LotR -- Book 2 - Chapter 10 - The Breaking of the Fellowship

[davem]

I think Fordim has hit the nail on the head as regards Boromir. He places no faith in anything beyond himself, so he feels that he must take charge. Yes, his arguments appear logical, but this war is not 'logical' it is a war between 'powers & principalities'. Its not an ordinary war & cannot be fought with ordinary means. Boromir seems to both know this & refuse to accept the reality of it. He is using logic & rationality to justify using a magical weapon against a magical foe.

What he misses is that simple fact. Logic is out of place in a spiritual battle - which is always fought within the individual as well as in the external world. In other words, given the nature of the battle that's being fought, Boromir's 'logic' is illogical - it has no place. Frodo's response - 'It would seem like wisdom but for the warning in my heart' shows that Frodo has understood the true nature of the battle, & the place where it is really being fought. Boromir is using his 'head' not his 'heart' to rationalise the conflict & find its solution.

Yet, I see the same kind of conflict going on in Boromir in a way - he is attempting as much to convince himself as to convince Frodo - he even forgets for a time that Frodo is there. The Ring as 'catalyst' as I said in the last chapter. The difference is Boromir's head wins out over his heart, while Frodo's heart wins out over his head. In this sense I think we can see the 'inner' battle of both characters being played out in this confrontation - as much as Boromir represents Frodo's 'head', Frodo represents Boromir's 'heart'. They are both, in a sense, fighting against themselves. And so, Gandalf, the 'Voice', also represents the 'Frodo' side of the conflict, while Sauron, the 'Eye' represents the 'Boromir' side. The 'battle' reiterates in different forms, but it is always the battle between the 'heart' (or 'soul') & the 'head'.

Love & compassion & self sacrifice stand against logic, egotism & the conviction that the end justifies the means. But the heart 'knows' (having reasons that 'reason' knows nothing of) that the 'end' (whatever 'end') is a result of the means used.

Boromir's logic may stand up to scrutiny, but its wrong in the context of the battle that's being fought. In another kind of battle it might be right, but this battle is different.