[Lalwendë]

I'm reluctant to think that the Ring has any 'draw' towards Mordor, or even any 'urge' to leave one person and find another Bearer. Why? Because I think that the losing and finding of the Ring is more to do with Fate, and less to do with the Ring itself choosing somebody; surely if the Ring can 'choose' then it might have chosen more suitable bearers for its own purposes? And in addition to this, I think that to give the Ring more sentience might risk demeaning the efforts of those who do bear or reject it.

I think it is simply an incredibly powerful object but without sentience. What I think it does work upon is the boundary between the Fea and the Hroa, as seen in the visions that Frodo has of the Nazgul, Sam's heightened senses on the Pass of Cirith Ungol, Gollum and Bilbo's unnaturally long lives. And it does possess an incredible innate power which Sauron has built in to it during its forging.

One of the ways it works davem has already touched upon, and it is something I have noticed too; there is a possibility that the Ring's 'forces' exert a pull on the person's desires. Galadriel is possibly the best example of this, as she expresses her lust for power and control when offered the Ring. But it is interesting that the Ringbearers do not necessarily express such power hungry desires. Gollum seems to want to use it to sneak around and survive as an outsider, Bilbo uses to avoid neighbours he does not wish to talk to, and Sam uses it to hide from enemies. That Sam's idea of having power is only fleeting is quite telling. It seems that those who do not bear the Ring have more desire for power and control than those who do.

I think that one of the ways the Ring works is nothing to do with the Ring at all, it is simply the reputation of the object. This is shown in the reactions of Boromir and Faramir; the former is absolutely fascinated by it, like someone who stands by a big red button marked 'do not touch', he cannot resist. His brother takes an opposite reaction in that he vehemently states that he'd have nothing to do with it.

To Bilbo, the Ring was almost just a handy gadget, and as far as we can see, he did not become power crazed by possessing it; he did not want to give it up, but he did do so. It clearly had a physiological effect on him by giving him unnatural life, and that I think is where the first real danger of the Ring lies, in that it physically harms people due to the way it works on the body (I wonder how this would work on a non-mortal?). The second danger is that it clearly does possess powers which would be harmful in the hands of anyone who did not truly understand it (and that would include Gandalf and Galadriel who though powerful still would not know everything about how it worked). The third danger is simply that Sauron wants it back and will do anything to get it. Who would want to be in possession of that if the Nazgul were out on the hunt for it?

And going back again for a moment to how the Ring works on desires, it may well have this power, though it is something that those on the side of 'Light' may never fully understand. It has been forged by Sauron who is a rebel and rejects Eru's 'plan'; presumably the 'forces' which he has put into the Ring during its forging are the forces which Sauron alone would understand and appreciate. It is likely that 'desire' would be one of those forces or urges.

I think that the 'draw' of the Nazgul to the Ring is more to do with the Nazgul themselves rather than the Ring; they exist in a shadowy dimension of some description, being bodiless and owners of Rings themselves. Being in that shadowy existence, they may be able to sense something which is akin to those powers.

Frodo's sense of having a burden may be linked to the sheer psychological weight of carrying this object which has such a dark meaning and significance to Middle-earth and its fate. He senses this weight outside Mordor too. Once within the borders of Mordor, and closer to both Sauron and to the place where it was forged, the powers innate in the Ring may very well have become stronger, but I don't think it was sentiently urging the Bearer towards Mount Doom.

It's another way of looking at it, and I admit I'm as in the dark as anyone and these are just ideas, but all the same, this 'urge' we have as readers to explain the Ring seems just as powerful as the forces of the Ring itself.