Just in time for the holidays, it’s the gift that keeps on giving: a new Q&A episode! We answer timely questions about Frodo, Sam, and Gollum as they make their way to Mordor, and offer up our brutally honest opinions about whether every member of the Fellowship actually did something important (we’re looking at you, Legolas). Plus many more, including questions about the history and future of the PPP, and a question we can’t believe it’s taken so long for someone to ask: why does Shawn like Eärendil so much?
Recommended Reading:
Tolkien, J. R. R. The Hobbit (Mariner Books, paperback)
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Christopher Tolkien, ed.) The Silmarillion (Mariner Books, paperback)
Carpenter, Humphrey, ed. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (Mariner Books, paperback)
Carl F Hostetter (Editor) The Nature of Middle-earth (Mariner Books, hardback)
thought: if the elven rings have preservation powers, and elrond and cirdan were in possession of the two of the rings at the time of battle, and if elrond and cirdan were the two who survived, while gil-galad and elendil died… maybe they did have the rings on and had some protection because of that
Nice thought – I like it!
Phil
Listening to the question about why was Gollum having visions of grandeur (Gollum the Great) but not before while he was in the Goblin cave brought me to this conclusion: Gollum had not yet met Sauron. Basically he did not know what he had until he was questioned and tortured by Sauron. I think somewhere in Unfinished Tales in the Hunt for the Ring Chapter there is some discussion about Gollum seeing Sauron as his true adversary. So by the time is was let go to hunt for the Ring, he had been schooled into what he has possessed all those years. Certainly at Mount Doom he knew that when the Ring was destroyed he would become dust. Also Gollum understood the promise he made was binding even though his treacherous lawyer side was tying to find a hole in the contract.
My 2 cents.
I just want to say something about about the part of the podcast where you were discussing Gandalf’s statement that forcing Frodo to surrender the ring would “break his mind”. I, personally, don’t like the idea of this being speculation, because it was an absolute statement. From what I Know about Gandalf, he is very precise and careful when speaking on serious matters, and doesn’t use absolute statements when he’s speculating.
With regard to the question of migrations during the Second and Third Age, the first examples that came to my mind were the Eastern peoples that fought against Gondor in the Third Age, specifically the Wainriders and the Balchoth, although the references to them in Appendix A do not provide much information about where they came from.