Frodo's fate
I still remember the first time I read Lord of the Rings. I was completely absorbed by the story but after I had finished it, I was depressed for weeks. My depression was mainly caused by how I felt about Frodo’s fate: SO VERY UNFAIR!!
I was still young and expected a happy ending. On reading the story again (many times), I have come to understand why Frodo had to go into the West. But that first feeling of depression has lingered. One of the reasons is probably that I was ill prepared for the way Tolkien ended his story. In the context of the mythology of the Red Book, Frodo is largely taken out of the equation after the Ring has gone, because Sam has become the narrator. That made it difficult for me to understand how Frodo must have felt.
Much to my surprise, the films helped to fill this gap. I could finally SEE how Frodo felt. Ever since I came to Live Journal I have wanted to document what I saw of Frodo’s feelings. And this is the first in a series of posts in which I want to share my impressions.
Frodo from the Cracks of Doom
to the Grey Havens
Part 1: Lost Soul
Frodo at the Crack of Doom
The first film scene that added to my understanding of Frodo’s feelings is where he is trying to throw the Ring into the Crack of Doom. In the book, all we read is what Sam hears when Frodo has just lost his battle with The Ring and claims It for his own:
“I have come, but I do not choose now to do what I came to do. I will not do this deed. The Ring is mine!”
The film scene shows in painful detail how Frodo fights his desperate battle with The Ring, how he loses that battle and how that costs him his soul. For me, it is the most powerful scene of the whole Trilogy.
Every time I see this scene I am reminded of an anecdote about what happened on set after they had finished shooting. I believe it was Peter Jackson who told us in the EE commentaries that the crew gave Elijah a big hand when they were done, a thing that doesn’t happen very often. I can only add my own applause to theirs.
I was still young and expected a happy ending. On reading the story again (many times), I have come to understand why Frodo had to go into the West. But that first feeling of depression has lingered. One of the reasons is probably that I was ill prepared for the way Tolkien ended his story. In the context of the mythology of the Red Book, Frodo is largely taken out of the equation after the Ring has gone, because Sam has become the narrator. That made it difficult for me to understand how Frodo must have felt.
Much to my surprise, the films helped to fill this gap. I could finally SEE how Frodo felt. Ever since I came to Live Journal I have wanted to document what I saw of Frodo’s feelings. And this is the first in a series of posts in which I want to share my impressions.
Frodo from the Cracks of Doom
to the Grey Havens
Part 1: Lost Soul
Frodo at the Crack of Doom
The first film scene that added to my understanding of Frodo’s feelings is where he is trying to throw the Ring into the Crack of Doom. In the book, all we read is what Sam hears when Frodo has just lost his battle with The Ring and claims It for his own:
“I have come, but I do not choose now to do what I came to do. I will not do this deed. The Ring is mine!”
The film scene shows in painful detail how Frodo fights his desperate battle with The Ring, how he loses that battle and how that costs him his soul. For me, it is the most powerful scene of the whole Trilogy.
Every time I see this scene I am reminded of an anecdote about what happened on set after they had finished shooting. I believe it was Peter Jackson who told us in the EE commentaries that the crew gave Elijah a big hand when they were done, a thing that doesn’t happen very often. I can only add my own applause to theirs.