A conspiracy is finally unmasked in the second half of “A Conspiracy Unmasked”! Frodo’s dread turns to relief when he learns his friends already know much more than he gave them credit for. They insist on leaving with him and promise to stick to him through thick and thin — all except for Fredegar, who finds those creepy, sniffing Black Riders far less scary than… uh, trees. We take time to analyze Frodo’s mysterious dream, wax poetic about the importance of fellowship, and get our hearts full of hobbitry with an uplifting Tolkien Quote of the Day.
For the article by John Garth that inspired today’s Tolkien Quote of the Day, see The Daily Beast: “Why World War I is at the Heart of ‘Lord of the Rings'”.
Recommended Reading:
Tolkien, J. R. R. The Monsters and the Critics and Other Essays (HarperCollins, paperback)
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Christopher Tolkien, ed.) The Silmarillion (Mariner Books, paperback)
Tolkien, J. R. R. The Hobbit (Mariner Books, paperback)
Carpenter, Humphrey, ed. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (Mariner Books, paperback)
Speaking of dreams….I sometimes think Frodo just had an anxiety type of dream. You know, the ones where you cannot open your locker in school…and classes have started…..My favorite/worst anxiety dreams are the ones where I have 10 patients that need medications/treatments, and I am not dressed for work and I have neglected them all shift! Anyway, the dream sequence-or lack of sequence- reminded me of a favorite comic, Calvin and Hobbes. This is the image, I hope you enjoy it. (I also hope the link works, it is from another document I found.)
https://i1.wp.com/www.jadewalker.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/strange-dreams-1.jpg
P.S.
There are 5 ponies, and 4 lights……have always thought a mash-up of Cardashian and Kardassian (spelled wrong, I am sure) would be incredible!
LOL! That C&H strip was great, thank you for sharing it.
And as for the Cardassian/Kardashian mashup, do a Google image search sometime… we found quite a few fun ones (and a few disturbing ones!) out there. 🙂
Hello! I’ve been binge-listening so I hope I have my comments on the right episode.
I really enjoy your discussions on the fate/free will issue, and what might be called pre-destination. But I have a question that I’ve not heard addressed before. If Bilbo was MEANT to find the ring, and Frodo was MEANT to have it, then this raises the issue of Frodo’s parents. Obviously Frodo would not have been Bilbo’s heir if Frodo had not been orphaned. Does this mean that it was Iluvatar’s plan was to kill them? His parents were drowned on the river – was this Ulmo’s hand at work? (Ulmo, who, by the way, would have known every moment where the Ring was – either in the Anduin, or with Gollum in his underground lake.)
I would also like to comment on Fredegar “Fatty” Bolger. I thought you were kind of hard on him. Yes, he is afraid to go into the Old Forest, but he did have the nerve to stay behind and face up to Black Riders that he knew would be pretty ticked off at not finding Frodo.That takes a lot of courage! (It reminded me of Lord Aragorn’s mercy when he marched on the Black Gate, when some of the soldiers were to afraid to go with him. He gave them a different task within their measure, so that they would not be shamed.) Remember Fredegar also became a leader of the Freedom Fighters when things got bad in the Shire. He acted honourably and bravely in every instance, so he should be respected, not dissed.
Keep up the good work, you guys! I’ve been reading LOTR repeatedly for almost 50 years, and your podcasts are bringing new depths to my understanding of the Professor’s work. I’ve been making my way steadily through the podcasts since February, and looking forward to what the next episodes bring.
Thank you, Donna! I’ll have to save your question about the fate of Frodo’s parents for another time when we can really dive into it, but it’s a very good question. We’ll try to answer it on the show someday when we can.
As for Fatty Bolger, you’re right, we’re a little hard on him… but it’s just a bit of fun. Surely he wasn’t born a hero, though, as he shows in the early chapters. I wish somewhere there were a story of how he found his inner hero and learned to fight for what he loves — but you’re right, he is honorable and brave.
Thank you for listening and commenting! Enjoy your continued binge to catch up.