![]() ![]() Mum was telling me to turn the light out and go to sleep, and I read the final events concerning the Ring in the dimming light of failing flashlight batteries under my blanket. I was gripped by the impending conclusion of Frodo’s quest. On the first reading of the narrative at this point, I couldn’t put the book down. How did you react to the events on Mount Doom? To think about Sauron and Evil, then Aragorn as King. Of course the Eagles came: they were part of the fate that governed the quest from the beginning! This made sense to me in my first reading. The deterministic coincidences leading up to this occurrence prepared me to accept it as a significant aspect of Middle-earth, not as some form of Deus ex Machina from Tolkien himself. It reminded me of the simple names of the Shire, and made the end seem not so distant or so harsh as it ultimately was.Īs a final note, the escape from Mount Doom on the wings of the Eagles was certainly an unlooked-for joy to me. ![]() I remembered Frodo’s recollection of Gandalf’s words just prior to entering the heart of the mountain, and the idea of mercy rang through for me, even as a child.Ī quick side note, I should mention that, for all the faux grief aimed at Tolkien for calling this most important place Mount Doom, I always rather liked the name. Again, I knew that there was no such thing as coincidence in Middle-earth, therefore this seemed like a providential moment. This was certainly a plot twist unlike almost anything else I had read up to that point in my life. Then I read as one dumbfounded as Gollum’s greed brought about the destruction of the Ring. In that first experience, though, Frodo’s refusal to destroy the Ring was an utter shock. ![]() I observed all the instances foreshadowing Frodo’s decision in my subsequent reading. Granted, this interpretation has been problematized over the years, but it is an accurate account of my initial response. Therefore, I saw Frodo as a successful hero. The quest, in the end, was successful, and Frodo played the largest part in it. “Failure” was not really a concept I questioned at all. I must admit that this was not an issue to me in my first reading. The consistent theme surrounding Mount Doom is whether Frodo fails in his quest. ![]()
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