Book 2 Chapter 3: The Ring Goes South

This chapter has two of my favorite Tolkien quotes and covers a vast span of time (several months) so it holds a special place in my heart.

Unlike the films, there is a pretty large gap in time between the Council of Elrond and the point when the party actually leaves Rivendell. After they do leave, they journey for weeks before reaching the Misty Mountains and then finally have to turn back toward Moria.

Why not head out right away?

Well, there's a lot of preparation to be done. The Nazgul may have been swept away by the Bruinen but they've left a mark on the area and likely have other allies about (trolls, orcs, wicked men, etc.) Additionally, one of their most powerful allies, Saruman, has just been revealed as a traitor. So before dispatching the Ring into the wild green yonder, preparation was needed.

And to an author like Tolkien, preparation is a good time for some exposition. That makes for a long chapter and one rife with interesting quotes and content.

The Fellowship Leaving Rivendell - Ted Nasmith

A Very Hobbit Adventure

The Hobbits take very different views to the delay and the trip overall. Pippen and Merry are shocked that Sam was "rewarded" for sneaking into the Council by giving him approval to go with Frodo. Frodo, of course, is shocked by this, instead calling it a most "severe punishment."

I think this interaction is important because it tells us a lot about the Hobbits and their levels of wisdom and understanding. Pippen is young and eager to experience the world. Merry fits this mold to a lesser extent but does clarify that they don't want to accompany Frodo just for adventure, instead it is about coming so far already and wanting to finish the job.

Frodo is the most pessimistic of the bunch, but who can blame him? He's been the Ring-bearer for over twelve years at this point and has glimpsed some terrible things.

Initially, Elrond is opposed to the Hobbits joining the party, instead thinking of who from his own household that he could send with. Gandalf stands up for the Hobbits, as has become his norm, and argues for their inclusion.

"Nor do any if us see clearly (what lies ahead). It is true that if these Hobbits understood the dangers they would not dare go. But they would still wish to go, or wish that they dared, and be shamed and unhappy. I think, Elrond, that in this matter it would be well to trust rather to friendship than to wisdom."

I underlined the last part of the quote for emphasis as it is one of the CENTRAL THESES OF THE ENTIRE STORY.

The Hobbits don't know what's coming, but even if they did, they would wish that they could go with Frodo because he is their friend. To Tolkien, friendship is one of the most powerful forces in the world.

Of Swords and Mithril

Anyone familiar with ANY sort of mythology can attest to the legendary stature given to the weapons of heroes. Mjolnir is not only Thor's weapon, but posseses power of its own that the Norse Thunder God can wield. King Arthur wields Excalibur which granted him the right to kingship in the first place, bestowing a mandate from Heaven upon the hero.

Tolkien is no different and places extraordinary emphasis on the implements of heroes.

In this chapter, two swords in particular are discussed: the newly forged Anduril, and Sting.

Anduril

Anduril, the Flame of the West, is Aragorn's sword. Reforged from the broken shards of Narsil which Isildur used to cut off the Ring from Sauron's hand thousands of years prior. The descendants of Isildur kept these shards for centuries waiting for the right time to reforge the blade and wield it against Sauron. 

So why now? What was stopping them from reforging Anduril a few years before? Or centuries before? Elrond's been around Rivendell for thousands of years and the heirs of Isildur had been frequent guests.

I have two potential solutions to offer:

1) Reforging Anduril required great effort from extremely skilled craftsmen. This effort combined with the inherent and subtle "Elven magic" could have only come from an extremely powerful Elf (perhaps Elrond) who is permanently drained because of it. Elrond is willing to do so knowing that if he doesn't, Middle Earth stands no chance and also that his time in Middle-Earth is nearly finished anyway.

2) Reforging Anduril required a specific tool or knowledge or object that had been lost. Hell, maybe even a piece of the blade itself was missing.. Elrond's sons and Aragorn are absent for the two months as well, presumably scouting. When they return, it is noted that they had traveled far down the Silverlode into a "strange country" and would not speak to any except Elrond about it.  Down the Silverlode is the ruins of one of the great cities of Arnor, Tharbad. Tharbad had been overrun centuries before but the Dunedain had lived there among the ruins until relatively recently. As one of the last great cities of men in the north, perhaps great lore or powerful implements had been stored there and long forgotten. Elrond's sons and Aragorn went there to scout for this missing "piece" and found it among the ruins of Tharbad.

Of course, neither have any textual support (that I've come across) but they offer intriguing and plausible explanations of why the sword wasn't reforged sooner. I personally prefer Option #2.

Sting

Sting was found by Bilbo during The Hobbit, along with the swords Glamdring (now wielded by Gandalf) and Orcrist (wielded by Thorin Oakenshield and resting in his tomb in the Lonely Mountain). Sting is remarkable because, like all Elven blades of the First Age, it has inherent properties to protect against Orcs, glowing blue in their presence.

Sting is unique not because of its size or blue characteristics, but in that it was forged during the First Age and eventually ended up in the bottom of a troll cave. Bilbo must be the luckiest Hobbit in history to discover a six thousand plus year old sword in a muddy cave only a few weeks before finding the One Ring in a pond deep under a mountain. Good fortune, indeed.

The Company Sets Out

Before leaving Rivendell, Elrond gives a speech, warning the companions that the road will be perilous and foretelling that "some will and can leave the Fellowship as they'd like".

Gimli responds with another of my favorites, "Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens." Like the previous quote, this is central to understanding Tolkien's views on friendship and its role in Middle-Earth. Gimli is arguing that in the darkest times, fellowship is needed even more than before and that a true companion would not leave. Let's remember this line when the Fellowship is whittled down and compare how and why individual members left to the ideal Gimli describes here.

Days turn into weeks as the Fellowship travels south and the mountains grow larger. Gimli describes the three peaks that they are approaching as sacred to the Dwarves and that their kingdom of Kazad-Dum (Moria) is underneath them.

A few days after Gimli discusses the importance of these mountains, Sam confides to Frodo, "[I'm] beginning to think it's about time we got a sight of that fiery mountain." Sam thought that the reddish mountain, the Redhorn, was their final destination before Gimli described them.

I think this passage really helps define the scope of the undertaking and how woefully under-prepared the Hobbits, and Sam in particular, are for a journey of this danger and magnitude. That Sam is the most stalwart and faithful of all the companions even though he is blindly following Frodo out of a sense of duty and friendship is remarkable, and we are beginning to see more and more glimpses of Sam the Hero burst through from Sam the Pack Mule.

Wizardry on the Mountain - "Words of Command" and Cheat Codes

The Company Attempts the Pass of Caradhras - Ted Nasmith

The party decides, at Aragorn's behest, to take the mountain pass through the Misty Mountains and avoid going through Moria (although it hasn't been called out by name yet). Gandalf is reluctant but goes along with it. Soon the party is halted by unforgiving and heavy snowfall, forcing them to stop for shelter on a cliff face.

Boromir wonders aloud if Sauron is causing this and shares that in Gondor, it is common belief that he can control the storms within Mordor at will. Gimli laughs at this and dismisses it, "His arm has grown lon indeed, if he can draw snow down from 300 leagues."

Gandalf's reply is chillingly short, "His arm has grown long."

This is significant in showing how Sauron is no longer a shadowy figure, content to hide in obscure areas of Middle Earth but is instead becoming a more and more active player in the world. Unlike the movie which had Saurman and Gandalf fighting with words over a distance, I think Sauron being the primary player here is more powerful to the overall story. 

The Anger of the Mountain - Ted Nasmith

The storm continues unabated and the Fellowship tries for hours to unsucessfully ignite a fire. Finally, with death as the only alternative, Gandalf speaks a "Word of Command" - a cheat code in Middle-Earth - and fire erupts on the piled wet timber. Gandalf laments this deeply and argues that using this Word creates a gigantic "Gandalf is Here" sign across the entire region for those who can read the sign.

Presumably, he means Saruman, and Sauron. Elrond and Galadriel may know as well but the text never explores this in detail. However, their stature and power is certainly capable of detecting these hidden Words within the world and I would think that they would likely be able to read the sign.

This is the first real glimpse of Gandalf's power that we get to see (aside from his prowess with a sword when he was on Weathertop) and a chance to see that he can indeed channel a divine and mighty power when needed but the ramifications of disrupting the natural world with this "cheat code" could be dire.

Conclusion

Next up, the party heads back down the mountain and into the deep of Moria.