Episode 147 Summary

Tony Meade

Active Member
SESSION 147

A personality clash within the Council:
  • Boromir reveals that he also knows much of the lore of Minas Tirith, though he may be wrong about this history being common knowledge in Gondor, or at least the details.
  • Most people in Gondor may have some knowledge of the important or legendary events in their long past, such as the planting of the White Tree, as these carry mythic significance.
  • The use of “dark” here as meaning unknown or unclear supports that usage by Denethor earlier.
  • Its not out of character for Gandalf to be grumpy, but he seems to be interested in proving to everyone that Denethor is not as well-informed as he thinks he is.
  • The use of “hoards” refers back to his usage earlier, but also emphasizes a slightly dragonish nature in the collection, in that Denethor was not willing to share though he has no use for it.
  • That Gandalf reminds Boromir that no one in modern Gondor knows about Isildur’s scroll is used as further evidence of the shortcomings of Denethor’s lore.
  • While Gandalf is trying to be diplomatic and neutral, his underlying criticism comes through.
  • Boromir has already revealed that the full story of Isildur taking the Ring was unknown in Gondor, and this scroll proves it further, because if it were known, the story would be known.
  • Is Gandalf acting like a gruff old man on purpose, playing a role like Aragorn does with Strider? Gandalf doesn’t have something to hide like Aragorn, but he will want to blend in and connect.
  • His quick temper seems to be part of his true character, but he doesn’t need to inspire awe.
  • Note: Tolkien never fully settled on the issue of which Valar was associated with Gandalf, such as Nienna or Irmo or Manwë, and there was even a brief time when he might have been Manwë in disguise, like Odin. Also, this issue was something that Tolkien wrote about in Unfinished Tales and his revisions of The Silmarillion, both after the writing of The Lord of the Rings. Gandalf’s personality is well-established in The Hobbit, and his incarnation as an old man might have consequences for his personality within Middle-earth as opposed to in Valinor.
  • Gandalf’s swiftness to anger and quickness to laugh seem to be connected personality traits.
  • Is Gandalf intentionally antagonizing Boromir after trying to be diplomatic earlier? He seems to have set up the possibility that things are not right with Denethor, possibly to warn Boromir.
  • Denethor’s state of mind is not precisely relevant to Gandalf’s research, so that Gandalf emphasizes this only makes sense if he is trying to say something about it.
  • Note: It seems that this early conception of Denethor influenced the later depiction in The Return of the King, rather than this being a later revision, like the references to Faramir.
  • The narrator seems to emphasize that Boromir is being rude by saying that he “broke in”, though he is responding to Gandalf’s implications, even though he doesn’t challenge them.
  • Its understandable that a council like this would have moments when emotions run high.
  • Gandalf would not be upset that Isildur’s relationship with the Ring is not common knowledge, nor that the scroll could be used as a test. Most people know nothing about the Rings of Power.
  • Boromir, like many who know the stories about the Second Age, was surprised to learn that Isildur took the Ring and may have assumed before that the Elves had it.
Scripts and tongues that have become dark to later men:
  • Why are these older scrolls “dark to later men”? It’s possible that it is due to damage and the age of the scrolls themselves, as well as linguistic changes over time.
  • Note: The great age and preciousness of these ancient records was not emphasized in the film. This is a symptom of a tendency to not think through the consequences of the three thousand years that have passed since the time of the Last Alliance, and what that means for lore.
  • When Gandalf says, “since the kings failed”, he is pointing to a moment where the decline of Gondor to its current state began, and that it can be traced to the failure of the kings.
  • Note: Isildur would probably have written the scroll in Adûnaic, and while that might still be known to lore masters, its not clear that they would know this earlier form, much like the differences between Homeric Greek and the Greek used in the New Testament. He may have recorded it in Sindarin or Quenya, though this seems unlikely as this is not meant as a public record. This was written for himself and he would write in Adûnaic as his native language.
  • Note: Language change and loss are both common and can take place rapidly. Greek was a lost language to the West after the fall of Rome, and it had to be re-taught to the Latin West centuries later by Muslim scholars. Chaucer’s form of Middle English would be considered nearly unreadable by the 18th century, due to the Great Vowel Shift, which was unknown in their time.
  • Quenya was the language of lore in Gondor, even in later times, but as this was not written as lore, it is unsurprising that Adûnaic would be unknown, and lore itself has waned in Gondor.
  • Note: Not only may the languages themselves have been lost, but they may also no longer know the writing systems, as this is a separate field of study, now known as paleography.
As some have told the tale:
  • Gandalf doesn’t seem to be addressing Boromir when he says, “as some have told the tale”, but Boromir’s reaction points to his not understanding the knowledge of the others, like the Elves.
  • He may also be saying this for the benefit of the hobbits, who may have heard different stories.
  • This is the point at which Boromir acts least diplomatically, as if the others are trying to usurp the authority of Gondorian lore, which he tries to recover, using the proof of his knowledge.
  • Boromir does try to defend Gondorian lore, but not directly defend the behavior of this father.
  • As a kind of prince, Boromir may feel entitled to interrupt in a way that the others don’t, and he may have less of an understanding of Elrond’s standing and importance than even the hobbits.
  • Gandalf’s tone isn’t intentionally antagonizing, though he may be doing it through being candid.
  • He may feel the need to help Boromir to get past his provincialism and to temper his idealism with regards to Gondor with a bit of realism. He also needs to test Boromir’s character.
  • Only Gandalf and Elrond know all the revelations that will be brought out during the Council, including the destruction of the Ring, and he probably calculates that Boromir will be part of it.
  • Boromir needs to be shown that, in view of the wider world, his position is relatively minor.
  • Note: Based on Gandalf’s story, and Frodo’s memories of Gandalf’s visits, it seems that he and Aragorn spent several years looking for Gollum, which is understandable considering the long travel times involved. However, he seems to have left straight from Minas Tirith for the Shire.
A scroll that Isildur made himself:
  • In this preamble, Isildur mentions that records “shall be left in Gondor”, but that doesn’t include this scroll. This only shows his intent to create such records in the future.
  • It doesn’t seem that these records were ever made, which explains why this lore was forgotten.
  • This may also be evidence of the Ring’s influence since he had opportunities to do so but didn’t. It is in keeping with the pattern of the Ring for it to influence the bearer to keep it a secret.
  • Had he left public records for the other heirs of Elendil, that may create a claim of ownership later down the line as their public inheritance, which the Ring would not allow him to do.
  • Isildur understood a need to preserve records of important lore, based on the loss of Númenor.
  • It’s possible that the Ring might have become a source of tension and conflict between the North and South kingdoms, so its loss may have been providential for both.
  • Isildur’s naming of the Ring as the “Great Ring” seems to be a cultural influence, as it would have been associated with its ability to rule the other Rings, rather that its uniqueness.
  • For scholars in the Third Age, they call the other Rings of Power “Great Rings”, which is more about categorizations than descriptions. Therefore, they would call the Ring “the One Ring”.
  • This is based on the lore and study after the fact, while those at the time were primarily concerned with Sauron’s attempt to dominate the others through their Rings.
  • No one would know the effects of the Rings over time because that time had not yet passed.
  • Isildur also speaks in the third person in the preamble, not naming the Ring unto himself directly, though laying claim to it through his kingship in the North.
  • The lack of first-person narrative and use of the passive voice makes this sound like an official pronouncement of what he intends to do in the future, based on what is in the body of the text.
  • Note: There is a parallel between the shift from “The Great Ring” to “The One Ring” in the way that “The Great War” shifted to “World War I”. It indicates a change in perspective over time.
END OF SESSION
 

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