[Child of the 7th Age]

I have no doubt that if Frodo had lept into the cavern, Gollum would have been one step behind him. Fortuntely, that did not happen.

Now about what Lush and Valerie said....I promise not to bludgeon you with a beer mug! After all, I might lose the beer inside and no self-respecting hobbit would do that. I definitely agree with you that what happened on Mount Doom meant Frodo would never have the joy of Shire or family. But I think another point deserves emphasis: Frodo had absolutely no choice in his inability to throw away the Ring of his own free will. He had exercised free will in his decision to take on that burden initially, but the burden itself was so heavy that, by definition, no mortal being (or for that matter no immortal elf) could succeed in voluntarily disposing of it. Tolkien says this very clearly in several of his letters: "If you re-read all the passages dealing with Frodo and the Ring, I think you will see that not only was it quite impossible for him to surrender the Ring, in act or will, especially at the point of its maximum power, but that that failure was adumbrated far back." (Letter 191) Tolkien also stated that Frodo had done "all that was within his utmost physical and mental strength to do." Letter 181 describes Frodo as being in "an apparently complete trap" so that "the Quest was bound to fail."

All this reflects Tolkien's views on humanity. He believed that, as finite creatures, we can be placed in situations simply beyond our power. Grace or deliverence must come from outside of ourselves. And this is exactly what happened to Frodo. Frodo never lied about what happened at Mount Doom. He never tried to pretend he had done something he had not. Externally, at least, he accepted his fate. (Internally was another matter which is why he needed the Blessed Lands.)

A number of posters on various threads have wondered whether someone else, perhaps another hobbit, would have been able to "succeed" where Frodo "failed",or at least not to have been so filled with fear and depression as Frodo was. But this is fallacious. There was no possibility of success in this enterprise since no created being is perfect, and only a perfect being could have "suceeded".

Some have suggested Sam might have held up better, noting that he was able to carry the Ring a brief time without lasting adverse effects. Moreover, Sam did return to build a life and family in the Shire. This comparison, however, breaks down. Sam's guardianship of the Ring was nowhere near the extended period that Frodo struggled with his burden. More importantly, without Frodo's gentle guidance, would Sam have let Gollum live? I doubt it. Sam had many wonderful characteristics, but he could be stubborn and short sighted. I think Gollum would have met a different fate under Sam the Ringbearer. And the whole key to this tangled web of imperfection was Gollum: the pity and forgiveness of injury shown first by Frodo and later by Sam at Frodo's urging made possible the redemption of the world.

Finally, Gandalf states Frodo was chosen for this task and, since Gandalf is a maia, the inference is that the One is behind this designation. Surely, in the context of Tolkien's universe, Eru would have designated that creature who, however weak and imperfect, was somehow best suited to be his instrument.

So, on one level, Sam did not "merit" the wonderful reward of a wife and children any more than Frodo "merited" his separation from the Shire and the lack of a loving family. They were both imperfect creatures in an impossible situation who struggled and did their assigned tasks to the best of their abilities. The gifts they received at the end of their struggle--the one with the richness of the Shire, and the other with Grey Havens--were suited to their nature and needs. Frodo, the Elf-friend, found his reward not in a soul mate, but in the peace of Tol Eressa and, one hopes at some later date, in the final, perfect resolution beyond the circles of the world. sharon