April 15, 2003

Re. to B. Strongbow on Frodo/Boromir
Peter D.

You are correct in saying that Frodo only achieves the destruction of the ring by Gollums intervention - In the end Frodo fails.

But Boromirs "reasons" to take the ring are only means to an end, the end being that it is Boromir that has the ring. Boromir is certainly not an evil or even flawed character as some think. He would initially use what power he could pull from the ring to oppose Sauron, and maybe even with some initial succes. But in Boromirs eyes, and to all intents and purposes it would be Boromir and the ring on one hand and everyone else on the other, even Denethor his father. He would only be a more powerful version of Gollum. At "best" the only thing that an even more powerful being than Boromir could hope for (or rather end up as) with possesion of the ring, is to challenge Sauron as the ruler of all. And not a king but a tyrant.

Everyone who is tempted by the ring in LotR all have one central theme in common - that it would be THEM at the head, even Sam (as arguably the true hero and central character of the three books) is lured by the ring, transforming the wastes of Mordor into gardens but there is no mistaking that it would be with him at the the head.

The ring is ultimately an offer of personal power, no more no less.