“Gollum looked at them. A strange expression passed over his lean hungry face. The gleam faded from his eyes, and they went dim and grey, old and tired. A spasm of pain seemed to twist him, and he turned away, peering back up towards the pass, shaking his head, as if engaged in some interior debate. Then he came back, and slowly putting out a trembling hand, very cautiously he touched Frodo’s knee—but almost the touch was a caress. For a fleeting moment, could one of the sleepers have seen him, they would have thought that they beheld an old weary hobbit, shrunken by the years that had carried him far beyond his time, beyond friends and kin, and the fields and streams of youth, an old starved pitiable thing.”

With a little compassion from Sam, it almost seems that Smeigel could have made the right choice and turned back from his evil way. What a deep impression that makes on me in a lot of ways.

The agony of decision is so prevalent in Tolkien’s books. And so I thought I would throw out a question. If you look over all the characters in LotR, at the many struggles each had with the choice that they would make, which one moves you the most? And why?

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"If you do not find a way, no one will."

That's a really tough one.
On one hand, there's Arwen who made the ultimate decision for love.
On the other hand, you have Boromir, who made the decision to try and right the wrongs of his previous 'struggle', and died doing so.

Then there's Merry and Pippin, who didn't even know what sort of decision they were making when they chose to follow Frodo from Rivendell, but did it anyway because of friendship. Aragorn opted for a kingship he didn't want, but knew was his responsibility.

There are so many choices!!!

As far as the struggles themselves go, Gollum/Smeagol's was pretty moving, discounting the outcome. The fact that there could be hope of redemption after so much evil, and that it was (arguably) only the attitude of others that swayed the balance, is pretty moving. Just the concept that there is always hope, and always potential for good, is quite something.
I guess it also makes me think about how my attitude towards people can affect them and their decisions.

I'm also rather moved by Boromir and his struggles, but in particular the end result. The strength to try and make it right even in those last moments should be an inspiration to us all.

that really is a tough question.
each character had it's own struggle to fight. frodo's was pretty hard. he decided to take the ring to mordor, and for that you really need courage, especially because he hadn't quit until the very end.
sam was faced with a hard decision too, he had to choose whether to stay and help frodo or go and protect plants. he was very brave, and determined. once he made a decision to follow frodo to mordor he never let him out of sight. arwen had to face a tough decision too. the thing with mortality/imortality wasn't such a hard decision( it wasn't easy though) like the thing that she had to decide whether or not will she go with her family. if she decided to stay in me she would never see her family again. if she went she would never had a son. i think she made a good choice. but it must have been hard for her to say goodbye to her family forever.
aragorn on the other hand had a little easier decision to make. he had to decide whether to remain a ranger or to take his rightfull place as king. his decision took a lot of courage because he had to face all of his fears and defeat them.

In my opinion, the most moving choices were those of Arwen and Frodo, especially Arwen. Frodo's choice I see as something he had to do. I don't think he could really have lived with himself if he had chosen his own comfort over that of Middle-earth. He had to take the Ring to Mordor, never mind the price he paid--in a way, he gave up his life. His old one, true, but still his life.

Arwen did not have to stay with Aragorn, she did not have to remain behind from Valinor. She had no 'excuse' of 'obligation' to justify it for herself or others--she had only her own desire to remain. Because of that, I think her choice is more painful, and thus more moving.

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I agree Aerandir and also think that Arwen’s sacrifice and loyalty to her beloved is so powerful and moving because her choice is a stunning portrayal of the greatest principle in the cosmos—love. She loved Aragorn and acted in the only way true love can act and her fate was simply the outflow of that decision.

In TTT Sam and Frodo stand in horror on the brink of Noman-lands and “for a while they stood there, like men on the edge of a sleep where nightmare lurks, holding it off, though they know that they can only come to morning through the shadows.” So Tolkien sees the reality of love as an ultimately triumphant force that must endure many trials in order to realize bliss. Arwen’s hardship and grief materializes his belief that love can stand against all odds.

I think I have said it before somewhere on A-U but I have to say it again: I think we are attracted and driven to LotR because of the intriguing fantasy and adventure of it but I believe that it is this intrinsic theme of love that makes it so compelling and believable.

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"If you do not find a way, no one will."

[intriguing fantasy and adventure of it but I believe that it is this intrinsic theme of love that makes it so compelling and believable.[/quote]

o totally agree. lotr is so full of lve and loyalty and of course frendshiep

That is a rather good question Sinbearer.

Hmm.. well the Gollum/Smeagol struggle was definitely moving. After so much time spent consumed by the Ring, after being evil for so long, it's very... inspiring to see that there is still a piece of good left in him. There is still good in him that longs to be free of the bad and to be its true self again. I don't know. It almost seems like Tolkien was going for a transcendentalist idea here saying that nature makes us good, but our experiences in society and life corrupt us and make us bad, thus creating a struggle between good and evil within ourselves. Gollum's character illustrates that very clearly. But I do think that it was brilliant of Tolkien to have that struggle in his stories because it's one that people can relate to so well. And like I said before, Gollum's story could be almost inspiring for some peopel because there was good in him, even when it seemed like there wasn't. Although, the inspiration part is pretty minimal because he is eventually conquered by his lust for the Ring in the end.

However, I think Frodo's struggle moves me most of all. Someone said earlier that Frodo had to destroy the Ring. That's not true at all. At any momment of his quest he could have strayed. He could have given in and claimed the Ring for himself. But he endured it all the way up until the final moment in Mount Doom. Considering how many others had fallen victim to the power of the Ring, I think that displays extraordinary courage and power on Frodo's part. If you think about it, Frodo began to go through the same things as Gollum. There was a part of him that was being controlled, possessed by the Ring every second he had it. He hated that part of himself, and he feared it. Yet all he could do was watch and feel it getting a tighter grip on him, second by second. Can you imagine existing that way? Bound to a part of yourself that you desperately hated but could not let go? But still going on. Still risking everything, doing everything for Middle-earth. I think that's pretty amazing. And that's why Frodo's struggle seems most moving to me.

You sumed up what I think, but you did it much better then I ever could! I agree with you totally. Frodo's struggles and choices were the most moving for me. Though some other characters had to make some pretty tough choices (Sam, Gollum, Arwen, come to mind), but Frodo's was the hardest. And though he might not of fully triumphed in the end, he did most of what he set out to do. He got the Ring to Mount Doom. And, really, it was because of Frodo that Gollum was alive. So, yeah, Frodo's choices moved me the most.

^Thank you. Frodo's my favorite character so I tend to get into a bit of a rant when it comes to him because I love him so much. It's good to know that someone actually reads and agrees with my ranting though.

Heh... That didn't sound like one of my rants. My rants are usually very incomprehensable, but very, erm, pasionate. So it's really quite easy, and enjoyable to read one of your rants.

Back to the topic, I think I will add the choices of all the Elves into my most moving choices list. I mean, they gave up sooo much for the sake of Middle Earth as a whole. It wasn't as touching as Frodo's, but still...



Oh, yes. It's an amazing story about a fantastic adventure, yet it's so touching and uplifting. I love lotr!

I agree with both of you. Frodo's choices moved me the most. He chose to carry the Ring all the way to Mount Doom when he already felt the power of the Ring. It would have been very hard.

There's more I could say, but it has already been said.

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^Set by Esteleth

I was just rereading TTT and one paragraph struck me hard. It is talking about this strange power of the Ring that few are immune to and has implications that are like you say, frightening:

"For a moment it appeared to Sam that his master had grown and Gollum had shrunk: a tall stern shadow, a mighty lord who hid his brightness in grey cloud, and at his feet a little whining dog. Yet the two were in some way akin and not alien: they could reach one another's minds. Gollum raised himself and began pawing at Frodo, fawning at his knees."

At points in the narrative don't you tremble for Frodo? And since I have projected myself into him, I have those same feeling for myself. Sometimes life can seem quite terrifying!

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"If you do not find a way, no one will."

That's a tough question... for me, I'd have to say Arwen. She had such a tough decision because she wanted to do right by her father and obey him to follow him to Valinor, but at the same time she could not leave her true love. What she chose was especially moving because she chose to go against her destiny and become mortal when she could've selfishly chose to stay immortal and sail away to Valinor.

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For me, it's probably Boromir.
But Frodo's struggle was also great, I mean, with the weight of the ring on him, knowing who to trust and who not to trust, and then at mount doom, holding back from throwing it in... The way Tolkien writes it's as if every character has a struggle that has to be resolved - and that's what makes his writing so great.

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Being that someone you mentioned, I'm going to reply to your statement. What I meant by saying that Frodo 'had' to destroy the Ring really takes it back to the Council of Elrond. Everyone was arguing over who would take it, and I think that Frodo knew that the right thing for him to do would be to take it. I don't think he really could've lived with himself if he didn't volunteer to destroy it--if he simply turned the other way while others risked their lives, just so he could enjoy the peace that they were trying to buy for him. I don't think he could've done that. I think he was driven to take the Ring.

Arwen, meanwhile, didn't have the luxury of a no-brainer decision along the lines of 'her desires or the survival of Middle-earth's Free People." For her, it was more of "staying with the love of her life for a brief, blissful time, or spend eternity wishing she had." At first, that sounds like a no-brainer decision, too, until you think about the fact that to stay with Aragorn, she had to give up Elrond. She couldn't have both--she had to 'sacrifice' one. For her, I think it would have been extremely difficult. Yes, Frodo's choice was really hard, but it's Arwen's choice that moves me more.

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Faramir and Arwen's decisions stand out to me the most and are some of the most moving.

Everyone loves a good romance, but when it is fraught with personal choices like the ones Arwen is faced with you can't help being moved. Arwen was gambling with life when she chose to be mortal. Even though she knew there was a high chance that Aragorn would not survive, she continued to hope against hope.

Faramir's life is overshadowed by that of his brother, Boromir. It is a common theme in many stories. When Boromir died, who is blamed? Faramir. When the Ring passes into Faramir's grasp will he take it? Will he take the thing that ultimately killed his brother?
What a struggle he must have been through! Take the Ring and receive all the goodness and praise your brother would have had from a father who you thought didn't love you, and risk the fate of all Middle-Earth, or leave the Ring and continue to live in the constant shadow of your brother, forever despised by your father. How he made such a decision I do not know...