Post by Stormrider on Jan 25, 2009 10:59:19 GMT -6
From: Algamesh_of_Arnor (Original Message) Sent: 3/15/2003 3:26 AM
I'd like to take a moment to discuss a part of the book that has always confused me a bit. As Frodo, Sam and Gollum are attempting to sneak past Minas Morgul, the Witch-King appears and something peculiar occurs.
To set this discussion up, I would like to recall that Frodo's desire to wear the One Ring has increased with time and his closer proximity to Mordor. The burden has also greatly increased ... coinciding with his "addiction". This is why the following passage seems strange to me ...
Frodo waited, like a bird at the approach of a snake, unable to move. And as he waited, he felt, more urgent than ever before, the command that he should put on the Ring. But great as the pressure was, he felt no inclination now to yield to it. He knew that the Ring would only betray him, and that he had not, even if he put it on, the power to face the Morgul-king --- not yet.
Would someone care to take a stab at this and reveal the source of his newly found strength of Will? Also, I might add that if wisdom is suggested, I will counter with the last statement in the above passage ("not yet").
* * *
From: Alaere_Dûnhilien Sent: 3/19/2003 9:53 AM
Okay, I shall give it a try here. It is mentioned that he felt the urge, the command, to put on the ring. This pressure comes not from Frodo, but from the outside, from the Evil forces surrounding him. I think, at this particular moment, Frodo is strong enough to see through the lure of the Ring, and therefore has the strength to not give in to it. Elrond himself was surprised that one so small had yet managed to come so far, still bearing the Ring. It is the nature of Hobbits that probably gives him this strenght. Their simplicity maybe. Real Evil is always plotting and scheming, and maybe it just cannot compete with good old simplicity (too simple for the complicated ways of Evil). A little bit further, he grabs on to the Phial Galadriel has given him, and that makes him forget the Ring for a little while. His own will makes him touch something Good, and that is enough to defeat the pressure at that time. Very simple solution, isn't it? Like an amulet that protects you against bad magic or something.
Alaere
* * *
From: Storrmrider Sent: 3/19/2003 11:49 AM
That small comment at the end of this passage "not yet" is frightening. Was this something deep down inside of Frodo triggered by his possession of the Ring (whether he had it on or around his neck) that someday he might try to challenge the Morgul-king (and eventually Sauron) after he grew strong enough? Perhaps anyone possessing the Ring would have this thought "planted" in their mind! It may be the way the Ring works on whatever Master controls it at the time.
Stormrider
I'd like to take a moment to discuss a part of the book that has always confused me a bit. As Frodo, Sam and Gollum are attempting to sneak past Minas Morgul, the Witch-King appears and something peculiar occurs.
To set this discussion up, I would like to recall that Frodo's desire to wear the One Ring has increased with time and his closer proximity to Mordor. The burden has also greatly increased ... coinciding with his "addiction". This is why the following passage seems strange to me ...
Frodo waited, like a bird at the approach of a snake, unable to move. And as he waited, he felt, more urgent than ever before, the command that he should put on the Ring. But great as the pressure was, he felt no inclination now to yield to it. He knew that the Ring would only betray him, and that he had not, even if he put it on, the power to face the Morgul-king --- not yet.
Would someone care to take a stab at this and reveal the source of his newly found strength of Will? Also, I might add that if wisdom is suggested, I will counter with the last statement in the above passage ("not yet").
* * *
From: Alaere_Dûnhilien Sent: 3/19/2003 9:53 AM
Okay, I shall give it a try here. It is mentioned that he felt the urge, the command, to put on the ring. This pressure comes not from Frodo, but from the outside, from the Evil forces surrounding him. I think, at this particular moment, Frodo is strong enough to see through the lure of the Ring, and therefore has the strength to not give in to it. Elrond himself was surprised that one so small had yet managed to come so far, still bearing the Ring. It is the nature of Hobbits that probably gives him this strenght. Their simplicity maybe. Real Evil is always plotting and scheming, and maybe it just cannot compete with good old simplicity (too simple for the complicated ways of Evil). A little bit further, he grabs on to the Phial Galadriel has given him, and that makes him forget the Ring for a little while. His own will makes him touch something Good, and that is enough to defeat the pressure at that time. Very simple solution, isn't it? Like an amulet that protects you against bad magic or something.
Alaere
* * *
From: Storrmrider Sent: 3/19/2003 11:49 AM
That small comment at the end of this passage "not yet" is frightening. Was this something deep down inside of Frodo triggered by his possession of the Ring (whether he had it on or around his neck) that someday he might try to challenge the Morgul-king (and eventually Sauron) after he grew strong enough? Perhaps anyone possessing the Ring would have this thought "planted" in their mind! It may be the way the Ring works on whatever Master controls it at the time.
Stormrider