Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Two Towers, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Decline and Decay
Good and Evil
Duty
Joy and Optimism vs. Despair
Power
Heroism, Honor, and Glory
Summary
Analysis
They rest until dark, only drinking a little of their water, and Gollum tells them there is drinkable water ahead in streams running down from the Great River. At night, the only light around comes from the red light at the top of the Towers of the Teeth, which seems to be watching them. They keep to the right of the road until the red eye vanishes behind them, then rest in a barren land as the day passes. Sam finds it difficult to rest—even when Gollum is clearly deep asleep—because of his hunger. He longs for a homecooked meal.
At night, Sauron overpowers the land. The red light of his tower, representing his ever-watching eye, is the only light—there’s no visible moon or elven stars. Sam is hungry, and for more than elven bread. Though the lembas has magical restorative properties, homecooked food would have the ordinary ability to comfort and transport him. Sam longs for solace and familiarity in the bleak lands they travel through.
Themes
At dusk they start walking again, quickly, into Ithilien, a wooded land. The road they’re following dwindles away as the wild overtakes it, until the stone disappears except for odd paving stones beneath the moss. At dawn they stop again at a stony ridge looking down at the springtime woods. Ithilien, once called the garden of Gondor, is still lovely and plentiful. The smell of the herbs in the air calms the hobbits and makes Gollum retch. At the ruins of an ancient stone basin, they wash and drink water, then find a hiding place to rest. Sam stumbles upon evidence of Mordor’s influence—an area scorched by fire and full of bones. He doesn’t tell Frodo about the spot, worried that Gollum would go and disturb the bones.
In Ithilien, nature and corruption battle for control. Trees and plants have overtaken the paved road and the stone settlements they pass, and the land is shockingly green after the desolation of the lands closer to the Black Gate. Still, Sauron’s influence makes itself known through the scars left by orcs in the green land. Sam attempts to shield Frodo from Sauron’s influence and give him a brief reprieve by keeping him away from the burned place. Once again, Gollum rejects the wholesome things—even simply the smell of herbs—that bring the hobbits joy and solace.
Themes
Now that Sam is away from the despair of the Black Gate, he begins to disagree with Frodo’s inclination to think they won’t return after the completion of their quest. He reconsiders the problem of their food situation, deciding that they should save the lembas for when they’re in real need, and asks Gollum if he can find food fit for a hobbit. Gollum replies that he always helps if he’s asked nicely.
In the forest and shielded from Sauron’s oppressive gaze—though he didn’t even recognize the strain he was under—Sam finds it within himself to be optimistic. Whether or not he really thinks he and Frodo will survive the task of destroying the Ring, he resolves to be ready for the return trip if he can. Caring for Frodo is his duty, and Sam likes to be prepared for all eventualities.
Themes
While Gollum is gone, Frodo eats some lembas and falls asleep in the ferns. Sam remembers how Frodo’s face looked when he was asleep in the house of Elrond, as though a light shone out of him. Now Frodo looks the same, though he has new lines, and Sam loves him with or without the light.
While Frodo finds it difficult to feel joy and optimism among the oppressive forces of the Ring and Sauron’s eye, joy and love come easily to Sam. Even when Sam struggles to find beauty, he always finds it in Frodo and musters enough hope to share. Similarly, though Frodo’s duty to carry the Ring is a burden to him, Sam treats his duty to Frodo as a privilege—he loves Frodo and doesn’t doubt that his place is by his side.
Themes
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Gollum returns with two rabbits and Sam sends him to fetch water as he sets up his cooking tools. Frodo looks too thin, and Sam plans to make him a stew. When Gollum realizes that Sam is making a fire to cook, he protests that cooking ruins the meat. Sam tries to convince him to go off and find herbs and vegetables, but Gollum doesn’t know what “taters” are. Sam explains, “po–ta–toes,” and offers to make some for Gollum, but Gollum still refuses cooked food and Sam sends him off to sleep.
Finally, Sam gets his wish for a homecooked meal and has the opportunity to use the cooking supplies he carried all the way from home. Sam’s cooking is both practical, taking advantage of the available food, and a labor of love for Frodo. Gollum can’t stomach what the hobbits eat, just as they couldn’t eat his raw meat—all Gollum’s tastes seem to have been corrupted by his appetite for the Ring.
Themes
Frodo wakes from another gentle dream to find Sam standing over him with stew, not quite like he’d be able to make in the Shire, but close. Frodo chides Sam for not resting and for lighting a fire, but he’s hungry and glad for the food. Though Gollum is still gone, Sam warns Frodo not to let his guard down and doze off while Sam is asleep. When he goes to wash his cooking gear, he realizes that the smoke from his fire is visible over the trees. Hearing a whistle, he hurries back to Frodo, afraid his fire attracted trouble. Frodo hushes him—he hears voices.
Sam succeeds in giving Frodo a small taste of home with his food, reminding him of better days and reviving his appetite. However, in his excitement to cook for Frodo, he forgets they’re still in enemy lands. Though the food does Frodo good, it still might bring them trouble. In situations like this, Sam occasionally becomes so caught up in doing what’s best for his beloved Frodo that he forgets to consider what’s best for Frodo’s quest.
Themes
The hobbits pack up and hide in the ferns. The voices belong to four men, who search the ferns for them. Sam and Frodo jump out, swords drawn, and see that the men are dressed in green and brown. They remind Frodo of Boromir and are surprised to discover that the hobbits aren’t orcs. The tallest man introduces himself as Faramir, Captain of Gondor. Frodo and Sam call themselves travelers, but Faramir insists that there are no travelers in Ithilien and asks where the third member of their company is. Frodo doesn’t know where Gollum has gone but asks Faramir to spare him if he finds him.
Frodo and Sam assume, as Faramir also assumes, that anyone they meet in Ithilien and the lands around Mordor will be enemies. Though Ithilien used to belong to Gondor, it’s been corrupted by the enemy, and Faramir can’t believe that simple travelers would be passing through. Frodo’s dedication to protect Gollum, gain his trust, and rehabilitate him as much as possible persists even in danger. Gollum has been loyal to them, and Frodo has adopted him as another of his duties.
Themes
Frodo introduces himself and Sam and explains that they set out from Rivendell with a number of companions including Boromir of Minas Tirith. The men are astonished to hear the name Boromir but believe Frodo when he references the riddle that sent Boromir to Rivendell. Faramir, who is heading to a battle, leaves two guards to protect the halflings and plans to speak to them more later, if he returns at all. Frodo wishes him well and Faramir calls hobbits “courteous folk.”
The reactions of the men when they hear Boromir’s name implies that they might have some connection with him beyond simply being his countrymen and fellow soldiers. Faramir recognizes the importance of courtesy as an indicator of morality. Though some (such as Saruman) are both courteous and immoral, the civility shared between Faramir and the hobbits suggests that they may share values, as well, and adhere to a code of morals that the declining Middle-earth is slowly losing.
Themes
The hobbits sit and Frodo eventually speaks to the two men, soldiers of Gondor named Mablung and Damrod. They explain that they’ve come to ambush the Men of Harad, who have sided with Sauron. Damrod believes that Gondor will soon fall to Sauron, but they refuse to let it happen without a fight. Sam wonders where Gollum is, then dozes off. At noon, he’s woken up by horns blowing and the noise of a fight drawing closer.
Damrod’s words reveal that some of the men of Gondor believe wholeheartedly in their imminent defeat. Still, like Treebeard and Théoden, they are devoted to their duty to defend their nation. Even if the coming war is hopeless, there is honor in trying to make a change in the world. Frodo, also on a hopeless quest that will likely lead to his death, has been motivating himself more with fear and necessity than with a desire for honor. More of the realms of men are siding with Sauron in the coming battle between good and evil. Damrod and Mablung don’t offer a guess as to why, but their discussion suggests it’s because they believe Sauron will win the war—that resistance is hopeless.
Themes
Sam stands with the two men to watch his first battle as the Men of Harad flee and Faramir pursues them. A man dies in front of Sam, who doesn’t like the sight. Suddenly, there is a different sound of trumpeting and stomping. Sam is terrified and delighted by the sight of an oliphaunt, which carries a tower and rages away through the thicket. He thinks that no one at home would believe that he saw one, then decides to sleep again. The two guards warn him that Faramir will return soon to take them to a safer place and Sam jokes that they should be quiet when they leave. Mablung laughs and assures Sam that Faramir won’t leave him behind, and the two guards watch over him as he sleeps.
Though Sam is excited to see the battle, he quickly realizes that the reality is ugly and gruesome. Still, the sight of the oliphaunt is like something out of a story, exciting him and distracting him from the brutal realities of the battle. His delight shows that Sam’s hard-won knowledge and grim circumstances haven’t made him cynical. He still loves stories of elves and oliphaunts and is still full of wonder about the world. His capacity for joy is one of his great weapons against the enemy’s despair; with it, he can guard both himself and Frodo.
Themes
