Tony Meade
Active Member
SESSION 23
Comment on Frodo’s dream(s):
Comment on Frodo’s dream(s):
- Frodo has dreamed of the sea before, and Frodo was troubled by those dreams.
- He seems to have been having those dreams for years, but the purpose prior to his leaving, is unknown.
- There seems to be some novelty in the dream in Crickhollow, as there are elements in it that he does not recognize immediately, such as the smell.
- The smell is described as "strange", and given Tolkien’s usual usage, that would mean “unfamiliar”.
- This is probably not related to Faramir’s dream of the fall of Númenor, which is recurring and unchanging. The wave of darkness is not related to any sea-longing.
- Note: Tolkien actually had the dream of the wave and said that once he gave that dream to Faramir, he stopped having it.
- Does the Ring have any influence over his dreaming? Probably not, as the dreams are not prompting him to do anything. It is also unlike the Ring’s modus operandi.
- We have seen the Ring operating on people before, and this does not seem to be in the same category, nor does it have any benefit in sending Frodo visions of the ocean.
- Both Sauron and the Ring purposely have nothing to do with the Sea or the West.
- The Ring’s primary action is to make the bearer think about itself and its preciousness.
- Is the restlessness that Frodo feels coming from the Ring? Possibly, as Bilbo also felt restless, but Gollum is a counterexample, as he holed up for five hundred years.
- A piece of evidence against Ring-induced restlessness is that after Bilbo gives up the Ring his restlessness doesn’t leave him.
- It is most probable that the dreams are evidence of the influence of some “other power”.
- Frodo seems to have been prepared in advance, as he and Bilbo were unusual as bachelors, and Tolkien later explained that they both felt some kind of calling that kept them single.
- Bilbo and Frodo would have been very eligible bachelors, so it was a choice on their part.
- The Valar are known to send dreams and visions, as well as Gandalf himself.
- Gandalf, as Olórin, is associated with dreams, as the “lor” element means “dream”.
- Any notion of long-term planning on the part of the Ring is dubious at best.
- The effect of these sea-dreams is evidence of someone playing a long game, but Frodo himself won’t understand this until the very end of the book.
- Frodo’s relations with Elves are short at best, so their own sea-longing wouldn’t influence him.
- The best explanation of the dream in Crickhollow is simply to bring hope in the face of fear, and desire for what he will gain from his future journey.
- Tolkien’s level of detail in the description makes the landscape seem very real.
- This is indicative of his experience as a painter and illustrator.
- This description emphasizes the domesticity of the scene and how this is the last vision of Hobbit civilization before leaving for the Wild.
- The description is lovely but not welcoming, as it is cold and wet and dreary.
- The description of the fog as they left Farmer Maggot was much more oppressive and ominous, while the fog here actually emphasizes details like cobwebs.
- Note: The term “spinney” is an old word for a small group of trees. The connotation is unclear.
- Note: It’s important that the Brandybucks’ private gate does not break the hedge; it goes under.
- Fatty’s final words might be taken flippantly, but his warning seems sincere and solemn, as he has spoken against the idea already. He does wish them well.
- Fatty also points out that he can’t think of any rescue if they get into trouble.
- He is also employing the Hobbit/British tendency to make light of serious situations and strong emotions to avoid discomfort.
- The emphasis on the shutting of the gate behind them, and especially the sound of it, makes this a very clear crossing of a boundary.
- Frodo is correct, given his perspective on the Old Forest, that there shouldn’t be anything in the Forest than the Black Riders, but he is wrong in underestimating its dangers.
- Merry’s announcement of their leaving the Shire both acknowledges the moment and diffuses the tension it creates.
- By locking themselves out of the Shire, they have locked themselves into the Forest.
- In the context of Frodo’s one-way journey, this moment is really important.
- There is an evocation of a prison gate closing, with the thick iron bars and the sound of the closing.
- They have not yet entered the Old Forest at this moment, as they are still in the tunnel, so this is a liminal space in-between the Shire and the Old Forest, looking at both.
- This also emphasizes Frodo’s sense of exile, though it’s not clear that the other hobbits understand this, as they sing about coming back.
- Frodo will never see the Shire as it was again, as both he and it will be changed.
- It is notable that Merry is nonchalant about the idea that the trees move and do things.
- Pippin starts by asking about the stories of predators and monsters, but Merry counters by saying that only the trees are a danger.
- This is reminiscent of the conversation in the Green Dragon, where Ted Sandyman would not believe that a tree might walk. In Merry’s case, he simply accepts this casually.
- Merry tries to reassure them by saying that the trees are aware and don’t usually do things, but the fact that trees do anything is uncanny and unsettling enough.
- It is actually easier for them to accept goblins and wolves, as those are things that they understand having heard Bilbo’s stories, than moving and hostile trees.
- The Old Forest is a dangerous otherworld for the hobbits, but hobbits outside of Buckland can’t actually understand the true dangers, and so spread stories that are wrong.
- Merry emphasizes the awareness and communication of the trees, and their collective history in opposition to the Hobbits.
- Merry might also be underestimating how alarming this might be for his friends, as this is a normal part of life for him.
- We are told that the Bucklanders are mostly like the other hobbits with some notable exceptions, this being one of those.
- Merry might be messing with the hobbits, but none of what he’s saying is untrue.
- Note: Treebeard will say later that the distinction between Ent, Huorn, and Tree is unclear and more of a spectrum.