Good vs. Evil
The confrontation between forces of good and evil, or light and dark, is the basic theme of epic, myth, and romance—all genres that readers have applied to Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring, the first volume in his Lord of the Rings series. It is therefore no surprise that the honorable members of the titular Fellowship (Frodo, Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Boromir, Sam, Merry, and…
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Courage, Heroism, and Selflessness
From the outset, The Fellowship of the Ring introduces readers to a world in which cultures memorialize the feats of their legendary heroes in myth and song. In Tolkien’s early chapters, the narrator and protagonists make reference to larger-than-life individuals who excelled in combat and magic, including Frodo’s ancestor Bandobras “Bullroarer” Took (renowned as the hobbit who slew the orc leader at the Battle of Greenfields), as well as Gil-Galad and Elendil (…
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Free Will, Fate, and Foresight
The Fellowship of the Ring begins the story of the Company of the Ring who set out to destroy the One Ring, an action that will defeat the rising threat of the Dark Lord Sauron. Nine individuals choose to join the Fellowship for the purpose of saving the Free Peoples of Middle-earth. In many ways, though, their choices and decisions seem predestined by a greater overarching power that is hinted at in…
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History and Myth
The titular company of The Fellowship of the Ring consists of individuals from many cultures, including hobbits, dwarves, elves, and humans. Tolkien presents various forms of history and myth across these cultures—for example, hobbits enjoy playful songs that reflect their pastoral traditions, humans favor legends of battlefield valor, and elves tend to create mythical odes about ancient events. These histories and myths can have a threefold purpose: they preserve memories of…
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