[Aratlithiel]

mark12_30 referred another poster to this thread (and so I followed because I'm nosy). I spent over an hour reading all of these wonderful posts and then thought what a shame it is that this thread has been banished to the depths of the basement and decided to resurrect it.

As most of you already know, I'm Frodo-obsessed so this was some truly wonderful reading for me. I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of being acquainted with anyone else who has given so much thought to the depths of this character.

I would, however, like to share a more simplistic view with you, one that I've come to embrace more firmly after a recent discussion on the Sea-bell thread...

It seems to me that Frodo's truest sacrifice was in his departure from the Shire and that his words (It must often be so...) are more literal in their meaning. Aragorn points out at the council meeting that he and the rest of the Dunedain have protected the Shire for years without the knowledge of the inhabitants, because if they were aware of their (the Dunedain's) presence, they would then be aware of the dangers from which they were being protected and would thus no longer be the simple folk they'd always been. They would, in essence, lose their innocence.

Frodo (after the Quest) is a constant reminder to the Shire folk of the peril they had been in. Not so much Merry and Pippin because they dealt more with the swash-buckling aspects of the war, the more "earthly" aspects, those things all simple folk are aware of and accept as part of life. Frodo, however, took part in a larger (more other-worldly) aspect of the war, one that - more so than the others - held vast consequences for all of Middle-earth and one that many of the simpler folk of the Shire would not only not understand, but would not want to know about. (My feeling is that this is why he was largely ignored after his return.) Frodo's very presence in the Shire after his return would have been a constant chipping away of the innocence of his people and his leaving would be a way for him to preserve that innocence for as long as possible - to allow them to forget (somewhat) about him and his part. He, therefore, loses the Shire so that others may keep it.

Sam's presence would be a more gentle reminder than Frodo's, allowing the simpler folk to come to terms with it more slowly and more on their own terms. It would allow them to keep the tale in the back of their minds and grow into it more slowly, thus lengthening their innocence and allowing them to continue on with their simpler way of life for as long as possible.