Most readers meet Elrond as an Elf-lord. That is how he feels from the moment the story enters Rivendell. He is wise, ancient, grave, and beautiful in the way of the Elder People. His house is filled with song and memory. His words carry the weight of ages. He remembers the Elder Days, the fall … Read more
Saruman’s betrayal is often treated as a simple turn to evil. He was proud.He wanted power.He joined Sauron.He was destroyed. That summary is not wrong, but it is too small. Because Saruman was not an ignorant servant of darkness. He was not deceived in the same way as a frightened Man of the East or … Read more
Bilbo Baggins and Frodo Baggins are two of the most important hobbits in the history of Middle-earth. They are both Ring-bearers. They both live at Bag End. They both step far outside the ordinary life of the Shire. And neither of them ever marries. At first, this seems like a small detail. The story is … Read more
When the Fellowship enters Lothlórien, it does so in grief. They have escaped Moria, but not whole. Gandalf has fallen from the Bridge of Khazad-dûm. The Company that left Rivendell as nine now walks beneath the golden trees as eight. And in Lórien, one of the wisest beings still remaining in Middle-earth receives them. This … Read more
Most people have heard the claim: Samwise Gamgee is the true hero of The Lord of the Rings. It sounds simple. Almost too simple. Frodo carries the Ring. Aragorn returns as king. Gandalf guides the free peoples. Éowyn faces the Witch-king. Gollum, by a strange turn of pity and ruin, becomes essential at the end. … Read more
At the end of The Lord of the Rings, Frodo Baggins reaches the place where the One Ring can finally be destroyed. Not Rivendell.Not Minas Tirith.Not some battlefield where kings and captains decide the fate of the world. A dark chamber inside Orodruin. The Sammath Naur. The Chambers of Fire. This is the place where … Read more
Near the end of the War of the Ring, Sauron makes a mistake so enormous that it destroys him. He looks in the wrong direction. While Frodo and Sam are moving through Mordor with the One Ring, Sauron’s attention is drawn outward—toward Aragorn, toward the Captains of the West, and toward the small army marching … Read more
It seems like the obvious question. If Gandalf was powerful enough to face the Balrog in Moria, if he was one of the Wise, if he understood ancient powers better than almost anyone else in Middle-earth, then why did he not simply go to the Lonely Mountain and fight Smaug himself? Why send thirteen Dwarves … Read more
At first glance, Aragorn’s reaction at the doors of Meduseld can seem surprisingly sharp. He has come to Edoras with Gandalf, Legolas, and Gimli to speak with Théoden, King of Rohan. The land is in danger. Saruman’s power is rising. Rohan itself is sick with fear and bad counsel. This should be a moment for … Read more
At first glance, Aragorn’s life seems almost impossible to explain. He is the heir of Isildur.He is descended from the kings of old.He carries the bloodline that links him to both Arnor in the North and Gondor in the South. And yet when we first meet him, he is not sitting in a white tower. … Read more