tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5746173806126403959.post930075741996730959..comments2023-11-07T06:20:12.181-08:00Comments on Tolkien: Medieval and Modern: The Ring and the Shadow"Tolkien: Medieval and Modern"http://www.blogger.com/profile/04348913969813157482noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5746173806126403959.post-90416074964597439832014-06-06T21:00:50.700-07:002014-06-06T21:00:50.700-07:00Hey Morgane,
I like your analysis of the different...Hey Morgane,<br />I like your analysis of the different types of evil that we see in Tolkien's works, and it's good to see it all laid out even if we didn't get to it in class.<br />With regards to exactly the behavior of the Ring, I wouldn't be surprised if it simply brought out the shadow and gave it dominion over the soul of the bearer through psychological temptation. This definitely gives us a hint as to what is to be done about the shadow. Sam's rather unique ability to resist evil is easily attributable to him not only being in harmony with his shadow but also simply knowing it and what it desires. The Ring tempted him with visions of grandeur that seems almost comical because we, along with Sam, already know his shadow desires, and we realize that Sam couldn't be tempted with such things.<br />But, I think there would be ways to tempt Sam that the Ring might ultimately "figure out" as Sam bore the Ring. Perhaps Sam could be tricked into behaving in a certain way in order to serve Frodo that instead led him down the path of evil. Indeed the Ring would have to be much more clever with tempting Sam-- he doesn't exactly fit a one-size-fits-all doctrine of world domination that the Ring seems to "believe" always works.<br />This issue of the shadow and its relation to the Ring is certainly very interesting and merits further examination.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11374516897759866378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5746173806126403959.post-51519494903926199252014-06-04T09:32:47.025-07:002014-06-04T09:32:47.025-07:00I really liked your point that it is necessary to ...I really liked your point that it is necessary to merge one’s free will with the shadow to resist evil, which is certainly echoed in The Lord of the Rings when Galadriel tells Frodo explicitly that the rings gives power according to the measure of its bearer. This could be interpreted as power, or, as in this case, it could mean an inner desire. Also, as you point out, this makes Sam an excellent ring bearer. In fact the only other individual whose shadow and will seem to be one is Tom Bombadil, but then this seems to imply that in order to resist evil you either have to be Tom Bombadil or not set your sights too high in life. This might be why there is a parallel between improper worship and evil, to answer the question of dyingst. <br /><br />Perhaps improper worship is the result of being too fearful or ambitious to be satisfied with proper worship and therefore one seeks another means to overcome one’s shadow. As you mention, the Numenorians were dissatisfied with their predicament of mortality and therefore turned to Melkor worship when Sauron claimed he could offer them an escape from death. Perhaps the only way to overcome evil is to them emulate the example of Tom Bombadil and be happy with everything. <br /><br />-AKL<br />"Tolkien: Medieval and Modern"https://www.blogger.com/profile/04348913969813157482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5746173806126403959.post-28640935944482522352014-05-12T14:07:37.151-07:002014-05-12T14:07:37.151-07:00These are some very astute observations, and I thi...These are some very astute observations, and I think it would be profitable to think more on how the two core insights, regarding improper worship and our shadows, might be related. Why is it that mastering our own shadows, reconciling it with our rational wills, allows us to avoid the temptation of false worship? What's the link between being whole, and proper worship?<br /><br />Two additional brief notes, I think the idea of the ring as in some sense embodying Sauron's shadow is very compelling. It helps account for how the ring seems to have an agency throughout, perhaps even why that agency seems at times to be opposed to Sauron himself. Finally, it's very interesting that Tolkien's notion of evil seems to reduce to a violation of the first commandment, I'm not quite certain what to do with this, but I'm sure there's additional room for exploration there. dyingsthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02087241514388178221noreply@blogger.com