The Lore of the Rings Pt. 1
The Lore of the Rings
Lord of the rings: A DnD campaign in the perspective of the NPC (non player character)
The journey to Morodor. A reversed quest of Frodo Baggins’s quest to destroy the one weapon to rule over middle earth. Is Tolkein’s work an allegory for humanities quest to find a weapon that can decimate everyone who crosses their path? Perhaps the saga of quests and its allegorical themes are overtly religious. However y’all categorize The Lord of the Rings, this is MY Podcast and im problematic Paul so everything I say for the next 40-70 minutes will be the law of the land:
Hear Ye, Hear Ye:
Problematic Philosophies will contain spoilers for the Lord of the Rings books and movies. Problematic Philosophies does cover adult themes and material (from time to time), As well as problematic profanity, Silly Satire, and Crude Humor
If you’re a wee lad that has subjected to tending the small crumbs of land that the noble knight has awarded you, you lowly social ranked peasant with who may be influenced to form an alliance with the serfs and freemen to overthrow the duke of the land which probably should’ve happened in the cinematic American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 fairy tale picture book of the same name by William Steig, Directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson in their directorial debuts, starring Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz and John Lithgow. Fun fact about this immaculate art piece: Some artists Dreamworks used for the animated film “The Prince of Egypt” would be sent to work on Shrek as a punishment and as a way to shun them from what they thought would be the highest grossing animated film in history. It so turns out that Shrek grossed a worldwide total of $484.4 Million dollars on ticket sales alone so that’s not including merchandise, eggos, toys, cult attributions, sacrificial paraphernalia, and other satanic Shrek seducing and summoning acoutrama.
"No careful reader of Tolkien's fiction can fail to be aware of the polarities that give it form and fiction," writes Verlyn Flieger. Tolkien's extensive use of duality and parallelism, contrast and opposition is found throughout the novel, in pairings such as hope and despair, knowledge and enlightenment, death and immortality, fate and free will, good and evil”.
Themes and Main Ideas
Symbols
The Ring
The ring is the center of the trilogy, and it gains multiple, changeable meanings as Frodo’s journey proceeds. Created by the evil Sauron, it is at first synonymous with its maker’s evil power. Those who encounter the ring are overcome with longing for power over others, and the ring could give more power to Sauron. For all, the ring suggests the dangerous urges that lurk even in the most pure-hearted beings of Middle-earth. It also suggests slavery and weakness, since whoever gives in to the temptation of the ring becomes a slave to it. Gollum is an example of what happens physically when one succumbs to the ring. Man, too, is weak, and Isildur failed to destroy the ring in Mordor. The fact that weakness affects every race of Middle-earth shows the extent of the ring’s power.
As the trilogy proceeds, new symbols emerge to counteract the temptation of the ring. The sword Anduril suggests good and unity, rather than evil and disunity. When Elrond presents the sword to Aragorn, he says that the fate of Arwen has been linked to the fate of the ring: as the ring grows stronger, she grows weaker. Arwen, therefore, serves as a kind of symbol herself, the very opposite of Sauron: the anti-ring, the symbol of hope and good.
Mount Doom
Mount Doom is both the birthplace of the ring and the place where it can be destroyed. This is Frodo’s ultimate destination, and it also presents him with his greatest challenge. Destroying the ring is in many ways more difficult than reaching Mount Doom, and twice we see characters fail when faced with the task. Isildur, after defeating Sauron’s armies, enters the fiery mountain intending to destroy the ring, but at the last moment he turns back and decides to keep it for himself. When Frodo brings the ring to Mount Doom, he, too, intends to destroy it, but like Isildur, he decides at the last minute to keep it. Though the ring is ultimately destroyed after Frodo and Gollum’s struggle for it, Frodo did not let it go on his own. Though he passes many tests on his journey, Frodo fails in this final test at Mount Doom. Mount Doom in this case suggests the darkness and weakness that exists even in the most pure-hearted, a lure so powerful that even the most determined voyager needs additional help to resist temptation. Mount Doom also marks the furthest Frodo gets from the security and familiarity of the Shire. He is as out of place at Mount Doom as the ring was in the Shire, and this is the place where Frodo comes closest to actually giving himself over to evil.---Themes
The King vs. the Steward
At the beginning of The Lord of the Rings, Middle-earth is weak and disunited, with little trust existing among the various races. Dissension plagues the different human kingdoms, and one of the main problems is that the true leaders are not in their rightful positions. In The Return of the King, Théoden of Rohan proves himself to be a good, noble leader when he heeds Gondor’s cry for help, but he was not always so effective. For a while, a spell cast by Sauron incapacitated him, and his kingdom was effectively ruled by the evil wizard Saruman. Even after Théoden’s strength is restored, he is incapable of uniting all humanity. Only the king of Gondor can do that.
Until the conclusion of the trilogy, Gondor is without a king. The throne is instead occupied by the steward Denethor, a weak-willed man who seems to be losing his mind. The perilous state of Denethor’s sanity suggests the weakness of Gondor when it is ruled by a steward rather than a king. Boromir, Denethor’s son and heir to the stewardship, also displays considerable moral weakness when he attempts to steal the ring from Frodo. Aragorn, the true heir to the throne and the future king of Gondor, is able to resist the temptation of the ring. Just as Saruman had to be cast out of Rohan to restore that kingdom to strength, the real king of Gondor must assume his throne for that kingdom to thrive. Throughout the trilogy, this tension between true leader and acting leader means the difference between life and death, success and defeat, and unity and dissent among the people of Middle-earth.
Love and Death
The Tolkien scholar Richard C. West notes the resemblance between Arwen and Lúthien, and analyses Arwen's understanding of her fateful choice, between love for Aragorn and mortality on the one hand, and her father's wishes and immortality on the other. Tolkien weaves this tale into the main story as Aragorn yearns for Arwen despite her conundrum of choosing a life with him with inevitable death looming over her.
The scholar of English literature Anna Vaninskaya studies "The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen" to see how Tolkien uses fantasy to examine the issues of love and death, time and immortality. Given that Tolkien's Elves are immortal, they face the question of death from a unique vantage-point. Sarah Workman writes that in the tale, Arwen's mourning of Aragorn serves to overcome what Peter Brooks called (she writes) the "meaningless", interminable nature of immortality. Workman quotes Brooks's statement that "all narration is obituary" and states that it is in that conception that Tolkien valued Arwen's fate: it is Arwen's "mourning gaze that allows for the transmission of Aragorn's memory", or in Tolkien's words which she quotes, "And long there he lay, an image of the splendour of the Kings of Men in glory undimmed"
The political philosopher Germaine Paulo Walsh compares Tolkien's view that "the ability to exercise wise judgment is tied to a steadfast belief in the ultimate justice of the cosmos, even in the face of circumstances that seem hopeless" with the attitudes towards death in Ancient Greece. He writes that Plato stated that Homer took Achilles as the model for death, the "only sound response" being despair, whereas Tolkien's model is Aragorn, who chooses death freely according to the "ancient prerogative of the Númenórean rulers"; when Arwen pleads with him to hold off, he "concedes that death is a cause for 'sorrow' but not for 'despair'."
Death surrounds the disciples of the ring and has ravished Middle-Earth long before the humble Hobbits of the shire began their journey into Morodor. Yet, the philosophy of death was never tied to the philosophies of heroism nor was it seen as an existential conundrum that would manifest across the land as its everlasting effects plagued every crevice of civilization, even such a peaceful community such as the shire.
The Limits of Fellowship
Though the fellowship is integral to the success of Frodo’s mission, it cannot make the entire journey with Frodo or help him at the journey’s end. The fellowship serves as a kind of backup for Frodo, keeping enemies at bay and Middle-earth as calm as possible so he can fulfill his mission. Frodo must ultimately make the journey with only the company of Sam. The entire fellowship is committed to Frodo’s success, but their roles are ultimately limited by the nature of the task at hand. The journey is such that only the two small hobbits are capable of making it successfully.
The nature of the ring itself puts its own limits on fellowship. The ring is a heavy burden for whoever carries it, and it forces its bearer into tremendous isolation. Gollum was a victim of the ring, and his peaceful life as a hobbit ended when he gave in to its temptation. He retreated into a cave and became isolated from the world. The ring isolates Frodo, too, even though Sam accompanies him. While the entire fellowship is in great danger, only Frodo is haunted by visions of Mordor and Sauron. He is unable to share this torment with the others, so it becomes the very basis of his isolation. At the end of The Fellowship of the Ring, Galadriel tells Frodo that bearing the ring is a solitary task, prompting him to leave the others. Though Sam refuses to leave Frodo alone and gives him much comfort, he remains blind to his friend’s inner torment. Even after the ring is destroyed, Frodo remains isolated. He is unable to readjust to life in the Shire and eventually leaves the other hobbits behind. His experience as ring-bearer has permanently isolated him from his peers.
The Shire As a Fantasy of Home
At the very start of their journey, Sam notes to Frodo that they have just passed the spot that marks the farthest he’s ever before been from home, the first of many thoughts the hobbits will have about home and their distance from it. Nostalgia for home, even to the point of homesickness, plagues Frodo and Sam throughout their journey, and Sam speaks of it most often. When Sam and Frodo travel to Mordor, Frodo’s intense focus on the journey to Mount Doom is balanced by Sam’s focus on the return journey. The Shire is a lush, happy place untouched by the tumult disturbing much of Middle-earth and, compared to the rocky, dangerous terrain Frodo and Sam face on their journey, seems for them a kind of paradise. However, their talk of returning to the Shire is rooted in more than the physical Shire itself. The Shire suggests a childlike innocence, which the hobbits left behind with the very first step of their journey. It also suggests a different kind of life, where hobbits live simply, unworried, and free from war, greed, evil, death, and all the other vices and hardships that complicate life in much of Middle-earth. In Frodo’s and Sam’s memories, the Shire becomes a sort of Eden, where life was perfect and could be perfect again, if they can only get back. The thought of returning animates them and gives them strength in their darkest moments.
The paradise of the Shire, however, is an illusion. Though the Shire remains lush and the hobbits who live there remain happy and joyful, especially when Frodo and Sam return, the innocence and ignorance Frodo and Sam once enjoyed in the Shire are gone forever. They have seen and experienced too much, and they have become adults now, with many painful memories. Though Sam adapts to his new status in the Shire and thrives in the happiness it offers, Frodo cannot regain a sense of equilibrium even being back at home. Returning to the Shire had seemed to promise the end of fear and worry, but Frodo must journey on.
The Nazgûl
Black Breath, Dark Riders, Black Riders.
From Black Speech nazg, “ring” and gûl, “wraith, spirit”, were introduced to the world of Tolkien as Black Riders and also called ringwraths, Dark Riders, the Nine Riders, or simply The Nine, and are tied to Middle-Earth. They were originally the nine men who had succumbed to Sauron’s power through wearing Rings of Power, which gave them immortality but reduced them to invisible wraiths, servants bound to the power of the one ring and completely under Sauron’s control. Their aesthetic matches the of the grim reaper or a gothic knight who has been cast out by their betrayed kingdom. The Dark Lord Sauron gave nine of the Rings of Power to powerful mortal men, including three lords of the once-powerful realm of Numenor and kins of other countries.
Few of the Nazgul are named or identified individually in Tolkien’s works. Their chief, also known as the Lord of the Nazgul and the Black Captain, appears as the Witch-Ling of Angmar during the Third Age, instrumental in the destruction of the North-kingdom of Arnor.
Motifs
Motifs are any recurring element that has symbolic significance in a story. Through its repetition, a motif can help produce other narrative (or literary) aspects such as theme or mood. Consider the timeless space-opera known as “Star Wars” and how the classic molding of a saving grace and “hero” is thrown into a complex battle of Good vs Evil. The explorative story and adventure invites classic character tropes, sidekicks, and the subjective nature of defining evil, redemption, and the concept of war.
A narrative motif can be created through the use of imagery, structural components, language, and other elements throughout literature.
In the American science fiction cult classic Blade Runner, director Ridley Scott uses motifs to not only establish a dark and shadowy film noir atmosphere,[4] but also to weave together the thematic complexities of the plot. Throughout the film, the recurring motif of "eyes" is connected to a constantly changing flow of images, and sometimes violent manipulations, in order to call into question our ability, and the narrator's own, to accurately perceive and understand reality.
Alright so now that I’ve rambled on about Motifs let’s get into the nitty-Gritty as we take our hairy hobbit feetsies on a journey into:
Mordor
Frodo and Sam’s destination is Mordor, specifically the volcanic Mount Doom, in which they intend to destroy the ring of power. Though their journey is hard, their destination is almost always in sight, at the edge of the horizon. However, actually reaching Mordor proves to be extremely difficult. The hobbits frequently find themselves going in circles. When they finally arrive at Mordor, Faramir captures them and brings them back to Osgiliath. Later, Gollum leads them back to the gates of Mordor, only to propose a different way in. Sam and Frodo seem to be always on their way to Mordor, but they never quite arrive. Mordor is the place that drives their every action and the goal they hold above all else. The closer they get, the further off Mordor seems, and their journey takes on epic proportions, outlasting two tremendous battles.
The journey to Mordor is fraught with setbacks not only because Mordor is located in difficult terrain and guarded by dangerous monsters, but also because this journey represents another journey, a spiritual quest that Frodo, as well as Sam and other characters, must undertake. This journey takes Frodo to a private Mordor, the dark core of his soul, where even his pure heart is no match for the temptations of the ring. The many delays in the journey to the actual Mordor suggest the many trials and tribulations Frodo must face in confronting his internal Mordor. The hobbits eventually reach Mordor, and Frodo faces his inner darkness. Though he returns to the Shire, the Mordor he’s seen within himself precludes his journey coming to a completely peaceful end.
The Temptation of the Ring
The temptation of the ring is the motivating force behind every action in The Lord of the Rings, whether characters are fighting the temptation, nurturing it, denying it, or preventing someone else from giving in to it. Characters of every race pursue the ring. The ringwraiths and Sauron seek it constantly. Gollum attacks Frodo several times to try to take it from him. The sons of Denethor, Boromir and Faramir, both try to take it from Frodo. The ring tempts Gandalf and Galadriel, each of them drawn to the thought of the immense power it could give them. Even pure-hearted Sam briefly wonders how it would be to possess the ring. No one, apparently, is immune to its temptation, and Frodo is no exception. Though he is chosen as ring-bearer because he is most resistant to the ring’s lure, Frodo must constantly fight his desire for it. He is sometimes tempted to hand it over to his more powerful friends, while at other times he wants to keep it for himself. When he finally arrives at Mount Doom, Frodo elects to keep the ring, despite the tremendous anguish it has caused him. At no other moment in the trilogy is Frodo more tempted by the ring’s power. Frodo gives up the ring only because Gollum appears and fights him for it, a fight that leads to its destruction. The ring that has possessed so many and that has served as a kind of connective tissue among all the races of Middle-earth is ultimately destroyed by its own power.
Journeys
The Lord of the Rings is a trilogy about a journey, but this large journey consists of many smaller journeys that advance the greater one. Individuals and groups are constantly setting off for someplace, to pursue a goal of their own, rescue someone, or escape. Merry and Pippin engage in an unintentional journey when they join forces with Frodo and Sam early in The Fellowship of the Ring. Aragorn takes many dramatic journeys across Middle-earth on his horse, a Lone-Ranger-type figure taking the brave and necessary steps to save his people. Gollum journeys with Frodo and Sam and also within his own conflicted soul. The elves journey to their land of immortality, though Arwen elects to remain behind—her own journey will be one that leads her to Aragorn and a mortal life. The last time we see Frodo in The Return of the King, he is embarking on yet another journey, this time with the elves, to pursue his next adventure. A constant feeling of movement stretches through all three films, and, though the destinations are always clear, the journeys often seem to have no end in sight.
Mount Doom Trailer script
It was a fellowship
That became a -secret- journey
There are place we can’t return
Only Aragorn, rightful king of gondor, can return like he did in the 2003 ‘Return of the King” like it’s literally in the title
An intimate intertwining of two hairy hobbit toes -gags-
There are lies we have to tell
There are truths we can’t deny
-one can’t simply clip- well they both literally did it? You got shot by an orc dawg and literally got beheaded in the first season of game of thrones, shut the fuck up
From academy award-winning director Peter Jackson and based on the book series by J.R.R. Tolkien
Elijah Woods as Frodo Baggins
Ian McKellen as Gandalf the Grey
Sean Astin as Samwise Gambee
Liv Tyler as Arwen Undomiel
And Andy Serkis as the hobbit cuck I mean Gollum
Mount Doom
Citations
The Lord of the Rings (film series). (2020, October 06). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings_(film_series)#Production
Spark Notes. Lord of the rings. “Motifs”. https://www.sparknotes.com/film/lordoftherings/motifs/ (accessed Oct 4, 2020)
Hobby Lark fandom. JARROD1240. ‘Christian Symbols and Christ Figures in ‘The Lord of the Rings’. https://hobbylark.com/fandoms/The-Lord-of-the-Rings-and-Christian-Symbolism (accessed Oct 4, 2020)
Joseph Pearce. The imaginative conservative. ‘Is ‘The Lord of the Rings’ an Allegory?’. https://theimaginativeconservative.org/2016/05/lord-of-the-rings-allegory.html (accessed Oct 4, 2020)
