Episode 55 Summary

Tony Meade

Active Member
SESSION 55

Comment Strider’s rascal character:
  • Strider may be being more rascally in his explanations in order to force the hobbits to pay attention to what he is saying. In this dangerous situation, it would be easy to gloss over details.
  • By making the hobbits defensive, they force him to give explanations that they will hear.
  • Because of Strider’s cultivated reputation, it would be difficult for him to open by being earnest and helpful, as they would mistrust that.
  • By bringing them along slowly, he gives the hobbits a chance to change their view of him slowly and naturally, while also keeping his own identity hidden.
  • Strider allows them to set a test that he can pass, leading them to trusting more organically.
  • Note: There remains the possibility that Strider is conning them, as all of these techniques would be used by a cunning conman to gain trust. The hobbits will not truly know that Strider is trustworthy until it is proven later. At this point, can only choose to trust him.
Sam’s hobbit sense:
  • Sam turns Strider’s words back on him, advising that Strider would be saying exactly these things if he was a conman. Sam sees the simplest solution as Strider being a threat.
  • Sam is the one who has fooled Frodo in the past, so he knows of Frodo’s naivete.
  • Part of Sam’s caution is a general suspicion of strangers coming from his upbringing in the Shire.
  • Sam speaks very similarly to his father, the Gaffer, in the way he speaks about strangers.
  • Note: The capitalization of the “Wild” denotes the concept or general region of unknown territory. It is similar to “here there be dragons”, except in this case it is literal.
  • In this way, Sam is not only speaking for the mainstream view of Shire hobbits, but he has also heard Bilbo’s stories, and so he knows specifics about what lies outside of the Shire.
  • The legendary stories that Sam has heard also are negative toward people who live in the wild.
  • Even within the Shire, the bounders have had problems with strangers on their borders, and the Bree-folk have had issues with ruffians about. So, his mistrust in not unfounded in reality.
  • For Sam, Strider’s revelations of knowledge are not a reason to trust him. He feels Strider knows more than he should about a stranger’s business.
Frodo responds on a different level:
  • There is a difference in the way Sam and Frodo. Sam is reacting with hobbit sense, but Frodo is responding to something else, which is more like instinct.
  • Frodo does not contradict Sam. He agrees with him in principle, but his sense of Strider beyond his appearances makes him give Strider an opportunity to answer Sam’s concerns.
  • Frodo’s reference to Strider’s voice changing clearly refers to his accent changing. This isn’t a slip by Strider, but rather drops it as a part of the subtle change to bring Frodo along.
  • Note: It’s possible that the moment of Strider’s accent change is when he says “Excellent!”, as this would be out of the norm for the Bree-folk.
  • It’s possible that Frodo is also having a recognition of one Elf-friend by another, as Strider has already been described in a way that shows he stands out from the other Men.
  • The fact that Frodo can sense that Strider is wearing a disguise should be a bad thing, unless he senses that what is hidden underneath is good, even though he can’t see it physically.
  • Frodo has already shown himself being drawn to Strider by seeking him out after the Ring incident in the common room.
  • Note: There is a consistent theme of reason, while good, having limits in decision-making. Sam’s suspicions are entirely sensible, but it is Frodo’s feelings that tell him otherwise. We will see other examples of people making decisions that go against logic but based on other feelings.
  • Frodo does not let Strider off the hook, though, and presses him to explain his need for disguise.
  • It’s interesting that Frodo has asked the same question to Strider that he asked of Tom Bombadil: “Who are you?” In Tom’s case, there was no good answer to that question.
  • Strider is placed in a similar dilemma, as he cannot answer without giving information that would still not prove that he is trustworthy.
  • Ironically, Tom has actually answered the question of Strider’s identity in his enchanted visions.
  • Another issue is that Frodo has also been concealing his name, so trust issues abound.
  • Note: It seems likely, from the evidence in the text and circumstantially, that Strider knows Tom Bombadil, and that Tom knew the hobbits would meet Strider soon.
Strider becomes impatient:
  • Strider makes it clear that nothing he reveals to them will give them absolute proof of his trustworthiness, so they will have to decide without it.
  • The mention of Rivendell is telling, because the hobbits had not mentioned it themselves.
  • Rivendell is a secret, and no hobbits have places to travel beyond Bree. Elrond says that he’d never met a hobbit aside from Bilbo, so there’s no reason to guess that they are heading there.
  • Strider openly acknowledges the dilemma that the hobbits face in choosing to accept his help.
  • Strider’s accusation of Frodo’s wavering seems harsh, but he only saying that certainty is not something that they can wait for in order to decide. He also stops wavering himself.
  • Note: There is a pattern of Aragorn’s deliberation about decision-making and models many methods of decision-making throughout the story.
(continued below)
 

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(continued)

Butterbur’s interruption:
  • Butterbur may think that he is being tactful in his approach, but Frodo has every reason to be suspicious of anyone who would be waiting for him and a party of Shire-hobbits.
  • He takes a similar tactic as Strider by revealing what he knows as a way to build trust.
  • Frodo’s question to Butterbur is much subtler about himself than he has been previously.
  • The information that Butterbur reveals are things that the Black Riders would not know, specifically his pseudonym and his appearance.
  • Frodo may be thinking that his secret is known by far too many people at this point.
  • Strider had begun by putting the hobbits from the beginning, which sets the tone for their conversation. Butterbur sets a different tone through is apologies and deference.
Gandalf’s clues:
  • Butterbur’s glance at Pippin after stating that Frodo’s description applies to most hobbits is meant to imply that he is also stout and red-cheeked.
  • Though Gandalf seems to mention the bright eye, which could apply to an Elf-friend, despite the fact that Frodo was not an Elf-friend when last they saw each other.
  • The narrator interjects himself here in describing Frodo’s interruption as unwise.
  • Why is the interruption unwise? Partly because it prompts Butterbur to give the somewhat unflattering description of him that he is relaying. It may have delayed the conversation a bit.
  • Why does Gandalf refer to Frodo as “fairer”, this may mean that Frodo is more handsome than most hobbits, but more likely that his hair is a lighter color than the standard hobbit brown.
  • Note: After the Scouring of the Shire, blonde hair will be more common than it was in Frodo’s time, though it was not unheard of before this.
  • Another reason that the interruption was unwise is that Butterbur might be distracted enough to never get back on topic and forget say what he originally intended.
  • Note: From an authorship perspective, it’s possible that referring to the interruption as unwise reveals Frodo as the author that passage, showing how he felt at the time.
Butterbur and Gandalf’s friendship revealed:
  • The Bree-folk have an uneasy relationship with people who do magic, as we have seen, so it would be unusual for Butterbur to consider Gandalf a friend.
  • Butterbur neither confirms nor denies that Gandalf is actually a wizard, but merely that they are friends either way. In this way, he is defending Gandalf and their friendship.
  • Gandalf is not welcome in most places generally, but he has individual friends even in those places, so his friendship with Butterbur is in that category.
  • Note: An example of Gandalf’s general reputation is his reception in Rohan. Gandalf does not seem to be close with anyone there, even Éomer. Éomer doesn’t know Gandalf well, as he’s too young, and seems to support Gandalf because he agrees that it is necessary to get rid of Grima. He also relays to the others the rumors and open dislike of Gandalf in the land generally.
  • Butterbur doesn’t know about Ents, so it is only ironic that he uses “hasty” in the same sense. Gandalf is similar to Strider in that he travels so much and so hurriedly.
  • Note: There is a comparison to be made between Butterbur and Treebeard in their view of the world from a rooted place, looking upon people who travel and move around them. Butterbur’s family is described as running the Prancing Pony for unknown generations. Even though Butterbur speaks quickly, he still only slowly reveals his thoughts.
  • Butterbur reveals a certain intimidation by Gandalf based on his power, but he remains Gandalf’s friend just the same.
The letter and its problems:
  • There is irony that Butterbur volunteers to do this favor for Gandalf but forgets to do it. Butterbur is willing and loyal, but not trusty.
  • Gandalf’s use of the nickname “Barley” shows their familiarity. This is what Bree-folk call him.
  • Butterbur’s use of “took” shows that he is not quoting Gandalf directly, but paraphrasing.
  • Butterbur also seems to have been chosen as the only option in Bree, not the best option.
  • In a sense, it would have been better to have chosen an illiterate messenger, as they would not be able to read the letter before giving it to the recipient.
  • Gandalf can trust Butterbur to stay loyal and not reveal its secrets, but not to deliver the letter.
  • Butterbur admits his mistakes and emphasizes that Gandalf both told him it was important, and that Gandalf knew that he needed to send it out before forgetting it.
  • Butterbur seems to be more absentminded than forgetful. He doesn’t forget things, but he is often distracted and can’t recall things when he needs to do so.
  • His literacy is both correlated with being a businessowner, but also as an important person in Bree, though neither would necessarily require it.
  • If the attitude towards literacy is similar in Bree as the Shire, they might find literacy distrustful.
  • Note: The idea of illiteracy as commonplace and a neutral characteristic is very foreign to modern audiences but would not carry a stigma in medieval times. It was a specialist skill to be literate but would not carry a value judgement either way. Socrates distrusted literacy as discouraging remembering knowledge or information for yourself.
  • Is Butterbur be considered strange in Bree because of his literacy? Maybe in the sense that Bilbo was in Hobbiton. His friendship with Gandalf would also set him apart, though he is respected.
  • The trend of illiteracy in Bree is shown by their amazement at the idea of Frodo writing a book.
  • There is a parallel between Butterbur and Bilbo, given their prominent position of their family, while being countercultural and having unusual relationships for the preeminent social norms.
END OF SESSION
 

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