Hobart Quotes in The Goldfinch

The The Goldfinch quotes below are all either spoken by James “Hobie” Hobart or refer to James “Hobie” Hobart. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
The Value of Art and Beauty Theme Icon
).
Part 1, Chapter 4 Quotes

I learned about veneers and gilding, what a mortise and tenon was, the difference between ebonized wood and true ebony, between Newport and Connecticut and Philadelphia crest rails, how the blocky design and close-cropped top of one Chippendale bureau rendered it inferior to another bracket-foot of the same vintage with its fluted quarter columns and what he liked to call the “exalted” proportions of the drawer ratio.

Related Characters: Theo Decker (speaker), James “Hobie” Hobart
Page Number: 170
Explanation and Analysis:

It would be much easier to explain to Hobie how I had happened to take the painting out of the museum in the first place. That it was a mistake, sort of. That I’d been following Welty’s instructions; that I’d had a concussion. That I hadn’t fully considered what I was doing. That I hadn’t meant to let it sit around so long. Yet in my homeless limbo, it seemed insane to step up and admit to what I knew a lot of people were going to view as very serious wrongdoing.

Related Characters: Theo Decker (speaker), James “Hobie” Hobart
Related Symbols: The Goldfinch
Page Number: 177
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 2, Chapter 5 Quotes

When we are sad—at least I am like this—it can be comforting to cling to familiar objects, to the things that don’t change.

Related Characters: James “Hobie” Hobart (speaker)
Page Number: 281
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 5, Chapter 12 Quotes

Where’s the nobility in patching up a bunch of old tables and chairs? Corrosive to the soul, quite possibly. I’ve seen too many estates not to know that. Idolatry! Caring too much for objects can destroy you. Only—if you care for a thing enough, it takes on a life of its own, doesn’t it? And isn’t the whole point of things—beautiful things—that they connect you to some larger beauty? Those first images that crack your heart wide open and you spend the rest of your life chasing, or trying to recapture, in one way or another?

Related Characters: James “Hobie” Hobart (speaker)
Page Number: 757
Explanation and Analysis:
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James “Hobie” Hobart Quotes in The Goldfinch

The The Goldfinch quotes below are all either spoken by James “Hobie” Hobart or refer to James “Hobie” Hobart. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
The Value of Art and Beauty Theme Icon
).
Part 1, Chapter 4 Quotes

I learned about veneers and gilding, what a mortise and tenon was, the difference between ebonized wood and true ebony, between Newport and Connecticut and Philadelphia crest rails, how the blocky design and close-cropped top of one Chippendale bureau rendered it inferior to another bracket-foot of the same vintage with its fluted quarter columns and what he liked to call the “exalted” proportions of the drawer ratio.

Related Characters: Theo Decker (speaker), James “Hobie” Hobart
Page Number: 170
Explanation and Analysis:

It would be much easier to explain to Hobie how I had happened to take the painting out of the museum in the first place. That it was a mistake, sort of. That I’d been following Welty’s instructions; that I’d had a concussion. That I hadn’t fully considered what I was doing. That I hadn’t meant to let it sit around so long. Yet in my homeless limbo, it seemed insane to step up and admit to what I knew a lot of people were going to view as very serious wrongdoing.

Related Characters: Theo Decker (speaker), James “Hobie” Hobart
Related Symbols: The Goldfinch
Page Number: 177
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 2, Chapter 5 Quotes

When we are sad—at least I am like this—it can be comforting to cling to familiar objects, to the things that don’t change.

Related Characters: James “Hobie” Hobart (speaker)
Page Number: 281
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 5, Chapter 12 Quotes

Where’s the nobility in patching up a bunch of old tables and chairs? Corrosive to the soul, quite possibly. I’ve seen too many estates not to know that. Idolatry! Caring too much for objects can destroy you. Only—if you care for a thing enough, it takes on a life of its own, doesn’t it? And isn’t the whole point of things—beautiful things—that they connect you to some larger beauty? Those first images that crack your heart wide open and you spend the rest of your life chasing, or trying to recapture, in one way or another?

Related Characters: James “Hobie” Hobart (speaker)
Page Number: 757
Explanation and Analysis: