Regarding Boromir

TThurston

Member
After last week's discussion regarding the merriment in the secluded glen and whether that merriment included Boromir, I've been thinking.

As far as I understand, the original plan was for Boromir to leave the fellowship at some point to go to Minas Tirith and Aragorn planned to accompany him there. I assume that Gandalf planned to accompany Frodo to Mordor. I'm not sure about the rest of the fellowship; I assume it would be a hard sell to get any of the other hobbits to leave Frodo. Regarding Legolas and Gimli, I'm not sure.

But, after the fall of Gandalf in Moria, everything changes. I think Aragorn felt obligated to go with Frodo as his guide to Mordor. As I recall there is a discussion after the breakup at Parth Galen where he mentions his plan.

But I wonder if the loss of Gandalf was the trigger that pushed Boromir too far. Prior to that, he was going to Minas Tirith not with the ring perhaps, but at least with the heir to the person who last defeated Sauron and took his ring, wielding his legendary sword. That sounds pretty good for Minas Tirith. But without Gandalf, it looks like he has to go back to Minas Tirith without either the ring or the heir with the weapon. That sounds bad for Minas Tirith. Just the sort of problem that might lead to moody brooding. Quite a trying (tempting) situation.

Rethinking Boromir now, I do not recall any of the reports regarding Boromir moodily brooding watching Frodo before the loss of Gandalf. Poor Boromir.

Also, I've reconsidered why Boromir didn't return directly to Minas Tirith directly after the Council of Elrond. That seems like the most reasonable course of action for him. But I suspect that he stayed because of the hope that he would be able to return to Minas Tirith with at least Aragorn and possibly more. That would make the delay not quite so onerous perhaps.
 
Hi TThurston,

In addition to your excellent conjectures, there was another factor, I think, in Boromir's changing attitude after the loss of Gandalf. Having heard that Gandalf had successfully snuck into Sauron's strongholds (and out again) twice before, Boromir probably thought that the chances of Gandalf and Frodo (a potentially invisible Hobbit) making it to Mt. Doom and destroying the Ring were far from hopeless.

Once Gandalf was lost, Boromir surely concluded that the chances of successfully penetrating Mordor, reaching Mt. Doom, and destroying the Ring were greatly reduced (to near zero). Not an unreasonable conclusion. To Boromir, that old military axiom: 'no plan survives contact with the enemy', might well have suggested itself. He now thought that the plan should probably change.

Here, I think, Boromir's logic, and military experience, eroded and eventually overcame his faith in the Divine Dream. The Dream stated that counsels taken in Imladris would be 'stronger than Morgul spells'. Faith in the Dream would have had Boromir stick to the plan generated in Imladris. However, logic and common sense proved stronger than faith in the case of Boromir (perhaps egged on by Ring influence, or perhaps not?)
 
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