Compare And Contrast Fellowship Of The Ring And Greed

Most people do not want to think of themselves as selfish and most people are not selfish. Life has a way of forcing everyone into situations that they do not want to be in at some point in time. People’s decisions can be affected by many different things: their family, their friends, their financial situation, their wants, their needs or simply whether they ate breakfast that morning or not. In the book The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien brings out the fact that every day people must make decisions that could change their lives and the lives of those around them completely, whether they choose to make choices for themselves or others is up to them. Not all of the decisions that people make are what they actually want. Sometimes
other people have to help him or her see the choice that they need to make. In Chapter 1, Gandalf badgers Bilbo about leaving the ring for Frodo but Bilbo does not want to. Bilbo had begun to fall under the evilness of the ring and Gandalf sees that and thinks that it would be good for Bilbo to leave the ring behind. Bilbo knows that he should leave the ring but he does not have the will power to leave it behind. “Now it comes to it, I don’t like parting with it at all, I may say. And I don’t really see why I should. Why do you want me to? . . . It is mine, I tell you, my own. My precious. Yes, my precious,” said Bilbo Baggins, about the ring (59). Bilbo’s judgement was clouded by what he wanted. At times people need help in making decisions because their judgement can be clouded by what they think they want, without realizing that what they want is not what they need. Sometimes no advice can be given, no one else can be to blame for the choices that people make and they alone have to take responsibility for the decisions that they make.
“Well, Frodo,” said Aragorn at last. “I fear that the burden is laid upon you. You are the Bearer appointed by the Council. Your own way you alone can choose. In this matter I cannot advise you. I am not Gandalf, and though I have tried to bear his part, I do not know what design or hope he had for this hour, if indeed he had any. Most likely it seems that if he were here now the choice would still wait on you. Such is your fate,” (512). Aragorn knew that he could not help Frodo in his decision and Frodo knew that no one could help him. Frodo was very indecisive about choosing whether to go to Minas Tirith or to continue on to Mordor. He had to decide not only his fate but also the fate of the Fellowship. If he led them to Mordor and something bad happened to them, he would feel horrible. But if Frodo led them to Minas Tirith and he did not destroy the ring, then he knew that he would regret not continuing onto Mordor to, once and for all, destroy the ring. Frodo alone had to take responsibility in his decision, not only for the lives of the Fellowship but also for the ring and his own life. He had the fate of the whole world to bear on his shoulders and only he could decide how it would end (512-520). Advice is a good thing to have available when people are facing a tough decision but in the end, it
really comes down to the choice that they make and everyone else has to live with it. Since the choice they must face seems too much of a burden if the lives of others are involved, many people choose a path for only themselves.
They decide to “go it alone” because it involves less responsibility and has a lower risk of failure. In the end, Frodo decides to continue alone. He does not want to leave the Fellowship but he also does not want to lead them to their deaths. “It would be the death of you to come with me, Sam,” said Frodo, “and I could not have borne with that,” (525). Frodo could not handle the guilt if anything happened to any of the members of the Fellowship. So he made a decision for himself. It was not necessarily what he wanted to do but he knew that he needed to do it. He gave up his wants for the protection of the Fellowship and the fate of Middle Earth. Frodo could have had a better chance of survival if he would have chosen to continue on with the Fellowship but he decided that they would have a better chance of survival, both physically and mentally, without him. It was not an easy decision to make but it was one that Frodo knew he had to make (525). Many of the decisions that everyone faces are not easy to make, but they need to be made. Some people do not have the courage to make the decision that they know they need to make. They make put off the decision and not think about it or they might choose they decision that they want. The decision that they want is like taking the easy way out, it usually involves less heartbreak and stress
even if it means suffering in the long run or waiting until it is too late to make a decision. Other people may influence the decision that someone makes but only he or she will feel the true effects of their decision. The other people may feel side effects of the decision but they will not have to live with the guilt or prosper from the happiness of that decision as much as the decision maker will. When it is all said and done, it is better to choose for one’s self which path they should take. When people make tough decisions for themselves it should not be considered selfish. There comes a time in every person’s life when they have to decide what is best for them even if it is not what is best for everyone around them. Many different things can influence anyone’s decision, but what really matters is if they are happy with their decision or not. Life if short, no one was born to please anyone else.