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A Tolkien Virgin: The Return of the King - Book VI - Chapter 7 - The Journey Continues
December 1, 2002
Submitted By Jonathan
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Book VI
Chapter 7
Homeward Bound
"I never expected to see any of you folk again, and that's a fact: going off into the Wild with that Strider, and all those Black men about."So there's a little more drama to be had yet. Trouble in Bree and trouble in the Shire.
I'll say it's odd for the story to go on so long. I know Frodo needs to get back to the Shire before the story will come to a close, but in the Hobbit there was a summary--and Bilbo had various other adventures--and a brief conclusion with him returning to the Shire in the nick of time. Here, after the climax there're chapters left to go. It's not bad, of course, it's just odd.
This chapter starts on a down note. We can see that Frodo's going to need Arwen's gift--that gem that she said will comfort him when he's troubled by past memories. I've never read anything truer in fiction than what Frodo says at the beginning of this chapter: "There is no real going back. Though I may come to the Shire, it will not seem the same; for I shall not be the same. I am wounded with knife, sting, and tooth, and a long burden. Where shall I find rest?"
Gandalf and the Hobbits pass the Ford of Bruinen and Weathertop and come at long last to a locked gate at Bree. From the start we can tell that things aren't right in Bree and then they get to the Prancing Pony. The food and beer haven't changed. In fact, despite the differences on the surface not much has changed in Bree. Butterbur, himself, is primary evidence to this. He goes about explaining what's gone wrong, the same old Butterbur.
His news about Bill Ferny and Outsiders comes as no surprise. What is surprising is that news of such magnitude in the east and south--the armies of Sauron and their unlikely defeat, a king in Gondor, etc--hadn't reached Bree. Truly it will take time for the Shadow to be cleared from every corner of Middle Earth, but I would have thought that someone in Bree would've at least had some news by this time. It just goes to show how far they are from every other part of the world--mentally more than physically.
I hadn't pictured the hobbits and Gandalf riding along "armed folk, with swords and helmets and shields and all." But at mention of it, it's a good reminder of how the've changed on their journey.
Barliman's reaction to Gandalf's news that there is a king and how he'll make the roads safe and clear out the evil things from the wood was a bit disappointing. It was a very real reaction of a small town simple-minded man living in the middle of nowhere. Xenophobia is understandable given the recent trouble in Bree, but it's still disappointing.
That Bill the pony was still alive and made it all the way back to Bree wasn't exactly unexpected--regardless it being unlikely--but it was worth a smile. The scene in the Common Room the following night was also worth a smile. Especially when someone calls for a song and it get's all quiet. That's so very Bree.
Sam says, "I ought to have hurried back quicker," and all I could do is agree. It seemed they stayed too long at every point along the way home. Knowing that things aren't right in the Shire just drives that point home further.
One thing toward the end there gave me pause: Gandalf's comment, "You must settle [the Shire's] affairs yourselves, that is what you have been trained for." I don't really like that because it makes it seem like whatever came before was "merely" training for what was to come. I can't imagine Tolkien intended to slight anything that came before in their experiences, and maybe it's just me, but I think he could have worded it a bit better.
Gandalf goes off to have a chat with Tom Bombadil. I like Gandalf's analogy of Tom as a moss-gatherer and himself as a rolling stone whose rolling days are ended. I can imagine Tom isn't too concerned about what has gone on in the last year because he's aware of Illuvata's plan unveiled at the beginning of time. It's a change of perspective and a reminder to me that all of Frodo's journey the ring, their eventual success was all pre-ordained by Illuvata before time (according to the Valaquenta in the Silmarillion). I know how pointless an argument about Tom Bombadil is. Maybe he's just an anomaly that doesn't fit into Tolkien's well-arranged hierarchy of beings, but I like him and, like Frodo, would like to have a chat with him. Actually, Frodo should have plenty of time to go talk to Tom Bombadil once he gets things worked out in the Shire.
One last thing. Being so close to the Old Forest, I'm reminded of the Barrow Downs. Not all of the baddies in Middle-earth are tied to Sauron. Life, the good and the bad (the evil in the Barrow Downs, for example), goes on without him.
The chapter closes meaningfully with just the four hobbits that started out together (minus one conspirator, Fatty Bolger). Yet another great quote out of this chapter is that closing paragraph, "'It seems almost like a dream that has slowly faded.' 'Not to me,' said Frodo. 'To me it feels more like falling asleep again.'" I understand how Merry and Frodo both feel.
till next time, keep thinking,
Mark-Edmond
Kanazawa, Japan
far(out)
Note: We will be publishing the final 2 Tolkien Virgin articles over the next two weeks. Thanks for all your patience, everyone!
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... 18 Comments
The "virgin's" comments remind me of some I've heard from several first timers. This part does seem to drag a bit. The first time my son read the books he stopped somewhere in this chapter and refused to read any more. Of course I knew the scouring was coming up and the Grey Havens, but I couldn't persuade him (he was about 11 or 12 at the time). He has read it through to the end several times, BTW. I love it when Gandalf slowly reveals to Butterbur who the king is. I don't guess we'll get this in the upcoming movies, but it would be great to see. Can't wait to read the last two installments. Is he going to read the appendices too, I wonder?
Comment by Hero's Song - December 1, 2002 @ 6:30 PM
The "virgin's" comments remind me of some I've heard from several first timers. This part does seem to drag a bit. The first time my son read the books he stopped somewhere in this chapter and refused to read any more. Of course I knew the scouring was coming up and the Grey Havens, but I couldn't persuade him (he was about 11 or 12 at the time). He has read it through to the end several times, BTW. I love it when Gandalf slowly reveals to Butterbur who the king is. I don't guess we'll get this in the upcoming movies, but it would be great to see. Can't wait to read the last two installments. Is he going to read the appendices too, I wonder?
Comment by Hero's Song - December 1, 2002 @ 6:30 PM
Frodo's pain has always just wracked my heart. I love the line that you quoted about the journey's not really being a dream, that for him it's just like falling asleep again. And Butterburr's reaction is so typical for a Breelander. I didn't expect such a reaction, but when it came I realized that we were back it the old ignorance of the town folk. It struck me also how the hobbits and Gandalf seemed arrayed as warriors. I always thought that was interesting.
The part about the hobbits 'being trained' to settle the Shire's affairs - I always thought that not as a slight, but as if through everything else, they have learned how to deal with things like that, and that knowledge and wisdom will need to be used to scour the Shire of the evil. That's what I always thought.
Nice job, once again! Can't wait for the next one.
Comment by nerdanel14 - December 1, 2002 @ 7:43 PM
Frodo's pain has always just wracked my heart. I love the line that you quoted about the journey's not really being a dream, that for him it's just like falling asleep again. And Butterburr's reaction is so typical for a Breelander. I didn't expect such a reaction, but when it came I realized that we were back it the old ignorance of the town folk. It struck me also how the hobbits and Gandalf seemed arrayed as warriors. I always thought that was interesting.
The part about the hobbits 'being trained' to settle the Shire's affairs - I always thought that not as a slight, but as if through everything else, they have learned how to deal with things like that, and that knowledge and wisdom will need to be used to scour the Shire of the evil. That's what I always thought.
Nice job, once again! Can't wait for the next one.
Comment by nerdanel14 - December 1, 2002 @ 7:43 PM
I like the way the story slowly winds down. I heartily detest books and movies where we spend all that time getting to know folks and watch them in their struggles then its over after the last climactic sword fight (as in Dune, spoiled the book for me) or esle everyone gathers on a podium and gets cheered (as in Star Wars).
Here we get to slowly go through Many Partings over the course of 4 chapters and almost all the loose ends are tied up (I am disappointed we never learn Farmer Maggot's fate, but that's the only dropped ball I can think of).
I also don't think our heros "malingered." Frodo needed a long time to heal - he never does totally - enough to travel so far.
Gandalf's training comment: to me it seems he's saying: hey guys my time is over, whatever happens now it's up to you to deal with. Not just the 4 hobbits, but all us mortals, the time of elves and wizards is over.
Comment by CirionEorl - December 2, 2002 @ 2:47 PM
I like the way the story slowly winds down. I heartily detest books and movies where we spend all that time getting to know folks and watch them in their struggles then its over after the last climactic sword fight (as in Dune, spoiled the book for me) or esle everyone gathers on a podium and gets cheered (as in Star Wars).
Here we get to slowly go through Many Partings over the course of 4 chapters and almost all the loose ends are tied up (I am disappointed we never learn Farmer Maggot's fate, but that's the only dropped ball I can think of).
I also don't think our heros "malingered." Frodo needed a long time to heal - he never does totally - enough to travel so far.
Gandalf's training comment: to me it seems he's saying: hey guys my time is over, whatever happens now it's up to you to deal with. Not just the 4 hobbits, but all us mortals, the time of elves and wizards is over.
Comment by CirionEorl - December 2, 2002 @ 2:47 PM
I always thought Gandalf meant that the journey had got the hobbits experienced enough to handle troubles. I do not like how the end of darkenss did not reach Bree so quickly, adn that Frodo has to suffer so much. It's so unfair. I can't stand the Fellowship brekaing up, never to see one another again. I don't like unhappy endings. They make me feel that my efforts are wasted and upset my stomach. I prefer that the hobbits had immediately returned to the Shire, then go to visit friends.
Comment by fishy071 - December 3, 2002 @ 2:10 AM
I always thought Gandalf meant that the journey had got the hobbits experienced enough to handle troubles. I do not like how the end of darkenss did not reach Bree so quickly, adn that Frodo has to suffer so much. It's so unfair. I can't stand the Fellowship brekaing up, never to see one another again. I don't like unhappy endings. They make me feel that my efforts are wasted and upset my stomach. I prefer that the hobbits had immediately returned to the Shire, then go to visit friends.
Comment by fishy071 - December 3, 2002 @ 2:10 AM
I love the ending... it's so comparable to real life!
Someone once said that, "Nothing worth having comes without some sort of a struggle," and that's so true. We might push through some immense obstacle in our life, and we come out of it battered and bruised and weary, but victorious. Life is not the same afterwards, but it is better than it might have been if we had not acted at all.
Meanwhile, time passes and life goes on as it always has... we get old and tired, friends and companions move on or pass away, and eventually it will be our turn to make our way Westward...
I am reminded of Gandalf's advice toward the beginning of Fellowship, when Frodo says he wishes that events hadn't progressed in the way they had. Gandalf replies something along the lines of, "All we can do is make the best of the circumstances that we are placed in."
Maybe it would be happier if they all came back and lived in different rooms in Bag End and got to celebrate every day. But it wouldn't even come close to touching that elusive beauty of melancholy and the immutable slow passage of time.
These are the things that move us to tears, and motivate us to invest in the important things in our short lifetimes.
These are the things that an epic is made out of, how epics were always made, for thousands of years.
History became myth, myth became legend, and some things that should not have been forgotten... were lost.
Comment by GrimWinnebago - December 3, 2002 @ 1:43 PM
I love the ending... it's so comparable to real life!
Someone once said that, "Nothing worth having comes without some sort of a struggle," and that's so true. We might push through some immense obstacle in our life, and we come out of it battered and bruised and weary, but victorious. Life is not the same afterwards, but it is better than it might have been if we had not acted at all.
Meanwhile, time passes and life goes on as it always has... we get old and tired, friends and companions move on or pass away, and eventually it will be our turn to make our way Westward...
I am reminded of Gandalf's advice toward the beginning of Fellowship, when Frodo says he wishes that events hadn't progressed in the way they had. Gandalf replies something along the lines of, "All we can do is make the best of the circumstances that we are placed in."
Maybe it would be happier if they all came back and lived in different rooms in Bag End and got to celebrate every day. But it wouldn't even come close to touching that elusive beauty of melancholy and the immutable slow passage of time.
These are the things that move us to tears, and motivate us to invest in the important things in our short lifetimes.
These are the things that an epic is made out of, how epics were always made, for thousands of years.
History became myth, myth became legend, and some things that should not have been forgotten... were lost.
Comment by GrimWinnebago - December 3, 2002 @ 1:43 PM
These last chapters do move slowly, but I love them. The world has changed, Gandalf has changed, the hobbits have changed, their home has changed. Butterburr remains a constant, and he makes a good measuring stick to see the changes. The four hobbits were scurrying in fear, trying to stay in hiding from their enemies when they last came through Bree. Now they are so changed, casual trouble seeks to avoid them. They have helped save the world, and in doing so have become people they couldn't have dreamed of on their first visit to Bree. Not all the changes are positive; the damage that Frodo has taken is the most obvious. I look forward to the next articles!
Comment by RunawayRose - December 3, 2002 @ 5:54 PM
These last chapters do move slowly, but I love them. The world has changed, Gandalf has changed, the hobbits have changed, their home has changed. Butterburr remains a constant, and he makes a good measuring stick to see the changes. The four hobbits were scurrying in fear, trying to stay in hiding from their enemies when they last came through Bree. Now they are so changed, casual trouble seeks to avoid them. They have helped save the world, and in doing so have become people they couldn't have dreamed of on their first visit to Bree. Not all the changes are positive; the damage that Frodo has taken is the most obvious. I look forward to the next articles!
Comment by RunawayRose - December 3, 2002 @ 5:54 PM
One of the things I noticed in the Scouring of the Shire was that Frodo had become a complete pacifist, to the point where his own friends were saying things like, "We aren't going to get the ruffians out of the Shire by being shocked and sad, Frodo."
What this says to me is that Frodo, like many another victim of violence and evil, has been permanently scarred by it. He has lost the "old Ned" that we are all born with, that equips us to reply to violence with violence. He is "shocked and sad" because he cannot be otherwise.
I've read LOTR many, many times, and my feelings about it have changed. When I first read the stories, I was about 12 years old. I found FOTR boring and the end of ROTK a disappointment. After many rereadings I have found FOTR the most intriguing book of all, and the end of ROTK a deeply moving experience. But then, I'm much older now.
Comment by lemminkainen - December 4, 2002 @ 6:48 PM
One of the things I noticed in the Scouring of the Shire was that Frodo had become a complete pacifist, to the point where his own friends were saying things like, "We aren't going to get the ruffians out of the Shire by being shocked and sad, Frodo."
What this says to me is that Frodo, like many another victim of violence and evil, has been permanently scarred by it. He has lost the "old Ned" that we are all born with, that equips us to reply to violence with violence. He is "shocked and sad" because he cannot be otherwise.
I've read LOTR many, many times, and my feelings about it have changed. When I first read the stories, I was about 12 years old. I found FOTR boring and the end of ROTK a disappointment. After many rereadings I have found FOTR the most intriguing book of all, and the end of ROTK a deeply moving experience. But then, I'm much older now.
Comment by lemminkainen - December 4, 2002 @ 6:48 PM
Note: We will be publishing the final 2 Tolkien Virgin articles over the next two weeks. Thanks for all your patience, everyone!
Nice observation about the Barrow Downs. Hadn't occurred to me.
Comment by Shular - December 13, 2002 @ 7:20 AM
Note: We will be publishing the final 2 Tolkien Virgin articles over the next two weeks. Thanks for all your patience, everyone!
Nice observation about the Barrow Downs. Hadn't occurred to me.
Comment by Shular - December 13, 2002 @ 7:20 AM
"One last thing. Being so close to the Old Forest, I'm reminded of the Barrow Downs. Not all of the baddies in Middle-earth are tied to Sauron. Life, the good and the bad (the evil in the Barrow Downs, for example), goes on without him."
Actually the Barrow-Wights are tied to Sauron, in a way. They were evil spirits who fled the destruction of Angbad. They were servants of or at least allies of Sauron. Were they affected by the destruction of Sauron and the Ring of Power? Good question...
Comment by maxkazar - December 18, 2002 @ 6:20 PM
"One last thing. Being so close to the Old Forest, I'm reminded of the Barrow Downs. Not all of the baddies in Middle-earth are tied to Sauron. Life, the good and the bad (the evil in the Barrow Downs, for example), goes on without him."
Actually the Barrow-Wights are tied to Sauron, in a way. They were evil spirits who fled the destruction of Angbad. They were servants of or at least allies of Sauron. Were they affected by the destruction of Sauron and the Ring of Power? Good question...
Comment by maxkazar - December 18, 2002 @ 6:20 PM