LotR -- Book 2 - Chapter 09 - The Great River

[davem]

Frodo looked up at the Elf standing tall above him, as he gazed into the night, seeking a mark to shoot at. His head was dark, crowned with sharp stars that glittered in the black pools of the sky behind. But now rising & sailing up from the south the great clouds advanced, sending out dark outriders into the starry fields. A sudden dread fell on the Company.

Elbereth Gilthoniel sighed Legolas as he looked up.

Along the coastal strip we passed by numerous negro villages where the people sat talking round tiny fires. Soon the train began to climb. The settlements ceased, & the night became inky black. Gradually it turned cooler, & I fell asleep. When the first ray of sunlight announced the onset of day, I awaoke. The train, swathed in a red cloud of dust, was making a turn round a steep red cliff. On a jagged rock above us a slim, brownish-black figure stood motionless, leaning on a long spear, looking down at the train. Beside him towered a gigantic candelabrum cactus.

I was enchanted by this sight - it was a picture of something utterly alien & outside my experience, but on the other hand a most intense sentiment du deja vu. I had the feeling that I had already experienced this moment & had always known this world which was seperated from me only by distance in time. It was as if I were this moment returning to the land of my youth, & as if I knew that dark skinned man who had been waiting for me forr five thousand years. Jung, ‘Memories, Dreams, Reflections’ (On his journey to Kenya & Uganda)

What Tolkien is giving us in this moment of ‘vision’ is an equally timeless moment within Middle-earth. An Elf, crowned with stars, stands poised against the coming darkness, & utters a prayer. A moment later he will move, & strike down the symbol of that darkness, but that moment of silent, watching prayer, for me, sums up so much of the Legendarium, its mood & its meaning, & the philosophical vision behind it.

(Its also Legolas ‘great’ moment within the LotR for me, so I wanted to single it out before we move on.)

[mark12_30]

Originally Posted by davem

What Tolkien is giving us in this moment of ‘vision’ is an equally timeless moment within Middle-earth. An Elf, crowned with stars, stands poised against the coming darkness, & utters a prayer. A moment later he will move, & strike down the symbol of that darkness, but that moment of silent, watching prayer, for me, sums up so much of the Legendarium, its mood & its meaning, & the philosophical vision behind it.

Indeed; the moment jumped out at me as well, and I thought of the woman crowned with stars in Revelation (Mary <> Elbereth??) and her subsequent conflict with the dragon; a rather odd correlation and one that I still haven't thought through...

Frodo calls the shadow Cold, as opposed to the balrog. That sent me back to Weathertop and other nazgul encounters, and the words cold, chill, icy are pervasive throughout the Nazgul encounters and discussions of Frodo's knife-wound. Still thinking about when evil in M-E is hot, as opposed to cold. The B-W was cold as well so it's not a Nazgul-only thing. Death-cold versus demonic-hot perhaps. Morgoth's servants hot, Sauron's servants cold...?

(it might make more sense in the morning... I may edit then)

[Boromir88]

Originally posted by SpM:
Precisely. But, like the Fellowship, there is a danger in letting ourselves be carried through space and time for too long. There comes a time when we must take positive action to "go against the flow"

Reminds me of that saying "Don't be a follower, be a leader." Sometimes being a leader, means you can't be a "follower." In these closing chapters Aragorn really begins to struggle about being the "leader," and taking on himself the role of Gandalf. Instead they follow down the Anduin, and as already pointed out, follow too far, bad things can happen. The next two chapters we get to see Aragorn really sort of fall apart, and hit rock bottom, as he seems to break to the pressure of being that "leader" of the company, being a "Gandalf." Not good news considering he's the future King of Gondor (of course we all know what a great leader Aragorn does become), I think when Aragorn and Eomer meet, there is great symbolism between the strength and friendship between the two future kings, and it helps Aragorn become the Leader we see at the end of the story. But, these next two chapters, I'll get to some quotes when the time comes, we really get to see Aragorn down on himself for the decisions he made. Maybe he's trying to be too much like Gandalf, and not like himself? Who knows?

[Aldarion Elf-Friend]

Originally Posted by Boromir88

In these closing chapters Aragorn really begins to struggle about being the "leader," and taking on himself the role of Gandalf. Instead they follow down the Anduin, and as already pointed out, follow too far, bad things can happen. The next two chapters we get to see Aragorn really sort of fall apart, and hit rock bottom, as he seems to break to the pressure of being that "leader" of the company, being a "Gandalf." Maybe he's trying to be too much like Gandalf, and not like himself? Who knows?

I would go a step further and say that the events of the next few chapters, as set up in this one, serve to refine and galvanize Aragorn. He is reluctant at first to take the mantle upon him, but finally does so as he chases down the Urek-Hai. By the time he reaches Helm's Deep he is ready to lead men without Gandalf (ironic, since Gandalf is back with them at this point, although not at the Deep itself).

I would even say that without the events at the end of FotR and begining of TT, Aragorn would not have been ready to assume his throne in Gondor. His blaming himself for his indecisiveness leading to the capture of Merry and Pippen taught him a valuable lesson that served him well for the rest of his life.

[Boromir88]

Well said Aldarion. That is why I'm glad Aragorn didn't go to Minas Tirith at this stage of the journey, because clearly he wasn't ready for it. But, by the end of the story he has become a changed Character indeed.

I know I've said this many times, and I'll say it again, because I think it supports another point. In one of Tolkien's earlier writings, Aragorn goes to Minas Tirith, with Boromir. Boromir goes against Aragorn's throne claiming and starts stirring up a civil war. Aragorn then has to kill Boromir before he gathers too much support. This is similar to the Arvedui claim. Where Arvedui clearly had the "proof," and the "right" to the throne, but he didn't have the support of the Steward, or the full support of the people, causing the Kin Strife. I'm afraid if Aragorn goes with Minas Tirith with Boromir, he only has the "proof" to the throne, he doesn't have the support of the people. How does Aragorn get this support, his battle experience, at the Morannon, and at Pelennor. Then, the people are rallied behind him, and even the Steward Faramir, knowing it is wise to step down, because Aragorn has the right to the throne, and seeing Aragorn's battle experiences he has the support of the people. Where if he simply went to Minas Tirith at this stage, and took claim to the throne, the people would see him as a nuisance, and could try to go against him.

[Lhunardawen]

Please don't kill me, but when I first thought about this chapter, the only thing that comes to mind is the Argonath.

The left hand was raised as a gesture of warning...

Doubtless a warning to foes who think of assailing Minas Tirith. But could it also be a warning to the Fellowship? That they would be broken, someone would die an untimely death, or succumb to evil in any way? But the upraised hand can also be a sign of peace or welcome, to those who were returning to the land of Gondor, or to their allies. So the Argonath is welcoming the Fellowship, and at the same time giving them a warning.

Here is shown the perfect epitome of a swoon-worthy man..."Strider, and yet not Strider," no longer a Ranger, now "a king returning from exile to his own land." It was enough to make you proud of him, then he says...

Would that Gandalf were here! How my heart yearns for Minas Tirith and the walls of my own city! But whither now shall I go?

For me, his acceptance of helplessness without Gandalf makes him swoon-worthier than ever. But it seems that their delaying tactic of travelling by boat did not help him much...

[The Saucepan Man]

Originally Posted by Boromir88

Reminds me of that saying "Don't be a follower, be a leader." Sometimes being a leader, means you can't be a "follower." In these closing chapters Aragorn really begins to struggle about being the "leader," and taking on himself the role of Gandalf. Instead they follow down the Anduin, and as already pointed out, follow too far, bad things can happen.

I never really saw it like this before, but it makes a lot of sense. What might be viewed simply as an "action-packed" incident on the River in fact marks a major stage in Aragorns' transformation into someone worthy of taking up the throne of Gondor. He learns a valuable lesson that, as a leader, he cannot allow himself, or those under his charge, simply be swept along by time and events for too long. As Aldarion points out, the lesson is not fully learned until the Fellowship breaks, but I see this incident as a definate part of the process.