Chapter 11: A Knife in the Dark

This chapter is a long one and covers quite a bit of ground. For simplicity's sake, I've divided the chapter into 3 sections.

Fire on Weathertop by Ted Nasmith

The Riders in Buckland

The first part of the chapter brings us back to Crickhollow and Fatty Bolger, who is still pretending that Frodo is holed up there to aid the Hobbits' flight through the Old Forest. However, this is the night that the Riders make themselves known and raid Frodo's house.

Silence descends on the house which must be strange considering how close it is to the Old Forest and it's many bugs and other noisy critters. Three shadowy figures enter the yard of Frodo's house and approach the door. As you can imagine, Fatty has bolted out the back door and is high-stepping it away as fast as his legs can carry him but the Riders don't know that.

They pound on the door, demanding that they open the door in the name of Mordor. A brave soul, indeed, is needed to refuse that.

Fatty has reached neighbors and began spreading the alarm. Word reaches Brandy Hall where the Master of Buckland (Merry's father) blows the Horn of Buckland to muster the Brandybucks and the other hobbits into a militia to repel the Riders. 

Can you imagine this? Put yourself in the position of the residents of Buckland. 

You've lived your entire life without hearing this horn, and most of your parents have never heard it either. Suddenly, in the middle of the night, a sound like rolling thunder blares over the hills, waking you and demanding your attention. Then, you are expected to heed the Master's call and appear, with pitchforks, clubs, whatever you might have, to repel the threat facing the land.

It's just a cool scene. Go re-read the beginning of this chapter.

Journey through the Marsh

The second part is more character development and historical fluff, detailing the departure from Bree and the slow slog through the Midgewater Marshes that separate Breeland from the barren lands guarded by Weathertop.

Frodo wakes the morning of their departure with a dream of hearing the Horn of Buckland. How does Frodo keep having these prophetic dreams? Tolkien has eschewed much outright magic, especially among those not of the older, nobler blood of the Elves (which includes the Numenorean men like Aragorn). Hobbits, Dwarves, and most men we encounter have no such proclivity.

Could these dreams be related to the Ring? My current favorite theory is that the Ring is acting a bit like a walkie-talkie here. Sauron is aware of who has the Ring but doesn't really know how to behave with someone else in possession of it (Isildur died and then it mostly disappeared. Gollum kept it in a pile and not always wearing it. Plus, it drove him mad). My theory is that these dreams are little bits of Sauron's experiences peeking their way into Frodo's head through the Ring. His dream here is about the Riders, who most certainly are intimately connected with Sauron and also fled from the Horn. Previously, he dreamed of Gandalf's escape from Isengard, which Sauron likely observed through the Palantir located there.

It's not a perfect theory, but I think its more plausible than Frodo somehow being a "seer" or something. Your thoughts?

Anyway, the party leaves Bree and they hit the road. Strider again speaks highly of his skills, boasting that he never takes the wrong path. Besides coming as a dismissal to Sam, it's important to remember that in the books, Aragorn is the one who argues against going to Moria the most. Gandalf convinces the others, however, and he reluctantly goes along. Turned out that Strider, indeed, never takes the wrong path. Willingly, at least.

They slog their way through the marsh and reach the barren, empty lands leading up to Weathertop. Frodo makes a crack while walking about losing so much weight, joking that soon, "I shall become a wraith". Strider is not amused by the joke, and this line is fairly prophetic to what happens at the end of the chapter when he is stabbed by a morgul blade and is in danger of becoming, you guessed it, a wraith.

I just noticed this line on the current read-through. Good stuff.

Storytelling and Conflict at Weathertop

The last portion of this chapter is dominated by two large history dumps, one about Gil-Galad, the last Elven High King, and the other about Beren and Luthien.

As they approach Weathertop, Strider explains this was once a great watchtower of the Northern kingdom and was where Elendil (Isildur's father) waited with his host for Gil-Galad and the Elven armies to join him on the march south to Mordor. Just when he is about to explain more about Gil-Galad, Sam bursts into song and sings a lovely ballad about the king.

Sam! As if we needed more reasons to like him, he sheepishly explains that he learned the song from Mr. Bilbo and memorized it years ago. Sam, our Elven scholar. Strider is also pretty impressed by Sam's knowledge of this ancient song and also impressed by Bilbo for having translated it. Bilbo must've been pretty busy the past 50 years translating all bits and pieces of Elvish history he could find. 

Also telling because it shows that Strider knows Bilbo. Not surprising, really, but shows that Bilbo wasn't the "hermit" many of the hobbits believed him to be.

Secondly, while the party waits in the night for the Riders to appear, Strider sings them the ballad of Beren and Luthien. This is an abbreviated story that is told in much greater detail in the Silmarillion and is one of the deepest and most tragically beautiful stories Tolkien told. 

I've written about it a bit previously, but Luthien was an elf (half-deity really, her mother was akin to Gandalf) and Beren was a lord of men. He fell in love with her and begged her father, King Thingol for her hand. He refused and set upon Beren an impossible task: retrieve a Silmaril from Morgoth (Sauron's boss). Beren, like a boss, puts his man-pants on and marches into Angband, and steals away a Silmaril from Morgoth's crown. It's kind of like the 12 Labors of Hercules if you are familiar with that story.

Anyway, then Strider goes on and on about their sons and daughters, stating the Elrond is a grandson of theirs and all the Kings of Numenor are descendents as well. Which, lets us know that Strider is of their blood and that story is especially touching since he is also in love with an elf whose father disapproved of the match. And also one where the elf chose mortality. And as a highlight, Arwen is also of their blood so its part of each of their legacies.

Again, not super relevant to this story, but super cool and worth a read.

The Attach of the Wraiths by Ted Nasmith

Conclusion

Finally, we hit some action. The wraiths appear and Frodo, in his fright, puts on the Ring (at the Ring's urging...) He sees the Riders in their full and terrible splendor. He sees their long white hair with their leader wearing a full crown upon his head. This is big news if the Witch-King of Angmar himself has appeared. He stabs Frodo, showing that they can see through the Ring's magic (because they are in the spirit world and not the physical one mostly).

The wraiths only flee when Aragorn scares them away with fire. Well, shit. It's still over 10 days from Rivendell and we got a slowly dying important hobbit here.

Chapter 10: Strider

Chapter 10 is where we really dive into the character of Strider and get to know who this mysterious person is. But, like most of Tolkien's major characters, we're left with as many questions as answers.

At the Sign of the Prancing Pony by Ted Nasmith

Let's start with a quick run-down of the chapter:

1. Hobbits return to their room at the Prancing Pony to find Strider already there
2. They talk.
3. Butterbur interrupts and gives Frodo a letter from Gandalf that had been left several months back
4. Strider is confirmed as legit in the letter
5. Merry returns from stroll about town with news of the Riders. 
6. Everyone agrees to go with Strider

The two most interesting pieces of this chapter to me are finding out more about Strider's personality and reading the contents of Gandalf's letter.

Strider's Personality

Strider is a very bold personality in the book and a bit unlike his representation by Viggo Mortenson in the Peter Jackson films. Now, this isn't to say Viggo's interpretation was bad (in fact, I think it was very good!) but the more I read, the more I understand the differences in character.

In the books, Strider is a bit sarcastic and much more outspoken. When Butterbur comes by and warns Frodo about Strider being dangerous (a common sentiment for folks who don't know much about the mysterious rangers), Strider replies mockingly, calling Butterbur, "A fat innkeeper who only remembers his own name because people shout it at him all day." This doesn't sound much like a line that they would utter in the film.

In fact, throughout the book, he seems more of the "young lordling" who is well aware of his birthright and his own skill and is eager to prove himself. Outside of this chapter, when the party reaches Edoras and Hama asks him to leave the sword Anduril at the door, Strider threatens him with swift death if Hama touches the sword. That's pretty brazen in the city of a king you are trying to woo. Inside this chapter, he again shows a sarcastic side when Sam suggested that Strider might take the Ring. He laughed and rose to his feet, drawing his sword and brandishing it at the Hobbits to show them that he certainly could take it by force if he wanted to.

Note: He doesn't though. Would Boromir have been as strong in this instance? Since I don't think the Ring would prefer to be owned by a stranger than a weak little Hobbit, I doubt it would have actively pushed itself into others' minds. The Ring really only starts doing so after it realizes that Frodo won't succumb to its temptation and that it should try someone made of less stern stuff.

But isn't it understandable that Strider is a bit more cocksure than in the films where he had a sort of cool, quiet confidence? He grew up in the House of Elrond (one of the 3 most powerful Elves in Middle Earth), alongside Elrond's two sons who are mighty warriors in their own right. He grew up hearing the tales of his people's glory and spent his youth already crowned the Chieftain of the Dunedain after his father died early. He was raised and trained to understand how important he was, how can we be surprised if he realizes this too?

Sure, he is 87, but he lives into his 200s. He is a young guy, and I think his brazenness is a great way for Tolkien to express his upbringing without being over the top and spelling it directly out.

Gandalf's Letter

Gandalf's letter is a key part of this chapter and explains quite a bit about what's been going on and who Strider is. This letter was meant to sent to Frodo but Butterbur forgot and so is delivering it here.

The letter tells us that Strider's real name is Aragorn, and that he is a friend. This is pretty high praise indeed, coming from an immortal wizard. He advises the Hobbits that Aragorn knows about what is going on and can help take them to Rivendell to meet with Lord Elrond if Gandalf is not there. At this point, we don't know the details of Aragorn's past, but Gandalf trusting him to take the Ring across weeks of wilderness to one of Middle-Earth's most powerful beings is pretty substantial.

The letter was also supposed to be delivered months ago, which is significant because it warns Frodo to make haste in leaving the Shire. Instead, Frodo dallied about and didn't leave until much later than Gandalf had hoped. In the letter, he also explains the Black Riders and warns Frodo to avoid them and beat them to Bree at all costs.

Frodo is a bit confused why Strider didn't reveal himself right away. Strider replies that he had to test Frodo too because the Enemy had laid plans to trap him previously. Who is this guy that is great enough that Sauron himself is plotting to get him.

Strider's Pledge

Strider knows quite a bit about the Riders, and is passionate about avoiding them. He is well-aware of who the Riders used to be and is superstitious about the Hobbits using the word "Mordor" directly with the Riders so close.

He also shares that he and his people have guarded the Shire for years (likely since Bilbo found the Ring, perhaps before?) waiting for something like this.

His oath to Frodo is very significant, binding Aragorn to Frodo and tying his own fate to the fate of the Ring.

"My name is Aragorn, son of Arathorn, and if by life or death I can save you, I will."

Remember at the end of Return of the King when he leads a practically suicide charge toward Mordor to distract them from hunting Frodo? Yep.

Chapter 3: Three is Company

In this chapter, Frodo, Sam, and Pippen set off to Buckland to move Frodo into his new home on the far eastern edge of the Shire.

This is the first real leg of the trip, even if it is mostly across rolling hills and gentle thickets, and we get our first taste of how the Hobbits will react to the road.

The chapter is broken into three distinct segments and I'll format this post in much the same way.

Last Sight of Hobbiton by Ted Naismith

Preparing to Leave

Unlike the Peter Jackson films, Frodo takes his sweet time leaving the Shire after Gandalf comes by talking about how the Ring is, well, the Ring. Spring rolls into summer, and summer becomes fall, and Frodo drags his feet commenting that his home felt more comfortable and desirable than ever. This is a nice contrast with his initial energy in rushing off after Bilbo and starting his own adventure. Eventually, Frodo is convinced to leave after his birthday in the autumn.

In an additional wild bit of Hobbit gossip, Frodo sells Bag End to the Sackville-Baggins, causing quite a stir among the respectable Hobbits of the Shire. This seems to be a specialty with the Baggins of Bag End.

Frodo, Pippen, Merry, Folco, and Fredegar  spend several days packing and shipping off his belongings to a new house in Buckland where he decided to "move away to". Only Sam knows the real reason for the trip (and Sam still isn't invited to spend time with the group of friends...) Folco and Fredegar head out a few days early and Merry escorts the last of the wagons to Buckland to help set up Frodo's house before he arrives.

On the eve of the departure, Frodo has an encounter with The Enemy. Not the Ring, but one of the most powerful servants of Sauron, a Nazgul. As Frodo stretches on his front stoop, he hears old Gaffer speaking in an oddly shrill voice about how Mr. Frodo went away to Buckleberry. Thinking nothing of it, Frodo, Sam, and Pippen take off into the early evening, crossing through the fields and hedges.

On the Road

I think this is an incredibly interesting section and really sets the tone for how the rest of the journey will pan out. 

The first lines of dialogue on the trek come from Frodo bemoaning how heavy his pack is. 

The second line? Sam offering to take some of Frodo's weight because his own is much too light (Tolkien explains that Sam is not being truthful).

Bam! Right there from the start we see EXACTLY how their relationship will look. The more I re-read, the more impressed I become with Sam. The youngest son of a poor gardener, servant of nobility of the Shire, who listened wide-eyed at tales of wonder and elves, becomes the strongest hero of the books (yes, over even Aragorn and Frodo). He knows that his own pack is heavier than Frodo's (because he packed it that way) but still is willing to give more.

The second major bit of action comes the second day of the adventure when Frodo, Sam, and Pippen are overcome with a sudden urge to get off the road and hide. A few moments later, Frodo, peeking through the weeds, sees the Dark Rider himself, sniffing the air for a scent. 

The Hobbits don't know yet what this is or what it represents but Frodo already has a strong feeling of dread. He knows that he is safe and hidden, yet the Ring feels so tempting in his pocket. He doesn't know that the Rider would be able to see him then. All he knows is that the Ring makes him invisible, yet he resists?

Well, he doesn't really resist. He is going for the Ring and the Rider leaves. How disastrous would that have been? Frodo, 1.5 days out of Bag End and not yet to Buckland, loses the Ring to a Nazgul who spirits it away to Mordor. Pretty short trip.

Fortunately, the Rider got impatient first. But the pull of the Ring casts Frodo's reluctance to leave Bag End in a different light. Could it be the Ring that was making him think of how great the Shire was and how cozy it felt? Or was it his inner Hobbit finally coming out? I'll wager its a bit of both.

The Elves

After this encounter, Frodo, Sam and Pippen run into the Rider again. This time, they are saved by the timely sound of singing Elves which drives the the Nazgul away. That's 2 for 2 with lucky escapes from the Riders.

The Elves recognize Frodo as a friend of Bilbo's and hail the Hobbits. (This has been a particularly unusual day for Pippen especially. Black Riders, Elves?) 

Elves in the Woody End by Ted Naismith

History Lesson!

These are not just any Elves though! These are Noldor, high elves, the most powerful of the Elvish races! Their leader is Gildor Inglorion of the House of Finrod. Now, this likely means that he is of the House of Finrod who was a brother to Feanor, the greatest of the Elves. However, being "of the House" can mean no more than being a knight or minor noble, so it is unlikely our friend Gildor is very significant in the grand scheme of Elvish power.

Still though, he claims to lead this band of "Exiles" which is an interesting point in Elvish history. Back in the 1st Age, Finrod (whose name is really Finarfin but that didn't clear up until the Silmarillion was edited in the 70s.) and his brothers Feanor and Fingolfin left Valinor for Middle Earth. Halfway there, Manwe (think Zeus) issued the Doom of the Noldor, which is an indictment of Feanor's pride and vengeance. Essentially, an "original sin" for Elves. Finrod heeded Manwe's warning and returned to Valinor where he presumably still rules as King of the Noldor. Feanor and Fingolfin lead long and glorious lives with many great stories. We'll touch on them later as we go.

Anyway, Gildor is probably part of the group that continued sailing to Middle Earth with Feanor and Fingolfin and did not return to Valinor with his own ruler. This makes this group particularly powerful, in contrast to the woodland elves of Legolas which are a different, less powerful variety.

***

The Elves takes the hobbits in to protect them from the Rider and have a wonderful little party above Woodhall. Frodo stays up with Gildor speaking of events across Middle Earth. Gildor leaves Frodo with parting wisdom and a strong foreshadow in regards to the Enemy.

"My heart forebodes that you, Frodo of the Shire, will know more of these fell things than Gildor Inglorion!" This is a substantial statement coming from a Noldor who has seen thousands of years rise and fall. He has fought the Enemy first hand at the side of the great Elf Lord Gil-Galad and to make this claim (which Elves don't do lightly) is pretty bold.

He also leaves Frodo with the wish that Elbereth protect him. Elbereth is their most beloved star, representative of the Valar named Varda. Frodo remembers this, I think, as he cries out Elbereth when stabbed on Weathertop, and its the password Sam and him use in Cirith Ungol. Each of these events had a life-threatening wound given to Frodo and yet he survives despite the odds.

Elbereth watched over him, indeed.