Voronwë, I have never started one at this site, but read all the ones you did start and I will be happy to take a whack at it. I have my LotR's book right next to me at work now.
Why don't I wait until say Thursday and then make the new thread?
If everyone is okay with that?
Book 1, Chapter 11: A Knife in the Dark
- Voronwë the Faithful
- At the intersection of here and now
- Posts: 46478
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 1:41 am
- Contact:
- Primula Baggins
- Living in hope
- Posts: 40005
- Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2005 1:43 am
- Location: Sailing the luminiferous aether
- Contact:
Cryptic, Voronwë—very cryptic.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
- Dave_LF
- Wrong within normal parameters
- Posts: 6841
- Joined: Fri Mar 17, 2006 10:59 am
- Location: The other side of Michigan
The two explanations for the Witch-King's departure aren't necessarily exclusive of each other. If he were dismayed by Frodo's resistance and also expected the wound to do him in, the logical thing would be to back off for a while to watch and wait. When his dismay wore off (and/or the fear of Sauron was put back into him) and he realized there was a real possibility that Frodo would resist the shard long enough to reach Rivendell, the plan changed.
I still like the explanation in the Russian apocrypha The Last Ringbearer. The Ring was just a trinker and the Nazgûl were sent to make it look important, to distract the powers of the West and make them fight over it. Any ill effects were psychosomatic.
The Elves were not the good guys in that version.
The Elves were not the good guys in that version.
If there was anything that depressed him more than his own cynicism, it was that quite often it still wasn't as cynical as real life.
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!