What will you do when you own a seemingly ordinary ring that can make you the most powerful creature on earth and the one who made it is willing to go at any length to take it from you, and there is a high chance that he will succeed? In his plan. Well, you don’t have to think hard to solve this dilemma. You can turn towards the book series Lord of the Rings by the author J.R.R. Tolkien.
The story is divided into three books that tell a narrative of unique friendships, courage, and, most importantly, a story that shows how hope can play an important part in staying on course when all things are determined to doom you.
Fellowship of the Ring
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It is an introduction to the story since it’s the first book that sets the whole tale’s back-story. The book describes the Shire where the Hobbits lived; it gives a quaint start to a story that is going to be more serious and dark later on.
It starts with Bilbo Baggin’s 111th and Frodo Baggin’s 33rd birthday party, followed by Bilbo passing all his property, including the ring, to Frodo and leaving the Shire. Gandalf, an old wizard and friend of Bilbo, warns Frodo about the ring by informing him about how the ring was formed and how it came into his possession.
Sensing the danger that came with the ring, he also decides to go away from the shire and is accompanied by his three other hobbit friends Sam, Merry, and Pippin; Strider later joins them. When it is decided in the council of Elrond that the ring must be destroyed, the Fellowship of the Ring is formed to take the ring to Mordor, where it can be terminated in Mount Doom.
The Two Towers
The book is divided into different timelines as characters drift separately and Fellowship starts to break. First, we see strider with other fellowship members following the Orcs who took Merry and Pippin with them. Later we find Frodo and Sam on their own journey to Mordor.
The rest of the Fellowship’s struggle makes the books more exciting and keeps the readers on their toes all through the story. Still, whenever we meet Frodo and Sam, we see a different type of torment where they deal with outward elements on their own, yet it the burden of the ring which makes us see how it is creating a conflict inside the characters as well, and that is also an interesting point of view fo the readers.
The Return Of The King
The story is still divided into two timelines, one of Frodo and Sam and the rest of the Fellowship. In this book, the strider proves himself to be the rightful king of the men as he shows courage and bravery in the battles.
We see how Frodo and Sam’s internal and physical struggles increase and become more obvious than before; as they reach Mordor, they both had to try harder each step of the way as they are getting close to Mount Doom.
Memorable Characters
All of the Lord of the Rings characters go through a great transformation as they face different challenges, some shine when no one expects. Some of the characters we will discuss here changed the course of the story and proved themselves along their arcs.
Despite his feeling inadequate to fulfill the task, Frodo Baggins still takes on the burden of the ring and is determined to destroy it even if he has to leave behind his only home and the support of the Fellowship. He is also certain that he may not come back, but still, he progresses his journey as the ring starts to weigh its power on him.
His companion, who stuck with him through thick and thin Sam or Samwise Gamgee, was the book’s most surprising character. His loyalty to Frodo and his undying compassion made him a guiding star to the ring bearer; he became one of the important reasons why Frodo kept going.
Gandalf was the one who first introduced the whole story and the dangers that come with the Ring to Frodo and The readers. He was the Fellowship’s wisest character and was often fully aware of the situation, which helped the Fellowship deal with the challenges. He even fought like a loyal soldier alongside the Fellowship.
Aragorn was the heir of Isildur. Isildur was the king who defeated Sauron and took hold of the ring when he cut his hand. Strider was a great leader and guided the armies in each war with courage, whether he had enough strength in the army or not. He also proved to be a worthy king of the men at different points in the book, not just by his lineage but his bravery and commands.
Gimli was a Dwarf warrior and was a faithful soldier, and he the only dwarf that fought alongside Elves in the war against Sauron. He often shows his reluctance towards the task but was never the one to take a step back when needed.
Legolas was an elf of Gondolin; he was a prince of Mirkwood and a great archer; with the sensitive hearing, he proved to be a valuable part of the Fellowship and further fights.
We cannot talk about Lord Of the Rings without talking about Gollum everybody’s most memorable dialogue after reading the book “My Precious” came from him. He was the first of Hobbit types, also known as Smeagol, and possessed the ring for the longest time.
We see him getting corrupted by the ring and how his desire to get the ring overtakes his mind and makes him follow Bilbo Baggins when he takes it, later he goes after Frodo for the same reason.
Gollum was the only creature we see who gave everything he had to the ring, and in the end, he starts to hate himself as well as the ring, but at the same time, he can’t get rid of both.
Lord Of The Rings: Thoughts
World-building is an art that J.R.R. Tolkien is a master of; he spent seventeen years of his life creating the world of Lord of the Rings. Many writers who wish to write fantasy novels look up to Tolkien. He formulated languages according to the book. The story was engaging from the start, though it starts a little slow, yet it hooks the reader to the end when it starts to pick up.
In his previous book, The Hobbit, the writing style in Lord of the Rings is different from what Tolkien wrote in his previous book, a children’s book. In The Hobbit, the tone was very light, but J.R.R. Tolkien continues his story in Lord of the Rings solemnly and darkly, making it more of an adult Fiction.
From the first book, he makes sure that the story is not just about Frodo; he puts all his characters in the limelight and gives them a chance to shine throughout the story.
Generally, in many books, we see the world through the main character’s eyes. Still, in Lord of the Rings, the story follows different characters at different times and sticks with them until their entire narrative, then it picks up with another character.
Each of the Lord of the Rings book series has a distinctive trait that they brought to the Fellowship, like Aragorn’s Leadership, Sam’s Loyalty, and Gandalf’s Wisdom which made the book high dimension and the characters more interesting to follow. That is one of the reasons that made the readers interested in detailed research of the characters.
We see throughout the story how the ring has affected different persons in the book Bilbo who acquires the ring from Gollum. Still, instead of killing him, Bilbo shows Gollum pity which may be why he was countering the effect of the ring.
In contrast, Gollum is a selfish character from the start who murdered his friend to get the ring, so the ring’s effects made him more of a reminder to Frodo about what happens to a person who possesses the ring for a longer period.
A story has a satisfying ending when every person in the book you related has concluded in a better place than they started, and Tolkien did just that.
By the end, each character in the book had a great development. Many authors generally put high stakes in their story, but the aftermath of the trauma is often neglected, but in Lord of the rings, we see Frodo dealing with what he had gone through even after a long time.
Lord of the Rings is a story that is well dependent on hope, and throughout the book, Tolkien made that clear that even a shred of hope can pull a person through the darkest of time. He successfully told an entire generation and many to come that no matter how inadequate you feel, you are never too small for a task, and every single one has a purpose.
Last Updated on by Saket Kumar
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