Sam and Pippin: Sam is very deferential to everyone in the group-he never stops calling Frodo “Mr.” or “Master” even at the end-but he forgets with Pippin.Aside from that one, here are a few of my other favorite observations: I’m planning to revise and add to my nerdy analysis of Gandalf + Pippin (which is, in my opinion, the most fascinating relationship even among a novel full of great ones), so you may see that a little later. You can honestly pick essentially any two characters and find a laundry list of things to discuss about their relationship. For me, a sign of an excellent writer is the ability to shuffle characters around and create a plethora of different, interesting combinations… and Tolkien does that in spades. The dynamics between characters are really fascinating, so much so that when I finished reading the first time I wrote a series of (terrible) essays about them just because I wasn’t done with the characters even after a thousand pages. I love the characters in The Lord of the Rings. Take anyone out of the equation (even Saruman and Gollum, for all their evil, unintentionally help in their way), and Sauron wins. ![]() Literally the whole point is that there is no singular hero even those who at first glance seem unimportant are actually indispensable. As the saying goes, all heroes need a Sam. The story is exciting, fun, scary, sad, and more in all the right amounts.Īnyone who has spend any time talking or reading about The Lord of the Rings has probably heard “Sam is the real hero” or some sort of variant on that, and it really annoys me. The different characters all follow different paths-though they do overlap occasionally, both physically and thematically-that all weave together in dramatic and engaging ways. They meet allies and enemies and grapple both with moral ambiguity and moral absolutes. Some struggle to be allowed to do what they feel needs done. Some of them are forced to become warriors. Frodo’s quest starts out seeming fairly straightforward, but as he approaches his goal more and more complications come up, and his companions get scattered. Unsurprisingly considering that it is one of the most famous fantasy epics in existence, The Lord of the Rings is epic. I get that these were Tolkien’s primary interest, but I personally find it a bit disappointing because the actual story is so good. ![]() It is very, very hard to keep track of, and honestly since this was a reread I skimmed many of these songs and histories because they don’t particularly interest me and only peripherally inform the main story. Various characters-Aragorn and Bilbo are the worst offenders-sing very lengthy songs about the champions of old and this and that. Many characters and places have a dozen names each. Tolkien is very fond of lore and language and history and legend, and as a result The Lord of the Rings is full of them all. It is more than a thousand pages long, and not all those pages are easy to read. There’s no denying that reading The Lord of the Rings is a big commitment. Frodo’s journey across Middle-Earth to destroy the evil Ring-along with his companions Gandalf the wizard Gimli the Dwarf Legolas the elf fellow hobbits Sam, Merry, and Pippin and human men Aragorn and Boromir-is one of the foremost fantasy stories, and its influence can be seen in practically every story of its genre that comes after it. With the return of the vanquished Dark Lord Sauron threatening Middle-Earth, Frodo Baggins-nephew to Bilbo Baggins-is tasked with bearing the One Ring to Rule Them All to Mordor, Sauron’s stronghold. They’re not bad, and probably most people have already read LotR anyway, but in case you haven’t… heads up. Since it has been several years since I embarked on Frodo’s journey, I figured that now was as good a time as ever for a reread.īe aware that there are some minor spoilers in this review. ![]() I loved it, and I knew that I absolutely had to read the books/book (singular or plural apparently depending on whom you ask). ![]() Then, in the height of my Sherlock love, I saw The Hobbit in theatres and liked it so much that I spent the next three days watching the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy. Honestly, I didn’t much care for it then, but I gave it another shot as a teenager and liked it better. Tolkien’s Middle-Earth when I was a young kid and my mom read The Hobbit aloud to my sister and me.
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