Then came the revelation. Marino saw the rose ( Read more... )

Sam hopes for help from the Elves - not new help, but help through gifts already received: 'he hoped that the cloth woven by their hands might have some virtue to keep them hidden beyond all hope in this wilderness of fear ( Read more... )

The Stairs of Cirith Ungol (continued ( Read more... )

The Nazgul leaves Sam with 'just wits enough to thrust the phial back into his breast' - which is a lot under the circumstances - and then to take charge of their escape: 'Run, Mr. Frodo!...No, not that way! There's a sheer drop over the wall. Follow me ( Read more... )

Debates as to whether Frodo succeeded in the quest seem fruitless to me, because they cover the same set of facts from different perspectives without ever trying to define success or failure. People probably don't question the terms because they seem simple and straight-forward, but in LoTR nothing is as simple as it first seems. What does ' ( Read more... )

Sam 'was utterly alone' but not unguided. Guidance comes in this chapter when he does things for no clear reason: Like the bible says, the righteous shall live by his emunah - a word that combines faith and faithfulness, which are distinct in English. It is not Sam's frame of reference, but he illustrates it ( Read more... )

LoTR is a clearly spiritual and also subtly theistic work. The purpose of this file is to collect theistic references and apparent instances of divine intervention ( Read more... )

Etymology courtesy of Aelfgifu: "Mad" - or "Maed" (gemaedan)meant not necessarily loony, but mad (angry) or, more to your point, "foolish" - which is different than "crazy ( Read more... )

'But Merry to his shame was not to go.' His initial reaction is shame at being once again left behind and useless, but I don't think this is his deepest reaction, as the rest of the scene bears out. As Aragorn says, 'If you do no more in this war, you have already earned great honour.' Then he immediately, with understated humour even in these ( Read more... )