Lord Of The Rings Evil Vs Evil
The fundamental nature and conception of evil is complex and disputed. Throughout history scholars and theologians have sought to determine whether evil is a polarized and present force or whether evil is the absence or falling away from good. The Lord of the Rings is not just a story about the conflict between good and evil, but rather is a story that demonstrates the multifaceted nature of both. In the beginning of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring it is easy to relegate evil to a dualistic force in the world, that characters are either inherently good or inherently evil. However, as the plot and characters become more dynamic and complex, it is revealed that evil is not merely dualistic but rather is the result of an interaction between several factors that influence characters’ behavior under
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the Ring. Therefore Tolkien’s novel is not merely about good and evil, but rather about choice. Although the One Ring acts as a tempting force, throughout the novel many characters are forced to choose between using for personal gain, resisting all together, or in using it for the greater good, or whatever they conceve that to be. In The Lord of the Rings, evil seeks domination and control, and thus freedom of choice is an essential attribute of good. The One Ring serves as a corrupting force on the characters by exposing one’s true nature and playing upon their desires until they have no choice but to fall prey. It is the tripod of temptation, which consists of a complex and dynamic interplay between memory, desire, and reason, which determines the corruption of a character and the choices they make when they come under the influence of the One Ring.
The One Ring is first introduced as an Evil as Gandalf explains the tangled history of it to Frodo in the Shire. This seemingly unremarkable band is the main physical embodiment of Evil, and it remains a profound symbol and the only physical link to Sauron during most of the novel. The evil of the Ring is its ability to play off of temptation and cause characters to lose their freedom of choice. Gandalf explains:
“A mortal, Frodo, who keeps one of the Great Rings, does not die, but every minute is a weariness. And if he often uses the Ring to make himself invisible, he fades: he becomes in the end invisible permanently, and walks in the twilight under the eye of the dark power that rules the Rings. Yes, sooner or later—later, if he is strong or well-meaning to begin with, but neither strength nor good purpose will last—sooner or later the dark power will devour them” (1,2,46).
Although the One Ring is a sentient object, it has the telepathic ability to manipulate its bearer by projecting images and removing them from the common world. It draws out and amplifies the bearer’s deepest desires, and this is what begins to devour will and humanity from each character and catalyze their descent away from goodness. The wisest of Middle-Earth, including Galadriel and Gandalf, refuse to take the ring despite their desire for it and they do so on the grounds of memory and reason. Both have seen the utter destruction the Second Age of Middle Earth under the power of the One Ring and reason that it would be devastating if they were corrupted. When confronted with the Ring, both Galadriel and Gandalf become physically transformed. Gandalf becomes distraught and a fire seems to light up within (1, 2, 60). Galadriel’s transformation occurs as the power of the Ring grows stronger, and thus her transformation is more extreme, “She stood before Frodo seeming now tall beyond measurement, and beautiful beyond enduring, terrible and worshipful” (2,7,356). The apprehensiveness of these two powerful figures reveals the severity of the One Ring, and also demonstrates how two characters that use reason and memory to resist ownership the Ring. Their memory and reason skews the tripod of temptation so that will has almost no influence, despite their thirst for power, they will not take the Ring. However, some characters throughout the novel are not so equipped to reject the Ring, and thus succumb to its corruption. The best comparison is between Samwise Gamgee and Boromir, as both are non-magical characters that are directly confronted by the power of the Ring yet have greatly different outcomes.
Boromir is seen as a tragic hero The Lord of The Rings because of his fall from grace and attempted redemption during his time in the fellowship.
Boromir’s downfall was his desperation; he desired to protect his homeland and was burdened by his father to defend Gondor by any means possible. He is characterized as someone who is fearless, prideful, and delighted by battle. His intentions and personality were not necessarily flawed, but his desperation became his hamartia and clouded his reason, thus allowing the Ring to gain control over him. Unlike the others in the company, he had seen evil’s power of destruction as Mordor continuously and catastrophically attacked Gondor. His will to relieve his people of a great burden distorted his reason. Further separating him from the others is that his memory of the Ring is more present, as Mordor infiltrates daily life, memory is much more current and less focused on the past. Despite knowing the destructive nature of the Ring and the consensus reached by the Council of Elrond, he seeks to use it as a weapon at Minas Tirith against Mordor. When he attempted to convince Frodo to give him the Ring, he explained
that: “True-hearted Men, they will not be corrupted. We of Minas Tirith have been staunch through long years of trial. We do not desire the power of wizard-lords, only strength to defend ourselves, strength in a just cause. And behold! In our need chance brings to light the Ring of Power. It is a gift, I say; a gift to the foes of Mordor. It is mad not to use it, to use the power of the Enemy against him. The fearless, the ruthless, these alone will achieve victory. What could not a warrior do in this hour, a great leader? What could not Aragorn do? Or if he refuses, why not Boromir? The Ring would give me power of Command. How I would drive the hosts of Mordor, and all men would flock to my banner!” (2, 10, 389).
He then attempted to reason with Frodo by saying, “I do not say destroy it. That might be well if reason could show any hope of doing so…I need your Ring (2, 10, 390)” It is wholly evident here that Boromir is an incredibly desperate man, as evidenced by his sudden weeping after he realized what he had done. He does not feel that he is corrupted by the power of the One Ring, because he sees his intentions as pure and true. However well intended his heart may be, the Ring senses that desperation and uses it to disintegrate his reason, logic, and will power. He tells Frodo that a sort of “madness” took over him, and that the actions were not wholly of his own accord. Thus, Boromir succumbs to the temptation to the Ring because his will, driven by the power of the One Ring, outweighs his memory of the Ring in the far past and slightly skews reasoning for possessing the Ring. While Boromir is not evil, his fall away from good further demonstrates the complex nature of evil. At his death he is a character that has displayed a descent away from good, which was facilitated by the Ring. His quest begins with noble impulses, using the Ring against Sauron, but that desire is a delusion that acts upon Boromir. Not only was his will degraded but his freedom of choice was also taken. He initially chose to follow the wishes of the Council of Elrond by assisting Frodo to Mordor, however the Ring confiscated that choice from him and forced him into “madness.”
Throughout the novel the character Samwise Gamgee transforms from a simple hobbit gardener, to the bearer of the Ring and crucial component in a legend, and back to a simple hobbit gardener, all within Tolkien’s 1,200-page novel. Unlike Boromir who had sound reason but misplaced will, Sam’s intentions seem wholly noble and he has no desire to use the Ring for control. Sam offers to share the burden of the Ring three times throughout the novel, once when he assumes Frodo is dead at Cirith Ungol, once immediately after returning it, and another when the sight of his master struggling becomes too much to bear. Although it is slightly ambiguous whether his motivation to take the Ring was driven by pity and compassion or by a Ring-formulated desire to regain possession, he relinquishes it to Frodo every time. Sam’s participation in the fellowship is crucial, when Frodo is seemingly unable to go on, Sam becomes the Ring bearer despite seeing the physical, mental, and emotional toll it has on Frodo.
Sam is unaffected by the One Ring because of the choices he makes on the basis of his memory, reason, and will. Sam does not have prolonged or direct contact with the One Ring until much later in the novel and therefore sees the fading of Frodo, remembers corruption of Boromir and sees the utter destruction of the Ring around him while in Mordor. Despite being a powerless hobbit, his “good hobbit sense” keeps him grounded when he is confronted with the Ring. Even as it tries to tempt him, he still wields it by choice, which is an important distinction between him and other characters. He does not merely find the Ring, take the Ring, or in any way require the Ring. In his mind he has the choices to either help his master by bear the Ring and risk the temptation, or let the Ring destroy Middle-Earth (6,1,185). Although Sam is able to resist the temptation, it is not for lack of enticement by the Ring: “Already the Ring tempted him, gnawing at his will and reason. Wild fantasies arose in his mind; and he saw Samwise the Strong, hero of the Age, striding with flaming sword across the darkened land, and armies flocking to his call as he marched to overthrow of Barad-dûr…at his command the vale of Gorgoroth became a garden of flowers and tress and brought forth fruit. He had only to put on the Ring and claim it for his own, and all this could be” [6,1,186].
It is here that the interplay between memory, will, and reason dictate the decision that Sam makes and it is because the freedom of choice is not removed that Sam remains unaffected by the Ring. Sam’s memory recalls the corruption of Gollum and Boromir, as well as the steady decay of Frodo. His reason informs his memory that all who possess the ring become a thrall of Sauron himself. In this instance it is Sam’s will that prevents his corruption, at the core of it is his “good plain hobbit sense” and a strong desire to help Frodo. His pure intentions prevent the One Ring from being able to completely corrupt him because the he only possessed the Ring out of love for his master, not the desire for power.
The language surrounding the Ring is interesting and complex. When a character is wearing the Ring, it acts upon them. In the instance of Sambthe Ring gnaws at him like an animal and causing him to fantasize his deepest desires and Sam must actively fight back. The Ring is exerting a physical force onto Sam’s willpower, thus indicating that evil is a present force. Sam feels himself robed in a distorted shadow of himself, which indicates that the Ring is attempting to corrupt him but also that the Ring is causing him to fall away from his former self. Like Gandalf said, all who possess the Ring will become shadows of themselves, and the will in time fade (1, 2, 46). In this passage it seems like the Ring is a present force of evil, and therefore there is an interesting dichotomy between the two theories of evil. In the Boethian perspective, evil is the absence of good and is a matter of choice. In the Manichaeanism perspective, evil and good are dualistic, and evil is a present force exerting power on the world. The Ring itself is a physical and present force on the world, exerting evil by removing the freedom of choice, which corresponds with the Manichaeism perspective. However, the ‘evil’ that is forced upon individuals results in their degradation from humanity and fall away from what is considered good. The Ring therefore is not only a representation of evil, but rather of choice, and how one can choose to be good. The Ring sets out to control the world and to force all under the rule of Sauron. Evil, then, is not only the falling away from good, but also the inability to exercise free will and choice. Both Boromir and Sam struggled with themselves (and the Ring) determine whether to succumb to their own desires or not, but arrived at different fates.
The comparison between Sam and Boromir demonstrates the complexity of evil, in that not everyone is affected equally, and that people are affected for different reasons. Sam’s pure intentions to help his master, his memory of the effects of the Ring, and is knowledge of the Ring prevent the Ring from tempting him, and allow him to continually express his freedom of choice. For Sam, the desire to have a small garden greatly supersedes his desire to control an entire realm. Boromir had sound reasoning in that he wanted desperately to help Gondor and use this Ring of Power to destroy evil once and for all, but his will overpowered his memory and reason and made him unreceptive to what others in the fellowship were saying. The Ring played upon his desperation and thus removed his freedom to choose his fate in the fellowship. Tolkien’s view of evil throughout The Lord of the Rings is often ambiguous and ever changing. In the beginning of The Fellowship we see evil as dualistic: Sauron is evil, and Gandalf and Frodo are good. As the novel progresses, it becomes evident that personal intentions play a large role in the Council and Fellowship, thus further complicating our perception of evil. Temptation adds yet another distorting layer in that it acts upon intentions, yet can be counteracted by memory and reason. Evil is not simply dualist, or merely an excision of choice and goodness. Evil is complex and ever changing. The potential for evil lies within everyone, but it is whether or not we decide succumb to it that determines our fate.
the Ring. Therefore Tolkien’s novel is not merely about good and evil, but rather about choice. Although the One Ring acts as a tempting force, throughout the novel many characters are forced to choose between using for personal gain, resisting all together, or in using it for the greater good, or whatever they conceve that to be. In The Lord of the Rings, evil seeks domination and control, and thus freedom of choice is an essential attribute of good. The One Ring serves as a corrupting force on the characters by exposing one’s true nature and playing upon their desires until they have no choice but to fall prey. It is the tripod of temptation, which consists of a complex and dynamic interplay between memory, desire, and reason, which determines the corruption of a character and the choices they make when they come under the influence of the One Ring.
The One Ring is first introduced as an Evil as Gandalf explains the tangled history of it to Frodo in the Shire. This seemingly unremarkable band is the main physical embodiment of Evil, and it remains a profound symbol and the only physical link to Sauron during most of the novel. The evil of the Ring is its ability to play off of temptation and cause characters to lose their freedom of choice. Gandalf explains:
“A mortal, Frodo, who keeps one of the Great Rings, does not die, but every minute is a weariness. And if he often uses the Ring to make himself invisible, he fades: he becomes in the end invisible permanently, and walks in the twilight under the eye of the dark power that rules the Rings. Yes, sooner or later—later, if he is strong or well-meaning to begin with, but neither strength nor good purpose will last—sooner or later the dark power will devour them” (1,2,46).
Although the One Ring is a sentient object, it has the telepathic ability to manipulate its bearer by projecting images and removing them from the common world. It draws out and amplifies the bearer’s deepest desires, and this is what begins to devour will and humanity from each character and catalyze their descent away from goodness. The wisest of Middle-Earth, including Galadriel and Gandalf, refuse to take the ring despite their desire for it and they do so on the grounds of memory and reason. Both have seen the utter destruction the Second Age of Middle Earth under the power of the One Ring and reason that it would be devastating if they were corrupted. When confronted with the Ring, both Galadriel and Gandalf become physically transformed. Gandalf becomes distraught and a fire seems to light up within (1, 2, 60). Galadriel’s transformation occurs as the power of the Ring grows stronger, and thus her transformation is more extreme, “She stood before Frodo seeming now tall beyond measurement, and beautiful beyond enduring, terrible and worshipful” (2,7,356). The apprehensiveness of these two powerful figures reveals the severity of the One Ring, and also demonstrates how two characters that use reason and memory to resist ownership the Ring. Their memory and reason skews the tripod of temptation so that will has almost no influence, despite their thirst for power, they will not take the Ring. However, some characters throughout the novel are not so equipped to reject the Ring, and thus succumb to its corruption. The best comparison is between Samwise Gamgee and Boromir, as both are non-magical characters that are directly confronted by the power of the Ring yet have greatly different outcomes.
Boromir is seen as a tragic hero The Lord of The Rings because of his fall from grace and attempted redemption during his time in the fellowship.
Boromir’s downfall was his desperation; he desired to protect his homeland and was burdened by his father to defend Gondor by any means possible. He is characterized as someone who is fearless, prideful, and delighted by battle. His intentions and personality were not necessarily flawed, but his desperation became his hamartia and clouded his reason, thus allowing the Ring to gain control over him. Unlike the others in the company, he had seen evil’s power of destruction as Mordor continuously and catastrophically attacked Gondor. His will to relieve his people of a great burden distorted his reason. Further separating him from the others is that his memory of the Ring is more present, as Mordor infiltrates daily life, memory is much more current and less focused on the past. Despite knowing the destructive nature of the Ring and the consensus reached by the Council of Elrond, he seeks to use it as a weapon at Minas Tirith against Mordor. When he attempted to convince Frodo to give him the Ring, he explained
that: “True-hearted Men, they will not be corrupted. We of Minas Tirith have been staunch through long years of trial. We do not desire the power of wizard-lords, only strength to defend ourselves, strength in a just cause. And behold! In our need chance brings to light the Ring of Power. It is a gift, I say; a gift to the foes of Mordor. It is mad not to use it, to use the power of the Enemy against him. The fearless, the ruthless, these alone will achieve victory. What could not a warrior do in this hour, a great leader? What could not Aragorn do? Or if he refuses, why not Boromir? The Ring would give me power of Command. How I would drive the hosts of Mordor, and all men would flock to my banner!” (2, 10, 389).
He then attempted to reason with Frodo by saying, “I do not say destroy it. That might be well if reason could show any hope of doing so…I need your Ring (2, 10, 390)” It is wholly evident here that Boromir is an incredibly desperate man, as evidenced by his sudden weeping after he realized what he had done. He does not feel that he is corrupted by the power of the One Ring, because he sees his intentions as pure and true. However well intended his heart may be, the Ring senses that desperation and uses it to disintegrate his reason, logic, and will power. He tells Frodo that a sort of “madness” took over him, and that the actions were not wholly of his own accord. Thus, Boromir succumbs to the temptation to the Ring because his will, driven by the power of the One Ring, outweighs his memory of the Ring in the far past and slightly skews reasoning for possessing the Ring. While Boromir is not evil, his fall away from good further demonstrates the complex nature of evil. At his death he is a character that has displayed a descent away from good, which was facilitated by the Ring. His quest begins with noble impulses, using the Ring against Sauron, but that desire is a delusion that acts upon Boromir. Not only was his will degraded but his freedom of choice was also taken. He initially chose to follow the wishes of the Council of Elrond by assisting Frodo to Mordor, however the Ring confiscated that choice from him and forced him into “madness.”
Throughout the novel the character Samwise Gamgee transforms from a simple hobbit gardener, to the bearer of the Ring and crucial component in a legend, and back to a simple hobbit gardener, all within Tolkien’s 1,200-page novel. Unlike Boromir who had sound reason but misplaced will, Sam’s intentions seem wholly noble and he has no desire to use the Ring for control. Sam offers to share the burden of the Ring three times throughout the novel, once when he assumes Frodo is dead at Cirith Ungol, once immediately after returning it, and another when the sight of his master struggling becomes too much to bear. Although it is slightly ambiguous whether his motivation to take the Ring was driven by pity and compassion or by a Ring-formulated desire to regain possession, he relinquishes it to Frodo every time. Sam’s participation in the fellowship is crucial, when Frodo is seemingly unable to go on, Sam becomes the Ring bearer despite seeing the physical, mental, and emotional toll it has on Frodo.
Sam is unaffected by the One Ring because of the choices he makes on the basis of his memory, reason, and will. Sam does not have prolonged or direct contact with the One Ring until much later in the novel and therefore sees the fading of Frodo, remembers corruption of Boromir and sees the utter destruction of the Ring around him while in Mordor. Despite being a powerless hobbit, his “good hobbit sense” keeps him grounded when he is confronted with the Ring. Even as it tries to tempt him, he still wields it by choice, which is an important distinction between him and other characters. He does not merely find the Ring, take the Ring, or in any way require the Ring. In his mind he has the choices to either help his master by bear the Ring and risk the temptation, or let the Ring destroy Middle-Earth (6,1,185). Although Sam is able to resist the temptation, it is not for lack of enticement by the Ring: “Already the Ring tempted him, gnawing at his will and reason. Wild fantasies arose in his mind; and he saw Samwise the Strong, hero of the Age, striding with flaming sword across the darkened land, and armies flocking to his call as he marched to overthrow of Barad-dûr…at his command the vale of Gorgoroth became a garden of flowers and tress and brought forth fruit. He had only to put on the Ring and claim it for his own, and all this could be” [6,1,186].
It is here that the interplay between memory, will, and reason dictate the decision that Sam makes and it is because the freedom of choice is not removed that Sam remains unaffected by the Ring. Sam’s memory recalls the corruption of Gollum and Boromir, as well as the steady decay of Frodo. His reason informs his memory that all who possess the ring become a thrall of Sauron himself. In this instance it is Sam’s will that prevents his corruption, at the core of it is his “good plain hobbit sense” and a strong desire to help Frodo. His pure intentions prevent the One Ring from being able to completely corrupt him because the he only possessed the Ring out of love for his master, not the desire for power.
The language surrounding the Ring is interesting and complex. When a character is wearing the Ring, it acts upon them. In the instance of Sambthe Ring gnaws at him like an animal and causing him to fantasize his deepest desires and Sam must actively fight back. The Ring is exerting a physical force onto Sam’s willpower, thus indicating that evil is a present force. Sam feels himself robed in a distorted shadow of himself, which indicates that the Ring is attempting to corrupt him but also that the Ring is causing him to fall away from his former self. Like Gandalf said, all who possess the Ring will become shadows of themselves, and the will in time fade (1, 2, 46). In this passage it seems like the Ring is a present force of evil, and therefore there is an interesting dichotomy between the two theories of evil. In the Boethian perspective, evil is the absence of good and is a matter of choice. In the Manichaeanism perspective, evil and good are dualistic, and evil is a present force exerting power on the world. The Ring itself is a physical and present force on the world, exerting evil by removing the freedom of choice, which corresponds with the Manichaeism perspective. However, the ‘evil’ that is forced upon individuals results in their degradation from humanity and fall away from what is considered good. The Ring therefore is not only a representation of evil, but rather of choice, and how one can choose to be good. The Ring sets out to control the world and to force all under the rule of Sauron. Evil, then, is not only the falling away from good, but also the inability to exercise free will and choice. Both Boromir and Sam struggled with themselves (and the Ring) determine whether to succumb to their own desires or not, but arrived at different fates.
The comparison between Sam and Boromir demonstrates the complexity of evil, in that not everyone is affected equally, and that people are affected for different reasons. Sam’s pure intentions to help his master, his memory of the effects of the Ring, and is knowledge of the Ring prevent the Ring from tempting him, and allow him to continually express his freedom of choice. For Sam, the desire to have a small garden greatly supersedes his desire to control an entire realm. Boromir had sound reasoning in that he wanted desperately to help Gondor and use this Ring of Power to destroy evil once and for all, but his will overpowered his memory and reason and made him unreceptive to what others in the fellowship were saying. The Ring played upon his desperation and thus removed his freedom to choose his fate in the fellowship. Tolkien’s view of evil throughout The Lord of the Rings is often ambiguous and ever changing. In the beginning of The Fellowship we see evil as dualistic: Sauron is evil, and Gandalf and Frodo are good. As the novel progresses, it becomes evident that personal intentions play a large role in the Council and Fellowship, thus further complicating our perception of evil. Temptation adds yet another distorting layer in that it acts upon intentions, yet can be counteracted by memory and reason. Evil is not simply dualist, or merely an excision of choice and goodness. Evil is complex and ever changing. The potential for evil lies within everyone, but it is whether or not we decide succumb to it that determines our fate.