Ardent Crayon
Member
Looking ahead a bit, I see Pippin’s greeting to the newly-recovered Frodo:
While we’re at it, is “our noble cousin” a friendly jab at Frodo’s wealthy but relatively lowborn social standing? Frodo probably doesn’t care, but Pippin is the sort of mildly snobbish guy that would make a point of such things.
“Here is our noble cousin! Make way for Frodo, Lord of the Ring!”
I hadn’t thought much about it before but, in the spirit of this class, I’m rereading it with fresh eyes and asking, why did Pippin say that? Not why did he make up a silly title to cheer his friend; that’s very much in Pippin’s character. But why “Lord of the Ring”? Frodo hasn’t talked overmuch about the Ring with the other hobbits, and when he has it’s always been in negative terms: how dangerous it is, what a burden, must keep it secret, etc. So why not a more positive title? At Crickhollow, the company cheered “Captain Frodo”, but if that is no longer superlative enough for Pippin, there are now other possibilities:- “Master of the Road”
- “Slayer of Wights”
- “Defier of Nazgûl”
While we’re at it, is “our noble cousin” a friendly jab at Frodo’s wealthy but relatively lowborn social standing? Frodo probably doesn’t care, but Pippin is the sort of mildly snobbish guy that would make a point of such things.