Session 6 Summary

Tony Meade · Oct 16, 2019

SESSION 6
Comment: On Frodo, referring to the Ring as “our ring”, i.e. he and Bilbo.

Frodo, at this point, isn’t obsessed with the Ring (yet), because he still thinks of it as Bilbo’s ring.
The desire to stake a claim and assert possession is the sign that the Ring is taking over.
Bilbo making this assertion in the same way as Gollum was a big indicator.
Frodo’s reluctance to hand over the Ring is an indicator of its influence.
Note: It is not insignificant that Frodo uses the word “precious” when talking about the Ring.

Comment: Were the Seven and Nine made in batches for their purposes, or were they interchangeable?

We don’t know, based on just what the text says, but there is some evidence that they were.
There are seven major clans of Dwarves, so the number seven seems to not be a coincidence.
This suggests that the Rings of Men were also aimed at ensnaring nine specific rulers.
Apparently, the seven dwarven rings were specifically designed to gain wealth, which is the temptation used to ensnare them.
Immortality and power are used to ensnare mortal men.
The fact that Bilbo became rich opens the possibility that the Ring might be a dwarven ring, but the lack of a jewel eliminates them.
This is based on Saruman’s lore, but he had also said that the Ring was lost to the sea, so Saruman has to be wrong about one of those things.

Comment: Is Gandalf becoming more “human” the longer he stays in Middle-earth?

Gandalf shows very human feelings and failings in his fears for Bilbo and Frodo and wanting to avoid believing things that he knows in his heart are true, out of concern for his friends.

Gandalf gets his final proof:

Gandalf does not even need to look at the Ring in order to tell Frodo what the fiery letters say, as he already knows what he’ll find when he throws the Ring in the fire.

On the Ring verse:

The Ring verse was a lore poem by the Elves. It includes the Ring text spoken by Sauron.
The meter of the elven portion of the poem is trochaic in meter.
The meter of the actual Ring text is iambic in meter.
Sauron’s Ring text is an incantation, as overheard by Celebrimbor.
The lines talking about the land of Mordor is a frame around the Ring text portion.
Gandalf’s assertion that the translation of the Black Speech is crude is ironic, because the Black Speech version is exactly the same meter and length as the Common Tongue translation.
Is the word “find” literal?
Yes, along with “bring” and “bind”. Sauron is being specific.

On the losing of the Ring:

The fact that Sauron doesn’t have the Ring anymore is often taken for granted by readers.
Frodo’s question about how Sauron lost it is reasonable and not obvious, given his power.
To the Hobbits, Sauron is the ultimate evil force (though untrue, of course).
Gandalf emphasizes that Sauron was actually vanquished once before, in direct battle by the great Men and Elves of old.
This is to comfort Frodo with the idea that Sauron is not invincible.
This also shows how powerful the kings of Men and Elves of old actually were.

How did Sauron not know that the Ring had survived, since he was not destroyed?

Note: Sauron can still put on a form, because he uses it, missing a finger, to daunt Gollum. He is not formless, nor is he the Eye. But that form is maimed, as he is still bound to it.
Sauron was terribly weakened and has only slowly regained strength.
He cannot die, as he is an immortal Maia spirit.
Sauron might not know what would happen to him if the Ring is destroyed.
The taking of the Ring broke down the connection between himself and the Ring.
Having the Ring taken was a new experience, so he didn’t know what that meant.
The act of making the Ring and using it to gain battle was a calculated risk, since it put him in peril if it was taken or destroyed, based on his experience of Morgoth.

The story of Isildur and the Ring:

It is revealed that the power of invisibility was given to Isildur, like it did Gollum and Bilbo.
The Ring takes actions, such as slipping off of Isildur’s finger to get away.
We are shown what the Ring does, but not why, so we don’t know the sentience of the Ring.
The Ring seems to intentionally get Isildur killed, hence it is “Isildur’s Bane” in Gondor.
The Ring also does this to Bilbo as he escapes from Gollum, revealing him to the Orcs.
If the Ring is planning to get back to the Orcs, it does so badly, as it is lost for 2,500 years.
Is the Ring still subject to the will of Sauron?
Not directly, as he is unaware of its survival, and unable to wield it from afar.

The story of Gollum begins:

Gandalf tells the story of Isildur in only a couple of sentences, but as he begins the story of Gollum, he shifts into storyteller mode.
He gives cultural context for the Stoors of the Great River, and a character sketch of Sméagol.
Sméagol is characterized as having great curiosity, but that leads him to do unscrupulous things.
Digging up living things kills them, and tunneling into green mounds might either disturb graves, or bring him into conflict with Elves, or possibly dragons. This is a traditional trope.
Sméagol is an intrusive person, and transgressive on others.

Sméagol and Déagol:

Gandalf does not linger on the murder of Déagol but emphasizes that Sméagol is creepy and spying on Déagol from behind trees.
Sméagol uses the phrase “my love” three times. This is striking and creepy, as it directly precedes the murder.
Gollum uses the phrase “my love” in order to portray himself as the wronged party.
Sméagol seems to already speak in a Gollum-like fashion at the time.
How does Gandalf know all this specific information?
Gandalf is seemingly telling Gollum’s part of the story in his exact words, in his Gollum persona, but he is speculating on Déagol and the other Stoors’ reactions to him.
Gandalf will conclude that Gollum carries unspoken guilt about Déagol’s murder.

Sméagol becomes Gollum:

Gollum is revealed to be full of self-pity and resentment. He never takes responsibility for anything.
His transition from curiosity to crime is a logical next step, but only after he gets the Ring.
His nastiness is revealed in his biting of the neighbors’ feet when they kick him.
Sméagol was already a very sketchy and questionable person, if not openly malicious. This gives the Ring an affinity with Sméagol that it never really had with Bilbo and Frodo.
The Ring seems to be the answer to all of Sméagol’s dreams, of sneaking and spying and digging into roots and beginnings. The roots of the mountains are the ultimate version of that.
The moment of his leaving the above-ground world is the transition from Sméagol to Gollum.
Gollum was in the mountains before the goblins came there.

END OF SESSION