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Originally Posted by Aldarion
I would argue that, rather than the most pragmatic of the bunch, Boromir is the most idealistic of the company - an idealism that is not rooted in reality.
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Fascinating point. I can't help wondering if this is the conflict that's ging on inside Boromir - not the obvious one of 'How do I get my hands on the Ring without getting myself done in?' but a conflict between his desire for the Ring (or what it menas to him) & his own sense of what is 'Right'. Basically all that stuff about being truth speakers & upholders of right & justice has up to that point been just words. He's lived by them because nothing has really challenged them. Now he's being forced to live by those words & the struggle becomes overwhelming. Even when he breaks & attempts to steal the Ring he still attempts to justify what he's doing in terms of the philosophy he's grown up with.
He's a man who has been able to follow his desires for power & authority while still holding to the letter of those teachings, because he was fighting a war against an external 'evil' force. Suddenly he's confronted with the
spirit of them & is 'torn in two'. In the end, as Aragorn tells him, he 'conquers' & chooses the spirit over the letter of those teachings. Something St. Paul (?)said about the 'Letter kills, the spirit gives life' springs to mind.