Eventually, each & every member of the Fellowship would in all likelihood have succumbed to the power of the Ring & the temptation to seize it. Some interesting thoughts have been put forth throughout this thread about what order it would have gone in.
Quote:
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...Hobbits [seem to have] a particular resistance to the Ring’s seductive power.(The Saucepan Man)
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I tend to agree. Sam, in particular, was exemplary of this. Since the question of who would have gone "Ring mad" essentially revolves around who would have been the first to try to forcefully wrest the Ring from Frodo, I am inclined to believe that Sam, Pippin & Merry would be the last possible culprits. Not only are hobbits almost completely unaggressive by nature, but the three aforementioned are also the mose intimate friends of Frodo's, and thus would be least likely to betray him. Many have said Aragorn would be the last to hold out against the Ring, but I disagree. Not only did he face the most internal conflict (which could potentially lead to a breakdown) and face the burden of saving Gondor, he also, as
Saucepan Man pointed out, was descended from Isildur - what makes us think that Aragorn is any more powerful against the will of the Ring than his forefather?
Between Aragorn & the hobbitses I believe would come Gimli first, before Legolas. My logic in this is that Dwarves are (& I don't mean to engage in stereotyping) generally more passionate creatures than Elves. Well, maybe 'passionate' isn't the word. Haughty? Cavalier? Uppity? Proud?
Touchy? (Okay, I used Thesaurus.com... so sue me.) What I am trying to say is that Gimli seems more predisposed to wrath & anger, more capable of being offended, & it seems to me that traits like this would more likely lead to Ringlust than Legolas's calm, subdued manner.
I see what
Saucepan Man is saying when he asserts that there is no real reason for us to believe that Legolas (an Elf) would be less tempted by the Ring than Gimli (a Dwarf), because after all Galadriel, one of the most powerful Elves,
was tempted; but I think that Legolas's age, if nothing else, would set him apart as less likely to attempt to steal the Ring - there is a certain wisdom that inherently comes with being alive a few thousand years.
Sorry I can't add more. I hope what I just wrote makes some sense. My final timeline of Ring-induced insanity goes something like this
Aragorn-Gimli-Legolas-Merry/Pippin-Sam
Oh, & I forgot about what's his face, that wizard...
Oh yeah, Gandalf!
He would come last, because he is one smart, out-of-this-world dude.
