![]() ![]() Even Sam Gamgee, when bearing the Ring for a short time, felt the Ring begin to corrupt his will: There is no shortage of such quotes from Bilbo, Frodo, Gandalf, and others to further illustrate the Ring as a representation of sin. “I am naked in the dark, Sam, and there is no veil between me and the wheel of fire.” Frodo to Sam in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Sort of stretched, like… butter scraped over too much bread.” Bilbo Baggins to Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ringįrodo also is witness to the binding power of the Ring (sin) to its creator (Satan): I know I don’t look it, but I’m beginning to feel it in my heart. Bilbo is a witness to the sapping effects of bearing the Ring, well-describing the effects on us when we bear our sins without reconciliation: He even developed an alter ego reminiscent of the “evil angel on the shoulder” trope, that engages in psychological battle with the “good” Smeagol. In fact, through Smeagol’s transformation into Gollum, he developed many traits symbolic of emptying out the good in him, such as his aversion to the sunlight and the creations of elves (e.g. ![]() Likewise, Gollum lived long through his possession of the Ring but only thinly. The nine ring wraiths began as mortal men, but because they had traded their loyalties for the nine rings of power given to them by Sauron in deceit, they succumbed to his power and waned into the ethereal figures witnessed in The Lord of the Rings. On the contrary, his vitality likely only aided his power and abilities. For example, I wouldn’t describe Alexander the Great, the most powerful ruler of his time, as lacking vitality. Hence, the characterization of the Fall of Man in Genesis is in the eating of an apple, an innocuous thing in itself.Īs further evidence, Tolkien described one ill effect of bearing the Ring or its subordinate rings of power (such as those gifted to the nine kings of men) as a sapping of vitality, something that is a result of sin, but not of simply wielding power. Likewise, sin is tempting and veils its hideousness behind false beauty or innocence. The creation of Sauron calls to everyone that lays eyes upon it: it tempts them. Neither hobbit, nor elf, nor especially man can resist the Ring’s spellbinding nature. The Ring has a draw to it – an allure – that is characterized as unescapable by Tolkien. However, I believe Tolkien saw the Ring as much more than simply a powerful trinket and an explicit symbol of power over the world. The case for the Ring as an object of power is well established. Galadriel recognized that, if she were to take the Ring as offered by Frodo, she would have unlimited power with which to rule Middle Earth. Boromir understood the Ring to be a powerful tool, and wished to wield this power for the good of Gondor against Mordor. The Ring gave Sauron nearly unstoppable strength in battle and control over those bound by his lesser rings of power. It is, after all, called explicitly the “Ring of Power”. The Ring is well-known as a symbol of power. ![]() Missed Part II? See it here: Part II: The Good in Middle Earth 1. This Part III covers the darker aspects of Middle Earth and their connections to Christian concepts of evil. Game of Thrones.The Lord of the Rings is full of Christian symbolism, ranging from the Threefold Office of priest, prophet, and king represented by Frodo, Gandalf, and Aragorn (respectively) as covered in Part I to the slew of “good guys” representing various Christian aspects and relationships as covered in Part II of this series. We'll just have to leave a dark, depressing tale of Lord of the Rings scale to our imaginations. But what about that depressed Tolkien so much? Since he never finished it, we'll never get an answer to that question. However, Tolkien never got past a few pages of the story, claiming it was "too depressing." But why? What about the story depressed Tolkien more than, say, the tale of Denethor or of Gollum, both sad stories that Tolkien seemed fine with completing?Īccording to the Tolkien Gateway, there would have been a conspiracy revolving around a "secret Satanic religion," and that the story would have been a "thriller" following that. It was supposed to be called The New Shadow. Tolkien began a story set a few hundred years after the end of Return of the King. After completing Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. ![]()
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