[The Saucepan Man]

There's a good section on Denethor and his relationship with his sons in Appendix A to LotR. It backs up most of what people have been saying here. For example:

Boromir, five years the elder, beloved by his father, was like to him in face and pride, but little else. Rather he was a man after the sort of King Earnur of old, taking no wife and delighting chiefly in arms; fearless and strong, but caring little for lore, save the tales of the old battles. Faramir the younger was like him in looks but otherwise in mind. He read the hearts of men as shrewdly as his father, but what he read moved him sooner to pity than to scorn. He was gentle in bearing, and a lover of lore and of music, and therefore by many in those days his courage was judged less than his brother's. But it was not so, except that he did not seek glory in danger without a purpose. He welcomed Gandalf at such times as he came to the City, and learned what he could from his wisdom; and in this as in many other matters he displeased his father.

Lily provided a great explanation of why Faramir's friendship with Gandalf might have displeased his father so. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

There is also a very interseting section on Denethor in The Palantiri in UT. I particularly liked this:

It may be noted that the effects [of the Palantiri] were different. Saruman fell under the domination of Sauron and desired his victory, or no longer opposed it. Denethor remained steadfast in his rejection of Sauron, but was made to believe that his victory was inevitable, and so fell into despair. The reasons for this difference were no doubt that in the first place Denethor was a man of great strength of will, and maintained the integrity of his personality until the final blow of the (apparently) mortal wound of his only surviving son. He was proud, but this was by no means merely personal: he loved Gondor and its people, and deemed himself appointed by destiny to lead them in this desparate time.

Sometime it is all too easy to dismiss Denethor as an unsympathetic character. But this passage reminds us that he was a great man brought low by the tragic events leading up to his death. [img]smilies/frown.gif[/img]