In February of 1956...
The Professor wrote a letter to a Mr. Michael Straight in which he discussed Frodo's motives and actions, in view of the petitions in the Lord's Prayer.
(WARNING! LORD OF THE RINGS SPOILERS!)
" 'Lead us not into temptation etc.' is the harder and the less often considered petition. The view, in the terms of my story, is that though every event or situation has at least two aspects: the history and development of the individual ( it is something out of which he can get good, ultimate good, for himself, or fail to do so), and the history of the world (which depends on his action for its own sake)- still there are abnormal situations in which one may be placed. 'Sacrificial situations', I should call them; such positions in which the 'good' of the world depends on the behavior of an individual in circumstances which demand of him suffering and endurance far beyond the normal- even, it may happen (or seem, humanly speaking), demand a strength of body and mind which he does not possess; he is in a sense doomed to failure, doomed to fall into temptation or be broken by pressure against his will; that is any choice he could make or would make unfettered, not under duress.
Frodo was in such a position; an apparently complete trap: a person of greater power could probably never have resisted the Ring's lure to power for so long: a person of less power could not hope to resist it in the final decision. (Already Frodo had been unwilling to harm the Ring before he set out, and was incapable of surrendering it to Sam. )
The Quest was bound to fail as a piece of world-plan, and also was bound to end in disaster as the story of humble Frodo's development to the 'noble'; his sanctification. Fail it would and did as far as Frodo considered alone was concerned. He 'apostasized'- and I have had one savage letter, crying out that he should have been executed as a traitor, not honoured. Believe me, it was not until I read this that I had myself any idea how 'topical' such a situation might appear. It arose naturally from my 'plot' conceived in main outline in 1936. I did not foresee that before the tale was published we should enter a dark age in which the technique of torture and disruption of personality would rival that of Mordor and the Ring and present us with the practical problem of honest men of good will broken down into apostates and traitors.
But at this point the 'salvation' of the world and Frodo's own 'salvation' is achieved by his previous pity and forgiveness of injury. At any point any practical person would have told Frodo that Gollum would certainly betray him, and could rob him in the end. (Not quite 'certainly'. The clumsiness in fidelity of Sam was what finally pushed Gollum over the brink, when about to repent) To 'pity' him, to forbear to kill him, was a piece of folly, or a mystical belief in the ultimate value-in-itself of pity and generosity even if disastrous in the world of time. He did rob and injure him in the end- by by a 'grace', that last betrayal was at a precise juncture when the final evil deed was the most beneficial thing anyone could have done for Frodo! By a situation created by his 'forgiveness', he was saved himself and relieved of his burden. He was verey justly accorded the highest honours- since it is clear that he and Sam never concealed the precise course of events."
The Professor wrote a letter to a Mr. Michael Straight in which he discussed Frodo's motives and actions, in view of the petitions in the Lord's Prayer.
(WARNING! LORD OF THE RINGS SPOILERS!)
" 'Lead us not into temptation etc.' is the harder and the less often considered petition. The view, in the terms of my story, is that though every event or situation has at least two aspects: the history and development of the individual ( it is something out of which he can get good, ultimate good, for himself, or fail to do so), and the history of the world (which depends on his action for its own sake)- still there are abnormal situations in which one may be placed. 'Sacrificial situations', I should call them; such positions in which the 'good' of the world depends on the behavior of an individual in circumstances which demand of him suffering and endurance far beyond the normal- even, it may happen (or seem, humanly speaking), demand a strength of body and mind which he does not possess; he is in a sense doomed to failure, doomed to fall into temptation or be broken by pressure against his will; that is any choice he could make or would make unfettered, not under duress.
Frodo was in such a position; an apparently complete trap: a person of greater power could probably never have resisted the Ring's lure to power for so long: a person of less power could not hope to resist it in the final decision. (Already Frodo had been unwilling to harm the Ring before he set out, and was incapable of surrendering it to Sam. )
The Quest was bound to fail as a piece of world-plan, and also was bound to end in disaster as the story of humble Frodo's development to the 'noble'; his sanctification. Fail it would and did as far as Frodo considered alone was concerned. He 'apostasized'- and I have had one savage letter, crying out that he should have been executed as a traitor, not honoured. Believe me, it was not until I read this that I had myself any idea how 'topical' such a situation might appear. It arose naturally from my 'plot' conceived in main outline in 1936. I did not foresee that before the tale was published we should enter a dark age in which the technique of torture and disruption of personality would rival that of Mordor and the Ring and present us with the practical problem of honest men of good will broken down into apostates and traitors.
But at this point the 'salvation' of the world and Frodo's own 'salvation' is achieved by his previous pity and forgiveness of injury. At any point any practical person would have told Frodo that Gollum would certainly betray him, and could rob him in the end. (Not quite 'certainly'. The clumsiness in fidelity of Sam was what finally pushed Gollum over the brink, when about to repent) To 'pity' him, to forbear to kill him, was a piece of folly, or a mystical belief in the ultimate value-in-itself of pity and generosity even if disastrous in the world of time. He did rob and injure him in the end- by by a 'grace', that last betrayal was at a precise juncture when the final evil deed was the most beneficial thing anyone could have done for Frodo! By a situation created by his 'forgiveness', he was saved himself and relieved of his burden. He was verey justly accorded the highest honours- since it is clear that he and Sam never concealed the precise course of events."
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home